CHECK THESE PHOTOS OUT IN THE GALLERY HERE -> http://danmarinophoto.com/__cl/totonnos
Hello friends,
Unfortunately, another NYC, Brooklyn and Coney Island Icon have suffered a great tragedy. As Coney Island itself continues to go through numerous unresolved issues, Totonno's Napolitano Pizzeria, the oldest running family run pizzeria in Brooklyn, went on fire Saturday morning. From what the news stories say, it looks like the coal oven sparked a fire that reached the ceiling and made its way to the roof.
This small pizzeria that is still very much designed as when it first opened in 1924 is very near and dear to my heart. I have been going there for all 33 of my year s and still manage to get there every 2nd or 3rd Fridays to bring home a pie or two.
I will save a photo essay I was planning to put out here very soon for when the proposed re-opening occurs. I just convinced Cookie the owner to allow my to do a photo shoot at Totonno's which I did complete on February 19. I think that a masterful story with supporting pictures is very necessary for this almost landmark of a place and a grand re-opening which hopefully does occur is most fitting.
** SOME DETAILS ABOUT THE SHOOT **
CHECK THESE PHOTOS OUT IN THE GALLERY HERE -> http://danmarinophoto.com/__cl/totonnos
I will share some fond memories from past and present here and use some of the 
photos from the shoot to support it. I will also link you to my gallery so you can see all of these images now. My goal with the shoot was simple. I went into it with no pre-conceived desires; just the passion and feeling that I needed to shoot it for my own pleasure and archives. What I intended to capture were hidden treasures that uncovered themselves as I snapped the camera and focused the lens. The only design goal was to try and create a nostalgic feeling; making sure to mix in images that had an antiqued and rustic feel, really crisp BxW's and vibrant color images the visually show Totonno's in its current state today.
** MY OWN MEMORIES **
1) Nothing beats the pizza eating competitions I got into with Uncle Dennis as a young boy. Who can eat as many of these coal fired delicious thin crusted slices was the sole rule! Uncle D definitely cheated and I always let him know because he wouldn't eat the crusts!
2) I will never forget the apartment shared by my wife (then girlfriend) Vanessa and I on Bay 50th Street and Cropsey. This location pretty much made Totonno's our resident pizza haven for a few years! Can you say extra pounds!!! There many nights we would walk over the Cropsey Bridge and pop in for a white and a red.
3) To this day, I go in and ask for a medium red and a medium white only for Cookie to tell me, "We don't have medium; just small and large!" I mean seriously why I can’t remember this!
4) I vividly remember Cookie's mom sitting on the bench outside Totonno's day in and day out.
5) I will never forget finally taking my camera and having the opportunity to document this special place.
I hope this wets your apetite prior to the photo essay hopefully coming sooner rather than later. In the meantime, please enjoy the pics and let me know what you think! Leave your comments to share your memories and thoughts of Totonnos.
Regards,
Dan
CHECK THESE PHOTOS OUT IN THE GALLERY HERE -> http://danmarinophoto.com/__cl/totonnos
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Another Sad & Tragic Coney Island Event - Totonno's Fire Causes Major Damage
Friday, September 5, 2008
Sad Update at Coney Island / Astroland
It is with great displeasure to find out that it appears to be the end of the road for Astroland; Coney Island's amusement park for the past 46 years. As you all know by now from a slice of my current photography concentration, Coney Island is an area I am forever drawn to during my 33 years and life in the Brooklyn and NYC.
For example, whether it was...
* my parents taking me there as a child (Mom taking me to the carousel is something I remember - lucky for you all I cannot find the picture!),
* skipping the school bus to Mark Twain JHS 239 to go to Nathan's with my friend Joe Chung (sorry Mom if you didn't know that until right now!),
* riding the world famous Cyclone, spending some Summer Friday nights with my then girlfriend Vanessa (and now my loving wife and baby momma!) watching the fireworks from our apartment window on W17th Street and Ave Z,
* or my current passion of documenting this wonderful place through my viewfinder and presenting in local art galleries,
...Coney Island, Astroland, Shoot the Freak!, the Childs Building, etc..... are all comfort areas and a place that I love spending time thinking about how it must have been when King's and Queen’s were stopping in on vacation!
Astroland and our beloved Cyclone Rollercoaster, Parachute Jump and Wonder Wheel landmarks are really all we have left of the mystical adventure and fantasy land that has existed before the turn of the century! To see Carol Albert, the owner of Astroland, have to put out a press release about its closing (due to Thor Equities owner Joseph Sitt's plans to gentrify the area with hotels and condos) is very very wrong in my opinion! In a snide and very political statement from Thor Equities, it was mentioned that they are, "extremely disappointed that Carol Albert has decided to give up on the future of Coney Island when her current lease isn't even up for a number of months." This to me shows that these builders who had promised new and improved amusements, in addition to planned hotels and condos, are ignorant to what it takes to manage and operate this type of business. This is what is really "extremely disappointing" because it unfolds some of the real mindshare for the future. Wouldn't you think a firm planning to build the new improved Coney Island and invest in its future while retaining the past would already understand that to manage an amusement park that plans for parts, servicing, site development for new attractions, etc. would have to be sorted out months in advance?
The truly sad event here is that it is now more realistic that a new leaf is turning over in Coney 
Island and not for the better. While the area may gentrify and now be a desirable place to live on the Ocean, go shopping at trendy outlets, order a Venti Mocha Latte at Starbucks, etc..., what is going to be lost is this town's culture. There are other areas of Brooklyn that cater to an enjoyable trendy lifestyle (I visit these places as well), but why clone every subsection of a famous city that thrives on being different, daring, and even burlesque? Another comment I read in the papers was someone saying that there are so many other amusement / boardwalk areas that are nicer, cleaner and can be visited with a short drive from Coney Island, Brooklyn and NYC. This is exactly the point and the problem - WHY!!! Here you have a historical and cultural location that is arguably the mecca of every other amusement area that exists today! Isn't it our social responsibility to preserve one of the very areas that has helped other cities ignite their own successes?
My personal opinion concludes just like how on Sunday, September 7, 2008, Astroland closes forever. I would expect a grand finale from all of you who share in my nostalgia and current excitement and passion. I will hopefully be seeing you in Coney Island this weekend. I, for one, will be there with my camera and capturing this day. If this is truly the last of Astroland and the beginning of the "changes and plans to be" in Coney Island, it deserves to be celebrated more than expressing sadness, anger and disappointment.
Here are some supporting news links ->
9/4/08 NY Post Article - http://www.nypost.com/seven/09042008/news/regionalnews/astroland_is_closing_for_good_on_sunday_127490.htm
Save Astroland (maybe there is still time to make a difference) - http://www.saveastroland.org/
- Dan Marino
dan@danmarinophoto.com
(917) 207-2091
Monday, June 9, 2008
Thanks!
Friday, June 6, 2008
Reminder: Coney Island Art Festival on Sunday June 8!
I just wanted to remind you that the art festival is quickly approaching this coming Sunday, June 8 from 12Pm-7PM. I will be setup when you first walk in and displaying until at leat 5:30PM. it looks like mother nature will grace us with a stifling 95 degree day! The show inside keyspan park will help because most of the exhibit area will have an overhang that will avoid the direct sun (hopefully one of those spots will be reserved for moi!). What better way to spend a beautiful weekend day that at America's Playground. The cyclone roller coaster is running full steam; as is the Wonder Wheel and some other attractions. The beach should be full of the "worshippers" and the boardwalk bar and lounge Ruby's is sure to be filled.
Here is a sampling of the images I will have on display. Some will be related to Coney Island; others will be other very cool images :)
SEE YOU AT THE SHOW!
- Dan
http://www.danmarinophoto.com/
Friday, May 23, 2008
Coney Island Art Festival - June 8
Friends,
As we approach Memorial Day weekend and have an extra day off to introduce Spring (and it finally looks like the ea
st coast weather is cooperating!), now is the time to hose off the lounge chairs, pull the covers off the outdoor furniture, fire up the BBQ's, and -if your household is similar to mine- select your summer wine list! Goodbye heavy reds. Hello crisp whites and Beaujolais!June 8 should be the perfect day to walk the boardwalk, stop at Nathan's for a world famous frank, play some skee-ball, ride the cyclone (please hold onto wallets, keys, change, and wigs!), soak in some sun on the beach, visit the aquarium, try a round of "Shoot the Freak", ....the list goes on and on!
Spend one of your Spring days with me at the festival in between your day of fun, sun, great food and amusement in Coney Island! There will also be live entertainment throughout the day. Come be a kid again for a few hours! Admission is free and the show runs from 12PM - 7PM. For more information, the flyer to the show is located here -> Coney Island Art Festival Flyer
