20/01/2026
Cool story to share, especially for my friends from Elementary School...
At age 9, I went to school in Coney Island. Every day in the second floor lobby of the building, I passed an 8-foot long wood sculpture of old Coney Island, depicted during its "heyday" as a seaside playground. I loved the artwork and studied it each morning. (Friends from school: do you remember?)
When I was 15, I was walking through an art fair on University Place in the Village and came across an artist whose work looked very familiar. I asked him if he created a wood sculpture for my school and he said yes! We got to talking, he and his wife took a shine to me, and they gave me his card. His name was Harry Glaubach.
I convinced my parents to get me one of his pieces for my 16th birthday. My dad was the one who really needed convincing as the piece was $300. It was a relative who convinced him to do so for two reasons: "Your son is interested in art, so you should be encouraging that. And if he was your daughter, a 16th birthday would cost you a whole lot more, so consider yourself lucky that's all he wants!" Dad relented.
I worked with Harry and he listened to what I was envisioning, and all the things I wanted included. Some of them he had done before (Nathan's, Luna Park, etc) and some he would do for the first time (the building of the Cyclone and Parachute Jump, as well as the famous Steeplechase smiley face.)
About 6 months later, I picked up the piece from Harry's studio, and loved it instantly. He loved that a kid was so enthusiastic about his work and I picked up a few smaller pieces over the years before he passed.
I haven't had room for this sculpture for a while... until now! I got it back from my mom who stored it for a long time, restored it a little, and it's now going to have pride-of-place in my office. Really excited to pass by it every day again.
Thanks, Harry. I love it.
