City needs to take action.
----- Original Message ---- From: Mario <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: AsburyPark@yahoogroups.com Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2008 10:23:48 AM Subject: [AsburyPark] Bloomberg News: "Poor Tillie" In the midst of a financial crisis, Bloomberg still finds time to run a "Tillie Exclusive": ------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- - Springsteen Fans Clamor to Preserve Asbury Park's `Tillie' Icon ( Bloomberg.com: Exclusive <http://www.bloomber g.com/apps/ news?pid= 20601109& sid=ar_CXa. U28dc&refer= \ home#> contains links to all sources.) Sept. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Poor Tillie. A two-story cartoon-faced mural, Tillie once lorded over Asbury Park from the side of the Palace Amusements building near the New Jersey shore town's boardwalk. Today, he sits in a plywood box outside the city's sewage plant, the paint peeling on a clownish smile once aglow in neon light. When the Palace -- immortalized in song by New Jersey's Bruce Springsteen -- faced a redeveloper' s wrecking ball 10 years ago, the rocker's fans rallied to Tillie's rescue. ``Save Tillie,'' a group first formed to restore the building, raised $70,000 -- some from Springsteen himself --and collected thousands of signatures urging officials to preserve Tillie and two other murals, of women in bumper cars. Before the cinderblock building was demolished in May 2004, volunteers helped cut out the murals and bolt them to steel frames. Sixteen feet high and 10 feet wide, Tillie's 14-ton face was lifted out by crane. Thanks to the fans, a redevelopment permit required that the murals be preserved in sheds built to conservator specifications until they could be put on public display. Two sheds, designed by New York-based conservator Paul Himmelstein, were built but remain empty. Himmelstein said in a 2005 report that the wastewater-plant boxes weren't protecting the murals from rust stains, mold and ``physical damage from blows to the outside.'' Boardwalk Life Those conditions remain, and Springsteen fans feel betrayed. So they again are rallying, gathering more than 2,300 signatures on a petition calling for the city and Governor Jon Corzine to enforce the preservation requirement. The Asbury Park Press backed their efforts with an Aug. 18 editorial. ``The Palace and Tillie and the murals in many ways have become the icons of Asbury Park,'' said Bob Crane, Save Tillie's president. ``Every time people were driving by the Palace, they were stopping to take pictures.'' The joint venture behind Asbury Park's redevelopment effort ``recognizes the iconic significance' ' of Tillie, said Courtney Johnson, a spokeswoman for Washington-based Madison Marquette, one of its partners. ``Respecting the past and looking to create something incredible for the future, we are making decisions on each item as things progress,'' she said in an e-mail. ``We will continue to work with the community to determine the best course of action for Tillie.'' Coney Island Roots The Palace, an arcade of rides and games, was built in 1888. The murals were painted in 1956 by sign designer Leslie Thomas. He based Tillie on an image at the entrance to Steeplechase Park on New York's Coney Island and named it after its founder, George Tilyou. As tourists abandoned Asbury Park, the city fell into disrepair. The Palace closed in November 1988 and sat vacant until its demolition and Tillie's relocation. ``The murals need to be moved,'' said Don Sammet, Asbury Park's planning director. ``There are trucks going in and out of that facility there, and there is construction going on. We don't want them to be damaged.'' Springsteen, 58, has used Palace images on T-shirts, calendars and videos. ``Tunnel of Love'' was named for one of its rides. On ``Born to Run,'' he invokes Tillie's former home when singing of wanting to escape: ``Beyond the Palace hemi-powered drones scream down the boulevard ``The girls comb their hair in rearview mirrors ``And the boys try to look so hard ``The amusement park rises bold and stark ``Kids are huddled on the beach in a mist ``I wanna die with you Wendy on the streets tonight ``In an everlasting kiss'' `The Sopranos' A Springsteen publicity photo from 1973 -- the year he released his debut album, ``Greetings From Asbury Park, New Jersey'' -- features Tillie. Since then, the mural has appeared in ``The Sopranos'' TV show and in the Robert De Niro movie ``City by the Sea.'' Tillie's face today is ubiquitous in Asbury Park. A replica is painted on the outside of the Wonder Bar, the saloon where Springsteen saxophonist Clarence Clemons played the night they met. Vendors sell Tillie T-shirts, mugs, magnets, rugs and clocks. ``I was kind of afraid I would never see it again,'' said Matthew Gerony, 24, co-owner of a boardwalk T-shirt shop. ``I hope they put it on the biggest pedestal ever.'' Saving Asbury Park Kate Mellina, who helped negotiate the redevelopment agreement when she was on the City Council, credits Tillie with helping save Asbury Park itself. ``You see how much Tillie's done for the economy,'' she said. ``And you wonder why the hell these guys aren't doing anything to protect it.'' Asbury Park redevelopment efforts have undergone fits and starts for years, and much of it remains run down. Asbury Partners LLC -- a joint venture of New York-based MD Sass Investors Services Inc. and Ocean Front Acquisitions LLC -- was granted the redevelopment permit in March 2004. In 2006, Asbury Partners teamed with Madison Marquette. Since then, they have spruced up the boardwalk and its 1930s-era Paramount Theater and adjacent 3,600-seat Convention Hall, where Springsteen rehearses before tours and performs benefits. Springsteen has donated proceeds from six shows to Save Tillie, said Crane, 65, who wouldn't disclose the total. The musician declined to comment on Tillie's fate through a publicist. To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Dolmetsch in New York at [EMAIL PROTECTED] g.net. Last Updated: September 18, 2008 00:00 EDT [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Yahoo! 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