Rockaways' Playland

The park's own article dates its opening to 1902; the neighborhood's article says it was built in 1901. The Gravity Wonder of 1924 was the first roller coaster in the park, and Richard Geist's flat rides of the early 1930s included the Rig-a-Jig, Leaping Lena, Cave O'Laffs and the Pretzel. The Atom Smasher arrived in 1938, designed by Vernon Keenan, 3,000 feet long and 70 feet high. Between 1928 and 1970 the park drew 175 million visitors, and it was shown in the 1982 film Sophie's Choice. Geist did not intend at the time for the 1985 season to be the last, but insurance premiums rose from $50,000 in 1985 to $408,000 in 1986 and he decided not to reopen.