Waterless Sub Lagoon, October 19, 1972

Today's photos are especially-nice views of the Submarine Lagoon, completely drained of water for a refurb. Seeing that these are from October of 1972, I am pretty sure that I saw the lagoon in this state with my own peepers. October was typically the month for Navy Nite (though I could find no records of it for 1972). I do remember trying to take photos of the lagoon at night with my little Kodak Instamatic. Sure, the tiny flash cube will do a great job illuminating that large area! I wound up with several pictures that were almost entirely black, with a few pinpoints of light. 

ANYWAY, it's still cool to see the reef looking as if the workers were nearly done decorating it with new shells and seaweed, and painting the corals with bright colors. 

Here's a second view, from the Monorail platform; we don't see the lagoon quite as well, but it's still a nice composition with the intertwining Monorail and Peoplemover tracks.

Details

Here are more DISNEYLAND DETAILS - photos that have zoomed in on some tiny aspect of a ride or building. Both of these are undated, but definitely from the 1950s.

First up is a detail that fascinated me as a child... the big blue eye of Monstro the Whale, the "host" (?) of the Storybook Land Canal Boats. I guess most hosts don't swallow you, but Monstro has always thought outside the box. I would happily watch a 30 minute documentary about how this eye was made; is it cast resin? The iris was surely hand-painted on the inside of the clear semi-sphere. The addition of the blinking eyelid (perhaps once a minute?), along with the occasional spray from his blow-hole made him feel just a little bit "alive".

I've seen a number of photos of the Mark Twain in which you can see somebody looking down at the turning paddle wheel at the stern. I feel like it's usually a boy, or an older man, but I'm sure plenty of girls and women have looked too. I wonder how long those wooden paddles can last, being constantly wet? Do they still use wood, or something that just looks like wood? I just scanned another slide that is almost exactly the same as this one, but I'll share it some other time.

More Big Thunder

The Mysterious Benefactor's many folders of scans contain a LOT of photos relating to the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Here's a bunch more, all featuring the little mine trains careening out of control along the rickety tracks.

This is a nice one, with the landscape appearing particularly lush and green. So lush and green that I believe that the guests on that train are going to get slapped in the face by some leafy branches. GOOD! You know they did something bad, even if we don't know exactly what. Maybe they'll learn a little lesson about... er... "being yourself", or "friendship is important", or some darn thing. In the upper left, the famous dynamite-chewing goat.

Some of you have "enjoyed" the experience of riding Big Thunder with me, and are familiar with my high-pitched screams and occasional tears. I gotta be me!

Here's a fun "publicity-worthy" shot of some Big Thunder riders. Did the photographer hold a camera in his hands, or did he use some sort of special mount? Two very 80s young ladies are enjoying themselves, though the one in the pink shirt is enjoying herself a bit too much, and she's freaking me out.

Here's a nice, dynamic shot taken as our runaway train passes that crazy goat; I remember reading about "the goat trick", in which you keep your eyes glued to the critter, inducing a slightly dizzying sensation, followed by a "Technicolor yawn". 

And here's another interesting view; our photographer jumped out of his train (always encouraged by park management), and he's found a convenient hidey-hole inside one of the many caves, in order to get this dramatic shot. 

Nope, we're not done with Big Thunder yet! THANK YOU, Mysterious Benefactor!

I'll be back with you SOON.

Sir RuDimar Motel, Anaheim

Well well well, look who's having a birthday. It's GDB friend MS! Sue B. provided this fun scan of a 1956 birthday party. Note to self: buy polka-dotted curtains. You have to take a photo when a kid is blowing out candles on a cake, it's a law that actually goes back to President James Madison. Are the two girls singing "Happy Birthday"? They have glasses of milk, paper bowls with scoops of vanilla ice cream, and tea (or coffee) coups for... something. Bourbon? It goes surprisingly well with sweets. I hope MS has as much fun as these kids are having!

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I decided to scan a few brochures from vintage Anaheim motels; some of the names are familiar, others not so much. For instance, today's brochure is from the Sir RuDimar Motel, located at 615 W. Katella. "1/2 block from south entrance to Disneyland!". I love the sign, with portraying the brave Sir RuDimar in front of a Disney-ish castle. I wondered about the name of the place and truly could find no references that weren't motel related, does anybody know the origins of "Sir RuDimar"? I thought it could be a mash-up of two names. "Rudolph" and... something?? Or perhaps it is a literary reference that escapes me, since I only read romance novels.

Say, this place looks pretty nice! If they have an ice machine, I am definitely staying here. You've got to love that mid-century decor, not exactly beautiful, but somehow appealing in a way. You can walk to Disneyland, but you're also not too far from Movieland Wax Museum, Knott's Berry Farm, and Marineland of the Pacific. 

I wish this brochure had some sort of date indicator, but no such luck. I'm assuming it's from the mid-to-late 1960s, or perhaps a bit later. Among the amenities: a heated swimming pool. Thermostatically controlled heat! Baby cribs. 21 inch TVs in every room (why would you even need a TV that large?). "All rooms on ground floor"... no stairs to climb.

Here's a vintage postcard. I found a 1991 LA Times article about this motel: Owners of the tiny, 26-room Sir Rudimar Motel, situated within Disney’s proposed Westcot Center expansion area, are considering selling the property to an outside group for what could amount to a whopping $142,307 per room.

Sailor Kennedy, administrative partner for the Coachman Patel partnership, said Friday that a group of Los Angeles-based attorneys--reportedly with no ties to the Walt Disney Co.--have offered about $3.7 million for the .75-acre property, which sits on the southwest border of the Disneyland parking lot.

Kennedy declined to identify who made the offer. The nearly 30-year-old Sir Rudimar is one of several properties not under Disney’s control within an area the entertainment company has reserved for a proposed $3-billion, 470-acre expansion.

I'm not sure if the sale went through or not (though it would be hard to resist an offer of $142,307 per room in 1991 bucks); however, the Sir RuDimar Motel was still around in 2002, when an online message board listed it as one of the motels near the park to avoid (along with The Alamo, The Riviera, the Frontier Motel, etc). My guess is that it started out charming and clean, and declined as the years passed, which is kind of sad.

And finally, here's another postcard view, which uses the same photo that we see on the inside of the brochure.

I hope you have enjoyed your visit to the Sir RuDimar Motel!

If it's not raining on my trip, I should be out hiking!

Randos

Let's use up some RANDOS! Oddball slides that might be orphans or leftuggies. Beginning with this July, 1962 photo of Skull Rock. It's a nice 3/4 profile, really showing off the series of waterfalls that looked so great and made such a pleasant sound. I often think that a pool feature like this would be fun at one of my many mansions!

Next is this scan from June, 1962 featuring the Motorized Firetruck as it rounded the Plaza, where I assume that it dropped off some passengers, and took on a new batch to head back down to Town Square. The warm late-afternoon light and blue sky give this one a cheerful, colorful appearance.

I sure hope I'm having fun, wherever I am!

Jungle Cruise Snoozles™

There have been scores of Sunday blog posts featuring Jungle Cruise Snoozles; I've explained why before, and I always feel a little bit guilty taking it out of this beloved ride. But not-great photos are NOT GREAT. Or barely even "good". 

The only thing going for these is that they were likely taken within the first month of the park's opening - possibly even within the first two weeks. They were put into cardboard mounts by somebody who didn't care if they were flopped or not. And with these, it's hard to tell (for me anyway, probably not to TokyoMagic!). Anyway, as you can see, a rhinoceros looks up from eating a gorilla to watch us pass. The grass would eventually make it pretty hard to see the rhino, so this is about the best picture I have of him.

This is either a bull elephant, or his mother-in-law. I always assume that mother-in-law jokes came from Wally Boag, though I have no proof at all. You can't tell the bull from the MIL, they should have put a rolling pin in the trunk of the old battle axe to make it clearer. 

I'm on day 2 of my trip, and I'm probably eating lots of cheese.

Knott's Berry Farm, September 1970

Who's ready for a trip to sunny Knott's Berry Farm? Let's go! These are from September, 1970, which is right around the time when I was lucky enough to go to KBF relatively often. It was close to Huntington Beach, it was affordable (compared to Disneyland, which was a once-a-year or MAYBE twice park), and we loved it.

Let's start with this picture of the Calico Log Ride (later the "Timber Mountain Log Ride"), which had debuted just over a year earlier, on July 11th, 1969. Famously, John Wayne and his son Ethan were the first official guests to plummet down that flume. The arches of El Camino Real are to the right, as is the train depot (which I assume was moved when the Log Ride was added?).  

The Calico Mine Ride; it's not much of a hot take to say that this is one of my favorite rides at Knott's. During one visit, when my mom dropped me, my siblings, and assorted  friends off to fend for ourselves (!), we decided to do the Mine Ride three or four times in a row. NO REGRETS. The ride operators thought we were crazy. I loved the squeaky sound of the trains on those tight turns, and the slightly-grotesque figures inside. I also loved the "underground" waterfall and the glowing caverns!

In spite of the unfortunate colors, I'm happy to see old #41, the Red Cliff, as it passed right through Calico Square (stopping for passengers of course), without so much as an electrified fence to prevent guests from being flattened. And yet, somehow it worked without incident (as far as I am aware)! A log is about to take the plunge in the background, is anybody famous aboard??

I'm away from home, and away from the blog!

Two Beauties, October 19th, 1972

I recently scanned some batches of slides that had some real beauties in them, and I look forward to sharing them with you over the next few months! We'll begin with this pretty 1972 view taken from the Parking Lot, looking along the Monorail beam with the Disneyland Hotel in the distance. We are in lot J, that's J for... uh... "Jiminy Cricket"? "J. Worthington Foulfellow"? Sorry, there is no "Jafar" or "Jasmine" yet. I love those gorgeous October clouds. 

Next, a very nice picture of the ticket booths - not the tiny original booths, but the later examples, some of which still survive here and there (note: NOPE! They were torn down). Since these slides were hand-dated "October 19th, 1972", I can refer to Jason's Disneyland Almanac for some data: it was a Thursday, the park was open from 10:00 AM until 6:00 PM (only eight hours??), and the high temperature was a mild 71º.

FYI, I will be heading out of town tomorrow morning, and will be gone for five days. That's longer than my usual trips abroad! I won't have much time to futz around on my iPad (or I might leave it at home), so just assume that you won't hear from me until I return. As usual there will be new posts for you every day. I look forward to talking to you all soon!

 

More Disneyland Hotel, 1980

We've been enjoying a series of Disneyland Hotel photos from Lou Perry, scanned by his daughter Sue B. Today will be the last four! It's been fun. 

The Marina was added to the Hotel in 1970, adding a general nautical/island theme; this dock had a number of different types of boats moored, along with the paddle boats. I wonder if those odd flat-bottomed boats with the decorative arches were available for weddings? You, your bride, a priest, and two guests! 

This corner of the Hotel property is not exactly beautiful - it resembles an industrial park. There's a banner pointing in the direction of "Seaports of the Pacific", which we've seen in previous photos. Other than that, this looks like an area to be avoided.

This nice old (?) streetcar (the "Orient Express") was used as a hotdog stand when things were busier. I don't think this was a former San Francisco cable car, but I'm sure one of you will have info about it. 

I don't see a kitchen area inside the streetcar, so maybe they boiled hotdogs in a saucepan full of funky water. Or better yet: microwave!  "Sir, my hotdog tastes weird". "That means it's gourmet!". The brass handles on either side of that door will allow me to hang on and sing "The Trolley Song" really loudly. All the other guests will love it.

THANK YOU, Lou and Sue!

Tomorrowland, June 1962

Here are more "perfectly OK" photos, nothing amazing, but good enough that they could theoretically be used in a brochure or booklet. 

There's the Moonliner, no longer sponsored by TWA. In just a year or so, Douglas will begin their three-year sponsorship... one of those subtle changes that really showed the evolution of Tomorrowland as it shed its 1950s past. Of course, by the end of 1966, the entire land was drastically altered, in the best possible way, with the New Tomorrowland opening in the summer of 1967.

I love the old gray submarines, and the sight of them gliding through the beautiful blue lagoon.