Fantasyland In the Fifties
It's Birthday Time again, this time we are celebrating Mark Raymond's big day. Happy Birthday, Mark! I have two pictures from Sue B. (thank you as always, Sue). This first shot shows another birthday party, with the boy to the left about to pass out from attempting to blow up that balloon. You can do it. Mom wants her coffee cup to be in on the festivities, so she's about to put a party hat on it. Any idea what that white thing is to the left of the cake? The "Smurfs" tablecloth is the same one that Queen Elizabeth liked to use. I'm impressed that this family owns an original Van Gogh!
Here's another party. Mmmm, chocolate cake. The cake says, "Would.... (something". I'm guessing it says "Would you loan me $200?", because that's what I would put on a cake. Mom bustles back into the kitchen through swinging saloon doors, she's probably going to get a bottle of redeye (whatever that is). I'm interested in that mural on the wall. Was it wallpaper? Was it stenciled on? Note to self: buy sparkly red chairs.
I generally like any photos of Disneyland from the 1950's, and these two are very nice examples. Here's a good view of the Mad Tea Party (aka "The Teacups") attraction as seen from the Skyway. The swirly design on the turntable is very groovy. At first I thought that maybe the ride hadn't started yet, but some folks are definitely working hard to spin their teacups, while others just sit back and relax.
Next is this pretty picture of a Casey Junior Circus Train as it chugged through the crazy-quilt landscape of Storybook Land. For those of you who are fans of telephone poles/wires, this one's for you!
17 comments:
Major-
Once again I must report the 1st image is flopped. (Maybe all the birthday celebrating is messing with the space time continuum...) But that wouldn't explain the celebration in the 2nd image - with that fabulous mural (undoubtedly from Paris), with that kiosk advertising Suze... a French apéritif made from gentian — an aromatic plant used as a bittering agent in a whole slew of French digestifs. It tastes very vegetal, like eating dandelion greens, but it also offers citric tones, like pomelo and perfume-y citrus — not lemon or lime. It seems to be absent from this birthday party, however.
Another swell Tea Cups aerial view.
Thanks, Major - and Happy Birthday to Mark-!
Happy birthday, M. Raymond. Seems like a lot of us Junior Gorillas have birthdays in June or July. It's a conspiracy!
The "white thing" might be a pepper mill/shaker. Not sure why a pepper shaker would be on the birthday table but there is also a salt shaker, so, who knows.
I wonder how many of those original Van Gogh Sunflower paintings they have? There are several variations of them. It can get fairly spendy; a few million here, a few million there. It adds up after a while.
My eye keeps going back to the kid attempting to blow up the balloon. So much straining and effort! I fully expect to see blood squirting out of his nose and ears!
In birthday pic #2, I have no idea why the word "would" would be on a birthday cake. Maybe this isn't a birthday party; I don't see any candles. Oh wait, the balloons on the tablecloth do say Happy Birthday, hmmm. I also have no idea if that mural is wallpaper or stenciled on. Seem like an odd thing to have on a wall.
There's something sitting on the kitchen counter. It looks like a crock pot, only it seem too big for that(?). It's got those two knob thingys on top... Oh, I know, It's a Theremin! Isn't that where most families keep there Theremins? All the boys are wearing glasses; another conspiracy!
I've used up almost all of Major's e-Ink and I haven't even gotten to the Disneyland photos yet!
This is a nice photo of the Teacups. Is it possible to spin the Cups even when the platform isn't moving? That might be what's happing here. The ponytails on the two girls in the orange Teacup are flying outward from the massive centrifugal force. Or is it centripetal? The two NASA guys standing there would know.
We can see a couple of Canal Boats through the shrubbery in the Casey Junior photo. This is also a nice picture. The entire Train is in view. Oftentimes, we only see half of it (or so).
Nanook, yeah, I noticed that the lettering on the Diet Coke can (on the right) was backwards. And thanks for the lesson on French apéritifs!
Thanks to Sue for the party pics and to Major for the DL pics.
That thing on the table in the first birthday photo might be a pepper mill. Or it might be one of Dr. McCoy’s medical doohickeys from the Enterprise sick bay (the one in the Mirror Universe). If you know your pop culture history, it might be both.
The wording on the cake might say something like “Would you believe it?” followed by the celebrant’s age. That’s a typical parental reaction to turning around and discovering their little one suddenly isn’t so little anymore. Or maybe it’s just “Would you believe…?” That would be par for the course at a Get Smart-themed birthday party.
I love that swirly platter on the teacups. Melissa, be sure to look closely at the crowd in that one.
I didn’t remember that the teacup fencing was right up against the landscaping by the canal.
Thanks again, Major & Sue, and a very happy birthday to Mark Raymond!
That backwards Diet Coke can is sitting next to a semi-limp spider plant. I remember when those were kind of a popular plant, like philodendrons and creeping Charlies.
That white thing on the table looks just like a salt/pepper shaker that I have, except mine is clear glass. The holes are around the base of the plastic stopper on the top of the shaker. There appears to be a salt shaker on the table, but the two don't match. What kind of household was this, without matching salt and pepper shakers?
The message on that cake in the second pic might have been, "Would You Like To Live To See 12?" You know, sort of a threat that the kid better behave over the next 365 days. I would have made such a good parent!
JB, I know in later decades, the Mad Tea Party vehicles were locked until the ride started up, but I don't know about those early years. Maybe you could spin the cups at all times.
Thank you for these, Major and Sue! And a very happy birthday to Mark Raymond!!!
Happy Birthday Raymond!!!
Major : funny you posted the overview of the Mad Tea Party … I was talking to a friend of mine today how in the current Mad Tea Party ( new fantasyland to current ) you do not really hear the turntable “tires” …. There is a motor sound but if actually is pretty quiet and you really only hear the BGM music and sounds of happy guests … but we both recalled in old Fantasyland you heard a noisy machinery sound when the tea cup turntable started up. Maybe it now uses “Goodyear Silent Eagles with CUSHION-GAURD” …. More people ride on Goodyear tires than any other tire with the word Good or Year in it than any other tire!
Happy birthday Mark! These birthday photos are a little less creepy than normal: looks like mom is a more "Diet Coke/Cake" kind of gal. Never "waste" calories! Studies show that girls like Diet Coke and Boys like Coke Zero...not sure why that is...but it is. The cake is very mature looking for such a wee lad...the brown looks like frosting made with cocoa, and not with actual chocolate OR...it's not artificially colored, flavored etc. which is how I like it! I love frosting, and yes....give me the corner flower! Round cakes have no extra frosting corners. boo hoo. The stencil-y Paris scene is "ooo la la"...not sure what compelled this particular design movement, but I have seen other iterations of it...seems super random, and something super hard to pull off yourself as a DIY. I think today it would be "cool" in a retro kind of way, but it would have to be very very well done and with the right lighting/furniture/accessories/etc. At least it doesn't say things like "Live , Laugh, share, "time for wine", etc." The tea cup paint job was meant to be seen from above. I don't think you get the same effect on the ground. You can still see the wood planks on there, and I remember it being a kind of non-stick lumpy kind of slurry coat. Back in the day, I think we would lose an organ to make that tea cup spin off its saucer...and today I'm pretty sure they limit the speed...because: let's take all that fun away... NASA guys: check. Everything is under control! Interesting thing on Casey Jr.: the fanciful fence looks like the supports were changed as the wire is painted white in some spots. I need to make this fencing for my yard, and this is a perfect example of the fencing to give to the people actually making the fence. Don't give me a jig saw...it never ends well. Happy Birthday to another "Crab" out there. The Cancers are abundant, given that the start of Wintertime is when things "happened"...I will leave it there for the family site!
Happy Birthday, Mark! Wishing You Many Happy Returns of the Day!
Photo 1 was taken either in my childhood home, or that of Mrs. G. We had the table lamp and she had the dining chairs. And we both had the green “Corelle” Corning ware dishes. Ha! Mom has a glass of wine “just in case”, but I can’t imagine white wine with cake. Must be something with garlic out of frame.
I had friends in town with a similar mural to photo 2. No idea how it was done, maybe wallpaper or an itinerant muralist.
I love both simple photos of Disneyland today. Major, you got the only two angles in the Park NOT showing trash cans! Thank you.
JG
The “thing on the table” is a Corelle salt or pepper shaker. The green pattern matches the bowl. We had some like this shape with clear glass so you could see which was which. My Mom had an apparently endless collection of the avocado green Corelle stuff, dishes, bowls, serveware, casseroles, a platter, etc, but never went for the S&P.
JG
@ JG-
You ARE good-! I saw the matching patterns, but didn't make the Corning/Corelle connection. LOOK HERE for that lovely complete [matching] set.
Happy Birthday Mark. Two days in a row. Sue=Party. I feel validated.
The birthday shots bring back memories of sharing mine with my friends at home. I have never met a carbohydrate I didn't like. Blowing up balloons like this gives me a headache to this day.
Those early teacups didn't have a lock on them. They could spin at all times.
KS
Happy Birthday, Mark.
We had the orange version of that Corelle pattern back in the day. I though it was a foreign photo due to the weird Coke label until I realized it was reversed. apaP frumS would not approve.
I like that French scene. I'm positive it's a stencil or pattern, pretty sure I've seen it or one like it in a house that hadn't been remodeled since the 80s.
Count my family in as having that green Corelle pattern. Stuff was indestructible. Had nearly the entire set hit the floor during the 1994 Northridge quake--not a chip! I think I still have some dishes/bowls...
Nanook, Ha! "Have slides, will flop!" - that's my motto.
My guess regarding the mural is that it's wallpaper. I see a line to the left of the mural. Though the line could just be a mark on the [not flopped] slide. Just a guess. My parents had one of a different scene, in the living room, put up around 1970.
Happy Not-Flopped Birthday, Mark Raymond! I hope you're still out there, as we haven't heard from you in a while...
Thanks, Major!
I have a big catalog from 1973 Colonial Williamsburg furniture & reproduction catalog my grandparents had featuring massively expensive furniture and interior decor . There is a wallpaper with some of the major structures in Williamsburg done in similar fashion as the wall paper in todays birthday image . I think this sort of architectural mural wallpaper became popular in the late 1920’s … and kinda still had a limited following into the late 70’s. My great aunt had a similar wallpaper in her dinning room with a “oriental” mural done in blue and a light gray … featuring temples arch bridges and tore gates … I remember she had a giant clear globe bowl on a Japanese lacquer stand with sone places ( were they fake?? ) and stones and a dry stream bed … there was a tiny red Japanese bridge and a little man with a coolie hat fishing in the dry stream bed. I remember as a kid thinking it was a fishbowl and she had let the water dry out!! I guess it was a version of a terrarium.
…. Some PLANTS ( were they fake??)
Happy Birthday Mark! I hope you're having a great day!
@Nanook, cheers. We gave away the clear glass shakers with that shape when I was in high school. Just a while back I found ones just like them at the Alameda Swap Meet and bought them for my office. Might even have been the same ones, haha. Clear glass with gold deco bands and little black stoppers. No need to distinguish salt or pepper as it is obvious.
@Steve DG, yes, I only recall breaking one piece, a cereal bowl. I dropped it in such a way that it hit the refrigerator base at an angle and it practically exploded. Everything else lasted forever.
@Dean Finder, my MIL had the orange pattern too. I think that product was nearly universal for a while.
JG
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