Above left: Tamagnini's catalog photo of figure opening window shutters.
Center: Figure as it appeared in the Dante's Inferno dark ride in the former Astroland Park, Coney Island, NY.
Right: Sketch by Tamagnini - the similarity between his drawing technique and his sculptural artistry is clearly discernable.
This is the face we'd been trying to place. It was repurposed in many of his figures. |
Tamagnini's huge gorilla face with the rotating gear teeth is one of the most ubiquitous pieces of facade decoration in the history of imported rides.
For some reason, many if not most of these were mounted in an inverted orientation, sometimes adorned with horns when associated with a demonic theme.
If you've spent even a moderate amount of time roaming amusement park midways and fairgrounds, you've very likely seen one of these.
In addition to the unit previously seen on the facade of the Flying Witch in Rye, NY, three additional examples are shown below: |
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Below: Dante's Inferno in the former Astroland, Coney Island, NY featured the gorilla head with non-moving teeth.
The Dante's Inferno dark rides were a product of Ernesto Soli, known mainly for their bumper cars. |
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Below: Dante's Inferno on Morey's Pier, Wildwood, NJ some years ago.
The ride front has since been re-themed and renamed Dante's Dungeon. |
Below: Hell Hole at Coney Island, NY in the 1970s. Several of these Italian Rotor-type rides were imported with similar fronts.
Photo: Royce Mathew |
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