Skyway and Matterhorn, April 1967

One of the things I miss the most at Disneyland is the wonderful old Skyway. After being launched from the station (in Fantasyland or Tomorrowland), your bucket would sway for a brief moment before settling into a sensation that was almost like flying. You were fairly isolated from other buckets, as well as from the hubbub below, and everything felt so peaceful. And then there was the view! There was nothing like it.

This first shows the view as we leave the Tomorrowland terminal to glide above the Monorail track and the Submarine lagoon, and on into the Matterhorn.

After passing through the mountain, our photographer turned around and took this beautiful shot, as his bucket moved away from the Matterhorn and toward the Fantasyland Skyway chalet behind us. The afternoon sunlight really makes the colors pop, and the photo is so nice and clear. I really love this picture!

WDW Snapshots, December 1971

I have a small batch of color snapshots taken only two months after Walt Disney World opened. They're not spectacular, but I still think that they are kind of fun. 

I don't think it's too much of a stretch to surmise that this guy is somewhere near the Polynesian resort, with that thatch-roofed party boat and the fearsome carved tiki head (I'll bet that was provided by Oceanic Arts in Whittier, CA!) that appears to be part of the prow.

In the background things still look pretty Polynesian, so I'm guessing that this is not too far from wherever the first photo was shot. Seeing that Monorail track reminds me of my misconception that visitors to WDW would be able to travel anywhere via Monorail. I later learned that, for the most part, guests would be more likely to take a bus. Which is a big letdown. 

Anyway, I can't ignore Goofy, who is getting pretty fresh with that nice lady! Goofy just likes everybody. To our right is Pluto, and I love his body language as he regards that tiny child.

"Iris, you have to take a picture! Here, use my camera". This was in the days before everyone took 15 selfies a day.

Boathouse & Jungle Cruise, August 1961

Today we're going to visit the world-famous Jungle Cruise - for better or worse! Jungle Cruise pictures can get a bit repetitive, but I'm OK with that.

This first one is the most interesting, because it's a nice shot of the load area and the original two-story boathouse - the second story was removed sometime in 1961 (the year that this photo was taken) because the jungle had already matured to the point that the cast members (see them up there?) couldn't see the progress of the various boats. I don't really know why they couldn't have just left it the way it was (why go to the expense and trouble?) when it wasn't doing any harm. We need Geraldo to look into it!

I've always thought of this "nest" of fruit as some kind of offering, based on no research whatsoever. Maybe it was really just for hungry skippers. "I'm in the mood for a 'Nanner!". (Blogger changes "Nanner" to "manner" unless I capitalize it).

These crocodiles are guarding a nearby temple... you've got to try to get past them if you want the jewels therein. I recommend distracting them by throwing two packages of hot dogs into the water. That should give you plenty of time!

Der Sieben Zwerge

When the Seven Dwarfs march through Disneyland, you know that you've hit the jackpot. Sure, you might get Tigger, or Goofy, or Buzz Lightyear - but with the Dwarfs you get seven characters for the price of one! I always thought that Dopey was everyone's favorite (though Grumpy gives him a run for his money these days), but I mostly have lots of photos of Sleepy, Bashful, and maybe Sneezy. 

If this isn't Bashful, I'll eat my shoes! (I wear edible shoes just in case I am called out). He's so shy, he can't even open his eyes. Oh wait, maybe that means he's Sleepy! Arg. Why can't they wear name tags?  I need to look at the current costumes of the Dwarfs (assuming that they exist), and see how much more accurate they look. Meanwhile, imagine being the cast member inside this costume, without the use of his (or her) arms, while excited kids pull you this way and that. No, thanks!

It's not often that you see a herd of Germanic fairytale Dwarfs. They usually travel at night, and are as quiet as mice. This rare daylight photo shows them in the middle of a rumble.

OK, this guy looks sleepy, doesn't he? I dub him "Sleepy". Technically he is narcoleptic.

Two From August, 1960

All kinds of things happened in August of 1960. I'm sure that for most of you, that date brings to mind the independence of the Upper Volta from France. Man, that was crazy! Also, Joseph Kittenger parachuted from a balloon from over 19 miles above New Mexico. The newly-renamed Beatles begin playing at the Indra club in Hamburg, Germany. Sputnik 5 is launched with 2 dogs, 40 mice, and other critters; they were safely recovered when the spacecraft landed the next day. 

You know what else happened? Some hu-man took today's photos. Let us all have a moment of silence. Here's a nice view of the Horse Drawn Streetcar; I don't have much to say about it, although…. 

… it might be interesting to compare it to a similar photo I posted a few days ago. Town Square has changed in those four years.

Meanwhile, over in Adventureland, we can hear the calls of Jungle birds and the beat of distant drums as we board our colorful naphtha launch for a journey through the unexplored tropical rain forests of the world.

Murky Adventureland, January 1965

Here are two more from a mysteriously murky set of photos (though a few of them are bright and clear, whu??). Photo lesson #1: Do not smear chocolate syrup on your lens.

This is what it looks like when you squint your eyes into the narrowest slits possible. I like to drive on the freeway like this and pretend I'm in a video game. 

Matt over at the Vintage Disney Alice in Wonderland blog (which I recommend) inspired me to post a lightened version of the dark photos, and you know what? in this case it came out reasonably good! You can certainly see more stuff. Thanks Matt! Our red-caped tour guide holds her riding crop up so that we can see her more easily amongst the crowds (notice the triangular tour label hanging from the riding crop to prevent people follow some other guide). 

Over at the pre-show area for The Enchanted Tiki Room, an elegant lady (white gloves and pearls!) poses next to Tangaroa. Not to mention one of those funky trash cans. 

I almost wish I hadn't lightened this one, since we can now see the family of zombies over to the right!

Circus Sideshow, 1951

A while ago I posted some vintage images of Ringling Bros. Circus, circa 1951. Today I have a few additional photos, this time featuring some of the side shows.

I associate side shows with things like bearded ladies, strong men, other exotic oddities. So it surprises me that a group of "Cuban Troubadors" could be found there; although I bet it was those pretty ladies in their daring (for 1951) costumes that attracted so much attention. Throw in some shimmying and singing and you've got solid gold! (Puffy shirt alert).

Here's Señorita Carmen, "Trainer of Serpents". These days you might see some weirdo with his 7-foot boa constrictor (or whatever), but I'm sure that large snakes like this were quite the sensation in middle America 60-some years ago. Carmen looks pretty chill. Don't you love the hand-painted signs behind her?

Here's a better look at the row of amazing folk art signs. "Singalee - Fire Proof Man", "Betty Broadbent - Tatooed Venus", "Gilbert Reichert - World's Tallest Man", "Hawaiian Dancing Girls". Awesome! Be sure to buy a pennant, parasol, or some other doodad/trifle at the souvenir stand.

Nelson Sanches Ruiz was a "Champion top spinner". Centrifugal force is his life! I used to know a spinning top enthusiast, and he could do some amazing things. Whip it behind his back, up in the air, and onto his outstretched palm. Balance a top on a string. Judging by the sign behind Nelson, he could pretty much place a top anywhere you could think of. I'll bet you could buy your own spinning top near by!

Neato Main Street, 1956

Here are a few lovely Kodachrome views of Main Street USA from Disneyland's early years. 

I'm so glad that the Horse Drawn Streetcars are still with us… other vehicles have come and gone (like the chemical wagon just leaving the frame to our left), but Main Street wouldn't be Main Street without the streetcars. I'll bet that there are a lot of kids who never see horses anywhere else. Notice the Bekins van in the background.

If you have horses, you're gonna have horse poop. And that makes the street sweeper pretty important when you want to maintain a tidy amusement park! This particular sweeper (or "white wing") was purported to be one of the most popular characters at the park back in those days, and his name was Trinidad. I wonder if he could have ever imagined that fans would still remember him nearly 60 years later! That walrus mustache is pretty awesome, no doubt about it.

Zooming in just past Trinidad, we can see the doorway into the Gibson shop (purveyors of greeting cards and other novelties). Mounted on the glass next to the door are some of the wonderful note cards that are popular collectibles today. Matterhorn1959 has many of these posted on his blog, check them out HERE. 

To our right you can see a few of the novelty pre-written (and illustrated) letters that guests could buy and send home to the folks. I posted those HERE and HERE.

Alice in Wonderland Attraction, August 1961

The Alice in Wonderland dark ride is one of my favorite Fantasyland dark rides (though I honestly love 'em all); the sheer trippyness is unique, arguably just surpassing "Adventure Thru Inner Space" as one of the more surreal Disney attractions to ever be hatched. 

There's a snooty caterpillar vehicle moving circuitously down the exterior ramp. We've been shrunkified! Hey, just like in "Inner Space". Coincidence? Anyway, that's why the plants and leaves look so enormous. 

Here's another angle looking up at the Skyway, and at the mushroom ticket booth with the wonderful poster on top of it. Like the Storybook Land lighthouse ticket booth, the mushroom doesn't seem to have been used for long, though it remained as a purely decorative element.

I almost didn't include this picture, because it's kind of "blah", but then figured "What the heck". Those sure are some Mary Blair-ish leaves, by golly!

Parking Lot, 1980's

Here are two oddball leftuggies from a set of four slides from the 1980's (the other two were already posted here). 

This shot of the parking lot is my favorite of the bunch, looking across the old parking lot toward the Mark III Monorail on its way from the Disneyland Hotel and continuing to Tomorrowland. If it wasn't for the cars, I would swear this was from the early 1970s. Even after all these years, there's a part of me that still gets a thrill from seeing the Matterhorn in the distance.

This is a weird one; either it's a double exposure, or the man in the blue shirt is a g-g-g-GHOST! You can see right through him. The lady is standing next to a shop in which you can see a Del Monte can (Green beans? Corn? Peas?). Del Monte and Sun Giant were sponsors of the Market House from 1978 to 1983, so we can safely say that these two photos are from somewhere in that span. Other than the ghost, that's about the only interesting thing about this picture!