Walking Up Main Street, January 1977
Today I am sharing the second group of scans from a batch of slides from January, 1977. We're still on Main Street, heading north toward Canada. It'll take us weeks, but we'll get to British Columbia eventually.
Previously, we saw the gentleman with the brown cardigan posing with the Tobacco Store Indian, but their friendship has cooled, and he's moving on. Sad, but that's how life goes sometimes. The man is perusing his complimentary guidebook (formerly sponsored by INA, but they stopped their sponsorship in 1974). I'm admiring the lilac macrame shawl/sweater (shweater?) with 12-inch fringe. This was before our fringe mines began to run low on that precious resource.
Here's the cover of the guidebook:
I don't have my INA-style guides handy, but found the following image online, you can see that the photo on the right-hand page is what is visible on the man's guidebook.
We've stepped inside one of the shops along Main Street - but WHICH ONE? I see the word "center" on the window, maybe this was the Kodak Camera Center. Or maybe the Hallmark Communications Center? The Dapper Dans (in their Fruitstripe Gum outfits) are singing for us, whether we like it or not. I didn't know that Keith Moon was in the Dapper Dans (that's him to the left). Notice the organ chimes leaning on the floor. I can almost hear them now. They practically drown out the voices.
Hey! Look at the camera! Our glamorous couple steps onto the castle bridge, officially entering Fantasyland, and losing all diplomatic immunity. Pops is warm after his brisk walk, and the sweater is coming off. Luckily he wore a shirt underneath. THIS time.
18 comments:
Major-
Forgot those 'chimes', or whatever they are... my attention was immediately drawn towards the freestanding ashtray - for serious smokers. (I'll bet that thing weighed around 25#, too-!)
Thanks, Major. (Smoke 'em if you got 'em).
Does the lady standing behind the wooden Indian, have a teeny tiny Hitler mustache?
The Dapper Dans are in the former INA Carefree Corner. It was now just listed in the guidebooks as "Information Center." Two of those Dapper Dans appeared on the 1980 DL guidebook, for the park's 25th anniversary. They were posing with some obnoxious family, and I always thought it was a poor choice of photos, to have on the cover for such a special occasion, and for the entire year. Usually the covers changed from season to season, but not in 1980. Just that one weird photo, all year long.
That man's brown sweater suddenly turned into a brown shawl or poncho. I'm guessing that he was holding it for the photographer?
Thank you, Major!
I just realized that "brown poncho man" is a different person from "brown sweater man." "Brown sweater man" is standing just to the right of "brown poncho man," in that last photo.
Looking at Cardigan Man's pants, I think they might be Sansabelt stretchy slacks. The wooden Indian is definitely giving him a cold-shoulder stare. It's January and Santa is still hanging around Main Street. Shouldn't he be back at the North Pole planning next year's toy drop?
Not only is Keith Moon a member of the Dapper Dans, so is, apparently, Ringo (in red), Tucker Carlson (in blue), and George H. W. Bush (in orange). Tucker was soon exiled from the group and took his dulcet tones to some obscure radio station (in Oxnard, I think).
In the last pic, Cardigan Man is still looking down at his Guidebook. It doesn't look like he ever looked up at the wonders all around him, and after he went home he couldn't figure out what all the fuss was about this "Disneyland" place. Again, I'm having difficulty seeing The Dent. I think I see a mere shadow of a shadow on the turret roof.
Thanks for more Main Street, Major. (And a little bit of the Castle.)
Oh, Purple Poncho Lady definitely gets the VFA today. And not just for the Grimace cosplay, but for pairing it with the orange scarf, white Oxfords, and two, count 'em, two print shirts. The fried chicken in her purse is probably wearing plaid pants and rainbow suspenders. I wish I could see the design on the back of that one guys denim jacket in the first picture.
Tucker Carlson (I'm going to headcanon that he's the baritone of the group so I can call him The Blue Baritone) has some serious hat hair going on there.
My sister and I had so many home-crocheted fringed ponchos, but they were usually in shades of brown and orange that didn't show the dirt.
We had that guidebook. I probably logged weeks of total cumulative time poring over every page, reliving every Disneyland visit and planning hypothetical future ones.
Keith Moon…I recognize the name, but can’t quite drum up Who he is. And JB has correctly identified the rest of the group. You can tell just by looking at them that the kids are alright. Note the thermobarometer on the wall, which can also be used as a mace in an emergency. Disneyland has had a contingency plan for zombie outbreaks since the beginning.
I love seeing people using the “bench alcoves” on the castle bridge. Just a hint of the Dent, and the Stain is obscured. I’d still gladly walk into this photo. Cardigan Man is still entranced by the little illustrations for each attraction. I can’t say as I blame him; I spent hours looking at them myself (although I must admit it was laying on the floor of our living room rather than while in walking distance of the actual attractions so illustrated).
TM, that "lady" is Mrs. Heilter who just arrived from Argentena.
Ask no questions!
Speaking of vintage clothes, a while back I remember offering to share any pictures I found of my sister's and my coordinating homemade prairie dresses if any turned up, and Mom sent me one just recently. If anyone's curious, I can share a link.
Nanook, just looking at that ashtray makes me wish I had a cool menthol cigarette.
TokyoMagic!, I prefer to think of it as a Charlie Chaplin mustache! I know the 1980 guidebook cover you are referring to, and you’re right, it isn’t great. Doesn’t it have “Polaroid” on the cover? I’ve got it somewhere. Thank you for the ID on the “Information Center”. Sweaters often turn into ponchos once they are ripe.
TokyoMagic!, that is way too many men with brown sweaters, and I will be contacting my attorney.
JB, why wear stretchy slacks when you can wear tights? The wooden Indian looks like he’s thinking, “Yeah, you better keep walking, buddy!”. I hope Tucker was exiled to the bottom of the ocean. You’re right, I don’t think Cardigan Man has even looked up once. Which is why he was so surprised when he finally looked around and found himself in British Columbia.
Melissa, somehow all of that mix of patterns and fabrics seems very 1970. Anything goes! I’m wearing two shirts with different prints, and I don’t even plan on leaving the house. You don’t think the tall guy is the baritone? I can’t help disliking the Blue Baritone now that I know him as “Tucker”. I’ve never owned one crocheted piece of clothing, my life has been meaningless.
Chuck, I pored over a different, earlier gate handout guidebook, to the point where I would trace the little maps with tracing paper. I’m sure my parents thought there was something wrong with me. Keith Moon is the man for whom the Moon was named, silly (it was NOT Sir Albert Moon). I need to know the barometric pressure at all times (long story). I’m still a little baffled by the removal of those bench alcoves on the castle bridge. Were people standing on them and on the verge of falling into the moat?
Stu29573, Mrs. Heilter waves her arms around a lot when she talks!
Melissa, you should have just shared the link, some of us want to see!
Brown Cardigan guy kind of reminds me of my Dad, but it’s just the sweater. I bought one just like that for Dad’s birthday just about the time these photos were taken. I still have it, wears like iron.
So cool to replicate the guidebook. I remember that one too. I have a digital version somewhere.
Very large, crass fire sprinkler right in the center of the interior. Bad show, should have been recessed.
The woman on the right in the last pic is the model of style for that era, glad that’s over.
Melissa, please share that photo if you like.
Thanks Major!
JG
I was assuming the tall feller was the bass, but maybe that was because "bass" is kind of like "bees," and he's wearing yellow striped trousers; he literally has bees' knees. And the guy who's half-hidded could be the baritone, or should I say The Red Barontone? (No, I probably shouldn't.)
The Prairie Dresses. I didn't remember any of our "the same, only different" Easter dresses being this different, but it looks like Mom used different sleeve options from the same pattern and the same print in different shades of orange. I also don't remember my sister ever being that much taller than me, but I guess she had a growth spurt that spring. The boy is one of our cousins, and we're at Grandma's house, where everything turquoise went to be preserved in fifty layers of cigarette smoke like flies in amber. I inherited those diamond-shaped plaques. They're super-heavy plaster of Paris, depicting different musical instruments, and they broke in my last move. Right now they're "resting" in a box while I pretend to believe they can be glued back together.
Melissa- I'm 99.9% sure that the back of that guy's denim jacket has a Grateful Dead Skull & Roses patch. Here's a link that shows a small version-
https://rockabilia.com/products/grateful-dead-skull-rose-logo-round-embroidered-patch-49928
Neat pictures today, thanks Major.
-DW
@ Melissa-
Nice outfits. Extra points for the heavy, patterned drapes. (I can only imagine the 'odor' emanating from them, being exposed to all that nicotine...)
Thanks for sharing,
Thanks, DW! I'm sure that's the right design!
JG, funny, I’ve been looking at old photos of my dad, and he had a favorite sweatshirt, now I’m trying to find one that looks like it! It’s kind of an odd maroon/heather, so I guess I shouldn’t hold my breath. I had a digital version of that guidebook that I downloaded from somewhere, but something went haywire and every other page of the PDF is blank. And of course those are the pages I needed! I was scratching my head about the “sprinkler”, but now I get it! I’m a little slow.
Melissa, awwww! such a cute photo. I appreciate that your mom went to the trouble of making those dresses different, even if it was just in the sleeve details. Clothing made by mom - with love. The layers of cigarette smoke at Grandma’s house - I know what you mean! And when she had “the girls” over for bridge, and all four of them were puffing away, it was horrible. Thanks for sharing your picture!
DW, oh man, I think you are spot on! That’s pretty cool!
Nanook, I sometimes buy things on eBay, only to open the box and get a face full of stinky cigarette aroma. SO GROSS.
Melissa, it has to be!
Melissa, thank you for that precious photo with the big smiles, and the memories.
I had some plaster plaques that sound similar, also gone the same way.
JG
"We're still on Main Street, heading north toward Canada. It'll take us weeks, but we'll get to British Columbia eventually."
I've always thought the Three Caballeros didn't go quite as far as they could to promote Pan-Americanism. Donald the American duck, Panchito the Mexican rooster, and José the Brazilian parrot should be joined by Gordon the Canada Goose, a polite but daring pilot who sports an RCMP uniform.
Melissa, thank you for sharing your photo - it's priceless. I love it!
Fun comments and walk down Main Street, today.
P.S. I also see the Dent, but it is faint.
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