By Chris Rotolo
MIDDLETOWN – From the large-scale displays synched up with favorite yuletide melodies to the humble décor signifying the start of the season, the holiday light displays that illuminate Two River communities can serve as more than a means to magnify good tidings.
For some, these systems of breakers and bulbs offer a warmth that can thaw the frigid chill of an individual’s tensions and anxieties, a notion Middletown resident Eric Weingarten has noticed while developing a seasonal spectacle of LED extravagance christened The Murphy Road Light Show.
Earlier in November, when Weingarten began erecting a 23-foot-tall Christmas tree composed of 8,000 LED pixels, a sunset test run of the crooning, electronic fir drew a group of observers anticipating what December evenings would bring, including one bystander with a heavy heart.
“She pulled up curbside in her car and told us ‘Your lights have been a godsend. I’m going through some things right now, and there’s nothing that’s helped me cope better than pulling up here, turning my radio up and watching your lights.’ That really put things in perspective for us,” Weingarten told The Two River Times in a Nov. 18 interview.
On this afternoon, while maneuvering around his yard from section to section of holiday-themed pageantry, Weingarten recalled his own upbringing in a Jewish household, where his love of seasonal lights began.
“I was always drawn to them, and I would line my bedroom window with lights from the inside, because we were one of the families who traditionally did not have lights. But I loved walking around and driving around to see them all. Going to (PNC Bank Arts Center) for their drive-thru was always a thrill. Now I like to think of myself as the Jewish Santa Claus, creating holiday cheer with something that brought me so much joy,” Weingarten said with a smile.
Weingarten, a business owner whose workflow was stymied during the height of the pandemic, said he used that downtime to elevate his decorative hobby into a year-round passion project.
“We’ve always done nice lights, but during COVID, we and everybody needed some cheering up, so we bought a system that makes your regular lights flash and blink to the music. It was a very traditional show in the beginning, but that entire system has been scrapped for something more customizable,” added Weingarten.
Following the inaugural Christmas show, Weingarten revamped his system in July with a Salute to America, which also recognized his son, who is serving in the United States Army.
Last month, a Halloween-themed showcase featured two LED trees with barren branches at each end of his home and a skull and cross bones near his front door vocalizing to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and the “Monster Mash,” among other spooky tunes.
Weingarten anticipates opening his upcoming Christmas spectacular in early December, and said it will be his most sophisticated show yet.
“Traditional lights are just one color. You have what you have. But every light you’ll see out here is an LED pixel, meaning it’s capable of projecting any number of thousands of colors. When you program it to the music, you’re capable of some very special things,” Weingarten said.
Led by a singing Christmas tree and equally vocal light bulbs, candy cane and poinsettia clusters, and additional light displays, The Murphy Road Light Show will also receive special visits from Santa Claus and the Middletown Township Fire Department. Those coming to see the show will be able to hear the associated holiday music from the warmth of their own vehicles by tuning the radio dial to 88.5 FM.
“As we’ve made it larger and larger, and word has spread, the number of people who have come out to see it has grown. And I’m just very thankful that we have such great neighbors who have been so incredibly understanding, and we ask everyone who comes to see us this year to be respectful of that,” Weingarten said. “Without the support of our immediate community, we wouldn’t be able to spread cheer to the greater community.”
This year Weingarten and his family hope to use their 40,000-plus LED pixel display to raise funds for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, a nonprofit organization developed in the name of Stephen Siller, a New York City firefighter who lost his life Sept. 11, 2001. The organization builds mortgage-free smart homes for catastrophically injured veterans and first responders. More information about this fundraiser is available on The Murphy Road Light Show Facebook page.
The article originally appeared in the December 2 – 8, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
