Forgotten-NY Returns to Coney Island

The one and only Forgotten-NY went out to Coney Island on Christmas Eve--actually, he first went to Midwood to check on some historic markers on Ocean Parkway and, then, to Brighton Beach--and the result is a cool new Forgotten NY web page called "Coney Island Signs...and the Death of Astroland." The pages is full of photos of old signage and links to other pages. Forgotten writes:

Coney, in its now-diminished state, is under siege (some would say) by shopping mall developer Thor Equities, who promise to tear down most of the frontage along Surf Avenue and install, among other things, a roller coaster that runs through buildings and a double-deck carousel. The renderings all look kind of dystopian and Blade Runner-ish to me. The tawdriness and decrepitude I recognize at Coney would disappear as the big money moves in and luxury housing sprouts along the boardwalk, and I can't help but wonder if we're going to get Long Beach where Coney used to be. Or Atlantic City, if they allow casinos. Dick Zigun is on board, but he draws the line at condos, favoring hotels only.

This time, at Coney, I decided to show the incredible variety of signage, showing well-known characters from comic books, mythological talismans of the past like sea monks, the multi-toothed Steeplechase guy, mermaids and sea-things, and sinister clowns...many of these signs may leave Coney forever in a couple of years, if Thor Equities comes on the scene...divorced from context, they're singularly bizarre.

Check out the new page. It's worth a visit.