Sunday, December 30, 2007

Details! 1957

Like many officianados of vintage Disneyland photos, I love the details. It helps one get a deeper appreciation of the care and attention that the designers (and Walt, of course) lavished on the park.

First up is this unusual view as we approach the Tomorrowland Skyway load area. A silvery-gray bucket zooms past us, heading towards the Matterhorn. Oh wait, that won't be there for another two years! The functional industrial look of the beams and supports is fun-ified with some kooky 50's metal doo-dads. Ya can't have too many doo-dads, I'm sure you all will agree. I'm sure glad that they removed this ride and replaced it with.....nothing!


The paddle wheel at the stern of the Mark Twain appears to be more or less at rest here (perhaps as it loads up with a fresh herd of guests?). I can't explain it, but I just like this photo.


OK, maybe this photo doesn't really fall under the definition of "details", but we are getting a look across part of the Hub. There's the Omnibus, and you can see one of the original orange trees standing in the middle of the park. Do any remain anywhere on the property? I realize that 50 years is a long time for an orange tree to live, but then again, my grandma's house had a small orange grove for longer than that.

3 comments:

Jason Schultz said...

Major, there are no more original orange trees on the property. Up until the late 1990s, I think, there was at least one at the Disneyland Hotel, but it's now gone...

Anonymous said...

Could the photo of the Mark Twain have been taken while it was docked at Fowler's Harbor? The shoreline on Tom Sawyer's Island appears to be curving away from us to the left while the boat appears to be angled towards us to the left. Based on the width of the Rivers of America, the known track layout for the Mark Twain/Columbia, and the fact that the paddle wheel isn't turning, this seems to me to be the only logical location for the photo.

Major Pepperidge said...

Well, I think the paddle wheel IS turning! See the foam it has left in the water? I think the fast shutter speed made it look like it's not moving...