Well, GDB readers, it had to end sometime; today I am presenting the last of a fantastic bunch of Huck Caton's personal photos (circa 1979).
This first one was taken in the AT&T break room, and shows Huck's then-girlfriend Diane (second from the right) and other Bell employees, waiting (as Huck says) "...to ER / go home". He says that ER either stood for "Employee Request" (according the Disney), or "Early Release" (according to everyone who has ever worked at the park since day one). Two of the girls are holding their time cards.
Huck explains: "If the (attendance) estimate was 50K for the day but it turned out to only be 14K, you might have been asked if you wanted to ER at lunch. Or, if you wanted to go home because you had a hot date you could ask to ER as soon as possible".''
This break room doesn't look glamorous, but it has a certain homey feeling.
Next is another photo of Diane and two pals in the AT&T break room.
Huck says this one shows, "One of the older gals making coffee in the Circle-Vision 360ยบ break room. Groups came and went in yearly shifts but not everyone started (or finished) at the same time. Some Bell people were there when Diane started but their year ran out a month or two into Diane's stint. This woman wasn't part of Diane's gang... but she was pretty hilarious, as I recall!".
And finally, "Cheryl tries to get some paperwork done (while wearing a Mickey Mouse watch that AT&T gave all of the Bell people to wear [and keep] in the 'office' portion of the Circle-Vision break area".
Work that hole punch, Cheryl! I have a binder waiting to be filled.
Once again, I would like to THANK Huck for sharing these wonderful glimpses into a part of the Disneyland employee experience that most of us never had a chance to enjoy. If only I had lived close enough to the park when I was at an age to take a post-high school job; but - no such luck. But all of Huck's photos, from the canoe races to the group photos, really give us a taste of what it was like in that more golden time.
Ha, I was in that break room a couple times in the early eighties and I remember that wooden room divider/screen! Those curtains were over the large window that you could see on the backside of the Circle-Vision building (facing the Matterhorn). At night you could see a faint glow of light through the curtains, but there were plants in the planter in front of it that kind of disguised it. Does anyone else remember that window? Is it still there today? Now I'm wondering if the break room survived the Buzz Lightyear construction?
ReplyDeleteP.S. I've enjoyed this series of personal photos.....thanks for sharing them with us, Huck!
ReplyDeleteThese have been such fun to see, Huck! Thanks a bunch for sharing them. I wish my daughter had taken more backstage photos when she worked there in 2008, tho she did take some and she loved her experience there as well.
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ReplyDeleteHuck, I thoroughly enjoyed your series of photos and stories from your time working at Disneyland. Thank you for sharing them with us!
ReplyDeleteTokyoMagic!, I knew you worked at Knott's, but did you work at Disneyland too?
Major-
ReplyDeleteI think that furniture would be more at home in the demo room pushing Stereophonic Sound.
I also note at the sink the presence of a Dish-Quik - that black- handled gadget at the right side. You could both rinse and wash your dishes, etc, using its built-in brush and soap compartment. In other words: a poor mans dishwasher.
Huck-
Thanks for sharing these fun images with all of us.
Ken, I worked at Disneyland in a parade for just one season. I was only 16 (the age requirement was lower for parades) and then right after that is when I got hired at Knott's. I kept thinking I would go back and apply at DL (to work in the park), but I never did. By then I had made too many friends at Knott's and I didn't want to leave them. The times that I got to see the Circle Vision break room, I was probably 18 or 19 and I was just invited in to see it by a cast member working the attraction. I don't know if they could have been fired for that or not. I used to go to the park a lot with a friend during that time and many of the cast members "knew" us.
ReplyDeleteThe moment I saw "ER" I thought "Early Release'. That was the common use of the term during my work at the Park. I still have my final timecard, though it is a bit faded after all these years.
ReplyDeleteKS
TokyoMagic! Thanks for the link. I keep forgetting to read your blog because you don't have regular updates. Time to add you to my reading list so I can catch your posts in a more timely manner. Anyway, I had no idea you were a teenage Christmas tree. Sounds like you had some great fun working at both places.
ReplyDeleteKen, I saw that you added me to your list.....THANKS! I am trying to be much more "regular" now! (Hot water and oat bran every morning takes most of the credit.) ;-)
ReplyDeleteSorry for my delayed response to your comments, everybody. I had a very busy week. I'm glad you guys liked Huck's photos. I'll be sure to let him know! It's possible that he'll find more - fingers crossed.
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