Monday, April 12, 2010

Main Street and Tomorrowland, April 1962

I have two photos for you today, and both are wonderful views of two of Disneyland's - um... "lands".

Main Street USA doesn't seem to have changed in any major way since 1962, and yet this picture still feels vintage. Why? Perhaps it's the subtle visual cues of the dated clothing on the guests, or seeing things like the Carefree Corner. Or maybe it's the muted colors... today's digital photographs often provide saturated colors that you don't see in most older pictures (except for some Kodachrome). Anyway, I love this image.


Our photographer took just a few steps north and then looked east for this great look at the entrance to Tomorrowland. We've seen many similar photos, and I dig them all, daddy-o. If only I could step into this one!

13 comments:

  1. Great Tomorrowland shot! I love seeing the Moonliner poster or the right and then the real Moonliner direstly ahead!

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  2. Very cool. I have noticed subtle changes over the years to Main Street but it is mostly in the colors of the buildings. Some day I have to pull out my photos and post the changes through the years, especially to the Emporium.

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  3. Main Street and posters.... ah, wonderful start to the week. Thanks.

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  4. Anonymous8:59 AM

    That second photo into Tomorrowland really gives you the feeling that you ARE walking behind these people.

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  5. The picture of Tomorrowland's entrance should be put in the "best of" pile. Like Debbie V just said, it has a real immediacy to it (that's art talk, and it could be worse. At least I didn't call it "painterly").

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  6. I tried walking into the Tomorrowland photo, smacked my head on the monitor! But like a moth drawn to the light, I'll keep trying....

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  7. By the way, I just noticed something interesting (at least to me). In 1962 the TWA sponsorship of Rocket to the Moon ended. You can clearly see in this picture that the TWA logo is missing from teh Moonliner. Soon, the red and white paint will change to blue and white for Douglas Aircraft. Same cool rocket, not so cool paint job!

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  8. Boy Major, I can't get over the Tomorrowland Entrance. What a great pic. Tomorrowland will never be this great again. Ever!

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  9. StoryBookLand3:57 PM

    All right, Major... You got your wish and you CAN step into that picture! Where would you go first?!

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  10. Hey more neat vintage pics = me happy. I'm-a people lookin' too. :)

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  11. primo! love the picture of Main Street, its high noon, and so many interesting people....
    a pregnant wife and her hubby

    a seasoned couple with the lady pretty in pink and a cool straw hat

    a young mom with one of those cool metal strollers....so very nice, wish that i was there, too!

    as for Tomorrowland, you cant have too many pictures for me. one of my favorite posters, America the Beautiful, sited there on the left along with the other two beauties, a crowd jockeying for position to be the first to experience all the treasures within....oh yeah!!

    you made my day!! ;)

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  12. Everyone seemed to like these! I'm glad.

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  13. Oh, and to answer StoryBookLand's question, that's a tough one! I might go to the 20,000 Leagues walk-thru. Or perhaps some of the sponsored exhibits (whichever ones were still there in 1962); the Monsanto Hall of Chemistry, the Richfield exhibit ("The World Beneath Us"), the Crane Bathroom, "Satellite View of America", all that stuff!

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