Iceland in New Hyde Park stood in as Hollywood East recently, with an episode of the CBS TV drama Blue Bloods filming in the ice-rink.
The scouting team for Blue Bloods visited Iceland, and following their approval, cast and crew took over Iceland for a few hours in early December to film a scene, according to General Manager and part owner Richard Roulston.
Iceland had about 20 of their own staff and coaches who served as skating extras for the show, starting Tom Selleck and Donnie Wahlberg. They worked in conjunction with Blue
Bloods on wardrobe, hair, make-up, and other pertinent information for the shoot.
“It’s very exciting for Iceland, we’re extremely proud,” Roulston said. “Working with everyone involved with the show was a great experience. They were efficient and kept us in the loop on what they expected us from us.”
Iceland has also been featured on the Ben and Aaron Show, which airs periodically on NBC as part of different news segments, and Beginnings on MSG with Nick Fotiu.
Having first opened in New Hyde Park as Skateland between 1965 and 1980, which according to Roulston was originally an outdoor rink in the 1960s, Iceland is rich with historical background. Reminiscing about the 1970s, Roulston said now former NY Rangers such as goalie Eddie Giacomin and right wing Rod Gilbert would practice at Skateland.
Iceland is also where Olympic gold medalist Sarah Hughes, a Great Neck resident, took lessons.
“The most exciting and exhilarating motion one can feel in skating is the wind against your face and the feeling of floating across the ice,” Farah Gholamazad, Iceland’s skating school Director, said.
According to Roulston, Iceland took a hit in the 1980s with the then rising popularity of roller skating, and then made a comeback in the early ’90s. Since then, they have been holding steady and providing lessons to everyone from first timers to more advanced skaters.
Roulston, who opens the rink at 5 a.m. each morning, played junior hockey and semi-pro hockey, and operated the New York Islanders’ Hockey Schools in the 1980s. He also coached for 10 years at St. Mary’s High School in Manhasset, Nassau Community College in the 1980s, various travel teams, and has been a hockey referee.
Today, Iceland is the home of the Icecats Amateur Hockey Club, a tier II hockey organization, as well as the Metropolitan Figure Skating Club. For the holiday season, Iceland recently held their holiday ice show where their home Metropolitan Skating Club performed, creating a winter wonderland for skaters and their families.
Iceland’s skating school offers group lessons, private lessons and semi-private lessons. Their group lessons are offered five days, and Roulston says they can accommodate most people’s schedules.
“Teaching ice skating to a child is like teaching them how to walk all over again,” Gholamazad said. “First they have to learn that they can in fact balance on ice, next to march and fall down and get back up again, and then they start to glide – once they finally feel that gliding motion, the student looks like they are flying.”
