Imagine seeing the Golden Horseshoe Revue in 1957! It must have been a hoot and a half. I always picture the theater as being full, but there had to have been some slow days where there were audiences of only a few people, don't you think? And yet they soldiered on to do more than 30,000 performances.
Davy Crockett loved "Pong", "Mrs. Pac Man", "Space Invaders", "Centipede", "Galaxian", "Frogger", "Donkey Kong", and all of the other classic early video games. And he was good at them too! All we hear about is how he kilt bars, but I am more impressed by the hours he could play on a single quarter.
I have never gone into the Revue on any of my three trips to Disneyland...will have to be sure to the next time (saving up for 2014).
ReplyDeleteI also have never noticed that sign on the railing before...I hope it is still there for me to take a picture of it!
On the other hand, the Shootin Gallery is something we NEVER miss when we are at the Park, including at our local Kennywood Park
these pics make me want to go there NOW. Thanks for the Friday morning smiles :-)
Beautiful shot of the Golden Horseshoe. Always loved the white paint job.
ReplyDeleteNancy, back in the 70s I had a friend from Pittsburgh who always talked about Kennywood Park. From the way he described it I always wanted to go. I never made it, but have several books on the place. It looks like a very beautiful classic park.
I remember the Davy Crockett Arcade, but never quite understood why.
ReplyDeleteI was just young enough to miss the craze, I guess. My Dad loved it though, apparently, since this part of Disneyland was always his favorite, until New Orleans Square.
Thank you Major, for great pics.
JG
Seeing Pecos Bill and the gang there back in the day would have been wonderful. Wally Boag was one of a kind. Never actually went into the Golden Horseshoe until a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteGolden Horseshoe is one of favorite places to visit, sit down, get out of the heat, and enjoy a campy show.
ReplyDeleteI love history, and Frontierland always makes me happy (though the arcade -to me- seems pointless at a park filled with some much better wonders). Looking at the signs, I wonder at what point Pepsi was outbid by Coke. I mean, these days its a rarity to find a huge entertainment cooperation that is not beholden to the Coke Company.
I understand Coke has woven itself into the American tapestry, but on occasion, I like to see an entertainment company that serves Pepsi products. To me, oddly, it makes them more interesting; that they bucked the usual and predictable and went in a different direction.
Your commentary was hilarious as usual, Major! But after reading some of the comments, now I'm a little confused. The Frontierland Arcade was just a shop, right? Like the Crystal Arcade on Main Street or the "Arcade" in downtown Los Angeles?
ReplyDeleteFortunately, I don't have to imagine seeing the Golden Horseshoe Review in 1957, because I can remember seeing the Golden Horseshoe Review in 1957, and in 1958, and in 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, twice in 1963, 4 times in 1964, at least 5 times, maybe more, each in 1965, '66, '67, and '68. In the mid-60s, while I was in high school, my freshman English teacher worked weekends, holidays and vacations seating people at The Golden Horseshoe, so whenever I went to Disneyland then, which was often since it was cheaper in those days, and only a bike ride away (And for my folks, dropping us off and picking us up later at Disneyland was no different than dropping us off and picking us up later at the movies.), I'd pick up the phone in the morning, call my teacher at home and say "I'm coming to Disneyland today. Would love to see the 2:00 o'clock show." He'd always hold a stage box for me on the requested performance, so I could show up five or ten minuets before the show and get right in, like havng a Golden Horseshoe Fastpass before there were such things. If Walt was not in the park, and after he died, my teacher would always give me Walt's private box. (If Walt was in the park, no one got Walt's private box. He was given to dropping in unannounced, even mid-performance.)
ReplyDeleteSo I must have seen Wally Boag go through his paces 20 times.
An empty seat at the Golden Horsehoe during its glory days? Not likely, except for Walt's box when he was in the park. There was ALWAYS a line of people waiting for the next show.
But since the original show ended, The Golden Horseshoe only makes me sad. You can wander in at any time, never a line, see a show or part of a show that may be nice but utterly lacks the Boag magic.
And since that terrible weekend when Wally Boag and Betty Taylor both died within 24 hours of each other (both of Alzheimer's. Does doing the exact same same show, singing the exact same songs and and telling the exact same jokes 40,000 times rot your brain?), The Golden Horseshoe only fills me with un-Disneylandish grief.
Wally, I miss you, I love you.
I have to agree with Douglas, Wally, Betty and the original show were fun to watch although I don't remember it that well as I was pretty young (in their later hay days of the 70's). I have seen the anniversary show countless times on DVD and think they are classic.
ReplyDeleteBut that being said it can't stay the same forever (Disneyland) and things do change. I will be the first to say that after thousands and thousands of shows that Billy Hill and the Hillbillies have earned their props!!!! They are great performers and update their show on a regular basis. They have quite a following as was proven on leap day. Check them out if you haven't seen them.
Douglas, did you ever see Walt in his box?
ReplyDeleteIf I remember the Davy Crockett Arcade correctly it just had a few shooting gallery kind of machines - but they were real different. I remember 4 or 5 of these machines next to each other. At one end was a kind of box like affair wiht a forest motif inside and a mechanical bear (maybe 10 inches tall) with a light sensor in his middle that would move back and forth. You had a gun with an light inside the barrel. When you “fired” the gun, if the light hit the bear on a light sensor you would score a point. I had never seen machines like this as a kid. It seems to me that they also sold “western” stuff there.
ReplyDeleteSundayNight, you remembered correctly about the shooting gallery units. The sign above these machines said "B'AR COUNTRY Try Your Skill With Ol' Betsy." There were more than 5 of these units and the gun sat in its own "tree stump" until you were ready to use. These were located in the back area against the wall nearest to Adventureland Bazaar.
ReplyDeleteThe Davy Crockett Arcade also sold items like rubber tomahawks, tom-tom drums, headdresses, coonskin caps, toy rifles, etc. There were also little onyx animals for sale in addition to the "western" stuff you mentioned. I used to buy those little animals every visit.
Very nice post, Major. That first photo is a BEAUTY!
ReplyDeleteWow, thanks SundayNight and K. Martinez for the info. I never knew there were games in there at one time! Would love to see a photo!
ReplyDeleteTokyoMagic!, Here's a photo of it.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.flickr.com/photos/faeofdoom/6709774661/
Great to see a photo (Thanks K. Martinez). Good to know my memory is still intact. I had forgotten the tree stump units. Neat to see it all again.
ReplyDeleteThank you, K. Martinez for the pic. Why would they have taken these out? When did they take them out? They should have left them! And yes, Disneyland SHOULD be a museum!
ReplyDeleteMelissa, I never saw Walt in his box. I did, however, once see him over about where the Haunted Mansion is now, with a group of men is suits, pointing at stuff and talking. I assumed he was explaining his plans for the future. (It was on May 30, 1956.) I was on a Keel Boat at the time. On another occasion, I saw him throw out the first ball at an Angel's game at Angel stadium in Anahiem. That was in 1966, a few months before his death. In the latter case, I was there solely to see him, and left long before the game ended.
ReplyDeleteWow. Davey was playin' the same games that I did when I was 13-14. Pac Man was tough but we liked it!
ReplyDelete