Bad news sir. They took heavy damage.
Take a walk through "FLASHBACKS" arcade in Seaside Heights, NJ
- Thread starter Killert6969
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sohchx
Active member
I think this is the place
http://www.washingtonpost.com/natio...bea2-2468-11e2-9313-3c7f59038d93_story_1.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/natio...bea2-2468-11e2-9313-3c7f59038d93_story_1.html
Mr. Hot Dog
Member
I've got the scoop on this one. Flashbacks is completely gone. It was on Funtown Pier in the Carousel Arcade, and Funtown Pier was by far the worse of the two piers in Seaside Heights. I saw a video clip of the media exploring Funtown Pier, and they stood in the very spot where Flashbacks stood. All that was left were pilings, sand, and blue skies. It's heartbreaking to imagine all those classic vids, pins, EM games, and Skeeball being swallowed by the ocean like that.
Here's a video that includes an interview with the arcade owner. The magenta walls seen here were the inside walls of Flashbacks.
http://videos.nj.com/star-ledger/2012/11/a_video_look_at_seaside_height.html
Flashbacks was my local arcade, and my wife and I spent countless hours there playing classics in the wild. Our usual routine was for her to hit up Frogger while I played Tapper, and then we'd play two player Paperboy together. Another happy memory I have was the time when I infuriated a foreign exchange worker with a marathon game of Mr. Do's Castle while he was trying to close up shop. He was watching angrily over my shoulder the whole time, waiting for my game to end. Just when he thought my game was almost over, I nabbed a diamond and won a free game. He hurled several European obscenities at me before handing over a quarter to reimburse me for the free game as he flipped off the breaker. Ha ha.
Other classics that are now gone that come to mind: Galaga, Ms. Pac, Space Invaders, Tempest, Star Wars, Defender, Robotron, Mr. Do, Mr. Do's Castle, Ghostbusters, Track & Field, Punch Out, Donkey Kong, Centipede, Millipede, Spy Hunter cockpit, Turbo cockpit, Pole Position cockpit, Simpsons, Rampage, Championship Sprint... others that I can't even remember. They were just about the last local arcade that was still offering classics instead of filling the place with redemption machines. What a shame. RIP Flashbacks.
Here's a video that includes an interview with the arcade owner. The magenta walls seen here were the inside walls of Flashbacks.
http://videos.nj.com/star-ledger/2012/11/a_video_look_at_seaside_height.html
Flashbacks was my local arcade, and my wife and I spent countless hours there playing classics in the wild. Our usual routine was for her to hit up Frogger while I played Tapper, and then we'd play two player Paperboy together. Another happy memory I have was the time when I infuriated a foreign exchange worker with a marathon game of Mr. Do's Castle while he was trying to close up shop. He was watching angrily over my shoulder the whole time, waiting for my game to end. Just when he thought my game was almost over, I nabbed a diamond and won a free game. He hurled several European obscenities at me before handing over a quarter to reimburse me for the free game as he flipped off the breaker. Ha ha.
Other classics that are now gone that come to mind: Galaga, Ms. Pac, Space Invaders, Tempest, Star Wars, Defender, Robotron, Mr. Do, Mr. Do's Castle, Ghostbusters, Track & Field, Punch Out, Donkey Kong, Centipede, Millipede, Spy Hunter cockpit, Turbo cockpit, Pole Position cockpit, Simpsons, Rampage, Championship Sprint... others that I can't even remember. They were just about the last local arcade that was still offering classics instead of filling the place with redemption machines. What a shame. RIP Flashbacks.
yaggy
Well-known member
I remember him behind the ticket counter. It's awful luck that he decided to drop hurricane insurance this year.
I also feel bad for Vince Storino, I met him a few years back and got to talk to him about the history of Casino Pier, having lost everything to a fire in the 60s but coming right back from the ashes. Hopefully he still has this gusto. Besides, I've got a bunch of these VIP ride tickets he gave me still to use. The ride operators and mechanics were cool too, gave me tours of ride mechanisms and even got to run the Centrifuge. These are awesome people.
I also feel bad for Vince Storino, I met him a few years back and got to talk to him about the history of Casino Pier, having lost everything to a fire in the 60s but coming right back from the ashes. Hopefully he still has this gusto. Besides, I've got a bunch of these VIP ride tickets he gave me still to use. The ride operators and mechanics were cool too, gave me tours of ride mechanisms and even got to run the Centrifuge. These are awesome people.
Mr. Hot Dog
Member
Yaggy, that's awesome. I worked on the Jenkinson's boardwalk for 5 years back in the 90s in Pt. Pleasant. I'm glad that the Storinos own Casino Pier because they are the kind of family to rebuild bigger and better, AND they tend to keep things family friendly, so it'll keep out the Seaside riff raff. They're also smart businesspeople, so I'm sure they had insurance out the wazoo. Wouldn't be surprised if they bought Funtown Pier too.
I went to see an old coworker a few years ago (who was working on CP) and was lucky enough to take a lights-on tour of Stillwalk Manor, the ride-through haunted house at the end of the pier. I wish I took pictures -- it was so cool seeing how all that stuff worked. Sadly, Stillwalk Manor didn't make it.
yaggy
Well-known member
I did the same thing and took pictures.
Glad I did, now! The whole building is gone.
The best spot was the upper catwalk where the fog machine is, you can see most of the ride interior from that vantage point, which would be directly above where I was standing when I took that photo. The broken beam with the chandelier is awesome too, swinging back and forth. The creaking was not a recording, the hinge is old and rusty so that's some authentic creaking noises.
The information gathered and pictures went to create this article:
http://www.laffinthedark.com/articles/stillwalk/stillwalk1.htm
Oh, and arcade games are fun.
Mr. Hot Dog
Member
Sweet!!! I've browsed that article many times, and I'm so glad someone documented it. Well done.
Funny how you noted in the article about the false painting in the one wall -- ever since Josh showed that to me during the tour, I would cringe every time I passed it. My wife would say, "What? Why are you cringing? What do you know that I don't?" That would be followed by a hellish scream by her as the live actor popped out unexpectedly. Ha ha. Great times.
And yes, they are.
Funny how you noted in the article about the false painting in the one wall -- ever since Josh showed that to me during the tour, I would cringe every time I passed it. My wife would say, "What? Why are you cringing? What do you know that I don't?" That would be followed by a hellish scream by her as the live actor popped out unexpectedly. Ha ha. Great times.
And yes, they are.
yaggy
Well-known member
Josh! He was the supervisor. Yes. Great dude.
Sad, Sad day to see another classic arcade vanish. Quite an impresive pin lineup for a small arcade.
Sandy was not a hurricane when it made landfall.shouldn't his insurance cover it?
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Mr. Hot Dog
Member
He needs flood insurance to be covered. If I'm not mistaken, hurricane insurance won't pay out much (if at all) because of that very reason. Whatever insurance he had, it sounds like he cancelled it. Bummer.
I didn't spend as much time in their pin room, but I remember seeing Whitewater, Pinbot, High Speed, Whirlwind (ironic), Hercules, and an EM baseball game. Quite a few others. The good news is that the Silverball Museum in Asbury Park fared a lot better -- a foot or so of flood water, but nothing tragic for pins.
yaggy
Well-known member
From what I heard, Bob rented that building so maybe he's just looking at equipment loss, but that carousel was old world carved wood and worth around a million.
Mr. Hot Dog
Member
The last I heard, the carousel itself was safe! Good news.
videogamerman2k
Member
It's a shame this place is totally gone now, first from the superstorm/hurricane, then the fire a year later, which completely destroyed the building, along with many other places on the boardwalk. Going to Flashbacks was my favorite thing to do while there, and during the summer in general. Can't believe when I was in Seaside last summer, only to see it, and so much other stuff no longer there. The owner was planning on having the place all rebuilt in 2014, but don't think he's going to come back from the devastation the fire bought, sadly.
