Thursday, October 11, 2018

Tomorrowland, January 1979

I kind of wish the first of today's scans showed a bit more of that fantastic Mark III Monorail as it zoomed away from us, but this is still a pretty sweet image. Bubble dome! For a park that is so relatively small, it feels big here. And notice that we can just see a bit of the top of the "hoodoos" of Big Thunder Mountain - a ride that has only appeared on GDB on rare occasions.

It's also nice to see the Skyway, Submarines, Disneyland Hotel, and oh yeah, the Matterhorn! I can see at least one bobsled, which means I have now earned 7 Indian-head pennies.


The Mark IIIs had much larger windows than the previous two versions. I assume that the clear "glass" is actually plexiglass? Or could it be real honest-to-gosh glass?


This next one is nothing we haven't seen dozens of times before, but it's so nice! Crisp and clear, bright colors, blue sky... let's all kiss our bunched up fingers the way Italian chefs do.


31 comments:

MIKE COZART said...

I’ve always been a big fan of the Monorail Mark II’s .....but over the years I really like the Mark III’s the “1969 Muscle Monorails” They were so roomy and comfortable - I’m mean they even had bucket seats!! They were also swift and efficient! While I really do like the designs of the current Mark XIIs , they have a cheap -quality about them.
Do you notice a person standing and the PeopleMover Circle-Vision theater entrance in the first image? I assume the attraction wasn’t operation at that moment. The person is facing the “confetti” mural guests saw as they passed by one the PEOPLEMOVER as they entered the show building for a quick preview of the Circke-Vision preshow. They was a similar - larger “confetti” mural as guests exited the actual circle-vision theater after viewing the show.
While those murals were referred to as “confetti” there were actually called “partical” murals they are stylized particals being broken down and transmitted via the Bell Picture Phone. Somewhere in the pavilion was a display showing how the Picture Phone worked and the users image would be broken down and transmitted then re-assembled for the receiving user.

TokyoMagic! said...

Mike, I always liked that mural just outside the PeopleMover tunnel. Weren't the pieces made of something like colored plastic? I remember it remained there for many years. I barely remember the one at the exit of the actual theater. When was that one removed?

Nice seventies pics today, Major!

TokyoMagic! said...

By the way, I think that last pic was taken from the Monorail station's Speedramp. You can see the handrail at the bottom left corner of the pic.

TokyoMagic! said...

Upon further observation, it appears that the Matterhorn's waterfalls were turned off.....both the one to the left of the mountain's Skyway openings, and the one to the left of the "Charles Nelson Reilly" tip of Big Thunder.

Chuck said...

Major, the windows on the Mark IIIs were actually made of spun sugar.

MIKE COZART, that's really odd that we can see someone standing on the PeopleMover track by the CircleVision building since that photo had to have been taken from the PeopleMover track by the sub lagoon. I wonder if they stopped the system while in operation for some sort of emergency or if the photographer was also doing some sort of maintenance elsewhere along the track? Maybe that guy's just the PeopleMover equivalent of a hobo.

TM!, ha - Charles Nelson Riley! I spent almost a full minute scratching my lid before I got that.

MIKE COZART said...

tokyoMagic: the mural pieces/shapes were actually just tempered Masonite. This is sad but Disney did not make any attempt to save it - when the PeopleMover track and motors were being removed construction workers drew smiley faces on the round shapes and many panels had been pried off and the shapes used to mix putty and sparkle to fill holes left in the PeopleMover roadway.

I’m not sure when the larger theater exit mural was removed but I think in the 1976 renovation of the theater.

Melissa said...

The curve of the tracks in the first picture just scream "zzzoooOOOM!"

Anonymous said...

Considering all the times that my brother and I raced to sit in the bubble, I am amazed that I never noticed the three bump shape of the bubble until I saw photos of same on GDB. Re the skyway - Must have been a slow day at the park based on the dispatch spacing between cabins.

K. Martinez said...

"Charles Nelson Reilly" HA, HA! That was a good one, TM!

They filled in the Submarine lagoon north of that monorail curve and it looks like crap now. The dramatic effect of entering Disneyland via the Monorail isn't as great as it used to be because of that. Disney has altered/destroyed much of the beautiful work and superior design done by the original Imagineers. JMHO. Thanks, Major.

Alonzo P Hawk said...

These are awesome (postcard worthy) shots today. Like you said the first hits all the marks with Monorail, Skyway, Subs, Matterhorn with honorable mentions to Disneyland Hotel and Big Thunder Mtn.

Nice big windows on red with either Grandma or a large sheepdog hanging out of car number 4.

That hobo has a sign that reads "Will work for Dole Whip".

Melissa said...

@Alonzo P Hawk can I steal "Will work for Dole Whip" for a custom t-shirt design? ;)

JC Shannon said...

Picture postcard perfection today. I always loved the Sub Lagoon. Beautiful blue and clear. I still remember seeing it for the first time and waiting in line with anticpation. We would be under water! I have a vintage postcard with the blue Mark I passing over the lagoon and a sub, the Skate, in the lagoon. I feel left out of the Charles Nelson Rielly thing. I have racked the old brain, and can't figure it out. The gondola shot is so beautiful and clear, I love it. Thanks to Major P.

Anonymous said...

Unusually clear and sharp photos today, Major. Really enjoying the comments. I will have to go back and look at them more closely.

@Jonathan, I'm with you, the CNR joke is beyond me.

There is a food truck vendor around Nor Cal (Trader Jim, www.traderjimsfloats.com) who advertises that his Dole Whip is made with the same mix recipe as the Disneyland version. I've tried it and it seems identical, so I would definitely buy that t-shirt.

Off to earn enough for a Dole Whip.

JG

JG

Major Pepperidge said...

Mike Cozart, I didn’t know that the Mark IIIs had bucket seats! I hope that there were fuzzy dice up in the pilot’s cockpit. I agree that the Mark XIIs are nice but feel a bit cheap. Interesting that you mentioned those “confetti” murals, I have another photo coming up (taken by “Fun Dad”) in which you can see one of those much more clearly, and I didn’t remember seeing those before.

TokyoMagic!, you’ll have to wait until November 20th to see my better photo of the confetti!

TokyoMagic!, I agree, although perhaps by 1979 the Speedramp wasn’t so speedy anymore (in other words, maybe it was just a plain old ramp). And I am ashamed to say how long it took me to get the “hoodoo” joke!

Chuck, spun sugar glass is great for safety. And for those of us who like to lick windows, it’s delicious too. I suppose it’s possible that the CM visible in that first photo is there even if the ride was running. Maybe he was able to duck out of sight when the next train came along?

Mike Cozart, tempered masonite? I’ve heard of tempered glass! When I think of the sheer genius required to draw happy faces on round pieces of masonite, my mind is blown. Reminds me of a story in “The ‘E’-Ticket” magazine, about how workers tore up old posters to use as makeshift dust pans.

Melissa, luckily the Monorails would “glide as softly as a cloud”!

Anon, I assume that the “bumps” on the bubble added structural strength - why else would they be there? I’ve never really paid attention to the Skyway spacing, but I guess it makes sense that there would be more space on slow days.

K. Martinez, it’s OK that they filled in that part of the beautiful lagoon, because we get more Nemo show building! I like Nemo (in the movie), but the ride does not inspire lots of revisits.

Alonzo, yes, those windows are HUGE when compared to the earlier incarnations of the Monorail. The small upper windows remind me of our old Buick station wagon. And that is the Shaggy Dog himself in car #4! He was in town for a meeting.

Melissa, I will buy a “Will work for a Dole Whip” shirt if you make them!

Jonathan, somehow it’s hard to believe that 1979 was almost 40 years ago now. Disneyland hadn’t even reached it’s quarter-century mark yet. I hope TokyoMagic! doesn’t mind me giving you a hint about the Charles Nelson Reilly joke… did you ever see his character in the Saturday morning show, “Lidsville”? You might have been doing better things like… anything! And yet I kind of loved it at the time.

Anonymous said...

This is toward the end of what I call the 'Golden Era' of Disneyland. Great pics today Major. KS

Matthew said...

Late as usual; however, what great photos and comments before this humble addition.

@ Chuck - I would also agree that the photo was taken from the PEOPLEMOVER because of the chrome or stainless steal bar that is visible in the right corner of the photo. I wonder, and Mike you could help us here, if they might be doing an attraction reset after an emergency stop? Isn't there a control panel over there? It appears as if his back is to the track (not safe), and facing the wall. Now, that is my HUGE assumption that the PEOPLEMOVER was reset in zones, manually, like Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Either that or do you think the Cast Member tagged out to retrieve a dropped item on the track? @ Mike Cozart we need you help to solve this one!

Also, like all of you, I miss the bubble on the front of the Monorail. I dad asked if I could sit up there one time with my brother... and the driver allowed us to. It was the highlight of my life (but remember I was only 9)!

Also, it appears as if the Matterhorn is closed for refurbishment. No waterfalls in operation and all the sleds appear to be backed up in the station and the break zone past the glacier pool (also right side of first photo).

Always your pal,
Amazon Belle

JC Shannon said...

Major, thanks for the heads up. I remember the show and thinking, they had way too much fun in the 60s. Nudge nudge wink wink, say no more.

MIKE COZART said...

MAJOR: yes the mural pieces were just tempered Masonite but they were completely smother finished and painted. Apparently the mural had a completely different color scheme in 1967 and at some point had been updated with a 70’s color palate.
Matthew: there were zones were the PeopleMover cars could be controlled in sections - I believe to advance cars closer to exit areas. Where that man is standing to his left - you can see the PeopleMover evacuation exit door - to the left of the door is a fan vent. That door led into a service hall that led to the circle-vision projection room ( actually called the “splice” room”) and there were two doors that led to stairways one going left ( to exit PeopleMover passengers out between Circle-Vision and the Matterhorn via double doors) the other stairs led to a corridor that passed a break room and lead office and out to Tomorrowland between America the Beautiful entry and the Premiere Shop. Evacuating the PeopleMover was highly time consuming and dangerous. Lucky guests being evacuated in the mission to mars through the Carousel Theater exit were walked thru the Supper Speed rooms , through a door that led to the PeopleMover maintenance room - out the upper lever of the carousel theater onto the ROOF ( yes ROOF!!!) of the Skyway storage “barn” a hatch in the roof would be raised and guests would walk down metal stairs into the Skyway cabin storage area then out through the Skyway station down the Skyway exit stairs leaving guests near the phones and Tomorrowland Train Station....... that’s a lot of walking!!!

MIKE COZART said...

One reason you will NEVER see the return of the PeopleMover attraction is that so much time has elapsed since the removal of the attraction and the closing of The Rocket Rods all of the areas “Grand fathered laws pertaining to certain safety - exit situations have long passed or expired) so literally the PeopleMover attraction would require a evacuation -exit area ( I think it’s every 20 feet) the exit areas ALL would be required to be accessible by wheel chairs and handicapped guests ..... ) all this making Tomorrowland renovations and redos very tricky.

Nanook said...

Major-

I have a running joke referring to 'edible windshield wipers' - (you had to be there). Sounds as if they'd work perfectly with the spun sugar windows on the Mark III's

Major Pepperidge said...

JG, go back and read my comment to Jonathan - it might be a case of having watched TV at a very specific time. It seems like Dole Whip mix is available in many more places than Disney parks today, including (I believe) Menchie’s frozen yogurt stores.

KS, I would have to agree with you. There were still some good years after that, but the 70’s were pretty great.

Matthew, I can definitely imagine a scenario in which a CM might have to be on the tracks during regular hours. Would Disney retrieve a wallet (or other item) right away? I had a friend who lost his wallet when it flew out of his pocket at Magic Mountain, and they would not give it back to him until after the park closed.

Jonathan, I don’t see how it is possible that shows like “H.R. Pufnstuf” were not purposely referring to drugs, and yet the Krofft brothers claim it to be true.

Mike Cozart, thank you for all of that interesting info about the Peoplemover zones! I know I’ve seen photos in which a red light can be seen up on the Peoplemover track, presumably indicating a zone that was (at that moment) unsafe for another train to enter. Your description of the evacuation process for the Peoplemover was also great. Did that happen often? I guess even that ride might break down if the power went out or something. I would have loved walking through all of those “forbidden” areas. Amazing.

Mike Cozart, I did not hate the Rocket Rods, but losing our Peoplemover was a disaster of epic proportions. Folks who never experienced it ask, “What’s the big deal about a slow ride on a flat track?”, which just demostrates that they have no clue how wonderful it was.

Nanook, maybe the edible windshield wipers would be made of licorice??

Matthew said...

@ Mike Cozart - Thank you! Wow, what a fantastic detailed explanation. That is a lot of walking... and the ROOF??!!! Who knew that we would evacuate Guests onto a roof? That is amazing. Also, I remember that vent next to the door very clearly in my memory. Like most people... we are curious how things work and I remember seeing the door and hearing the vent as you passed by in the PEOPLEMOVER train.

Always your pal,

Melissa said...

Yes, the tracks would have to be rebuilt, and it would be complicated. But it could be done if the will was there.

TokyoMagic! said...

JC and JG, sorry about the obscure reference. Major mentioned the hoodoos of Big Thunder in his post, and Charles Nelson Reilly played a villain named Hoo Doo on a 1970's show called "Lidsville."

Here is some video footage that I shot in the nineties, of guests being walked off of the PeopleMover. I apologize for the shaky camera at some moments, but if you can get past that, the Mickey Mouse balloons that get in the way, and some jerk that tried to stick his face in front of my camera while I was filming, then you can see people being evacuated from a couple different areas along the track. Plus, you will also see them releasing a car and letting it coast into one of the tunnels in order to evacuate the guests in a safer spot: PeopleMover Evacuation - 1990's

Nancy said...

Views of the Monorail never grow old for me :-)

The view of the Matterhorn and the Skyway is PRIMO! What a way to end my day. Thanks, Major

K. Martinez said...

Nice video there of the PeopleMover evacuation, TM! The camera work is fine. Love seeing the Rocket Jets whirling above. Who thought moving that attraction to the ground level and entrance was a good idea?

Nanook said...

Major-
Sorry no, licorice causes too much streaking-!

@ TM!-
You've got some great footage, there. Thanks.

Major Pepperidge said...

Matthew, this is why each guest should have been issued a tiny hang glider. See? Some problems have such simple solutions.

Melissa, at this point I have come to terms with the fact that the Peoplemover is never coming back in any form. Unfortunately.

TokyoMagic!, wow, that’s some cool footage! Thanks for sharing!

Nancy, glad you liked these.

K. Martinez, if I had my way, I would have moved the Rocket Jets below ground! ;-)

Nanook, what about red vines or Twizzlers?

Chuck said...

Thanks for posting the video, TM! Thanks for also having the presence of mind and the equipment on-hand to record this for posterity. Wish I'd done that.

Anonymous said...

Amazing stuff, thanks Ken and Tokyo.

I answered the HooDoo question by googling CNR and Hoo doo.

What a weird trip that was.

This thread is a classic, and shows the benefit of returning to read old threads on GDB.

JG

Matthew said...

@ JG - Agreed! This thread is a classic.

@ TokyoMagic! - I believe your video captured one of my friends walking through the scene in the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad costume at 3:12. I have sent it over to our "Club 951" group for inspection to see which one of us it is. My guess is either Jimmy Grimes or Keith Nicholson; however, I will await those who were working at the Park in 1995 to verify. Will return and post if we get a definitive answer.

Always your pal,
Amazon Belle