Friday, June 14, 2013

Instamatics

It's instant, it's automatic, it's INSTAMATIC! Kodak Instamatic, that is.

Howsabout this beautiful shot of the Alice in Wonderland attraction? I love the color in this one, with the Mary Blair-inspired leaves and the aqua caterpillar vehicle. Look at how thin that leaf ramp is too, it's kind of surprising. I wonder if it has been beefed up over the years to meet revamped building codes.


Nothin' very extraordinary about this view of the Mark Twain; the lighting is nice. And that might be Vesey Walker leading the band on the bow of the steamboat. My favorite detail is the line of pack mules heading into the wilderness. 


If you're going to have a nuclear sub (I like to pronounce it "new-kew-lar"), you might as well give it a bitchin' name like "Seawolf". Was it named after the Jack London novel, or the sea lion, or the scary looking fish? I say "all of the above".


12 comments:

  1. Major-
    That Alice shot is hard to beat.

    And my vote for the Seawolf goes to: Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald or the Sea Wolf.

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  2. WOW, such a fine way to start my Saturday (and first work day of the week).

    The colors on Alice...so pretty and bright, and rainbow happens to be my favorite color ;-)

    For some reason, the view of the Mark Twain, where the bow seems to be a little raised ever so slightly, reminds me of someone proudly walking toward me and saying here I am!

    Love the warm sunshiny colors of the Submarine lagoon, bonus Monorail Red and esp how the Peoplemover on the right looks like it has no top b/c it is blending in with the sky.

    Thanks for the smile!! :-D

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  3. The photos in today's post remind me of the Marty Sklar books "Walt Disney's Disneyland" that were published in the 1960s and early 70s. There's a certain quality to them that I love. All three photos are winners!

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  4. As murky as yesterday's pics were, these more than make up for it. Way to balance, Major P!

    I really miss the look of the spindly leaf ramp, and the general airiness of the outside portion of the ride. Stupid safety laws anyway!

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  5. Nanook, yeah that it one of my favorites in the Instamatic collection - but there are still a lot of beauties to come.

    Nancy, my favorite color is gray! The bow IS a little bit raised on the Mark Twain, but maybe it looks even more so because of the reflection.

    K. Martinez, I think I see what you mean about the resemblance to the Marty Sklar books (love those books!); at least in the last two, with their slightly warm tone.

    Tom, it wasn't intentional, but thanks! I need to look on Google images to see how different the ramp looks today (although Cal OSHA has forced them to ruin it anyway).

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  6. That first picture should be next to the word "whimsy" in the dictionary.

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  7. I believe I spy the Disneyland Band playing on the forward lower deck of the Mark Twain!

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  8. That is one of the best Alice shots I've seen. I'm green with envy ;-)

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  9. Melissa, MY picture is next to the word "whimsy"!

    Gnometrek, you didn't read my comment on that photo!

    Matt, it is a good one... the bright sunlight and vivid color really make it pop.

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  10. Dean Finder4:08 PM

    I thought the SeaWolf was named to complement the classic Ernest Borgnine / Jan-Michael Vincent TV show, "Airwolf"

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  11. See Wolf? See Wolf! Where Wolf? There Wolf >>...

    Sorry, Marty Feldman and Young Frankenstein intruded for a moment.

    Wow, that is a splendid Alice in Wonderland picture, and rest are not too shabby either. Instamatics have a charm all their own.

    Thank you Major.

    JG

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  12. Dean Finder, you have no idea how hard it was for me to not make an Airwolf reference. You did it for me, hooray!

    JG, maybe it's because of the recent Mel Brooks special on PBS, but I have had Young Frankenstein on the brain lately.

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