Big Thunder, July 17, 1980

Here's the last of Lou Perry's photos of the then-new Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - photos scanned by Sue B., Lou's daughter. 

Big Thunder had debuted a little more than a year before these pictures were taken... given Lou's interest, I assume that it's the first time he'd seen this attraction with his own eyes. And he was obviously impressed! Just looking at this picture gives a small impression of how complex this ride is.

I've always wondered if the mostly-yellow mine cars were a deliberate callback to the ones in the previous Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland? Or else it just looked good, which it did. Notice the one train in the distance climbing a lift hill, and the crows (or are they buzzards? I forget) atop the rocks to the left.

It's incredible to think that this attraction is approaching its 50-year anniversary in just four more years! 

THANK YOU SO MUCH, Lou and Sue.

More From March 15, 1957

I love "Disneyland in the 50s", even when the photos are a bit mundane. This first scan isn't mundane, though! It's a nice shot of guests walking beneath the arched entrance to Adventureland. Those are genuine elephant tusks, but don't worry, that elephant was a jerk. If it looks like something is missing to the left, it's because this is some five or six years before you'd see the building that would house The Enchanted Tiki Room. 

OK, this one is a pretty common view, but I still love seeing the long-gone Pirate Ship, as seen from the long-gone Skyway. Guests are crawling all over the ship like ants on a dropped donut. Of course 1957 is from before the tropical lagoon (and Skull Rock) were added, and the "swimming pool" pond does leave a lot to be desired. It's nice to know that they'd fix it, and beautifully!

 

A Pair From August 1962

Here are two photos showing the iconic entrances to two "lands" that were mere steps from each other, but that took you into completely different worlds. 

The big wooden gates evoke a frontier fort (and there is the stockade to the right, where a skilled marksman could shoot a fly off of your hat). The "Frontierland" sign could have been made with one wide board, but I've always loved the split, as if they could only source skinny trees out on the plains. The young woman with the red shirt has an impressive helmet of hair that would repel any arrow. To the left, the Davy Crockett Arcade, and beyond that, the Pendleton shop, where everything was plaid.

If you were in the Plaza and walked past Frontierland, you'd only walk a short distance to the entrance to Adventureland, with thatched roofs and bamboo as visual clues. Notice that there are walls to the left, where the Enchanted Tiki Room was being installed, to open the following Summer (June 23, 1963). Straight ahead is a fence of thin poles, which seems oddly-placed, I'm not sure if some other addition was underway - if so I can't imagine what it would be. Or was it just there to protect that tiki from hooligans?

 

Snapshots

I'm using up the last three vintage photo prints that were part of a lot of about 20 images that turned out to be from several different Disneyland visits. Some were from 1965, but these are either from later in the 60s, or even into the 1970s. 

Mom is a real live wire, she loves to smile for the camera, waving like a maniac. I approve of her enthusiasm. Three members of the Bucket Hat Mafia are also aboard, don't make any sudden moves or you'll sleep with the fishes! The Storybook Land hostess is standing, I don't think I've ever seen one that wasn't sitting "sidesaddle" on that little "roof".

There's mom again, I imagine she has a big Phyllis Diller laugh. She curses like a sailor, but that but that only makes her more lovable. Notice Rolly Crump's entry-to-Tomorrowland flowerbeds, making these photos post-1967 at least.

Here we are on another different day; Mom is wearing a different outfit as the family poses in front of the famous Senegal palm tree. I love that diamond-shaped Autopia sign in the background... I recently saw a website that stated that it was the best Autopia sign of all. I'm not so sure about that, but it's pretty sweet.

Snoozles™

It's Snoozle Time! The exclamation mark hopefully makes this all more exciting than it actually is. First up is this scan from September, 1960. I guess the photo was taken from the Monorail? There was nothing else (other than the Skyway, which is to our left) that was elevated like that. It captures a sort of general view of Fantasyland, with parts of various attractions peeking up above the trees, but nothing that serves as a "main subject". It's not such a bad picture, really, just sort of "Huh?". 

Next, a sunny, bright, clear photo of Main Street Station from December, 1964 (the absence of any clear holiday decor makes me think that it was actually taken before December). So why is it a Snoozle? Well, maybe it isn't. But it's not that exciting. "Population 33,000,000", not too shabby for only nine-ish years of operation. Could Walt have imagined such numbers back in 1955? 

 

Scenes From America

Here are three random scans of random places (or things) around the country. 

First up is this scan from a black and white negative, showing a place called the Pioneer Motel, which is attached to "Pioneer Fine Food" (breakfast, lunch, dinner - EAT). I thought that finding the location of this place would be pretty easy, but I had no luck. How about YOU? There are a LOT of Pioneer Motels.

Next is this photo from June, 1967. I had no clue as to where this is, but luckily that sign behind the VW Beetle is legible - it's the Twin Light Motor Inn, in Gloucester, Massachusetts. One postcard states that this is "part of the former Campbell Soup estate. Which explains the omnipresent vegetable soup aroma.

I guess this place is fairly well-known to travelers in that area. Nobody told ME about it! Here's another postcard:

And the back:

And here's one other postcard.

Changing gears a bit, here's a photo of a vintage (1950s I believe) billboard, with a sobering (see what I did there?) message about alcoholism, along with encouragement for "Total Abstinence". Good luck on that one. 

Two From August, 1977

I have two nice scans for you, both from the summer of 1977. This first one is kind of a miracle, a pretty decent night shot looking down upon the Mad Tea Party attraction! I'm wondering where our photographer could have been - I'd say the Pirate Ship, but it feels too close. Maybe they had a zoom lens? I can't imagine the teacups were whirling, or else they'd be blurs. I like the cooler colors in the entry to the Fantasyland Theater.

The multicolored Skyway gondolas are what makes this next photo extra-nice. The Autopia sign has always struck me as echoing the kind of thing you might have seen at a World's Fair in the 1930's, but that is a compliment and not a criticism. A single Peoplemover train sneaks in for a guest appearance.

A Tiki and a Totem, October 1968

I'm so glad that we still have the Enchanted Tiki Room in Disneyland - a classic attraction if ever there was one. I didn't visit it during my last visit, but I forget why. I think it was down for maintenance. Next time for sure! The outdoor courtyard has a fun pre-show, in which guests meet some of the more prominent tiki gods. Maui, Koro, Rongo, Tangaroa, and more. Vintage photos of these deities are not common, but it seems as if Pele, "goddess of fire and volcanoes", show up more than most. She has a certain je nais se quois!

I'm sure you remember these ladies, we've seen them aboard a Matterhorn bobsled, and they also visited Knott's Berry Farm on the same day! Here they are in the Indian Village, next to a nice totem pole, and not far from the old Spirit House.

 

A Pair From the 50s

Here are two random 1950s photos for ya (I saved .02 seconds typing "ya" instead of "you"). 

Somebody stuck some Skyway gondolas up above the Pirate Ship, but you know what? It works. If we all had Skyway gondolas, there would be no war. Think about it. This was from a very faded slide, and I meant to capture a "before" image so that you could see what a genius I am, but then I forgot. Some genius! 

Next is a photo of the old Frontier Trading post, with a bit of the corral for miniature horses to the left. I'm unclear as to when the corral was removed - did the Shooting Gallery eventually go in that same spot?

Looking in the window for any fun tidbits, I can see at least one feathered headdress, what might be a buckskin dress (?), a little tepee, a photo of a cowboy at the top (is it William S. Hart?), and, strangely, a pair of Buddy Lee dolls. Buddy Lee was the mascot of the H.D. Lee Company starting in the 1920s, so I can only assume that you could buy Lee dungarees and overalls, and maybe even a denim tuxedo, inside the Trading Post.

Old Buddy Lee dolls are now popular (and expensive) collectibles, I can see why, they are pretty appealing.

Frontierland, April 1963

Sometimes you'll take a photo of your kid, and it will turn out to be a treasure to be shared among all of your friends and relatives. And other times it'll turn out like this. It's not her fault, she was caught off-guard, squinting into the sun, pigtails so tight that she can't think straight. The bangs mean mom cuts her hair. She's somewhere in Frontierland, back when they had room for things like random patches of grass. It looks like a dirt path was added, probably where people were cutting through anyway... maybe it would eventually be paved.

This looks like an off-the-cuff shot taken as the Mark Twain was about to get underway. With the flags and the crowds, it's like a scene from a movie.