February 2007

In the days before television changed our entertainment patterns forever, most metropolitan areas featured an outdoor amusement park.  One such landmark outside Washington, DC, was Glen Echo Park in Maryland.  Among the many attractions was a wonderful carousel composed of hand-carved animals dating from 1921.  This lovingly prepared documentary reflects on the social, political, and personal events surrounding the popularity, decline, and rejuvenation of this hallmark of Americana.  The producer utilizes a magnificent variety of techniques to craft her message; the bulk of the program focuses on heartfelt interviews with the Hurleys, a mother and son whose lives have been dedicated to the operation of the carousel for decades.  Additionally, she blends in vintage black-and-white photographs of the World War II era when Washington and the surrounding areas were overflowing with workers and military personnel who would come to the park for dancing and recreation.  A stirring segment centers on 1950s home movies of a young couple and their five-year-old daughter on the carousel, complemented by interviews with them today.  Throughout the production, there’s the familiar upbeat organ-like carousel music in the background.  Of particular interest is information provided by a Maryland state senator who was one of the original protestors in the 1960s to racially desegregate the park; that conflict is movingly supplemented by still pictures of the crusade’s highlights.  The amusement park was closed in the late 1960s, but it was ultimately turned over to the National Park Service which operates it today – with the Hurleys still carrying on.  Viewers will be fascinated by the 20-year restoration process.
- Dwain Thomas, Lake Park High School, Roselle, IL

Winter 2007

The shed doors are opened, the lights turned on, and the distinctive music of the Wurlitzer organ reverberates through the park. So begins each day at Glen Echo Park, and so begins Cintia Cabib’s engaging documentary video about the carousel that has operated almost continuously for more than 80 years. The story is one of enduring traditions, of succeeding generations taking their children to experience the ride, and the determined efforts to keep it at Glen Echo, keep it in mechanically sound condition, and ensure that it will survive for future generations to enjoy.

The carousel at Glen Echo Park was built by the Dentzel Carousel Company in 1921 in what was then an expanding amusement park on the edge of Washington, DC. Known as a menagerie-type carousel, it features 40 horses, 4 rabbits, 4 ostriches, a giraffe, a deer, a lion, and a tiger, each carved to appear in vigorous motion. Their vivid paint schemes, along with the intricately detailed plaster reliefs on the rounding boards and ceiling panels, and the scenery paintings on the central barrel panels lend the entire ride a whirl of color and texture that is hard to take in at one time. At night, over 1,000 lights heighten the effect.

Cabib tells the carousel’s story primarily through narration and interviews. Max Hurley and his mother Irene, who have operated and helped maintain the carousel for over 25 years, share their memories of the ride, explain its features, and show how Max composes music on paper rolls played by the 1926 Wurlitzer band organ. Cabib also interviews individuals and families from the area about the importance of the carousel to their lives. A former university student describes how she participated in the early 1960s demonstrations that forced Glen Echo’s owners to integrate the park. A member of the group that worked to save the ride when the amusement park closed in 1968 is also interviewed, as is the restoration artist that spent 20 years returning the animals and other decorative features to their historic appearance. The interviews and narration are illustrated with a wide variety of archival photos, family snapshots, news clippings, and amateur home movies, all held together with contemporary footage of the carousel today.

The documentary suggests that Glen Echo’s carousel and other rides like it owe much of their appeal to the way they resonate with all age groups. Children describe how while riding the carousel they imagine a world of animals in chase. Adults appreciate the carousel as a work of art. Even the youngest are able to ride on one of the chariot seats (as can elderly patrons). As children grow, they graduate to the stationary animals and then to those that “gallop” beneath gears and offset cranks.

“Carousel of Memories” presents a compelling account of this ride’s place in local history. However, the viewer would have benefited from the occasional consideration of the ride within a larger context. There is little discussion, for example, of where the Glen Echo carousel fits into the broader history of carousel design and construction. Some background on the ride’s manufacturer, Dentzel, a family that by the 1920s was in its third generation of carousel entrepreneurship, could help answer questions about whether Glen Echo’s carousel was typical or distinctive.

The decline and eventual closing of Glen Echo as an amusement park was not unique or isolated. Family-operated amusement parks across the United States fared very poorly during the 1960s and 1970s. A brief review of the economic and cultural trends that buffeted amusement parks during this period would help viewers better understand the fate of Glen Echo and help explain why carousels are rare artifacts today. Lastly, mention of efforts to save other historic carousels and the national constituency of enthusiasts, historians, and other supporters and organizations that has grown over the past 30 years would show how the work to save the carousel in the late 1960s was an early example of a movement that has grown increasingly organized and influential.

Despite these minor limitations, “Carousel of Memories” is an enjoyable and informative program that explores the enduring hold these rides have on our imaginations. It explains why even today, as the National Park Service operates the site as an arts center, the carousel remains a favorite visitor destination. Glen Echo’s historic carousel, saved and protected, provides a physical connection to the past at five revolutions per minute.

Chad Randl
Technical Preservation Services
National Park Service

November-December 2006

Maryland’s Glen Echo Park has attracted visitors for over a century, and the Dentzel carousel has been a part of that magic for almost as long-with its assortment of horses, rabbits, ostriches, and African wildlife circling to the music of a mighty Wurlitzer 165 with cymbals, drums, and glockenspiel.  Over the years, the carousel’s fortunes faded along with those of the park, and in 1968 the carousel was sold, ultimately winding up in the inventory of a California collector.  In time, however, the folks in Glen Echo raised the money to purchase the carousel back and restored it to its former glory on the original park site, which is now operated by the Park Service as an arts, educational, and recreational center.  Filmmaker Cintia Cabib’s charming and nicely lensed documentary Carousel of Memories relates this history through archival footage, stills, and interviews with carousel operators and visitors who share their memories and home movies from childhood visits.  In addition, the film looks at the restoration process, which has turned this beloved carousel into a genuine work of art.  A rewarding slice of Americana, this is recommended. (J. Reed)

September 2006
by Roland Hopkins

Maybe the best compliment you can give to a documentary (or any other) filmmaker is that “I didn’t want it to stop.”  Carousel of Memories gets that vote from me.  As well as being rich in historical information and meaningful interviews, there is never a moment wasted on screen.

The still shots and film clips from the 40’s and 60’s take us right back to our youth and our own memories.  The interviews conducted, with some prominent folks in the carousel’s history, as well as some regular folks like us, all take place on the ride and are beautifully filmed.  One feels guilty at times focusing on the glistening horse next to the person speaking, although we are, of course, listening.

The documentary shares with us the rich history of the park and the Dentzel carousel which survives as the lone ride from the original amusement park.  Beyond its tenure as an amusement park for children for many decades, Glen Echo served as quite the forum for adults as well.

During World War II, the dance hall ballroom was the place to be on a Saturday night as the trolley cars pulled right into the park offering easy access to all in the D.C. area.

In the 60’s, Glen Echo became a center for the struggle for desegregation.  Current State Senator Gwendolyn Britt was among the first to picket the segregation at Glen Echo.

You will also see and learn of the demise of the park and near loss of the carousel in the mid-70’s as well as the rejuvenation of the park and landmark government intervention.

Finally, we get to see inside the renovation of the band organ, and meet Rosa Ragan who spent two decades on the restoration of the entire ride.

Carousel of Memories is a must own for anyone who has ever had the pleasure of visiting Glen Echo park, as well as any and all carousel enthusiasts.