Tricia Vita
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triciavita.bsky.social
Tricia Vita
@triciavita.bsky.social
1.2K followers 890 following 560 posts
Writer, oral historian, reminiscence facilitator, teaching artist. Former carny kid. Coney Island, carnivals, fairs, amusement business. It's the front of the show that gets the dough! Authors Guild member.
https://linktr.ee/triciavita
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triciavita.bsky.social
Tricia Vita @triciavita.bsky.social · Nov 17
When I was a carny kid, I loved going to the wholesale houses in Boston and Providence where we stocked up on little “prize every times" for our games. You can read “The Land of Prizes” from my carnival #memoir in progress on my website: www.triciavita.com/the_land_of_...
triciavita.bsky.social
Happy #NationalRollerCoasterDay! I recorded an oral history for @coneyislandhistory.bsky.social with roller coaster designer Mike Boodley. Fifty years ago, he broke a world record riding the Coney Island Cyclone 1,001X in 45 hrs 🎢 www.coneyislandhistory.org/oral-history... @ridewithace.bsky.social
News clipping from August 15, 1975 has the headline State's Michael Boodley New Roller-Coaster King. Fifty years ago this month, on August 14, 1975, seventeen-year-old Mike Boodley set a Guinness world record for consecutive roller coaster rides by riding the Coney Island Cyclone 1,001 times over 45 hours. The black & white photo shows him sitting in the first car, which says Cyclone, after the 1001st ride, and people around him congratulating him.
August 16, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
Charles Denson, director of the Coney Island History Project, has a NEW Substack about Coney Island!
➡️ Read his first post & subscribe for free: coneyologist.substack.com
Denson is the author of the prizewinning Coney Island: Lost and Found and three other books about Coney Island.
Top of first post of Charles Denson's Substack says "Coney Casino Derangement: How a casino developer is targeting a vulnerable community, Charles Denson, July 29, 2025" and show a photo of children wearing "The Coney" casino t-shirts. They have basketballs under the their arms. Their faces are cropped off in this photo but in the original photo their faces are shown.
July 30, 2025 at 1:18 PM
triciavita.bsky.social
Hit the Hammer, Ring the Bell! My article about the history of the high striker is published in the July issue of Amusement Warehouse, the print magazine companion to carnivalwarehouse.com. The strongman game inspired the phrase "close, but no cigar!" because a cigar was your prize if you won.
Graphic shows photo layout of my article HIt the Hammer, Ring the Bell! The History of the High Striker in Amusement Warehouse Magazine. The large photo on the left is a still from the 1917 silent film comedy Coney Island showing Buster Keaton holding a hammer in front of a high striker and hitting Fatty Arbuckle on the chin so that his hat jumps in the air. Smaller photos from the early 20th century on the right show the bottom part of the high striker's wooden tower with numbers 300, 500, and 600 painted on it and a player hitting the gong.
July 29, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
NEW in our oral history archive: Randy Profeta, great grandson of Coney Island sign painter Harry Wildman (1875-1930), who created the logo for Nathan's when it opened in 1916. Recorded for the Coney Island History Project by @triciavita.bsky.social. www.coneyislandhistory.org/oral-history...
July 18, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
The Coney casino developers are falsely claiming that gambling casinos were once a traditional business in Coney Island & @nycplanning.bsky.social bought the lie. History lesson: www.coneyislandhistory.org/blog/coney-c...
@bkbpreynoso.bsky.social @justinbrannan.bsky.social @alexsommer.bsky.social
Logo of Coney Island History Project and vintage postcard showing Resinweber's Casino, which was actually a restaurant. Text says: The Coney Island casino developers need a history lesson. Reisenwebers Restaurant was not a gambling casino! The Coney Island casino developers are making the false claim that gambling casinos were once a traditional business in Coney Island. Their claim is a major part of the PowerPoint presentation they show at public hearings and to elected officials. The presentation shows an old postcard of a building with a roof sign that says “Reisenweber’s Casino.” That’s the extent of their proof. The problem is that their claim is absolutely FALSE. There were never gambling casinos in Coney Island. In the past it was common for dance halls, cabarets, bungalow colonies, restaurants, and bathhouses to call themselves “casinos.” The word “casino” had absolutely nothing to do with gambling. Read more at coneyislandhistory.org/blog This is a text block that says: This is a truth can easily be fact-checked. There are no photographs, tax records, licenses, newspaper stories, advertisements, or recorded memories of a gambling casino ever operating in Coney Island. “The Coney” casino developers sold their claim based on one postcard image, and the New York City Planning Commission bought the lie. This type of fraud creates serious problems when used to influence public policy. This is exactly what happened when the @nycplanning Commission approved the zoning for the casino on May 7, 2025. Here is a direct quote from page 14 of the Planning Commission’s approval of the rezoning of Coney Island for the casino: “Casinos were once a popular and established use in Coney Island and a gaming facility returning to Coney will not only reinforce the area as an amusement district but also establish a new, year-round destination for residents and tourists, aligned with the goals of the Special Coney Island District.”
July 10, 2025 at 1:19 PM
triciavita.bsky.social
Watching Coney Island's 4th of July fireworks on West 15th St thru the loop of Luna Park's Thunderbolt roller coaster 🎢
July 6, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
filmsbyamy.bsky.social
Yesterday, the NYC Council voted to rezone Coney Island - AGAIN!!!!!!

Coney Island attendance in 2006 (before @nycplanning.bsky.social rezoned in 2009):
12.8M
... and in 2022:
5M

A casino won't save what they've ruined.

tv.apple.com/us/movie/zip...
Zipper: Coney Island's Last Wild Ride - Apple TV
A real-estate mogul grabs up the rented lot of a small-time operator of a carnival ride.
tv.apple.com
July 2, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
Unfortunately @council.nyc.gov passed Coney Island casino proposal to de-map public streets & acquire air rights for hotel 2x the height allowed by zoning. Vote was 36 - yes, including the vote of local CM @justinbrannan.bsky.social, 11 - no, and 4 abstentions. www.brooklynpaper.com/city-council...
Rolling the dice: City Council approves Coney Island casino rezoning as state begins to consider gaming licenses • Brooklyn Paper
The New York City Council on Monday approved a rezoning that would allow the proposed Coney Island casino to build a massive facility in the People’s
www.brooklynpaper.com
July 1, 2025 at 4:25 PM
triciavita.bsky.social
Being on the umpteenth draft of my memoir, this essay speaks to me.
authorsguild.org The Authors Guild @authorsguild.org · Jul 1
"We are not merely researching and writing the matter of our books here. We are researching and writing the matter of our lives. That is why we can and perhaps even should resist the capitalist imperative to rush."

lithub.com/the-agonies-...
The Agonies and Ecstasies of a Slow Book Project
Slow books. Long-haulers. Glacial-pacers. Forever-endeavors. Determine the quickest, most efficient way of writing a book, and then do the opposite: That’s me. Besides sleeping, there is no activit…
lithub.com
July 1, 2025 at 3:19 PM
triciavita.bsky.social
Gilbert Chadwick, 92, the oldest showman at the Hoppings, one of Europe's largest travelling funfairs, on being on the road: "I say don't think about it, just do it, keep going. Sit down for six months and you'll seize up, and that's it." www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-e...
Hoppings' oldest showman shares secret of longevity aged 92
Gilbert Chadwick, 92, runs the Fun House with his wife Eileen, 87, and the couple still have no plans to retire
www.chroniclelive.co.uk
June 29, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
politicdormouse.bsky.social
Sarah Hengler (1765–1845) Fire Queen of Vauxhall Gardens, The King's Pyrotechnic. Businesswoman, firework artist. Matriarch of family of acrobats & performers who founded Hengler's Circus. Invented rocket element for early shore to ship lifesaving equipment en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_H... #INWED25
Sarah, Madame Hengler, portrait depicting her as a young woman made up from the fireworks of the business she ran for 40 years - and eventally died from when her home and fireworks factory caught fire and she died in the blaze.
June 23, 2025 at 10:51 PM
triciavita.bsky.social
DYK applications to open a NYC area casino are due today? That's why @council.nyc.gov is in a mad rush to pass rezoning for Coney casino 😡 Please phone or email Coney Island Councilman Justin Brannan (718-748-5200, [email protected]) and your council member.
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/27/n...
For Casino Operators, It’s Deadline Day
www.nytimes.com
June 27, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
The NYC Council will vote on a casino developer's demapping proposal on Monday, June 30 ⚠️ If you don't want Coney Island to be replaced by a casino, we urge you to phone or email Coney Councilman @justinbrannan.bsky.social and your council member. Find your district: council.nyc.gov/districts/
The graphic says: UPDATE: On June 26, the New York City Council's Land Use and Zoning & Franchises Subcommittees voted unanimously to allow the Coney casino developer to de-map public streets and acquire air rights to build sky bridges and a hotel twice the height allowed by existing zoning. The full City Council will vote on Monday, June 30. If you don't want Coney Island to be replaced by a casino, we urge you to phone or email Coney Island Councilman Justin Brannan (718-748-5200, AskJB@council.nyc.gov) and your council member. Find your district: https://council.nyc.gov/districts/. Images include the developer's rendering of of the multi-block casino & hotel project and a warning symbol.
June 27, 2025 at 1:54 AM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
bartona104.bsky.social
Today in @transom.bsky.social — my tribute to media historian, radio writer, documentarian, teacher and all around king, Erik Barnouw. transom.org/2025/audio-a...
Audio Ancestors: Erik Barnouw - Transom
Audio Ancestors: Erik Barnouw - Transom
transom.org
June 25, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
penamerica.bsky.social
Book bans are getting weirder, targeting cats, dogs and civic-minded grandmas, writes @andizeisler.bsky.social www.salon.com/2025/06/26/b...
Book bans are getting weirder, targeting cats, dogs and civic-minded grandmas
Seeking to ban books like “Bathe the Cat” has less to do with morality than it does with a yearning for control.
www.salon.com
June 26, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
itsmebaileyc.bsky.social
Do NOT rank Brannan! He is bought out by the people who want to turn Coney Island into a Casino! He has accepted donations from the PAC that supports it, and refuses to listen to constituents who don’t want it!

No to the casino, or no votes for him!
June 22, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
artstalker001.bsky.social
It's the Mermaid parade day on Coney Island. Have fun but watch out for "Shark Girl" graphite on paper.
#art #artist #graphite #pencildrawing #pinup #goodgirlart #comics #illustration #fineart #portrait #fantasyart #brooklynartist #comicart
June 21, 2025 at 4:11 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
Happy 81st Birthday to our dear friend Stanley Fox from all of us at the Coney Island History Project! He and his family operated arcades in Coney for more than 30 years. You can listen to his oral history interview recorded by @triciavita.bsky.social here: www.coneyislandhistory.org/oral-history...
Photo of red velvet cake with several white candles and white ribbon icing and a card made of sugar that says Happy Birthday Stan. It is stop a glass case with books inside that say Coney Island.
June 21, 2025 at 9:12 PM
triciavita.bsky.social
Happy first Saturday of summer and Mermaid Parade Day! Photo from my carnival collection of diving girls from the Neptune's Daughter show with the Great Wortham Shows, 1917 season 🧜‍♀️
1917 sepia photograph shows eight diving girls and one guy lined up and holding each others shoulders in front of a vehicle that has "Great Wortham Shows," a carnival of the day, written on the side. Most of the girls are wearing tight fitting black suits that end at upper middle thigh and are bare legged. Two people wear leotards that cover their legs. All are wearing scarves or cloches as headgear. They were performers in the Neptune's Daughter show with the carnival. Photo from my collection.
June 21, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
filmsbyamy.bsky.social
This is a travesty! See what happened back then: tv.apple.com/us/movie/zip...
June 16, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
shaygabriel.bsky.social
Hello from Berlin where a few hundred Americans are outside the embassy, currently reading aloud from the Declaration of Independence. #nokings
A few hundred Americans of all ages standing in dappled sun with flags and signs
June 14, 2025 at 12:11 PM
triciavita.bsky.social
Dear NY friends, voting in the NYC Primary is June 14-24. Since I've worked in Coney Island for the past 18 years & all politics is local, I’m hyper-focused on the NYC Comptroller’s race. I'm ranking @marklevinenyc.bsky.social #1 for NYC Comptroller and won't be ranking @justinbrannan.bsky.social
Renderings of proposed casinos in Coney Island and Hudson Yards show tall towers overwhelming their surroundings. Text boxes explain the status of the proposals and the role that Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine and Coney Island Councilmember Justin Brannan have and are playing in the approval process in their respective boroughs. It says that Levine opposed the Hudson Yards casino proposal, citing concerns about insufficient housing and impact on the High Line and it was pulled by the developer in May. Regarding the Coney casino, it says that City & State reported that Coney councilman Justin Brannan "had previously been a solid 'no' on the casino proposal, but he recently told Politico NY that he "wants to let the process play out." At the Council's June 12 zoning subcommittee hearing he said he was undecided.
June 14, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
Many thanks to Time Out New York for their article about our exhibit "Charles Denson: Coney Island Streets: 1965–1975" and including it in their best exhibitions guide 🙏 www.timeout.com/newyork/news...
Exhibition center hours are 1-7pm on Saturdays, Sundays & holidays thru Labor Day. Free admission!
The text on the photo, from the Time Out NY article, says "Coney Island Streets: 1965-1975. This new exhibit of street photography by Charles Denson reveals the neighborhood's resilience in the face of government discrimination." Photo by Charles Denson titled Kids on Mermaid Avenue (1974) shows three Black boys who appear to be preteens standing in front of a locked security gate. The wall behind it is painted yellow and has the numeral 3013 .One of the boys is looking through small binoculars. Another is looking into the camera while the third boy points to something off to the left. They are dressed in brown jackets and various colored pants.
June 14, 2025 at 2:40 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
Check out our blog post to read Charles Denson's comments on the casino, info on attending the hearing/submitting comments, and contacting Coney CM @justinbrannan.bsky.social, whose vote is extremely important because it’s customary for NYC Council members to vote with the local council member
June 5, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Reposted by Tricia Vita
coneyislandhistory.bsky.social
Help stop Coney Island from being replaced by a casino! June 12 NYC Council Land Use Committee hearing on Coney casino developer's proposal to demap public streets & acquire air rights to build sky bridges & a hotel 2X the height allowed by current zoning. www.coneyislandhistory.org/blog/june-12...
Photo of banner that says NO CONEY CASINO. Don't replace Coney Island with a casino. Stop using children as casino billboards! Banner is hanging from a steel gate painted blue with the word ARCADE and paintings of tickets and clown faces. A man is standing in front of it with his arms folded.. He is Coney Island History Project director Charles Denson.
June 5, 2025 at 9:51 PM