Luna Park

About

Luna Park Sydney is a heritage-listed amusement park located in Milsons Point, New South Wales, Australia, on the northern shore of Sydney Harbour. It is one of Sydney's most famous landmarks and has had a significant impact on culture through the years, including being featured as a filming location for several movies and television shows. The site is owned by the Luna Park Reserve Trust, an agency of the Government of New South Wales, and the amusement park is operated by hospitality company Oscars Group. It is protected by government legislation, namely the Luna Park Site Act 1990, which specifically protects the site and sets it aside for the purpose of an amusement park. Several of the park's buildings and rides are also listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register and the (now defunct) Register of the National Estate. The park was constructed during 1935, approximately 600 metres (2,000 ft) from the northern approaches of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It was an extremely popular attraction during World War II and the post-war period. The park suddenly closed in mid-1979 after the Ghost Train fire which killed six children and one adult. Most of the park was demolished and...

Pre-colonisation to 1830s: Establishment of Milsons Point

The Cammeraygal people are the traditional owners of the North Sydney area, having lived there for at least 5,000 years.

After the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788, a block of land between Lavender Bay and Careening Cove was granted by colonial authorities to a private soldier named Robert Ryan. This land passed down via surveyor-general Charles Grimes to politician Robert Campbell by 1805, with James Milson later settling there in the 1820s.

In 1830, Jamaican ex-convict Billy Blue commenced the first ferry service across Sydney Harbour. By 1837, a regular wharf and waterman's service was operating from the site now known as Milsons Point. A regular vehicular ferry was operating by 1860, joined by a tram line to North Sydney in 1886. The North Shore railway line opened in 1890, and was extended to Milsons Point in 1893.

The first Luna Park was opened at Coney Island, New York in 1903. The first Luna Park in Australia opened in St Kilda, Melbourne in 1912, followed by Luna Park Glenelg in Adelaide in 1930.

From 1924 onwards, the future site of Luna Park Sydney was used extensively by Dorman Long to fabricate and assemble steel components for the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which officially opened in 1932. Once the bridge was completed, North Sydney Council opened up applications for tenders to develop the site.

At the same time, the owners of Luna Park Glenelg ‍ — ‍ ‌Herman Phillips, his brothers, and A. ‍ A. ‍ Abrahams ‍ — ‍ ‌happened to be searching for a new location to establish the park due to difficulties with their local council and residents.

Phillips and his associates won the tender for the North Sydney site and began a 20-year lease on 11 September 1935, forming Luna Park (NSW) Limited. The rides from Glenelg were dismantled and transported to Sydney over a three-month period ‍ — ‍ ‌an elaborate process undertaken by Stuart Brothers under the direction of David Atkins, Ted Hopkins and Arthur Barton. Construction of the park employed almost 1,000 engineers, structural workers, fitters, and artists. Architectural plans and drawings of the park from this era are held at the State Library of New South Wales.

There were noise complaints and protests from North Shore residents against the park's construction as early as April 1935, before it had even opened. Members of a "Parks and Playgrounds Movement" were quoted as saying the park was the result of "a deplorable lack of aesthetic taste", and akin to "Coney Island under the Tower of London"— ‌as in, not worthy of proximity to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. These sorts of complaints would turn out to be a theme throughout the park's history.

1935 to 1969: Official opening and heyday

On 4 October 1935, Luna Park Sydney was officially opened to immediate success. The park's signature entrance face, designed by Rupert Browne, was placed between two Art Deco -style towers with spires imitating New York's Chrysler Building. The Big Dipper roller coaster was an instantly popular attraction. After a successful opening season, the park closed down for the winter months so that rides and attractions could be overhauled and repainted, and new ones could be added. In 1936, the North Sydney Olympic Pool was also opened on an adjacent site.

During World War II, Luna Park was a magnet for servicemen, many of whom were either treating their girlfriends to a night out or looking to meet someone. The influx of servicemen also drew sex workers to the area and large-scale brawls were a common occurrence, usually between Australian home defence troops and American sailors on shore leave. As non-essential uses of electricity were curtailed in wartime, the park's neon lights were disconnected and many ride facades were dimmed. The park's external lights were also 'browned out' in case of a Japanese sneak attack on Sydney.

In 1950, the Phillips brothers were bought out by Atkins & Hopkins. Numerous changes and additions were made over the next few years, as the two men travelled the world to bring back new concepts from amusement parks in the Netherlands, the United States, Germany and Britain. A version of the Rotor ‍ — ‍ ‌a spinning drum that uses centrifugal force to pin guests to the sides, developed by Professor Ernst Hoffmeister in Germany ‍ — ‍ ‌was constructed and installed, and became the stage of many stunts. It remains in place today. Barton also redesigned and reconstructed the park's entrance face, which had begun to sag and distort. The new design was based on illustrations of Old King Cole, and became the inspiration for all future variants.

Atkins' passing in 1957 saw Hopkins become the park's manager. Meanwhile, the rise of television and car culture throughout the 1960s saw the park facing increased competition. Several initiatives were attempted to maintain public interest throughout this era, including the installation of the Wild Mouse roller coaster and the hiring of silhouette artist S. John Ross.

1969 to 1979: New ownership and Martin Sharp involvement

Hopkins retired in 1969 and sold the remaining six years of the park's lease to World Trade Centre Pty Ltd. Winter closures were abandoned under this new management, meaning there was no opportunity to carry out regular maintenance works on the rides. Barton also retired in 1970, the last of the park's original showmen.

Soon after this, the new owners applied to construct a $50 million international trade centre on the Luna Park site, consisting of seven high-rise buildings, 929,000 square metres (10,000,000 sq ft) of exhibition space, and a heliport. However, this plan was rejected by the Government of New South Wales. After a reshuffle within the consortium, the decision was made to continue operation as an amusement park.

Over the next few years, the new managers scrapped several of the old rides and replacing them with new, American-designed thrill rides. After consultation with Hanna-Barbera, Luna Park's slogan was temporarily changed from "Just for Fun" to "The Place Where Happiness Is". Another result of the consultation was the creation of a short-lived park mascot, "Luna Bear - the Space Age Koala."

In 1973, Martin Sharp and Peter Kingston undertook repainting works on the park in a pop art style. The face was repainted with a new expression and a clown-like mask, offset by strong primary colours. Sharp would turn out to play a major role in the park's history in the decades to come.