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1957-1986

THE COOKMAN AVENUE EXPANSION

FUN HOUSE

Many Palace patrons fell in love with the new Fun House. There were some, recalling its predecessor, who found the straight hallways and big rooms of the new a little too predictable, requiring too little maneuvering. They were a considerable minority, however, and for those who loved the Fun House, the Palace owners made frequent changes to rekindle their infatuation.

Partial view of the Fun House facade, early 1960s. Photo courtesy of Sandy Berman. The Fun House giant in the early 1980s. Photo copyrighted by Peter Szikura. view larger image The Fun House giant in the early 1980s. Photo copyrighted by Peter Szikura.

Between 1956 and the end of the Lange era in 1985, stunts and animations rotated in and out of the Fun House, some for use elsewhere in the Palace, some placed in storage, some sold, new ones bought, some made by the in-house creative team. Ralph Lopez Jr., added a Frankenstein chasing a girl. An animated gorilla was placed on the top of the jail, and later, a new mirror maze replaced the jail itself. Pauline Walling, Lopez' sister, created a whimsical rock and roll band which her brother animated. Lopez added two go-go girls, one overweight and with great moves, the other skinny and stiff. In a glass corridor, a large green animated devil posed a threat to a baby in a bassinet.

Close-up of the Fun House giant in the early 1980s. Photo copyrighted by Peter Szikura. view larger image Detail of the Fun House giant's left hand. Photo copyrighted by Peter Szikura. view larger image Balcony scene at the Fun House (early 1980s). Photo copyrighted by Peter Szikura. view larger image

The most politically incorrect piece in the Fun House was an animation depicting a bare breasted cannibal stirring the head of an black victim into a boiling cauldron. The cauldron was adorned by the words "Soups On." This animation originated at the historic Miami workshop of Animated Display Creators, one of the nation's most influential creators of amusement park stunts. Several versions of this exhibition were made: in one used at Crescent Park, Riverside, Rhode Island, the victim was presented as the white African explorer, Dr. Livingston. The Palace version, compared to ADC promotional photographs, shows a different head on the Palace cannibal, although why and when the switch was made is unknown. Palace owners rotated Soups On for many years between the Fun House and the dark ride. Today it is hard to imagine the reaction of black visitors, especially on Easter Sunday when, by long tradition, black families came to the Palace after church, still dressed in their Sunday best, and spent the day on the rides.

The Fun House giant and gorilla in the early 1980s. Photo copyrighted by Peter Szikura. view larger image Gorilla installed on a Fun House battlement in the early 1980s. Photo copyrighted by Peter Szikura. view larger image

Completing the fun were a series of air holes, shaker boards, an updated version of the old Dizzy Room, and a tilted spinning wheel floor.

The Cheef, a papier marché image of a bulldog resembling a police chief. From the Collection of Peter Szikura. Photo copyrighted by Frank Saragnese. view larger image Drummer, from a Fun House rock band created by Pauline Walling. Photo courtesy of Peter Szikura. view larger image Controversial "Soups On" cannibal scene created by Animated Display Creators. Photo courtesy of Peter Szikura. view larger image