Kennywood Park REFURBISHED CAROUSEL

With a week and a day to go, something definitely was missing from the park.

Like pieces in a giant merry-go-round puzzle in reverse, the Dentzel-built carousel, which had been in its current location since 1927, painstakingly was dismantled and renumbered beginning the day after the park closed for the regular 2004 season, pending reassembly for 2005.

This week the wooden base was in place, and Kennywood employees were hard at work overhead in areas exposed for the first time since the carousel was placed at the park.

"The horses have been redone before," Rosemeyer said, "but this is the first time the wheel came out.

"It's all suspended from a center pole," Rosemeyer explained, looking up.

The horses aren't just suspended from their positions around the merry-go-round, but the entire ride revolves around the center pole the size of a large-diameter tree.

Head carpenter Matt Hyatt reflected, "This is a once-in-a-lifteime project" during the disassembly.

The machinery traveled to Brass Ring Entertainment in Sun Valley, Calif., for a complete overhaul of the bearings and gears. New controls, state-of-the art push buttons and DC motor with electronic drive came from Motion Industries in the Pittsburgh area.

"Kennywood mechanics are doing all the installation," Rosemeyer explained.

With the horses gone, it was the perfect opportunity to give the remaining part of the carousel its own facelift, Rosemeyer said.

"This, too, became a huge undertaking," she said. "There are over 200 pieces making up the crown of the carousel alone. The ride is divided into 18 sections. Each section consists of 13 highly detailed pieces, including ceiling panels, cherubs, and Dentzel's signature jester heads. All that - plus 66 horses, one lion and one tiger - had to be cleaned, sometimes repaired, repainted and clear-coated before returning to the carousel building."

While parts of the mechanical facelift were done out of state, two Kennywood team members had a sense of satisfaction as the horses began returning to their pedestals on the merry-go-round Monday.

Jen Tomasic of Monroeville and Lisa Thomas of West Mifflin, who started working at the amusement park as ride operators in 1998, are responsible for the carousel's bright new look. Tomasic is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in studio arts. Thomas refers to herself as "Jen's protégé."

"We started working (on the project) the second week of October," Tomasic said.

The carousel animals were sanded and primed, ready for painting. While the carousel was apart, the women also repainted the ceiling panels and other merry-go-round components, staying true to the original color range, but adding fresh variations.

"We've painted (projects) before," Thomas said, "but I couldn't believe it when Jen said they wanted us to do the merry-go-round."

In addition to the careful numbering to make sure each animal was returned to its original position, each got its own name, even if on a temporary basis, courtesy of Tomasic and Thomas.

Monday afternoon they were putting finishing touches on the lion, dubbed "Lumpy," while a horse they named "Hunter" was back on the carousel.

With the major project winding up, Tomasic said there still was plenty to do before the park opening.

"We have to do the Jack Rabbit trains before Friday," she said.

William Dentzel, son of Gustav Dentzel, patriarch of the famous carousel-building company, originally built the machine that would become so much a part of Kennywood tradition. It was intended for the Philadelphia Exposition of 1926, Rosemeyer said, but was not completed in time. The asking price of $25,000 was considered a bargain, plus the park received a $3,500 trade allowance for its old three-row carousel.

One thing they had not bargained for was the new carousel was too big for the old merry-go-round building (one of two original structures from 1898 still standing in the park). So Kennywood had to build the current pavilion.

As the horses were resuming their posts, Gavin McDonough of Richmond, Va., made his annual trek to the park to tune the band organ. That's what plays the carousel music.

"I've been coming here almost 30 years and have been in the business for 38," he said.

The carousel's band organ is a 1924 Wurlitzer design.

"It imitates the sound of a marching band, but is more orchestral," McDonough said. "It was the most popular organ Wurlitzer built for carousels."

Spring is his busiest time of year for his specialty field. To learn the profession, McDonough apprenticed with those of Italian, German and Polish descent.

He also makes sure the music rolls are in good shape. Many are based on popular songs or marching band music of the 1920s. Because the band organ is not fully chromatic, original arrangements have to be adapted, McDonough explained.

originally published as part of a larger article here: http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1282&dept_id=553365&newsid=14481823&PAG=461&rfi=9