An Odd Selection From the 1970s
I grabbed three scans from a batch from sometime in the early 1970s - they're not super amazing, but three of them will fill you right up.
"Old Unfaithful" is as spectacular as I'd always heard. This miracle of nature erupts sporadically (hence the name), and puts the geysers in Yellowstone park to shame. Plus, Disneyland doesn't have any smelly bison to deal with! Win/win.
The Canoes were still the "Indian War Canoes" in the 70s - I'm judging this by the way the CM in the bow is costumed. The attraction was renamed "Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes" in 1971 (I believe), so that helps us date these. The old Fishing Dock was now a place to smoke cigarettes and talk about the latest episode of "All In the Family".
A nice lady poses for a photo on the bridge over the moat. The park looks so laid-back and pleasant, that was a good day to visit!
6 comments:
Major-
I see most folks in the 3rd image got the memo about it being Horizontal Stripes Day. Not exactly 'slimming', but...
Thanks, Major.
Do you suppose they just took cans of spray paint to create those rainbow-y colors? I think we can see a bobcat atop one of those saguaros. Or maybe it's a rubber chicken, I can't tell. Another point in Disneyland's favor is that their geysers don't have that strong sulfury odor. Although, I kind of like that smell; it brings back memories of when we were in Yellowstone.
It looks like there's a newspaper vending machine on the Fishing Dock. I mean, what could it be? Well, maybe a dispenser where you could buy bags of crushed ice. Or maybe a 3D printer, where you get a realistic plastic trout 'printed' while-u-wait.
"The park looks so laid-back and pleasant, that was a good day to visit!" AND, there are no Killer Swans in sight! A doubly good day to visit.
These pics are all quite nice. Thanks, Major.
I remember riding the Mine Train on my 1973 trip! I was disappointed when they closed it and brought in Big Thunder, mainly due to the fact that I had the original Arrow mine train coaster only 30 minutes away from me. I guess it was an ok trade, but I still miss Rainbow Caverns. I'm pretty sure they're still under Frontierland, just waiting to be rediscovered!
Old Unfaithful was actually pretty darn faithful, if you think about it. It tended to go off every time a train went by! It must have been the rumbling of the wheels that shifted the tectonic plates, or some such geo-babble.
They should have put radio controlled submarines on the old Fishing Dock. There would have been boxes with joysticks and a slot for your quarters. You drop a quarter in and the box lights up and vibrates a bit and you move the joysick around to control your sub. Of course, the subs are under water so you can't see them, so no actual subs are needed! Brilliant!
That castle looks a little imposing. Better paint it pink...
I don't smoke, but if I did it would be on the old fishing dock. Striped lady on the castle bridge may have been the focus of the photo. She also looks like my then neighbor Linda.
Thanks, Major.
Zach
I’m hoping KS can tell us if the geyser effect was triggered by the train. Pressure switch, electric eye etc. and could he get people wet by speeding up or slowing down, like the squirting elephant effect in the Jungle Cruise? I remember feeling spray as we went by but never enough to be really wet.
There’s no mystery about how guests get wet on the canoes. Another KS stronghold here. These are so much fun, I’m surprised they are still around, slow cycle time, low capacity etc.
Yes the pretty lady in the National colors is the subject of that castle pic. I wonder if this photo was taken in 1976, or just near July 4 in any particular year?
Good stuff, Major. Thank you!
JG
Nanook, my theory is that those people escaped from the nearest prison!
JB, Yes, those colors were actually Rustoleum paint from the nearby hardware store. That is definitely a bobcat, those things just love to hang out on top of a saguaro, nobody can explain it. I’ve never been to Yellowstone, sadly, but a friend of mine said it is more spectacular than words can describe. I think the “vending machine” is a trashcan? Though it does sort of look like those things you used to see around town (I can’t remember the last time I saw one, now that I think about it). No Killer Swans is always a good thing.
Stu29573, I loved the Mine Train, but admit that in my callow youth I was excited at the prospect of a new roller coaster. I assume I’d seen some concept art, and it looked unlike anything else. It’s mostly in retrospect that I realized what we’d lost. I remember hearing about the caverns at the end of Radiator Springs Racers, and how they were supposed to be a nod to Rainbow Caverns, but you pass through them in about five seconds, and I wish they were a bit more spectacular somehow. Maybe there should be colored steam (using lights) shooting from radiator caps. I like your idea about the subs (or LACK of subs)! I would put tons of quarters in those boxes.
zach, I’m always looking for an excuse to take up smoking, and that dock would probably do it. Ah, that smooth menthol sensation! Maybe you took that photo in the early 1970s, and that IS your neighbor Linda?
JG, I’m scared of electric eyes, they follow me wherever I go, staring and staring. Why won’t they leave me alone?? I think I’ve read a comment (not sure if it was from KS) about how they could get some passengers a bit wet if they timed things just right. Why not just have some guy with a firehose near the track? Dress him as a rock. Like you, I am amazed that the canoes are still around, but I am grateful too. I’ve noticed in photos starting around 1974 (or maybe ’73) that people started wearing more and more red, white, and blue.
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