I'm still slogging through a batch of slides that are generally dark or just weird. Because of this, you only have to pay half of what you normally do to view them!
SO... this one isn't great, and it isn't bad. It's at least an interesting angle, showing the dock where guests would board the Mark Twain or (in this case) the Columbia. I'm guessing that this photo was taken near the outdoor eating area of "Casa de Fritos" (judging by the strings of colored lights overhead). Out of the thousands of images in my collection, I don't have another one even remotely like this one.
The inky black shadows and the creepy, alien gaze of those two women to our right make this one feel a bit spooky. "Submitted for your approval: meet Wallace Terwillager - a man with a desire to escape the difficulties of modern life. Mysterious events lead him to a small town very much like the one his great grandfather might have frequented; a prosperous town with a nickelodeon, popcorn wagons, and a candy palace. But he soon discovers that things are not what they seem, and that living in the past can have its drawbacks. Wallace has just boarded a horse-drawn streetcar; next stop - the Twilight Zone". Duh duh DUHHHH!
Thinks look dark in Willoughby. Pretty soon Wallace Terwillager will be boarding the train that goes around in circles for a stopover in a quiet town.
ReplyDeleteWith any luck, maybe he can escape to Homewood. I hear it's within walking distance.
ReplyDeleteK. Martinez, there is a street in Hollywood called "Willoughby", and I have always wondered if Rod Serling was inspired by its name. Or is it just coincidence?
ReplyDeleteChuck, I always thought "Homewood" was a bit "on the nose". Why not just call it "Nicelittletown"?? I have always liked that episode, though!
"Walking Distance" is one of my favorite episodes of The Twilight Zone. For me, nothing beats the anthologies of 1950's-60's TV like Twilight Zone, Outer Limits, Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Boris Karloff's Thriller. I still enjoy watching them today.
ReplyDeleteAmen, gentlemen. If I could only watch one TV series for the rest of my life, it would be the original Twilight Zone. Either that, or Galactica 1980.
ReplyDeleteThanks, as always, Major.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I love about your photos is the chance that they give me and the other folks who post here a chance to do a little photo-interpretation, like guessing the specific year or such.
I have a guess about the second shot: it's the flag raising ceremony. It's well before noon by the shadows, people are on the sidewalks (nothing unusual for the early days, though) but everyone is standing stock still. Just a guess, but I do love this aspect of your blog.
K. Martinez, with only a few exceptions, I don’t remember much about “The Outer Limits” or “Alfred Hitchcock Presents”. And I don’t remember Boris Karloff’s “Thriller” at all, which surprises me, since I was such a monster nut. I’ve seen that you can buy the entire run of The Outer Limits for pretty cheap, maybe I need to get it!
ReplyDeleteChuck, really? Galactica? The one with Lorne Greene? Was it that good? In my memory, the original Star Trek (or even TNG) was more my thing.
Patrick, thanks for the nice comment! You could very well be right about the flag raising ceremony; I have more than a few photos of other ceremonies going on, so it stands to reason that this could be one too.
Major - My personal favorite was "The Outer Limits". It had some influence on "Star Trek" in that some of the creatures were re-used for the series. Also James Cameron's Terminator film was allegedly lifted from two of the Outer Limit episodes titled "Soldier" and "Demon with a Glass Hand. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the original series again as an adult.
ReplyDeleteYou can watch just about every episode of Boris Karloff's Thriller on youtube. It's another great one.
Major - I am seriously kidding about Galactica 1980.
ReplyDeleteI had enjoyed the 1978-79 series when I was 9 and 10, but by the time the second series came along, even my 11-yahren-old self could recognize it for the felgercarb it was, no matter how hard I tried to like it.
I watched both series back-to-back about a year ago, and the second series was a really tough slog - even with Lorne Greene, Robert Reed, Kent McCord, and a standout, natural performance by Barry Van Dyke. I love the Boy Scouts, but seriously - Super Scouts?
It's odd and I can't explain why but I am mesmerized by that first photo!
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