2 From Fantasyland, August 1958
Today's first slide is tons o' fun to me... sure I like the neat view of the Skyway buckets heading to and from the chalet in the distance, and the colorful umbrellas, and the clear blue sky. All that jazz. But in this case, the people are fun to observe as well. Isn't that Ward Cleaver in the foreground?
Thar she blows! Monstro looks great in his old paint scheme. I wonder if he is painted blue these days because he's blue in the old attraction poster? It only just occurred to me! Meanwhile, check out the little lighthouse/ticket booth, it is actually in use. Were folks buying those individual tickets, or was this where you had the ticket removed from your book? Or both? 
14 comments:
Monstro is "blue" today because he misses his best friend and next door neighbor, Skull Rock.
By the way...is the Monstro of today this exact same structure with just a lower jaw that has been added, or did they completely rebuild Monstro at some point when I wasn't looking?
It's not well known and little has been written about it, but the lighthouse originally - and very briefly - contained a shrinking booth. The intent was to reduce guests to a size that was perfect for both touring Pinocchio's Village on foot and augmenting the crew in case the canal boat was attacked by miniature pirates or zombie mice. Bad children who caused problems on the ride would be taken to an incredible miniature replica of Pleasure Island, originally located on the other end of the "backstage" tunnel to the left of the canal just before the end of the ride. Once there, they would be turned into donkeys, herded through an unshrinking booth, and quietly moved over to the Pack Mules.
Unfortunately, shrinking booth technology in 1955-56 was rather crude and hadn't caught up with the Imagineers ideas. Walt wasn't satisfied with the results and the lighthouse was re-worked into a ticket booth before the attraction opened. The concept would spend several years in rework, finally re-emerging in 1967 as Adventures Through Inner Space.
I do believe you're right, that is Ward Cleaver! And that looks a little like June, pearls and all. But wait, that woman is too short to be June Cleaver! Can it be? Yes, it is! It's June's sister April! Aggghhhh!!!!! Ward is out for a day in Disneyland with June's sister! Alas, the seamy underbelly of the fifties shows itself once more, and we, the innocent readers of "Gorillas Don't" are once more corrupted.
Neato shots! I believe the lighthouse/ticket booth sold tickets just for Storybook - I would guess they collected the tickets at the "Entrance" sign.
TM, it sure doesn't look like the same structure for Monstro, obviously the lower teeth were added and upper teeth are smooth and round now. But looking at him from this angle, he's got a different shape now! Needs a "Now and then" photo comparison!
Same technology as used at Adventures Thru Inter Space.Humm, the mind boggles at the power the Imagineers had.
What is kind of interesting is how close the train that circles Disneyland was to Story Book Canals. You can see a bit of the train station for Fantasy Land in the top right hand corner of the pic. Of course this area and beyond where the trees and back lot were is now the meeting and stage area for the princesses and of course Toon Town. It will be interesting to see what Disneyland does with the old Switzerland skyway chalet. Today it is covered by the trees and I am sure anyone under 35 years of age does not even know it is there unless they frequent sites like Gorillas Don't Blog.
I could look at vintage Disneyland pictures all day.
Every day.
TokyoMagic!, I don't really know if the current Monstro was built completely anew, or what. I agree with VDT, it does look awfully different when you compare the two side by side.
Chuck, your knowledge of obscure Disneyland history and trivia is unmatched!
Orange Co., when you look at old maps of the park, it is strange to think that it ended just past Storybook Land. I hope they find a use for the Chalet, and don't tear it down.
Heidi Ann, I know what you mean! Although I am pretty burnt out looking at the Mark Twain, the Indian Dancers, the castle, and other often-photographed landmarks!
Major, Heidi Ann...so could I.
I am sure that someday, my parents will appear in someone else's snapshots here on GDB, so I keep looking.
One day, they will show up.
Thanks for posting these beautiful pics, Major.
JG
Nice pics - I especially like the bustling feel of the top pic. :)
How nice to actually SEE the Chalet! I took a picture of it a few months ago - or rather, TRIED to take a picture. The trees have grown so much that all I could capture was some of the charming design painted on the side!
oh, to spend a day like this at Disneyland...PRICELESS! :D
i also love the busyness of the Fantasyland midway...lucky ppl!
thanks for these sunny shots
Looking at that Monstro pic, I just realized the very special view to the right.
Many blogs go on and on about the views available in other lands of the "back side of water", but here we can see the very seldom seen "back side of the alps", one of my favorite features of the Canal Boats.
When you look at the Matterhorn over these miniature alps, it is a perfect fit with the forced perspective and makes the Matterhorn an integral part of Fantasyland backdrop.
Coincidence? I doubt it very much.
JG
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