Arline, 1956
Today's photos don't stray very far from the front of Sleeping Beauty Castle, but that's OK! The first two are really more about the people than the place, anyway.
Meet Arline! There's a name you don't hear anymore, even though it's kind of pretty. I'm guessing that Arline and her sweetheart were married, but had no kids yet. Might as well enjoy Disneyland before having to deal with strollers and diapers, right? Arline's blue dress goes well with her blond hair. I enjoy her little "hurricane as seen from space" spit curl too. Her bag is full of peanut butter and jelly sammiches.
And here is Arline's sweetheart (or husband). Sometimes folks look uncomfortable in pictures, and this guy certainly does. Is he worried about cosmic rays or Russian microwaves? Two words: TINFOIL UNDERPANTS. One interesting note is that there was no little boy in red when the picture was taken, but somehow he's there in the photo!
A nice followup features our gal Arlene, she just loved posing on bridges! The swans are swimming toward us hoping for some popcorn. In the upper right, we can see a sign for Prof. George Keller's FELINE FANTASTICS! The professor had been part of the Mickey Mouse Circus, but when that failed, he got a solo gig with his heavily tranquilized big cats. A mere whip and chair was all he needed to bend them to his will!
Just for fun, here's a scan of a scarce postcard featuring the professor with two of his lions. His show ran from February 19th, 1956 through September 5th of that same year.
11 comments:
Major-
Arline is all set: Sensible shoes; bucket bag purse; cool shades; and that spit curl. There's also a sign for the Junior Autopia
Thanks, Major.
Oh, Arline is younger than I thought. Just from seeing the thumbnail, she looks like a 70 year old granny. But in the full-size image she looks, maybe, 39-ish; she has one of those faces that makes her look older than she is. And you just know that, besides PB&J sammiches, she's also got fried chicken in that bag.
Tinfoil underpants... NEVER LEAVE HOME WITHOUT 'EM!!! I like the guy's classic flat top haircut. I guess those are sunglasses in his shirt pocket. And he's covering up his camera with his hands. At least I guess it's a camera. They didn't have ID tags on lanyards in '56, did they? The Boy In Red... SPOOKY!!!
Popcorn... Yeah... I'm sure that's what the Swans are after... Popcorn. Is her name "Arlene", or "Arline"? You're confusing us, Major. Are we seeing Snow White's Grotto without Snow White's Grotto? And a certain Swiss mountain is missing. It got delayed in the Postal Service (somebody didn't put enough stamps on the mountain). It took another three years to sort things out.
Professor Keller looks a lot like Mr. Mooney from everybody's favorite show, "Here's Lucy". Only, he's wearing one of Liberace's costumes. The highly tranquilized lions look like they have more black/dark coloring on them than one normally sees. Did they spray them with Grecian Formula?
Thanks for Arline/Arlene, her guy, the Professor, and his kitties, Major.
JB, yes...that hillside in the third photo, is where Snow White's Grotto is now located.
I was also wondering what Arlene's beau has around his neck. The cord seems too thin to support the weight of a camera.
I wonder if birds ever tried to nest in Arlene's spit curl?
I wonder if Professor Keller was ever mauled?
I like these early portraits, good-looking people well-dressed. How unlike the Park today.
Beau is wearing a compass on that lanyard because this was before the Park sold maps.
A nice view of the Pre-Grotto too. Interesting to see how these side spaces filled in so nicely.
I think that’s Michael Jackson’s Rock to the left in photo 2.
A lion tamer in Disneyland? How pedestrian. But OTOH, I never knew there was one, so…
Thanks Major!
JG
The locations were well chosen---Arline could be princess Aurora 23 years later, in her blue dress before pink dress mode. On the bridge, she has started singing "I wonder... I wonder..."
Nice shot of Professor Keller and his Leos. Yesterday was the 100th anniversary of MGM's founding, and these cats have a family resemblance to Metro's Jackie. In "He Who Gets Slapped", MGM's first movie, the bad guy is killed by a lion, which must have been some kind of statement.
These pictures are so sweet. I Hope Arline and Mr. Arline had a long, happy marriage and their little boy had lots of wonderful Disneyland memories. Is that bridge still there?
Major, if you had only posted that 2nd image of Arlene, you could have told us that was Marilyn (yes, THE Marilyn) and we would’ve believed you.
Thanks for the fun pictures, Major.
Nanook, I’ll bet Arline had lots of admirer’s in her day! Thanks for pointing out the Jr. Autopia sign.
JB, my guess is that Arline is in her mid-20s; you know how it is, people looked older then. A 27 year old man would look like a 47 year old, after going to Korea, and smoking and drinking all day every day. Tinfoil underpants need to come back, I’m thinking of starting my own company. Want to invest? The name is “Arline”… “Arlene” is what we in the blogging biz call a TYPO. I recently learned that Professor Keller died in 1960, so he didn’t have much of a post-Disneyland career.
TokyoMagic!, I wish Disneyland had more grottos. Maybe with the Disneyland Forward initiative, they can do an “ALL GROTTO” park. Good question about that cord around the beau’s neck, I have no idea. Arline kept extra popcorn inside her spit curl!
JG, yes, a compass, that’s the thing. Now all he has to do is learn how to use it. “Look at that little thingy spinning around!”. “Michael Jackson’s rock”… oy. A lion tamer is just the thing for a circus, but it is a little surprising that they thought he could go on without the rest of the circus afterwards.
Stefano, Arline definitely could have been a walk-around character. Though they might have had to augment her natural (?) blond hair with a longer wig, sadly. Jungleland in Thousand Oaks had a lion named Jackie, is he the same one from MGM?
Melissa, I believe that little bridge is still there, though it was rebuilt. I hope Arline and her hubby had a nice life too, I wish there was a way to know! I’m just nosy.
Lou and Sue, don’t worry, when I sell that slide on eBay someday, I will say that it is MM!!
Beau looks like it has been a long hot day.
Interesting to see the grotto Snow Whiteless, I don’t think I ever have. There was literally nothing there to photograph, so cute a portrait set up would be the only reason to catch a view of it.
Yes, the Michael Jackson rock! Red brat could not photobomb now as the irresistible castle seats are gone, as are the chains on the drawbridge.
MS
Professor Keller left us after “Muffins” the lion got impatient for his dinner time…..in front of hundreds of horrified guests .
“Don’t worry Budd … those are not REAL lions ! They are just like the ones on the “Jungle River Cruise”….”
Alternate:
“Don’t worry folks!! You were just treated to a sample of a future attraction Walt Disney has planned for disneyland : ANCIENT ROMAN LAND” …. Say aren’t those lions cute!!?”
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