Joyland’s Wurlitzer organ the subject of civil lawsuit

The Wurlitzer organ that for nearly six decades served as the musical backdrop to Joyland’s Louie the Clown figure is now the subject of a civil court case.

Wichita attorney Greg Kite – on behalf of Joyland owner Margaret Nelson Spear – filed a civil breach-of-contract lawsuit Wednesday in Sedgwick County District Court. The suit claims ex-Joyland employee Damian Mayes did not pay off the money he owes after agreeing to purchase the Wurlitzer Style 160 “Mammoth” Military Band organ nearly six years ago.

Spear is demanding that Mayes – who maintained, renovated and repaired the organ – either pay her the $9,000 balance he owes or allow her to repossess it.

Last March, Wichita police searched Mayes’ house north of Hydraulic and Kellogg and located Louie the Clown, which had been missing for 10 years.

Mayes has not been criminally charged in connection with Louie’s disappearance. The case has been presented to Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett office and is pending. Louie is valued at $10,000.

Mayes, 40, is serving a sentence at the Norton Correctional Facility and isn’t eligible for parole until 2028, according to Kansas Department of Corrections records. He was convicted in Harvey County of aggravated indecent liberties with a child and aggravated criminal sodomy.

Court records Wednesday listed no attorney for him in the breach-of-contract case.

Louie the Clown

For more than half a century, Louie the Clown played the Wurlitzer organ at Wichita’s Joyland Park, 2801 S. Hillside.

Wichita police said Louie went missing from Joyland sometime in 2005 or 2006 and was officially reported stolen in 2010. Mayes helped restore the clown in 1994.

In 2008, police went to Mayes’ house on a tip but did not find anything.

In the years since Louie went missing, the clown obtained urban legend status and was one of the most symbolic pieces from Joyland. Some loved him; others were creeped out by his slightly maniacal grin.

The Joyland organ measures about 8 feet by 20 feet, and it is 10 feet tall. It was capable of many effects by sounding its various traps, including a trumpet, flute, strings, clarinet, drums, glockenspiel and xylophone. Its location is unknown.

According to an Eagle article in February 2015, the organ – built in 1908 – was the largest band organ Wurlitzer made and the only one left in the world.

Joyland history

Joyland was opened shortly after the end of World War II by brothers Harold and Herb Ottaway and their father, Lester Ottaway.

In 1949 and 1950, the Ottaways bought the tract where the former Joyland Park sat. They bought Louie the Clown about the same time.

From there, they began building the park into a family attraction; Louie and the Wurlitzer were modified to play mechanized paper rolls of songs.

In the early 1970s, Stan and Margaret Nelson purchased Joyland from the Ottaways. They ran it until 2005, when two groups made unsuccessful attempts to operate and buy Joyland.

In recent years, the 50 acres of Joyland Park deteriorated quickly. Overgrown weeds masked the graffiti on remaining buildings. Numerous fires were set inside the park and thieves stripped away the copper.

In April 2015, the Nelson family announced it was demolishing the park’s remaining buildings and dismantling the historic wooden roller coaster. The Historic Preservation Alliance of Wichita and Sedgwick County negotiated to buy a section of the track and some coaster cars. Kite is president of the alliance.

The court case

The breach-of-contract suit filed by Kite on Wednesday contends that Mayes “has failed and refused to comply” with the contract and hasn’t paid off the $9,000 balance owed on the organ.

“The failure and refusal of the defendant … to comply with the Terms of the Agreement to make the subsequent payment … constitutes a Default and a Breach of Contract,” it reads.

Mayes presented a check to Spear on Aug. 10, 2010, for $30,000 as a down payment on the organ’s purchase, according to court documents. Mayes was expected to make the final payment on Feb. 16, 2011.

In addition, the suit is asking for the return of a large sign reading “Home of Mighty Wurlitzer Organ,” which Joyland used. It also is asking for Mayes to pay interest on the outstanding loan and to pay Spear’s attorney’s fees and court costs.

This story was originally published February 10, 2016 at 6:44 PM with the headline "Joyland’s Wurlitzer organ the subject of civil lawsuit."