Some Rescans
Every once in a while I'll try to rescan some old slides that looked pretty crummy originally. Sometimes the results can be quite startling! Other times... not so much.
So here's a scan, from a slide (circa 1957) that had turned very pink. I can't find the original blog post with this image, but I'd guess it must be from 2007 or 2008. My color restoration efforts removed a lot of the pink, but that still left me with a rather muddy photo.
Here's the rescan. Well... it's a little better. Not enough to make the little bowler hat fly off of your head; maybe I should have spent more time on it. Funny how I notice fixable flaws after I decide to post a photo. Still, it's hard to not like what's going on below. We've got the old hinge-eared Dumbos, and the "Fan 1" food stand, and even a glimpse into Frontierland and the Rainbow Desert.
The wall that separated Fantasyland from Frontierland was adorned with wonderful attraction posters...
...including a rarely-seen Red Wagon Inn poster (only partially visible here). I think I may have rested my eyebones on only two of these over multiple decades.
Here's a nice jpeg of one... it's very interesting that a restaurant got its own attraction poster. The only other one I can think of is the Casa de Fritos poster (also very rare).
Next is this scan originally posted in 2006. A mere 16 years ago!! It's a photo from 1957 showing the "Tiki's Traders" souvenir stand in Adventureland. Ay caramba, my scanner was bad back then!
Here's the recent rescan and as you can see, it generally looks a lot better. But I remember trying to scan this one using a different color profile than I normally used, and some odd things happened, especially the the shadow portions of things like some of the baskets in Tiki's Traders. I don't get it, but it is what it is.
24 comments:
Major-
I like how the gentleman with the hat riding in the Dumbo appears to be comfortably-seated on the "big top" of 'Fan 1'-! It looks like fun. Thanks for including the jpeg of the Red Wagon Inn AP. I saw it hiding back there on the wall, and was thinking how very few of them were on display in The Park; and fewer still out in the wilds these days.
The Tiki Traders redux really turned-out beautifully-! In addition to the enhanced colors, the higher resolution allows us to see the Kodak Film sign atop one of the 'poles' supporting the souvenir stand.
Thanks, Major for this great work.
In the first rescan, well, it still may not be perfect but there's enough of an improvement to make the effort worthwhile, says I. Timothy is certainly clearer and easier to see.
Major, I have a scan of one of my dad's slides, also from '57, that's from almost the same Skyway position as today's image. And it shows the same posters on that far wall (not quite as clearly though). I really should stop procrastinating and send those to you.
In the Red Wagon Inn poster, it's nice to know that Disney caters to everyone's tastes, including cannibals. Expertly prepared children will only cost you $1.00 for either "Luncheon" (fancy!) or Dinner. But if you want a nice plate of Adult, it will cost you .85 cents more for Dinner than for Luncheon. Outrageous! Although, you do get a sprig of parsley on your Dinner plate; so there's that.
In the Adventureland scan, wow, what a difference! The colors really pop in the rescan. I saved that one to my Disney Stuff folder.
Thanks for the re-dos, Major. It's always interesting to compare the new scans with the old.
Why is Timothy whipping those poor mustard and ketchup bottles!
There is so much improvement in the details of both pics! Thanks for these rescans, Major!
Ugh. Look at all those strollers in that first picture. Why, there must be three of them. What a nuisance!
I love how that woman in the Dumbo at the six-o-clock position is looking right at us and clearly having a great time. I wonder if she knew the photographer.
I always enjoy a peek at the Rainbow Caverns show building, visible in the upper left. As a kid I imagined that the whole building was buried under dirt, just like a real cave.
In the second photo, note how the Tiki Traders sign masks a spotlight from view from the main thoroughfare.
Thanks for the rescans, Major!
You are a better man than I Major with the patience to scrub these photos...I can barely take a photo much less correct them 60 odd years later! Fan 1...where is the billowing hamburger smoke? I can smell it, but can't see it! It's so nice to see Sir Winston enjoying his trip to the Magic Kingdom! Who knew he had such a liking for such trifles in life. I have yet to see a video of the "old" Dumbo...with the ears that flapped in motion. If anyone has footage, please post. It seems like ears flapping would make this a better ride. When Dumbo just goes round and round it seems like I could go on the Rocket Jets and at least be dangerously high in the sky while going round and round. Early Adventureland is super duper cool. Tusks with shrunken heads, flammable palm frond roof tops. Clothes pins holding hats and bandanas. Un-slurried asphalt. When did the slurry-ing begin? I will say that green slurry looks a bit more inviting than grey asphalt. Or maybe it was grey slurry? Who knows...it's nice seeing the castle there is the distance, even though it was actually not that far away. What are they waiting in line for by the construction wall in Fantasyland? Hamburgers? The restrooms?
The Adventureland photos is greatly improved. Thanks for the rescans, Major.
I think it's cool that the wall has two 20,000 Leagues posters as bookends.
Even if the whole building isn't buried, it's still impressive that they at least buried the approach tunnel to Rainbow Caverns. Great work, Major!
Bu, that “construction wall” was actually the back side of Fantasyland. That queue serpentine was indeed the line for Fan 1.
Andrew, I didn’t realize the Major was responsible for burying that approach tunnel. Is there no end to that man’s talents???!!!
Nanook, most people don’t know the thrill and pleasure of sitting on a “big top”. If they did, everyone would want to do it, and circuses would be big again. I did my own research! Good eye on that Kodak sign, which I didn’t notice. I hope many people bought a few extra rolls of slide film so that I can acquire their photos in the future!
JB, thanks! I’d love it if we could see your dad’s photos from 1957! As for eating children, remember, there was a post-war “baby boom”, so there was a surplus of those stinkers. Might as well serve them up for lunch! “Adult” costs more, because you GET more, but it’s chewier too. Not that I know from personal experience. Hey, I have a “Disney Stuff” folder on my computer too.
TokyoMagic!, Timothy only puts mayonnaise on his hot dogs. I know, it’s unorthodox, but what do you expect from a circus mouse?
Chuck, those were “Kudzu” brand strollers. They started out seeming so innocuous, but then they multiplied exponentially. I agree, the smiling woman looking right at “us” is a fun detail. And like you, I also enjoy getting a glimpse of the Rainbow Caverns building… anything to do with Rainbow Caverns is OK by me. I wonder what that spotlight was pointed at? The entrance to the Jungle Cruise?
Bu, scanning and cleaning up slides is the main work of this blog. Writing them is perhaps #3 on the list! I can’t remember if we’ve seen a photo of Winston Churchill at Disneyland, but I can’t see him making the trip. Unless he was going to hang out with his buddy Ike. “Let’s go on Mr. Toad next, eh old boy?”. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a video of the Dumbo ears flapping, but I think I have. They moved VERY slowly, if I recall correctly. I’ve always wondered what they did (if anything) to make those grass or palm frond roofs flame-proof. “We’ll spray them with a mixture of asbestos and DDT!”. I think that the green slurry was actually a shade of blue, but my color adjustment left something to be desired.
K. Martinez, you are welcome!
Andrew, that has always been one of my favorite posters, so I agree with you. I have two of them, by the way! I think ALL the buildings at Disneyland should be buried. Who’s with me?
Chuck, yes, that wall was the border (electrified, with land mines) between Fantasyland and Frontierland. I did bury that building, but on my own free time. I was trying to quit smoking.
Fun Fact: All caves are buried buildings! They do that so you won't notice that they aren't really underground (which would be impossible with how thin the flat Earth is). I blame the government. And the Amish.
These are great!
Now I have to go. I suspect my neighbor's dog has tapped my internet feed. And he doesn't even have a dog...
Chuck and Bu, I think that line up against the wall might have been for the Fantasyland Skyway, which would have just opened about a year earlier, or maybe less.
@ Bu-
I'm betting those folks are waiting to board the Skyway.
Major-
"I think ALL the buildings at Disneyland should be buried." Hey - that'll cure all the over-crowding issues. That way The Park can accommodate more, and even BIGGER strollers-! Oh, Major.
Major, thanks for your hard work on restoring these. I don't recall ever seeing either image before, but on the other hand, I don't recall last Tuesday's lunch either.
Mirror Ball Timothy is the best Timothy.
I want to say I remember the flapping ear Dumbii but it is probably a false memory induced by reading too many Disney trivia blogs. I think the ears are already broken since here they are all at the same angle, or maybe they never worked to begin with.
I agree, likely explanation for the queue in the far right hand is waiting for Dumbo since there is no Skyway yet.
The Adventureland scan is greatly improved! The tent riggers need some instruction on set-up however. Imagine the treasures for sale under that canvas.
The youngster in red stripes is a Waldo-in-Training, the better you hide, the more narrow the stripes on your shirt.
The glimpse of SBC in the background is that effect that DBenson was commenting on a few posts back, just enough overlap between themes to be surreal, if you think about it.
Wait, I just saw TM comment that the Skyway was not only working, but the photo was taken from there. I have to stop reading through these posts so fast.
JG
Stu29573, so in a way, caves are nature’s basements. I blame the Amish for everything, although we did used to buy delicious baked goods from the Amish when I lived in Pennsylvania, so I can’t be too mad at them. Luckily they don’t use computers, so they’ll never see my treachery!
TokyoMagic!, oh, great thought, that never even occurred to me.
Nanook, the New York World’s Fair had an exhibit with an underground house, and I always liked the idea. It’s like an extra-plush bomb shelter! As for Disney, I remember a rumor for a “mine drop” ride that was proposed for Tom Sawyer Island, which would have involved digging a very deep hole (or two). I can’t decide if it was a cool idea, or a terrible one. I assume they would have had to somehow think of a way to get thousands of people over to the island, meaning… a bridge?
JG, I didn’t work THAT hard! :-D I actually like trying to improve old scans, it gives me more content to feed GDB, the insatiable beast. I agree, Mirror Ball Timothy is the best, and I want him to have his whip, even though I’m hoping he didn’t strike any elephants with it. He seemed nice in the movie. Supposedly the problem with the flapping ears is that nitrogen would mix with hydraulic fluid to produce a weird foam. Obviously the ears were too heavy for those wimpy mechanisms; maybe nowadays they could make them out of lightweight carbon fiber, but… it’s not gonna happen. Hey, tents are hard to set up, give those guys a break! We are always so used to the themed lands overlapping and “leaking” in to one another, our brains edit out the stuff we’re not supposed to notice. Smart brains!
JG, yes, the only way that photo could have been taken is from a Skyway gondola!
@ JG-
Plus, there's an attraction poster for the Skyway on the wall to the left of 'Fan 1', so... The image does a terrific job of cutting-off any remnants of the Skyway, Chalet - even the pine forest surround; only the queue remains along the wall.
Major-
Of course I can't locate where I read all of this but, I thought the "...nitrogen would mix with hydraulic fluid to produce a weird foam..." pertained to the main hydraulic cylinders responsible for raising/lowering the Dumbi. And for opening day (or days), a fella from Arrow Development was monkeying-around with the hydraulic lines to prevent the 'mixing' from occurring, thus allowing Dumbo to fly.
Once those issues were worked out, and the ride finally re-opened on August 16th, the up/down movement of the Dumbi was "...controlled by the ride operator in the control booth. His control panel had a start and stop button and two joy sticks, each controlling the movements of half the elephants. All 10 elephants could be raised or lowered in unison, or half could be taken to the top of the ride as the others were held down, and then they'd be reversed. The ride was on a three-minute timer, - (hubba, hubba-!) - so as the trip was nearing the end, the operator would slowly lower all the elephants.
"The ride, though, was quite temperamental, so much so that it couldn't be opened until a month after the rest of Fantasyland. "Dumbo broke down a lot", confirmed early foreman Earl Pugh. "It happened several times a week and you'd have to give everyone their tickets back".
"Bob McDonald said the two most common problems were the elephants getting stuck in the raised position and loud bangs coming from underneath the wooden deck that encircled the ride. When the elephants got stuck, the operator would call a maintenance worker, who would bleed the hydraulic system to lower the vehicles. The wooden platform was supported by banks of car tires, so every once in a while a tire would blow out, setting off an explosion under the walkway. Again, maintenance was called to change the tire". WOW - good times-!
I wonder how long it took for all the bugs to be worked out (sorry, flapping ears), and the controls to be placed in the hands of the guests-? [And the ride time reduced to 90-seconds-!] One can only fathom a guess as to how long the wait would be these times-!!
Info quoted from "The 55ers・The Pioneers Who Settled Disneyland"
Major-
Awrighty - from "Building Disney's Dream Rides・Arrow Development The Little Company that Could". Here we go...
"The delay was caused by a problem with the system's hydraulics, which had been sized to lift 500 pound elephants that ended up weighing 700.
"The Dumbo lift system was supposed to use pressure in the accumulators to balance the weight of the elephant cars and riders while the main pump provided the power to move them up and down. In theory it was a great idea, but by the time the cars were delivered they'd gained 200 pounds of weight over the original specification, which probably overloaded the system. As the elephants flew up and down, alternately raising and quickly dropping the pressure, the high pressure gas in the fluid began to expand and cause it to foam. There was no way to keep the oil and gas separated the result was that the system became very unstable.
"The short term solution was to leave Arrow employee Paul Harvey there to do what Ed called "milking the elephants." Between rides, Paul would drain the system and put in fresh hydraulic fluid. Karl designed a fix, but it delayed the actual opening day by a month.
Again: Good Times.
AND...
"The moving ears were also a victim of Dumbo's hydraulic system insufficiency. They were removed as a part of a weight reduction effort, probably because they were easier to change than the main hydraulic cylinders which were upsized in later versions."
So, from this I have to deduce the ears never moved.
Nanook and everyone, I, like the Major, seem to remember seeing a video of Dumbo with flapping ears. The link to the video must have been here on GDB, otherwise I probably wouldn't have seen it. The mystery continues!
Very nice pictures, Major, and I love the info Nanook included about Dumbo. I wonder how long people would be stuck in the "raised position," before they could bleed the hydraulic system and let them down.
"....which had been sized to lift 500 pound elephants that ended up weighing 700."
That part made me chuckle, as that pretty much describes us Americans nowadays, you could say. ;o)
Tiki's Traders souvenir stand is great - I love the design of it and all the fun stuff in it.
Fun post today, thanks everyone!
Sue, "I wonder how long people would be stuck in the "raised position"..." I didn't think Viagra existed in 1957. I suppose it coulda been all that powdered rhino horn. (sorry, all)
Hey, JB the Clown:
Look at what I just found (ignore any attached commercials), starting at the 26th second (lasting for a brief 5 seconds):
Click HERE!
Wow, I'm impressed, Sue! Yeah, it was sorta superimposed, but Dumbo was clearly flappin' away. Not the video I remember, but it'll do!
Sue, what a funny video. Thank you!
I don't mean to be picky, but the way that scene was put together, I wonder if the Dumbo was filmed in a studio where flappy ears could be operated independently of the ride mechanism?
Also, thank you to Nanook and others for all the technical background on the Dumbii. Fascinating stuff. I confess that I rarely look at the attraction posters in detail since I am not familiar with them, many look alike, especially in small thumbnails.
JG
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