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Local looks to keep famed Astroland
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COURIER L 4 IFE, OCTOBER 1-7, 2021
BY JESSICA PARKS
A longtime staple of the
shuttered Astroland Park
in Coney Island, Dante’s Inferno,
has resurfaced thanks
to a 22-year-old preservationist
who is selling off parts
from the spooky funhouse as
mementos to those interested
in the peninsula’s history.
“I recently purchased
Dante’s Inferno from Astroland
Coney Island and I’m
selling most of the pieces from
the ride,” Sean McCarthy
posted to the Facebook group
Dark Rides and FunHouses
on Sept. 20. “Please feel free
to message me if you’re interested
in any of the props or
pieces.”
Locals then shared McCarthy’s
post to a Coney Islandbased
Facebook page, where
it initially received backlash
from commenters who felt the
ride should have been better
preserved.
But what they didn’t know
is that McCarthy, of Rhode
Island, purchased the ride’s
remaining props and panels
with the same intention — to
preserve it for future generations
— and is only selling the
parts piecemeal because he
had to purchase the ride in
full from the original seller.
“I like preserving stuff
and saving them from deterioration,
so I’d rather restore
it and keep it in a climate-controlled
space,” McCarthy told
Brooklyn Paper. “That’s my
main goal with all of this stuff
to keep it preserved and make
sure nothing happens to it …
so it can live on instead of being
thrown in the dumpster.”
McCarthy purchased
Dante’s Inferno from Obnoxious
Antiques after the retailer
bought the funhouse
from Astroland, which closed
its doors in 2008 and has been
slowly selling off its rides
Charles Denson of the Coney Island History Project (left) and Steve Vourderis of Deno’s Wonder Wheel (right)
with the gorilla from Dante’s Inferno. Coney Island History Project
ever since.
“I wanted a lot of props out
of this ride and they wanted
to sell the ride as a whole,”
McCarthy said. “So I just decided
to buy the entire ride
and keep the pieces that I
wanted to keep, and then sell
everything off individually so
other people can have a piece
of Coney Island history.”
A number of Astroland’s
rides have been reincarnated
at amusement parks all over
the world, such as the popular
Breakdance ride, which
has been restored and is now
in use in the United Kingdom,
and the fan-favorite log fl ume
ride, now in use somewhere
in Central America, according
to the Coney Island History
Project.
“Ever since Astroland
closed in 2008, the rides
were put in storage and have
been sold one by one over the
years,” said Tricia Vita, Coney
Island History Project’s
administrative director. “The
bumper car ride is at Deno’s.
Other rides are at various
parks in the US and Central
America. Dante’s was for sale
as well — the props, because
the building was not moveable
— and was sold about a
year ago.”
The Coney Island History
Project and Deno’s Wonder
Wheel Amusement Park also
rescued the Astroland Rocket
— one of the park’s fi rst rides,
which exemplifi ed its spaceage
theme — from deterioration
in Staten Island after the
city failed to maintain the
neighborhood icon after the
park’s owners donated it.
The rocket landed back in
Coney Island in 2014 and can
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