American Experience - Coney Island
by Ric Burns
List Price:
Our Price: $17.99
You Save: $2.00 (10%)
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Buy Used: from $10.75 (click here)
Category: DVD
See more DVD details
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
DVD details
Actor: Andrei Codrescu, Judd Hirsch, Nathan Lane, Philip Bosco, Vincent GardeniaDirector: Ric Burns
Brand: Paramount
Producer: Bob M. McCausland
Producer: Buddy Squires
Producer: Chas Norton
Producer: Eileen Mulvey
Producer: Harlan Reiniger
Producer: Judy Crichton
Writer: Richard Snow
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 58 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-03-21
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: PBS Paramount
DVD Reviews of American Experience - Coney Island
DVD Review: best ken burns film!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I saw this documentary yrs. ago on PBS. I gave it to the daughter of the man that re-openned Steeplechase in the 60's after George C. Tilloue sold it to Trumps father. He intially opened it as a parking lot and then added rides and called it Steeplechase Park for almost 50 yrs. His daughter, now 50 had never seen this film. She was suprised to see how large Coney was at the turn of the century. Her father will be too when he sees this film. You have to see this especially if you are a Coney Island fan or a New Yorker!DVD Review: Coney Island On DVD
Summary: 5 Stars
This is something I remember first watching when I was 11 or 12 years old. It was something my mom wanted me to see because she experienced herself the joys of the (final) years of Steeplechase Park at Coney Island;the human roulette wheel,the blow hole theater,the Nathan's hot dogs;she did it all and all of that is here only more. After watching this I have to admit to myself Luna Park,although it's heyday was at the turn of the century and it burned down 40 years before I was born,looked pretty cool. This documentary shows how a famous beach inspired forward thinking showmen and arcitects to build three amusment parks on Coney Island in the early 1900's;how they provided whimsey,abandon and in some cases cultural stimulation to Americans.At the time Americans were witnessing the end of the Victorian age and the beginning of the modern world-Coney Island blended the two by inventing it's own world that mixed both the reason and morality with invention and industriousness;the perfect mix of old and new. This story becomes bittersweet at the end when Coney Island goes into decline-reason being first one of it's three assmusment parks burning down,the passing and downfall of it's innovators and the fact that the rest of New York (and the country) started catching up fast to the diversions Coney Island offered after WW1. One thing I should say about this is this movie is at least 15 minutes longer then the one PBS originally aired. One whole segment taken entirely from the televised version revolves around how after WW1 Coney Islands two remaining amusment parks began to rely mainly on circus type sideshows,not rides or spectacles to stay afloat. This dreamy documentary is mainly fancinating except,as stated by another review it does feature a chilling film made at Coney Island around 1907 or something of an old elephant named Topsy being electrocuted.Some might find this offensive and not want young kids to see this.And while it is highly unpleasant it illustrates that even the most fun place in the world has it's darker side. But there is a happy ending to this story not shown on this DVD;several years after this was made Austraillia opened up it's own Luna Park;not only does it have a lot of the same features as the original but it remains highly popular. Which proves to me with no doubt that if fire hadn't gutted it the original Luna Park,in the proper hands would've surely made a comeback.A compelling DVD for fans of Coney Island history,amusement parks and even some sociologists.DVD Review: Nostalgic Laughter
Summary: 4 Stars
Coney Island has become legend. What once was a place for people to gather in excitement and fun is now a hollow ghost of its former self. Still, it is fun to look back on the way it once was during a simpler time in history.
This documentary is extremely well done. The narration is excellent and combines well with the film clips used. The editing is also masterful and helpful to the storytelling. Surprisingly, the film footage is in good condition. Since most of it did not come from a major motion picture, one would think it would be in the same condition as most newsreel footage, but it is clear and watchable. (Ironically, the bit from Clara Bow's "It" is in bad shape; it has since been restored.)
The only major flaw here is the little information provided about the 1920s and 30s. So much is explored from the early 1900s because that is when the amusement parks really took off, but what of the time between that and the collapse? One can get an idea of what it was like based on the film clips, but judging from the bathing suits, most of the clips come from the earliest parts of the century.
Overall, this film is a fascinating look at an era lost to the modern world. It is nostalgic and lovingly told.
DVD Review: Dated, but still good
Summary: 4 Stars
Recently, after reading Sarah Hall's book "The Electric Michelangelo" i became interested in Coney Island and it's history. Stumbled across this DVD and ordered it. I was a little surprised at how dated the production seems to be. Not that it really interferes with the content since it deals with the history of Coney Island. There are some amazing images here of the three original amusement parks. The thing that I was really hoping for that was not here was some shots of what is in these locations today (I love that kind of stuff). Otherwise, it's a good, if slow paced, documentary.DVD Review: coney island
Summary: 5 Stars
A beautiful film that gives a fascinating history of Coney Island from its discovery by Europeans to its current fading glory. As a child of the 50's, I'm happy to revisit a happy cache of memories. It also makes you wish you could have glimpsed Dreamland & Luna Park because the venues seem to rival the attractions available in today's amusement parks. I hope that the planned gentrification of modern Coney doesn't spoil the flavor & enchantment for future generations. Thanks Ric Burns for preserving an important piece of history, not just for New Yorkers, but for everyone who has a sense of imagination & love of adventure.
Description of American Experience - Coney Island
Before there was Disneyland, there was Coney Island. By the turn of the century, this tiny piece of New York real estate was internationally famous. On summer Sundays, three great pleasure domes--Steeplechase, Luna Park and Dreamland--competed for the patronage of a half-million people. By day it was the world's most amazing amusement park, by night, an electric "Eden".General DVDs
DVD Video
- Action & Adventure
- African American Cinema
- Animation
- Anime & Manga
- Art House & International
- Classics
- Comedy
- Cult Movies
- Documentary
- Drama
- Educational
- Fitness & Yoga
- Gay & Lesbian
- Horror
- Kids & Family
- Military & War
- Music Video & Concerts
- Musicals & Performing Arts
- Mystery & Suspense
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Special Interests
- Sports
- Television
- Westerns
Bestsellers in General DVDs
Man on WireRelease date: 2008-12-09; DVD
Best price: $13.37
Price in other shops:
Blue Planet: Seas of Life (Special Edition)Warner Brothers; Release date: 2007-10-02; DVD
Best price: $17.59
Price in other shops:
Expelled: No Intelligence AllowedRelease date: 2008-10-21; DVD
Best price: $8.44
Price in other shops:
Planet Earth & The Blue Planet Seas of Life (Special Collector's Edition)Planet; Release date: 2007-10-02; DVD
Best price: $52.97
Price in other shops:
The Beales of Grey Gardens - Criterion CollectionImage Entertainment; Release date: 2006-12-05; DVD
Best price: $13.60
Price in other shops:
A Haunting in ConnecticutRelease date: 2008-09-30; DVD
Best price: $3.53
Price in other shops:
Grey Gardens - Criterion CollectionImage Entertainment; Release date: 2001-08-14; DVD
Best price: $25.20
Price in other shops:
ReligulousLions Gate; Release date: 2009-02-17; DVD
Best price: $10.20
Price in other shops:
The BBC Natural History Collection featuring Planet Earth (Planet Earth/ The Blue Planet: Seas of Life Special Edition/ Life of Mammals/ Life of Birds)Warner Brothers; Release date: 2008-04-01; DVD
Best price: $85.99
Price in other shops:
Planet Earth - The Complete BBC SeriesWarner Brothers; Release date: 2007-04-24; DVD
Best price: $19.49
Price in other shops:
Similar DVDs, VHS Video, Audio CDs
The Films of Morris Engel (Little Fugitive: Special Edition / Lovers and Lollipops / Weddings and Babies)Release date: 2008-05-06; DVD
Best price: $24.77
Price in other shops:
American Experience: Grand CentralRelease date: 2008-03-25; DVD
Best price: $13.85
Price in other shops:
Coney Island - The Early Days Film Collection DVD - Amusement Parks, Roller Coasters, The Boardwalk, Beaches and MorePublished: 2006; DVD
Best price: $12.95
Price in other shops:
Coney Island Postcards: The People's Playgroundby Scott Russo
Potter Style; Published: 2007-02-13; Cards; Book
Best price: $5.06
Price in other shops:
New YorkParamount; Release date: 2004-09-28; DVD
Best price: $66.99
Price in other shops:
Little Fugitive (1953) (Special Edition)Little; Release date: 2008-11-08; DVD
Best price: $15.63
Price in other shops:
Amusing the Million: Coney Island at the Turn of the Century (American Century)by John F. Kasson
Hill and Wang; Published: 1978-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.94
Price in other shops:
Coney Island: The People's Playgroundby Michael Immerso
Rutgers University Press; Published: 2002-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.07
Price in other shops:
American Experience: New York UndergroundWGBH BOSTON VIDEO; Release date: 2006-12-12; DVD
Best price: $10.68
Price in other shops:
Coney Island: Lost and Foundby Charles Denson
Ten Speed Press; Published: 2004-03-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $17.47
Price in other shops: