Happyland Amusement Park Helped Bring a Touch of the Riviera to Staten Island

Happyland was part of a tourist attraction that made Staten Island a hot spot in the early twentieth century.

by Rich Watson 

The Happyland Amusement Park was part of Staten Island’s South Beach area. Once upon a time, during the early twentieth century, “the Riviera of New York City” was a summer getaway spot that had hotels with bathing pavilions, beer gardens, casinos, and more.

Happyland occupied fifteen acres on the storefront. Its entertainment options rivaled Coney Island.

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Rockaway’s Playland, First Owned By a Roller Coaster Designer

The Queens amusement park, in its early days, was once owned by the developer of the modern roller coaster.

by Rich Watson 

Rockaway’s Playland occupied a small area of land on Queens’ Rockaway peninsula. It was not as popular as the Coney Island area in Brooklyn, but it was a well-known destination in Queens for decades.

It was owned by the first designer of the roller coaster, a staple of amusement parks the world over.

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Jocko Henderson Taught Students Through Rap Before Rap Took Off

Jocko Henderson was a rapper long before the birth of hip hop—and he used that skill to teach kids.

by Rich Watson 

Douglas Henderson, better known to radio listeners as Jocko, was a star deejay in both Philadelphia and New York during the early days of rock and roll. He was known for a routine not unlike rap. He is credited as one of the first rappers, a man who influenced a number of early hip-hoppers in the late seventies.

It was a style that served him later in life when he taught schoolchildren.

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