Today's scans are from some slightly-oversized color transparencies (not 35mm) from 1961.
This first example is one of my favorites! All by itself it doesn't appear to be anything that interesting, but it is a nice detail from the old Skyway Chalet in Fantasyland. In the upper right we can see the Skyway cables heading out into the blue, along with some elaborately carved and polychromed decor that guests might otherwise never notice. Then, just to make things homey, there's a row of colorful pots with bright blossoms set along that little shelf. Are the flower plastic? Possibly taken straight from Main Street's Flower Market? We'll never know!
Nearby, a nice lady hunkers down inside the car reserved for monkeys. Come on in, there's room for at least 10 more people! I'm sure that lettering overhead was done by hand, and isn't it nice? We can admire some of the gold-leafed filigree applied to the sides of this particular car, and even observe some of the wear caused by the passing of many thousands of feet on the little threshold.
Major-
ReplyDeleteYa gotta love all that detail on the Skyway Chalet. It feels so authentic.
Thanks, Major.
One of my favorite details from the Skyway Chalet were the potted "flowers" along the ledge. Nice capture and extra-special pic.
ReplyDeleteNow as far as the animal cages go, never cared for those and avoided them like the plague. It's the dragon cars or nothing. Thanks, Major.
Pasnies and chrymanthesums!
ReplyDeleteThat purse is a dangerous beast and needs to be locked up.
Nanook, I DO love the Skyway Chalet! Bummer that it was torn down last year. Arg.
ReplyDeleteK. Martinez, I can’t say I ever really noticed the flowers, but I’m sure lots of observant people saw them. I sure like the way they look in this photo, however!
Melissa, the purse actually looks like it has eyes, and is waiting for a victim.
It must be related to those little coin banks where a hand would come out of a box and snatch the penny out of your hand like Thing from The Addams Family.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting but it's too soon. I'm still in mourning over the Fantasyland Chalet. If I can't ride caboose facing backward (toward open track) I would choose Monkey cage second with 3rd choice right behind the engine but it gets a little loud and hot.
ReplyDeleteMelissa, I love those banks! I also have a bank that looks like Audrey II (Little Shop of Horrors). Give it a coin, and it makes this grinding noise that almost sounds like “Feed me!”.
ReplyDeleteAlonzo P. Hawk, I have always chosen the canal boats, so when my girl and I decided to finally go on Casey Jr., we thought we had scored sitting right up front. As you mentioned, we had hot fumes blasting right in our faces the whole time! Clearly, everybody else knew not to sit there.
I'm with Alonzo, caboose, cages or any car is the best place to ride Casey.
ReplyDeleteI always ride both Casey and the Canal Boats, it's the only way.
I agree, losing the Chalet was like losing an old friend. The detailing and "feel" of this little building were so comforting. I do remember those flower pots. It seems like there was another post not long ago that showed a similar shelf and pots on the opposite side of the building.
I believe that all the flowers were planted fresh from the plastic nursery that supplied the Main Street Flower Mart. They used less water this way.
JG
After all these years, I still have fond memories of the chalet. It was one of my favorite spots...slowly walking in line up the stairs, looking out over Fantasyland and hearing the yodeling music. Another quiet and contemplative area of the park lost to the frenetic crowds of today. KS
ReplyDeleteI never rode Casey Jr. as a kid but when I returned with my own kids I always followed them into the Monkey Cages; wonderful memories.
ReplyDeleteIt's great to have an original place like this (Casey/Storybook) still left in Disneyland.
THANK YOU MAJOR!