Carr Amusement Company review: Lawrence Carr 17

I worked for Carr Amusement in the early 90's. I worked for Larry exclusively while the show was in NYC. Unlike his regular crew unless things were hectic I would hop on the subway and go home for the night. It was easy for me since he paid me well back then i didn't need to take a $15 advance in pay draw like the people who traveled with the show. In NYC every single ride was inspected by the NYC Dept of Buildings. Most of them were elevator inspectors. The didn't care if the ride was inspected the week before. Since the show moved to different locations it was inspected at every new location If a ride failed it had to be fixed and reinspected before it was allowed to happen. Not once in the 4 summers that I worked for him the rides never failed an inspection. Since I had ride experience prior to working for him I was working with the ride foreman. I was assigned setup of the Giant Wheel, The Spider and the Flying Bobs. The only time there was a problem was when on location in Bronx Park by the zoo someone with knowledge of the Tilt a Whirl ride took off the grease hub in the car and pulled the "R" key that locked it in to place. When the ride got up to speed the car flew off. He was trying to con Larry out of $5k. The cops and EMS were there. I took a look and then went to Larry and told him to hang on. There was a police captain who responded I went up to him and told him who i was and asked him if he would look at the so called victims right hand. Sure enough it had fresh grease all over it. He got arrested. The ride was down for the night and got reinspected the next day. Larry tossed and extra $100 in my pay that week. He never went off on me and if i had something to say he listened.

I also worked for Larry in 1992. Met my husband there. He was a ride jock and I went to the carnival at Fort Hamilton. The ride jocks were all potheads and drunks but they did the drinking after the carnival closed. The pot was all day from morning to night. But they became my family. I only traveled with them for 7 months. The joines were the major drug addicts. The ride jocks always got a bad rap. I’ve seen 2 guys do crack in a ticket booth. The only thing I didn’t like is seeing single moms bring their kids on the road for some carnival worker.

I also worked for Larry and Melinda. I worked in the office, tickets and joints. Took care of Larrys mother and was totally into working with them...Then I found out about a problem with Tickets it was loosing them about 200.00 a night. Tom the Ride super was taking tickets from office and selling them to Cut in ride owners. The tickets were weighed and this is how they were paid...I found out while cleaning junk out of a truck while doing laundry for the show...Before I went to them I told one person.Kenny he ask for one day so Tom could tell them himself. But before we got nack to the office they planted tickets and made it look like I was the one that was dirty...They just ordered me off tje lot and did not pay me. Would not listen and we were in New England...I know they were wrong but I was close to them..If they treated me like that i have no doubt that the girl who started this was completely right...ok she had problems but I really feel she was not totally wrong ...I have seen what they feel about those who work for them...

I was with it way back in the day when marion, one eye fry and frenchie used to rule the midway. old man carr too if he could find the lot, they usually had him packed away at some motel hoping he wouldn't show up. I always felt bad for larry and his sister marilyn both of whom were roped into the business mostly to keep their parents inline (almost an impossible task) and to keep the business afloat. larry was an english professor iirc, they were both lonely people even tho they were surrounded by others they considered beneath them.

Carnival society isn't what it used to be, we were a tight knit bunch like a family, there was in fighting but you let the marks come in at night thinking they are going to kick our [censored].. every carny on the lot would materialize. I have to say I met a lot of good people and yes we had the same problems back then with rides being unsafe, drunks and druggies also pedifiles but that has been going on since the beginning of time. there were plenty of people that got run off the lot or just plain disappeared because of their behavior. when you join a show it's up to you how it's going to go, you take care of your own people.

I was with it from 1976 to 1984, something like that, it ended for me back when we were settled at blue waters court on carolina beach. I remember when the old lady knocked on my door wanting me to check if old man carr was still breathing, he wasn't but imo the show died long before the old man did. I used to up and down the music fest also run it plus buck seats. the shakes were sweet =).

I cane with Carr to Lynchburg in 2010 but me and 3 others left before setup, because dispute over pay, while we were in South Carolina!

I worked for Lawrence Carr show in 1989.I can certainly relate to everything I've read. I worked in various joints. I met my husband when they came to my hometown & he was running the skydiver. I wish I could find some of the people that were with us. We have been together since & married 22 years married. We could say both bad & good about Lawrence Carr. I think all shows have people escaping something. LuAnn Sullivan & Mike

I felt I should correct a mistake I made in recalling when my mother was hired by Larry Carr. It was '93, not 94'. As to this unfortunate woman who has lost her children to social services, my heart goes out to her and her children. It's not easy to be separated from loved ones, no matter the situation. As to her being uneducated, I only have one thing to say. Dude, check your spelling, punctuation, grammar, and sentence structure before you call anyone uneducated. I mean, undipicable isn't even a word. Seriously.

Lawrence Carr has been hiring criminals for years. That being said, I can't recall having met him in person, but he hired my mother in 1994. She was a single mother with five children in tow, the youngest almost two. At the time she was dating Kenny, who can be seen on an old episode of Inside Investigation trying to sell crack to an undercover camera man during an investigation into Larry's show. He admitted on camera that he smoke, and I know this to be true. I also know that before we moved into the bunk houses Kenny was wanted for writing fraudulent checks to rent from both U-Haul and Ryder. For the first few weeks we lived in the back of a Ryder truck, and that isn't the worst of it. There was another man, whose real name I never knew, that ran the Gondola. He went by Cowboy and he molested me and I'm fairly certain he molested one of my brothers as well. In addition to all of that, most of the carnival workers allowed my sister and I on all of the rides even though we were probably a foot shorter than the height requirements. Now I know all of this cannot be blamed on Larry Carr personally; some of it was just bad parenting on my mother's part. We were allowed to roam alone at night while she ran a hot dog stand and ate whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted. I can say this, though. While I am not a drug user personally, I have been around it for most of my life and I can spot a crack head a mile away. Most of the adults I knew back then were on some form of narcotic, whether it be crack or weed or pills. It saddens me to hear that Larry Carr is still running an unclean show.

Some of you people who ### and moan about Larry Carr or any other companies that operate rides have no idea what you are talking about> Much of the problem does not lie with the owners it lies on the state or local government. I have worked in County Fairs and over the road carnivals. What is not being done is having uniform inspections. I come from NYC and Carr as well as a host of others go through the NYC metro area. In NYC every ride no matter how big or small get an inspection prior to the ride getting the OK to run. Some other states have no inspections at all.
First of all I can say for a fact that any company that i have done work for have not just a setup inspection checklist that has to be completed and signed off on but a daily inspection list. No one or ride is infallible. Someone mentioned how Mr Carr gave some women money to hush up after something happened. I can tell you the opposite. One summer in the Bronx I was on a break and I heard a loud crashing noise. I looked over and one of the Tilt A Whirl tubs was on the ground on it's side. It was a black male with his 8 YO son who was in it. 911 was called and the EMS were there to check him out. He said he and his son was ok and then demanded $3000 in cash or he would call the police. Carr refused and the guy called the cops. By the time the cops got there we had already found the cause of the accident and the smoking gun was right on the guys hand. That ride was inspected that day and it was also a day to grease all the bearings. We found the bearing cap on the ground near the ride. we also located the "R" key that held the car on. The only way it could have come off is if someone took off the cap and pulled out the pin. A police Lt came with 3 other officers. He was pulled on the side and was given the same explanation I just said. When he got back to the guy and his son the man was given 2 choices. One leave the property or 2 be arrested for vandalism. This all took place in under 30 minutes and what gave it away was that the guy had fresh grease all over his right hand. I was also told by the NYPD that this guy had worked for a carnival before and knew what he had to do to cause the car to come off.
If you are so worried about traveling shows maybe you should dig deep in to theme parks. Some of them get one inspection before the season opens and that is it. There are more accidents in parks then there are with road shows. The reason is this. Road shows set up and take down the rides on an almost weekly basis and if there is something wrong at set up it gets repaired or replaced before getting inspected. Park rides are set up and very rarely get taken down and parts can crack, become lose and hoses can break do to cuts or rot. I was at a park in Connecticut which is now 6 Flags over New England. It was Riverside when I went there. Being who I am i noticed that the ferris wheel I was on one hydraulic hoses that controlled the braking on the ride was leaking and spraying on the support and towards the tubs. I reported it to the ride op and she didn't seem to care. I went higher to a ride manager and he didn't seem to care either and the ride kept on going for the rest of the day. I would say that anytime you hear about a mishap on a ride 9 out of 10 or more happen in Amusement Parks then with road shows.

BTW yes I agree that some people who work on the road shows are not bankers or lawyers so get over it. Sometimes because a show needs help they will hire local people and most only do the set up and tear down. Most of them are out of work or on welfare. They do it for the money to buy drugs thats a fact but they are never allowed to operate the rides. I can go to almost any road show and work the whole time because I go to shows where I am known or I come recommend by other owners.

I worked for Larry Carr .
I used drugs.
I bought drugs from Larry Carr!
Now what.

Madison County was in for an unpleasant surprise when the carnival rolled into town, bringing with it a growing list of problems, including stories of unsafe rides and drug arrests.

The Madison County Fair is over but part of the carnival is still in town and the county sheriff's office is making it clear that they are not welcome. The Georgia carnival company owned by Larry Carr came to Madison last Tuesday and brought a laundry list of problems along with it.

"We did some checking and heard that Mr. Carr had some background, " said Madison County Sheriff Erik Weaver. "None of this information was brought forward to the fair board until after they arrived."

Friday morning, a number of the carnival workers were still camped out at the fairgrounds.

"I went out Wednesday afternoon, and he was still there, " said Weaver. "I went out Thursday morning and again this morning. There were only three vehicles left, and they were still continuing to try to move those vehicles off the property."

Weaver says he has spent most of the week trying to get the carnival workers off county property.

"If not, we'll have to go through the court process, " he said. "It will be a civil issue."

Weaver says problems with the carnival company were apparent immediately when three carnival workers were arrested on the first night of the fair on narcotics charges. Shortly after, a number of the carnival's rides failed safety inspections.

"Our local inspector was out there, and an inspector came from Richmond, " said Weaver.

Frequent fair-goers say they are disappointed with how the carnival was run.

"I think it was better last year, " said fair attendee Lucas Herrman.

"A lot of the rides were not set up properly, " said Heather Clatterbuck, who attended the this year's fair. "It was just poorly run."

But they were, perhaps, not as disappointed as the Madison County Fair Board.

"I think they received a lot of false information, " said Weaver. "They were trying to do the best thing for the county, and it just didn't work out."

The Madison County Fair Board had never worked with this particular carnival company before and they assure the public that it will not happen again.

Reported by Kasey Hott

The original poster has some issues that could use attention. Her family members tell the mental health people in Lynchburg can not help her because she does not want help. The person who was injured was not following instructions and it was the original posters brother who gave the instruction that the rider did follow and the result was a bruise on her leg.

The even sadder thing is other carnival owners are making things worse by sending their employees or agents to cause harm to other show owners equipment. The carnival business is all about money. People will do what is ever necessary.

The original complaint seems to have the flavor of a disgruntled employee. Possibly a part timer as well. I am sure the state would not pass rides if they were not safe and it is more than likely in these cash strapped times that fees for services would be charged. Many problems can be avoided with calm discussion that does not damage reputations of innocent people on either side if an issue.

i also believe the proper authorities need to investigate this sick and mentally ill person for the safety of her and her family.social services need to be notified.this person is not stable to take care of any child let alone herself.as all we can do is pray for this unstable sole.