It's a Very Merry-Go-Round
- Mar 9
- 2 min read
George Gordon, the late longtime owner of Playland Arcade and one time operator of several businesses on the Santa Monica Pier, once said of the Pier's antique merry-go-round, "We all go through stages, you know? First, we ride it as kids and stop. Then we ride it as teenagers and stop. Then we bring our kids, and when they stop, we stop … And, then our grandchildren."
The enjoyment of riding the merry-go-round comes as a cycle for those of us fortunate enough to live near it – a wonderful, merry cycle. And, the building within which it sits, the Looff Hippodrome (aka Merry-Go-Round Building), instantly catapults its visitors to a long-ago time upon viewing it, and even more so once one walks inside. A visit to the merry-go-round is truly a special experience.
The Hippodrome and merry-go-round offer so much more, too. Every weekend, families reserve a special section of the building to host birthday parties for their children. Many people have reserved the building after hours for wedding receptions, bar mitzvahs, bat mitzvahs, special birthday parties, or other occasions. In recent years, the building has hosted stage plays, intimate musical performances, and comedy shows. It's really a wonderful event venue!
It's been, and continues to be, a great location for filming and video shoots. By now, most people know that the classic Paul Newman/Robert Redford movie The Sting was filmed there, and it also shone on the silver screen in Sandra Bullock's The Net, popular television shows like CHiPs, Charlie's Angels, and CSI, countless commercials, and even the occasional music video. The merry-go-round is a star in its own right!
Yes, it's quite a gem that we have here in Santa Monica – available to us all at any time of year, and at any time of our lives, whether we're kids, teenagers, parents, or grandparents. Aren't we the lucky ones?
By Jim Harris
Jim Harris is the Executive Director of the Santa Monica Pier Corporation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to the preservation, enhancement, and curation of the pier visitor experience. Also known as the "Pier Historian," he is the author of Santa Monica Pier: America's Last Great Pleasure Pier.
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