30 years since Luna Park Sydney Fire

[bossninja17]

This week marks 30 years since the mysterious fire in the Ghost Train at Sydney's Luna Park.
The attached item was in the Sydney Morning Herald

[bossninja17]

The Ghost Train in its hey day.
It was at the Luna Park auction, after the fire, where I bought my first pin - a 1970 Gottlieb EM.

[pinnies4me]

That stirred an old memory. Just googled the fire, and found this reference to pinball in the Wikipedea entry

Former Park Artist Martin Sharp claimed that Saffron had approached Luna Park's owner, Ted Hopkins, at a point several years before the fire, offering to buy the park.[2] In 1985, it was claimed by NSW MP Michael John Hatton that Saffron had beneficial ownership of the park, resulting in an inquiry, which concluded that although people related to Saffron were involved in supplying pinball and arcade games to Luna Park, Abe Saffron himself was not linked to the ownership of the park.[2]

[illawarra_steelers]

I remember as a kid being scared of that Ghost Train - just looking at it gives me the creeps!

Man that was one freaky looking entrance to that ride, still remember standing underneath it in the late 1960s just looking up at that skeleton 'riding' the train with my jaw on the ground.

[pinballist]

Man you're not kidding! I used to get creeped out just approaching the big Luna Park face.

[illawarra_steelers]

Man you're not kidding! I used to get creeped out just approaching the big Luna Park face.

Also how people never got thrown and killed from the Big Dipper will remain a mystery!

Once in Coney Island everything changed! Pinballs everywhere! 

[ajlaird]

So bossninja's first pin could have been ex Abe Saffron??

[bossninja17]

So bossninja's first pin could have been ex Abe Saffron??

My Aquarius is a 1970s machine. Up until the late 70s, Luna Park had its own machines and mechanics looking after them. In the back of my Aquarius is a record of who (on the Luna Park staff) worked on it. Saffron's "Arcadia Amusements" began moving in in the late 70s. Saffron also had pins, video games and cigarette machines all around Sydney. Cash from machines was a great way to launder money and dodge tax. There is strong suspicion that Saffron wanted Luna Park - I'm not surprised if he was linked to the fire.

I think the "old" machines (pre 1975) at the auction were the original Luna Park ones.

I loved the old Luna Park and the Penny Arcade. I got to wander around the park before the auction - very errie. Somewhere on the AP site I posted photos I took, including one of the ruins of the Ghost Train after the fire.

[ajlaird]

Ah well, would have made a good story - but it does sound like you have done your research.

[bossninja17]

In the name of research, I visted the Venus Room once - it was run by Saffron and you could smell the evil in the joint.

[pinballist]

In the name of research, I visted the Venus Room once.

Ha ha ha love it!!