park remained untouched. After weeks of negotiations, Miller and the Danziger brothers agreed to purchase Luna Park from Prudence Bonds on August 3, 1944. The cost was estimated at $275,000; the price included a $125,000 purchase-money mortgage. Miller planned to renovate the park for the 1945 season and rename it Bill Miller's Luna Park. Miller and the Danzigers were not scheduled to take title until September 15. Demise Fire and aftermath A fire on August 13, 1944, destroyed much of Luna Park, causing $800,000 in damage. Among the attractions destroyed in the fire were the Dragon's Gorge, the Mile Skyway roller coaster, the Coca-Cola tower, and various games and flat rides. The western half of the park was completely destroyed, but the main entrance, administration building, swimming pool, and other rides near the park's entrance were not seriously damaged. The undamaged part of Luna Park reopened on August 18 and continued to operate until September 15, 1944. Even prior to the fire, the park's business had suffered due to declining patronage and a lack of new attractions. The few rides that survived the fire also operated during the 1945 season, but the interior of the park remained closed. During that season, Prudence Bonds leased the rides along Surf Avenue to Abe Siskin, Phil Pates, and Chick Guelfi, who renovated the Ole Opry House attraction into a music hall called Little Old New York. In the two years after the fire, legal disputes ensued over the park's insurance payout, which amounted to $152,000 and was paid to Prudence Bonds. Miller filed several lawsuits, including one to evict Prudence Bonds, whom he claimed had illegally leased the attractions on Surf Avenue to Siskin, Pates, and Guelfi. The Brooklyn Municipal Court initially ruled that Prudence Bonds had to leave by July 1, 1945, but the ruling was overturned on appeal in August 1945. The New York Court of Appeals ruled in July 1946 that the park had to be given to the Danziger brothers for $135,000. The Danzigers immediately resold the park back to Prudence Bonds, estimating that it would cost $2 million to rebuild the site. The park's interior remained closed, and some of the attractions had been sold or placed for sale, but the attractions on Surf Avenue were still operational. Demolition and redevelopment In August 1946, the park was sold to Morton S. Wolf and Associates, which announced that they