Thunderbolt, Wooden roller coaster in Coney Island, Brooklyn, US.
Thunderbolt was a wooden roller coaster at Coney Island in Brooklyn that reached about 86 feet high and completed its circuit in roughly one minute and seventeen seconds. The track was built directly through and over the structure of the Kensington Hotel, a residential building from 1895 that became part of the ride itself.
The ride opened in 1925, designed by John Miller, a pioneering engineer known for wooden roller coaster innovations. It operated for nearly 60 years before closing in 1982, and was later demolished in 2000.
The structure became famous when Woody Allen used it in his 1977 film Annie Hall, where it represented the childhood home of his character Alvy Singer. This appearance connected the ride to New York's film history and made it recognizable to audiences far beyond those who visited Coney Island.
The original ride no longer stands, but its history is preserved through film, photographs, and historical records that tell visitors about Coney Island's past. Information about it can be found through local archives, vintage media, and walking tours that discuss the area's amusement park heritage.
The art duo Red House Painters featured a sepia photograph of the structure on their 1993 album cover, connecting it to the contemporary art world. This artistic reference kept the structure alive in popular memory long after it ceased to exist.
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