Our good friend Claire Prentice, author of “Miracle At Coney Island” and “The Lost Tribe of Coney Island”, will be presenting a webinar on Wednesday, November 29, 1-2:30 pm, at the New York Adventure Club. Tickets and more info here

Friday, November 3, 2023 6:00 PM

FOOD - BEVERAGES - ENTERTAINMENT

Special Performance by Africasso

Music by: DJ Ha Boogie, DJ Casmo, Buckshot

Award Ceremony: Al- Akhir “Ski” Garrett

VIP: Family of James Mtume

TICKETS $20.00

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of event, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

Coney Island Museum

1208 Surf AvenueBrooklyn, NY, 11224United States

Magie Serpica has been professionally tattooing for over twenty years. She gained her initial entry into the body art world in Coney Island in 2002, and has since tattooed her way around NYC and beyond. Magie proudly embraces the extensive list of sideshow friends from all over the world that she's had the pleasure of tattooing throughout the years.

For the past near decade, she has co-owned her shop, Milk and Honey Tattoo, in Staten Island. Aside from tattooing, Magie is a mother, musician, curator, producer, educator, clown performer, illustrator, and DJ on MakerParkRadio. She created and co-hosts a radio show called Make Her Space, a show that is dedicated to sharing the experiences of women, where included in the extensive list of past guests are several women from Coney Island’s art and performance roster.

Ticket sales end on Wednesday, April 20th at 5pm, ET.

A Zoom link to join us online, will be emailed day of the event, between 5pm-6:30pm. Check your inbox and spam folder.

A unique combination of science and style, Divya Anantharaman is New York City's premiere taxidermist. An award winning licensed professional preserving animals with honor and compassion for clients ranging from museums, celebrities and gallerists, to collectors of all walks of life. Her specialties are birds, small mammals, and anatomic anomalies, with a select number of commissions open for pets. Her work seeks to combine the demonstrative aspect of scientific presentation with the symbolic, introspective nature of art, using taxidermy to engage diverse audiences with conservation. She is passionately curious about the untapped potential of this scientific art. you can learn more at gothamtaxidermy.com

In this presentation, Divya will talk about the taxidermy process, the value of taxidermy as art and science, and learn about some overlooked history. Audience questions are always welcome!

Ticket sales end on Wednesday, April 13th at 5pm, ET.

A Zoom link to join us online, will be emailed day of the event, between 5pm-6:30pm. Check your inbox and spam folder.

Ethan Hill is a filmmaker based in New York working on his first feature about Michael Wilson, the Illustrated Man from the Coney Island Sideshow. Previous work experience includes 20+ years as an award winning portrait photographer in the magazine business.  A partial client list includes Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, and the New York Times. He is an instructor at the International Center for Photography and has work included in the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery, London.

Ethan will discuss his current in-production project about the life of Michael Wilson, Coney Island's very own Illustrated Man, who performed at the Sideshow on the boardwalk from 1987 - 1996.

Ticket sales end on Wednesday, April 6th at 5pm, ET.

A Zoom link to join us online, will be emailed day of the event, between 5pm-6:30pm.

Tickets are $15 for a Theatre Ticket

$5 for a Zoom Streaming Ticket

People say “You’re an entertainer. What do you play?" Harley Newman says "The audience!" As a “Professional Lunatic”, “Zen-master of Sideshow”, and “Human Oxymoron!”, Harley has been recognized with Lifetime Achievement awards for performance in both the arts of sideshow and escapes. His international televised appearances include The Today Show, The Tonight Show, and Ripley’s Believe It Or Not. He has been tied in chains and tossed in with sharks. He has dangled by one foot under a helicopter. Harley is not a person to whom you say “That can’t be done!”, because he will figure it out. The Guinness Book of Records rejected him as "too dangerous to publish”. With 50 years of professional entertaining under his belt, Harley is an OG of sideshow.

With his array of talents including swallowing swords, juggling dangerous objects, and rhythmic skills with bullwhips Kyle Mertz will amaze and shock a wide range of ages. Come see for yourself, and witness this variety performer in action on the inside!

Coney Island USA requires that our guests be fully vaccinated. Proof of vaccinations will be checked upon entering. Unvaccinated children must be masked. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of performance, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

Tickets are $5 for a Museum Ticket

$5 for a Zoom Streaming Ticket

Young and ambitious entrepreneur C.M. Christ joined Ward Hall’s show in 1966, eager to travel and learn as much as he could about show business. The two shared a love of entertainment and stage performance, as well as the amusement business in which they would both eventually become legends. Following the sudden death of Hall’s first business partner, Christ turned over his life savings to join forces with Hall in creating the World of Wonders Show. Together, the two worked with a common purpose of creating memories and excitement for families and event patrons as they toured the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. Additionally, they shared a passion for training and developing the hundreds of aspiring performers who traveled with the show over several decades.

Chris will be inducted into Coney Island USA's Sideshow Hall of Fame as the first-ever Living Legend on opening night of the Congress. On Sunday, Chris will be interviewed by modern-day sideshow legend Todd Robbins in the Coney Island Museum.

Coney Island USA requires that our guests be fully vaccinated. Proof of vaccinations will be checked upon entering. Unvaccinated children must be masked. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of performance, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

People say “You’re an entertainer. What do you play?" Harley Newman says "The audience!" As a “Professional Lunatic”, “Zen-master of Sideshow”, and “Human Oxymoron!”, Harley has been recognized with Lifetime Achievement awards for performance in both the arts of sideshow and escapes. His international televised appearances include The Today Show, The Tonight Show, and Ripley’s Believe It Or Not. He has been tied in chains and tossed in with sharks. He has dangled by one foot under a helicopter. Harley is not a person to whom you say “That can’t be done!”, because he will figure it out. The Guinness Book of Records rejected him as "too dangerous to publish”. With 50 years of professional entertaining under his belt, Harley is an OG of sideshow.

With his array of talents including swallowing swords, juggling dangerous objects, and rhythmic skills with bullwhips Kyle Mertz will amaze and shock a wide range of ages. Come see for yourself, and witness this variety performer in action on the inside!

Coney Island USA requires that our guests be fully vaccinated. Proof of vaccinations will be checked upon entering. Unvaccinated children must be masked. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of performance, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

Fleet Family Five is a family-friendly sideshow spectacular. Fast-paced and funny, featuring former Coney Island MC- Tyler Fyre, Palace of Wonders designer- Thrill Kill Jill, and the 3 most dangerous boys in elementary school – Hank Lightning, Duke Dynamite, & Nash Chopper Fleet. This very real family of five brings you death-defying daredevil danger with all the class and confetti of a Broadway show. Fire-eating, Sword-swallowing, Snake-charming, Chainsaws, & Dangerous children! Don’t miss this guaranteed good time! Back on stage where it all began at Sideshows by the Seashore in Coney Island.

Coney Island USA requires that our guests be fully vaccinated. Proof of vaccinations will be checked upon entering. Unvaccinated children must be masked. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of performance, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

Join Magie Serpica of Milk and Honey Tattoo as she moderates a panel discussion of Women in the Sideshow and Circus. Panelists include: From Circus Amok, Jennifer Miller, The Painproof Rubber Girls, Ula and Sakra, Corinna Mantlo, Wall of Death Daredevil and from The Muse Brooklyn, Angela Butch.

Coney Island USA requires that our guests be fully vaccinated. Proof of vaccinations will be checked upon entering. Unvaccinated children must be masked. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of performance, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

Fleet Family Five is a family-friendly sideshow spectacular. Fast-paced and funny, featuring former Coney Island MC- Tyler Fyre, Palace of Wonders designer- Thrill Kill Jill, and the 3 most dangerous boys in elementary school – Hank Lightning, Duke Dynamite, & Nash Chopper Fleet. This very real family of five brings you death-defying daredevil danger with all the class and confetti of a Broadway show. Fire-eating, Sword-swallowing, Snake-charming, Chainsaws, & Dangerous children! Don’t miss this guaranteed good time! Back on stage where it all began at Sideshows by the Seashore in Coney Island.

Coney Island USA requires that our guests be fully vaccinated. Proof of vaccinations will be checked upon entering. Unvaccinated children must be masked. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of performance, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

Keynote speaker Marc Hartzman

ABCnews.com has called Marc Hartzman "one of America's leading connoisseurs of the bizarre" and George Noory from Coast to Coast AM said he's "as bizarre as Robert Ripley." Hartzman considers both high compliments since his passion for the unusual started with Ripley's Believe It Or Not and the annual Guinness World Records books during his youth.

In addition to his books about Mars, Oliver Cromwell's embalmed head, weird things on eBay, sideshow performers, and unorthodox messages from God, Hartzman has written for Mental Floss, the Huffington Post, AOL Weird News, and Bizarre magazine. He's discussed oddities on CNN, MSNBC, Ripley's Radio, and the Travel Channel's Mysteries at the Museum.

More of his love for the unusual can be found on his site, WeirdHistorian.com. Outside of these projects, Hartzman earns a living as an award-winning advertising creative director.

marchartzmanbooks.com

Sideshow Hall of Fame Presenters include: Todd Robbins, Dr. Jeffrey Birnbaum, Kate Dale, James Fitzsimmons, and Corinna Mantlo

With performances by Todd Robbins and Adam RealMan

And special Living Legend Honoree, Chris Christ of World of Wonders

Showtime 7pm. Doors 6pm.

Coney Island USA requires that our guests be fully vaccinated. Proof of vaccination will be checked upon entering. Unvaccinated children must be masked. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

All ticket sales are non-refundable and WILL CALL only to be picked up night of performance, at our box office at 1208 Surf Avenue. TICKETS WILL NOT SHIP. There are no extra service fees for online purchase.

Ask The Experts: John Parascandola- Live on Zoom

John Parascandola, Ph.D., taught at the University of Wisconsin-Madison before serving as Chief of the History of Medicine Division of the National Library of Medicine and as Public Health Service Historian. He is the co-author, with his brother Louis, of A Coney Island Reader: Through Dizzy Gates of Illusion, and is currently affiliated with the Department of History at the University of Maryland College Park.

While most visitors saw Coney Island as a place for fun and frolic, the Children's Aid Societies of New York and of Brooklyn were convinced that sea water and fresh sea air could improve the health of the poor children of the city's tenements and established "Health Homes" there to achieve this goal. The Homes operated from the late 19th century through 1920, and represent a fascinating but relatively little known aspect of Coney’s history.

Ticket sales end on Wednesday, March 30th at 5pm, ET.

A Zoom link to join us online, will be emailed day of the event, between 5pm-6:30pm.

Happy Days are Here Again as the 20’s Come Roaring Back to Coney Island!

Join us as we come together in person at long last to support and celebrate our not-for-profit arts organization, its programming, and the Coney Island Museum.

Just 75 tickets — all VIP — are available for this COVID-cautious event, where we’re thrilled to be debuting new museum voice cues by Neil Patrick Harris. Guests will enjoy piano music by the legendary Todd Robbins; flapper dancing; a DJ; ambient entertainment; special performances; a ceremony honoring Wonder Wheel royalty DJ Vourderis; a hot and cold buffet; and cocktails from our friends at the Coney Island Brewery and Green Fairy Absinthe. All tickets also include a sponsored gift bag.

We’re committed to keeping our guests, performers, and staff as safe as possible. In addition to limiting the number of attendees, we’re requiring proof of full vaccination. We appreciate your cooperation as we work to ensure that the Roaring 20’s bring nothing but happy days to Coney Island.

Event Doors Open at 7 pm; Last Admission 7:30 pm

Entertainment:

• Miss Maybell with Charlie Judkins and the Jazz Age Artistes

• Gin Minsky

• Todd Robbins

• Mentalist & Magician Eric Walton

• Magicians from Monday Night Magic

• Juggler Jacob D'Eustachio

• Freak Bar DJ Michael Cumella

• Stiltwalkers Harold Moeller and Zabo

• Hand-cut silhouettes by T.J. Stuessy of Shadowcuts

• Suitcase of Wonders, the Astounding Miniature Magic Theater

• Mysteries in a Box: Presented by Little Brooklyn and Noah D'Klein

• Jehan and the Mermaid Entertainers: Glori; Sultana; Rafael; Bijou; Amira; Jaclyn; Sarida; and Lara
  

As early as the 1880s, resorts across the United States “borrowed” the famous Coney Island name in hopes of associating themselves with the famed People’s Playground. From “The Coney Island of the South” to “Coney Island of the Pacific,” it seemed every region of the United States had their own Coney Island. In addition, both Luna Park and Dreamland helped spawn a whole new genre of amusement parks: large, over-the-top, electrified exposition parks. Across the country, these parks capitalized on the novelty of electric lighting, exotic exhibits, and the brilliance of Coney Island.

Join Jim Futrell and Joshua Litvik from the National Amusement Amusement Park Historical Association as we discuss the impact Coney Island had on amusement parks and resorts across the country.

Ticket sales end on Wednesday, March 23rd at 5pm.

A Zoom link to join us online, will be emailed day of the event, between 5pm-6:30pm.