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Ocean City

Ocean City of Years Past

For many families, visiting Ocean City is a summer tradition. Some of the older folks who have been vacationing here for decades can still remember when the boardwalk wasnโ€™t past 33rd street. In some ways, barely anything has changed: the beach and boards have been here seemingly forever and Coastal Highway willย eternally be lined with hotels, motels, mini golf and Dumserโ€™s. But there are subtleties that make the town just a little different from year to year, too: businesses come and go. Amusements are replaced and remodeled. Sky-grazing condos are built and uninitiated families are constantly discovering all the joys that OC has to offer.

It’s these little differences that spawned a thread on our forum in 2004 called โ€œReminiscing – Ocean City of Yesteryear.โ€ A user by the name of songbird made the first post and opened up a nostalgia-inducing six-page-long discussion that continues to this day. On the thread, users share their memories and reflect on the restaurants, motels and rides that they frequented back in the day, some of which still exist and others that have been sadly lost to the sands of time.

I discovered the thread when I was looking up old pictures of my favorite place on Earth, the Trimperโ€™s Haunted House, which has undergone tons of renovations and changes over its 50+ year history. I love old haunted houses and dark rides, so when I stumbled across the forum, I thought maybe someone would have some old Trimperโ€™s haunted house photos to share. What I discovered was even better. Iโ€™d never even heard of the spooky old walk-through ride on the boardwalk that haunted families for 20 years, but sure enough, someone had old pictures of Morbid Manor to share with others who remember the defunct haunted house. This is one of my favorites of many cool finds from the โ€œReminiscingโ€ forum.

Morbid Manor
Morbid Manor in the early 90s. More on this place later.

Below are some notable posts from โ€œReminiscing,โ€ and if youโ€™re interested, you can read more or add your own right here. Some people want to know what ever happened to their favorite old jaunts, so after a little research, I was able to compile a bit of information about such places of Ocean Cityโ€™s past. Others, itโ€™s like they never existed – not even a mere mention online other than on the thread. So if you remember any of these old places, be sure to search your scrapbook for pictures and share your memories with fellow vacationers.

From JJ_Walters:

โ€œMost of my memories come from circa 1980s:

– The old haunted house at the Pier Rides. I can’t remember the name of it now, “Haunted Manor” or something like that. It was a fantastic, walk-through haunted house. Great interior design work, and very scary. At one point, they had a guy who would chase you out at the end with a chainsaw! They don’t make haunted house attractions like this anymore. I think it closed in the lates 80s or early 90s.

– Bozo the Clown at the Pier Rides. He sat in a cage and you tried to dump him in the water by hitting a target with baseballs. Nothing special about this, but it was Bozo himself who was, how shall I say it, “unique.โ€ This guy would taunt you with all kinds of derogatory insults! “Your girlfriend is so ugly…” – That kind of stuff. Not exactly family friendly stuff, but for a teenager, it was hilarious! Bozo got the boot sometime around the late 80s, early 90s.

– Freak Street! AKA S. Division street. The street that leads into Trimperโ€™s Amusement Park. Back in the 80s this street was known as “Freak Street” because it was the main hangout spot for “Metal Heads” and “Punks.” On any given night, you would see dozens on them just, well, hanging out! Again, this O.C. tradition ended sometime in the late 80s, early 90s. Loitering is not allowed there anymore.

– Elvis, AKA “Norman.” Elvis was a well know OC institution for over 30 years! All day, every day he would cruise up and down the boards in his polyester shirt and pants and cowboy hat, while carrying an old 8 track cassette recorder (which always played Elvis tunes), while humming along with a kazoo. My Dad knew him from the 60s. I know him from the late 70s and 80s. I have not seen him in years. He may have passed away, but I am not sure.

– Lombardi’s Pizza on the boardwalk. Best damn pizza in OC They closed the boardwalk shop several years ago, unfortunately. They still have one in North OC.

– The Day the Moose Fought Back. Well, not really, but one night in 1988, some drunk patron at the Purple Moose Saloon ripped the moose head off the wall and threw it through the front window! Must have scared the hell out of people walking past it on the boards.

– The George Washington Hotel is on fire! I remember it well. I was at the Atlantic Hotel (The best hotel in OC I might add. We always stay there) when we heard all of these sirens. The hotel suffered major damage and never reopened. It was one of the oldest hotels in OC.

– The Wild Mouse ride at Trimperโ€™s. Extremely fun Wild Mouse ride that was operated by a very scary looking man. He had literally two or three teeth in his mouth and he was always covered in grease! This ride closed sometime in the late 80s.

– Laughing Sal from the early 30s! I really miss her! Ok, just kidding.โ€

From DianeR:

โ€œGeez, I remember Elvis from the 70s and 80s. I’ve been going to OC since about 1974 and almost every year since 1990. I remember the haunted house also from the 70s. My favorite and still a tradition for us is Tony’s pizza. It used to be this dark, long, narrow pizza and beer place before they remodeled and put in windows on the side and added the upstairs and made it a family place…I also remember riding the bus all day for something like a quarter when I was 14-15โ€ฆโ€

From ML:

โ€œThe Back of the Rack had Castle in the Sand’s 25 cent beers beat with their Nickel Nights. God what a free for all those could be, but soooo much fun. That was the first place I ever saw Great Train Robbery play back in the early 80s. Of course, what was the Rack is now Fortress Ocean City (the police department).โ€

From Phil:

โ€œI have fantastic memories of a summer spent in Ocean City in 1988 on a student exchange from England. I nearly ended up at the wrong OC from the bus station in New York, but luckily spotted my mistake at the last minute. Met a great bunch of English and American students and between working at Daytonโ€™s Chicken and Seafood for two interesting characters, Paolo and Eddie, spent most of the time partying. I still have the t-shirt from the Surf Rat Cafรฉ, and can just about remember Talbot Street Cafรฉ and a place lower than 1st street, I think called Bush’s?

Daytonโ€™s was a great place to work, with amazing characters like Smokey, Tina, Jimmy-Dee, Dee, Darlene and Brett – who really should have been in Las Vegas. I spent the time washing dishes and failing badly at chatting up the waitresses (it was only later that the English accent started to work…) It looks like the place has moved up the peninsula now as this was somewhere between 1st and 3rd street if I remember correctly. The soft-crab sandwich was the big thing, but as impoverished students, we were given the leftover fried chicken at the end of the night and basically lived on that all summer (something you can only do at 19).
I remember the fantastic boardwalk, the amazing beach and for some reason, the Cure playing loud on the speakers at the fun fair on the pier. Our flat was less good. Just behind 1st street, the toilet at the end of a bed behind a curtain – class!โ€

From Madman:

โ€œSamantha’s and Scandal’s were the best clubs for hoppin’ night life! Let’s just say that Labor Day weekend in ’88 will live in infamy for me and my friends! ‘Nough said. Almost all of those clubs have either closed down, changed names, or moved. Samantha’s was the first to close in ’90. Tiffany’s and Graffitti’s are gone. Scandal’s moved in the old Samantha’s location before closing in ’05. But the Paddock was still open in ’07, as was the Purple Moose on the boardwalk (and DJ Batman, who used to do the “Best Body on the Beach” contests, was STILL there in ’07!).

For munchies…Soriano’s…Thrasher’s French Fries (hold the vinegar)…the Dough Roller for breakfast…pizza on the boardwalk near 5th Street! (I forget the name of the place)…Dumser’s Dairy (for custard ice cream like Dairy Queen)…Dayton’s Chicken for the BEST fried chicken and soft shell crabs, on the boardwalk by the pier at South Division Street…and the Bull On The Beach for awesome bbq roast pork and roast beef sandwiches.

What I loved best about OCMD was that it was clean, it had a little bit of everything for everyone, and you had all sorts of people from all walks of life – different cultures, backgrounds, ethnicities, incomes, all ages from babies to octogenarians, single people, families – and everyone had smiles on their faces.

And I always liked seeing the beautifully done Christian-themed sand sculptures at the beach by North Division Street. From what I understand, the job of doing them had been handed down over the years (Chuck Ritchley Sr. and Randy Hofman were two of the men who’ve done them).โ€

So what became of some of these old Ocean City landmarks?

Morbid Manor

This two-and-a-half story walk-through sat on the boardwalk near the Inlet from 1975 to ’95, and looked more like an actual abandoned house than an amusement park ride. The Manor was designed by legendary dark ride creator Fred Mahana, who is best known for rides like Dracula’s Castle and Theater of Blood in Wildwood, NJ.

Morbid Manor
A view of Morbid Manor from the beach in 1983. Photo from ochh.net by Gerald U.

Mahana didn’t design the Manor for the faint of heart: actors, mostly theater students on summer break from college, donned terrifyingly realistic monster makeup and costumes and chased visitors with chainsaws and shrill screams and moans. According to ochh.net, many of the ride’s employees had an especially personal relationship with the haunted house:

Unknown to many, the Manor was a hip place off-hours. The management and workers of the ride would often hold band practices behind closed doors and sleep there throughout the nights despite a lack of air conditioning and uncomfortable 100 degree beach temperatures.

Unfortunately, in 1995, only a year after Morbid Manor had undergone interior and exterior renovations, the Manor burned to the ground in a fire that was likely the result of an electrical malfunction. The ride had a sprinkler system in place, but it had been turned off to keep the pipes from freezing during the winter months, and fire crews were unable to salvage any of the building.

Morbid Manor fire
The fire blazes on in November 1995. Photo from an article published in Ocean City Today.

Laffing Sal

Thankfully (to some, at least), Laffing Sal is still laughing it up in Ocean City today. In the 1940s, Sal guarded the front of Jester’s Fun House, an amusementย site that Sportland Arcade occupies today. The Fun House was demolished in the 70s, and in 1980 Sal was restored and donated to the Ocean City Life-Saving Museum at the Inlet. Sal now stands behind a glass window on the museum’s second floor, and with the push of a button, you can make her laugh and jolt around just as she did in the 40s. Some say she’s haunted, and rumors say she’s been known to start laughing and gyrating all by herself . Whether that’s true or not, you’ll have to find out on your own.

Laffing Sal
Laffing Sal in her new home at the Life-Saving Museum.

Wild Mouse Coaster

According to those who remember this particular coaster, the Wild Mouse was also known as the Monster Mouse and was located at the beginning of the boardwalk from the 1960s to the mid-80s. The ride originally belonged to Melvin’s Amusements, which is thought to have been purchased by Trimper’s in the early 70s.

Trimper's brochure
On the cover of this Trimper’s brochure from the late 70s, you can see part of the Wild Mouse track in the lower left corner.

Boardwalk Elvis

Norman Webb, otherwise known as Boardwalk Elvis, has been entertaining his fans up and down the boardwalk for decades. He’s a legend in these parts, and today the King lives on at 78 years old. You can still see him biking around the Ocean Pines area, sometimes in full Elvis regalia.

In 2013, Webb was hit by a car while riding his bike, but was able to walk away with only a few minor injuries. His bike, on the other hand, was smashed to pieces. After hearing about the accident, “The Rude Awakening” radio show raised $678 in under an hour and bought beloved Boardwalk Elvis a new electric bike with a back-up battery, lights and a basket.

Boardwalk Elvis
In his heyday, Boardwalk Elvis would sign custom postcards like this one for his adoring fans.

Bozo

Don’t worry – Bozo, too, lives on. According to forum user Danny Jr:

“Bozo was a hilarious guy, I’ve known him for about 21 years. He actually never got fired, he left because he had a child.”

Kristin
Kristinhttp://kristinhelf.tumblr.com
Kristin is a writer and photographer in Ocean City, Maryland, and is the content manager for OceanCity.com and other State Ventures, LLC sites. She loves getting reader-submitted stories and photos, so send her an email anytime. She also works part-time at the Art League of Ocean City and the Ocean City Film Festival and lives just off the peninsula with her dog and fiancรฉ. Her photos can be found on Instagram @oc_kristin.

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75 COMMENTS

  1. I lived in Fenwick Island every summer. We used to go out to the clubs and afterwards, go to The Afterhours Club in Ocean City. I am not sure what street, but it was bayside and there was a deck. Does anyone else remember this place. It was a really fun place. This was back in 70’s.

  2. Does anyone remember when Trimper’s had minature golf by the boardwalk or the names of some of the stores that were in the 45th Street Village in the 80’s or 90″s. I believe I remember one store being called The Pipe Shop as they sold tobacco products. I also have a pair of shoe that I bought at the village in 1989 that are 35 years old.

  3. My husband and I worked at Dayton’s Chicken the summer of 1974. We used to go to a little diner I believe was named Rainey’s (not sure of spelling). It has the best sandwiches and great prices and super friendly staff. Does anyone know where it was located at that time? It is no longer there.

  4. Oh yeah. I recall the the Irish House. I hung out there a lot and played softball for them for 2 summers. They would have an “after hours” most nights for employees, friends and softball team. Great place. I believe it burned down in late 70s (I was there summers of 76-77). The Purple Moose was next door, at that time.
    The Irish House would book come really good rock bands early in the season before all the tourists arrived. Then they usually switched to Irish music if I recall.
    Matt

  5. I remember in the 1970’s playing games a Casey’s games. The workers would bark a the passing people to play the game. It employed many kids for the summer. I remember the Alaska stand with the bed hamburgers!

  6. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge opened when I was about age 4 and the family started going to Ocean City annually. We stayed at the Miami and the Alamo at first, but by 1958 we started staying at Warren’s Cottages and later, the Eagles Nest on Rt 50 where it passed over a tidal creek. I cannot tell you how much I miss those times and places…and the Taylors Pork Roll place on the boardwalk.

  7. Does anyone remember a radio commercial in 1990 from I believe The Angle Restaurant that was a woman’s voice.
    She said in the commercial
    “Come on in, bring the SQUIDS, or stay just for the HALIBAT.”
    “Welcome all BOUYS and GULLS”
    It will stay in my mind until the day I die.

  8. What was the name of the bar in the 1960s that had an “under 21 night”. It was on the bay side of Coastal Hwy? Used to there with friends all the time.

  9. I was 12 yrs. old in 1947 when our family travel to OC.Our boarding house ,on 8th St.,had a โ€œone armed banditโ€ in the hall, which I promptly played and won 75 cents. I quit while I was ahead.
    In the โ€˜60โ€™s we stayed the Doctors Dilemma, them on to Mrs. Ronsisvals on 8th & Balto. Ave, then to a sweet cottage on 8th and one house off the Boardwalk, then to a cottage on 12th. Now have a place on 44th and a beautiful view of the magnificent Atlantic Oceanโ€ฆ
    The boardwalk and the tram are wonderful additions to the beautiful ocean and the wide ,clean sandy beach.
    So many happy years visiting this safe family environment.

  10. I played drums with the band ” PEACE ” at the HUNKA MUMKA Bar & Club across from Anthony’s back in 1969.
    We were hired by the Naval Academy at the Hunka Munka to play at the Party in Philadelphia after the ARMY / NAVY game in 1970, they lost 20 to 0 !
    It took lots of alcohol before they started dancing !!
    I vacationed in Ocean City for over 40 years, Living in Florida now, miss it every summer, no other place like it !.

  11. Ocean City in 1983 was the best summer I’ve ever had there. I remember walking the boardwalk with my boombox and I only had 5 cassette tapes with me-Motley Crue, Quiet Riot, Def Leppard, Ozzy and Ratt. We stayed at The Northwinds Motel 2 weeks in mid July every year but 83 was special. The rides were amazing and the music played on them was great. I would spend many dollars on the shooting gallery which is still there. I was there last fall and went to the inlet by myself, live Quiet Riot songs playing on my iPod and just sat there thinking of the past- go-carts, The Morbid Manor, listening to the bands playing at The Purple Moose imagining me playing there one day, The Matterhorn, I forget the name of the coaster that the car went up the center tube and spiraled around the outside, and getting pizza at Grandma’s Pizza shop. Of course I played the shooting gallery while I was there.

    • OMG I REALLY MISS THOSE DAYS!
      THEY WERE THE BEST ESPECIALLY AT OCMD โ›ฑ๏ธ
      LIFE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME AS IT WAS BACK THEN!!!
      LIFE WAS SO MUCH SIMPLER AN EASIER…..
      I OFTEN JUST GO TO OC BY MYSELF & JUST LAY ON THE BEACH!!! REALLY MISS THE OLD DAYS…
      SO SAD, WOULD HAVE LOVED FOR MY KIDS & EVEN NOW MY GRANDKIDS
      TO BE ABLE TO EXPIERENCE A SIMPLER TIME OF THEY WAY LIFE USED TO BE…
      ESPECIALLY AT OCEAN CITY!!!
      HAS ALWAYS BEEN MY FAVORITE PLACE TO GO TO.
      I STILL LOVE IT THERE EVEN THO IT’S NOT LIKE IT WAS WHEN I WAS YOUNGER.
      GREAT PLACE TO RELAX, GO TO THE DIFFERENT BARS OR JUST SPEND TiME with family & or friends!
      Still something thier for everyone to do….

  12. During 1960-1980 Casey’s games were on the boardwalk and pier. The games were owned by Edward Burke and named after his son Casey’. I remember all wearing Caesy’s games blue shirts! They provided many summer jobs for the summer.

  13. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge opened in July, 1952. I think we started going to Ocean City, MD, in 1953, staying (I think) in the Alamo Motel. I was a toddler. Eventually we started patronizing Warren’s Cottages. I cannot tell you what a huge formative part of my life, Ocean City was. To me, it is a holy place. I would not be the same person had I not experienced it.

    • Yes I can relate a hurricane named Doris hit ocean city bad in the mid 60โ€™s I think warrens survived but the landscape was changed.

  14. Grew up going to OC, does anyone remember Meister Donuts? It was part of the same building as Tony’s Pizza. Great owners, I still remember as a small kid they would let me come behind the counter and “make the donuts”. Wish I could thank them for that!!!

    • I certainly do remember Meister’s. My family used to ride bikes in the morning on the boardwalk and always stop at Meister’s for breakfast. The donuts were delicious!

  15. I visited Ocean City every year from 1969 until 2019 and sometimes 3 to 4 times a year. My memories of Ocean City are of the following: smell.of the ocean air riding across the draw bridge on Route 50 as you enter Ocean City, the Oceanic Motel, the Inlet Lodge, watching fishing boats returning to inlet with flags flying that showed what they caught that day, the huge shark on display in the case at inlet end of the boardwalk, Trimpers rides and games at inlet end, riding bikes up and down the 2 mile boardwalk, buying the bracelet that allowed you to ride Trimper rides as many times as you wanted from 1 pm to 5 pm, the speed pitch game at inlet where you threw 2 pitches and had to guess the speed of your third pitch, the Wild Mouse rollercoaster, the rocket ride where you ride up to the top in a small caged in car and then return to bottom by going around & around the outside of rocket, bumper cars, old fashioned rides like the merry go round and antique cars/trucks/fire engine that woud go round & round, Thrashers french fries with salt & vinegar, candied apples, Boog Powell’s pit beef & turkey sandwiches, Marty’s Playland, skeetball, sitting on benches and people watching, the pier rides & games & Bozo the Clown making rude comments to get people to pay to try to dunk him in the water “high & dry, yeah high & dry”, the metal poles in the beach sand in the 1970s you could hold onto as the tide came in & out and if you looked at your feet it gave you the feeling you were moving even though you weren’t, guys taking pixs on beach for scopes that you could buy at store that night, watching boats and planes go by in ocean with advertisements, watching sunrises over ocean and sunsets over the bay, shopping in the many tshirt stores and the smell of the hot presses putting decals onto shirts, Panama Jack hats, guy dressed up like Elvis walking boardwalk and sometimes he had boom box with him, the train riding up & down the boardwalk, the seagulls, Ocean Gallery with all the frames and artwork inside and outside on the walls of the building, the sand sculpture artist who did beautiful sculptures of Jesus and other biblical scenes, the Kite Loft, Tony’s Pizza, the Dough Roller, Fractured Prune donuts, Polock Johnny’s breakfast sandwiches, the game where you squirted water into mouth of the clowns until the balloon popped, Tilt a Whirl, ferris wheel on the pier, boogie boards in the ocean, the smell of the ocean air and suntan lotion, boat rides from the bayside out to ocean and back to bayside that were provided by some restaurants after you finished your dinner, parasaling, walking on the boardwalk barefoot and trying to avoid getting a splinter in your foot, putt putt/minature golf off the boardwalk, the leashes with the invisible dogs, the sounds of the rides & arcade games when walking the boardwalk at night, visiting OC in the fall and winter when it was less crowded, seeing xmas light displays while riding train at northside park before xmas, Quality Inn at 54th Street with the atrium/hot tubs/parrots in cages, Paul Revere all you could eat buffet that you stepped down into from the boardwalk, and the countless days spent in Ocean City enjoying the same routine of waking up early to ride bikes up & down the boardwalk…then getting donuts for breakfast…then walking up & down the boardwalk to visit stores….then riding bumper cars….then going out to go in the ocean and lay out on the beach with beach chairs & umbrellas….going up to the boardwalk for ome lunch to take back to the beach….heafing back to the motel and feeling so good after a nice showe…getting dressed and heading out for dinner….walking the boardwalk at night playing games & riding rides…..and then getting favorite snacks & foods before heading back to the motel for a good nights sleep and being excited to do it all over again the next day. Lots of great memories of Ocean City and look forward to going back the next time I return to Maryland.

  16. The maintenance guy on the Wild Mouse at Trimpers who had 3 teeth and coke bottle glasses was Wild Bill.
    The Sub Shop on Baltimore Ave was called Yellow Sub owned by Fritz and is now Fat Daddy’s.
    Hall’s restaurant was close by and Hall was the short order cook.
    Billy Gibbs got his start at Lombardi’s on the Boardwalk at Talbot Street flipping Pizza and went on to build a Pizza Empire with the Dough Roller.

  17. Any memories or published stories about TraderLeesVillage back in the day ? late 1960โ€™s up to 1981 ? After I came back from Nam until we sold it and moved to California and Colorado

  18. It was August of 1983 and I stayed in a place called the Beach Pad. Does anyone recall where it was located?
    It was a pretty bare bones place to stay but we met up with a bunch of cool kids from Pittsburgh and we had a ball there.

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