Monday, July 01, 2019

Lou and Sue - To The Rescue

Well folks, a week ago I found myself without a Monday post, somehow. It happens. So I moved what would have been today's post to June 24th. And that meant that I needed something for today. Luckily for me, I have lots of scans from Lou and Sue! Sure, we saw some of their photos just a couple of days ago, but I don't think we'll have any complaints.

There were two remaining photos in the "Tomorrowland 1977" folder. Rocket Jets! Peoplemover! What more could you want? I don't think I ever noticed that the top of the rocket was painted  gold - it's like a glimpse of the 50th Anniversary.


Here's a beautiful view with more of the Peoplemover. Man do I miss that ride. I initially thought that the Rocket Jets were loading (or unloading), but that one rocket appears to be heading into orbit.


Next Lou and Sue have a pair of photos, also from 1977, of Captain Hook's Pirate Ship. After Chicken of the Sea moved out, the Disney folks were understandably upset, so tuna was no longer on the menu. It was replaced with liverwurst. The most popular sandwich was the liverwurst, limburger,  thick slices of fiery onion, Miracle Whip, and mustard. A repast fit for a stinky king.


At the stern was the Cap'n's quarters, with lots of windows 'n stuff. The rococo carvings still depict a mermaid, but I shall never love another merm! 


Many thanks to Lou and Sue.

14 comments:

Nanook said...

Major-

You left out the edible gold leaf from the liverwurst and limburger sandwich. It's needed to offset the horrors of Miracle Whip-!

Thanks to Lou & Sue, and fiery onion slices.

TokyoMagic! said...

Awwww, two of my favorite areas in Disneyland of the past. I can't decide if I want to sit and relax in the cove area behind the Pirate Ship, or if I'd rather sit in one of those chairs underneath the PeopleMover loading platform and watch people going up and down the Speedramps and also boarding the Gantry Lifts to the "Rocket Jet Flight Deck."

Is that little gold cone on the Rocket Jet centerpiece, supposed to be the capsule that the astronauts "splashed-down" in?

Thank you, Lou and Sue!

Chuck said...

TM!, yes, that's supposed to be the Apollo Command Module. And Major, it wasn't always painted gold - see this photo from 1968. All of the gold trim in the 1977 photo was originally painted silver. The change in paint scheme seems to have taken place during the 1972 rehab. If it makes you feel any better, I'd never noticed it either.

Thanks, Lou & Sue!

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Andrew said...

The Pirate Ship looks just a little cartoony, (which is especially noticeable in the stern picture) but I feel like the Imagineers achieved a good balance - it couldn't be too realistic; it is Captain Hook's, after all!

stu29573 said...

There is actually quite a bit of detailing on rhe Rocket Jets center rocket. Some makes sense, and some doesn't. For example, the huge swept fins and boosters make little sense in a world where gimbaled engines was already old technology, and there was no reason to have the capsule cover gold, of course. However, you can see the directional thrusters on the command module, and the access ports on the capsule cover, which is all pretty accurate. Lou and Sue, this is probably one of the best pics I've seen of it. It's growing on me!
Just as an aside, I'm so used to people joking around on here, it took me a while to realize the spam post was actually trying to rip someone off and not just one of the regulars yanking our chains...

K. Martinez said...

We're so close to the Goodyear animated scene pods, but not quite there. I especially love the "Captain Hook's Galley" pics. All wonderful pics today. Thanks, Major.

Lou and Sue, Your pics are a special treat. I always look forward to seeing what you have to share with us. Thank you!

Penna Andrew, I just checked out your blog "Bayern Kurve" and it looks great. As some on GDB know, flat rides are right up my alley. I definitely have some backlog reading to do.

Major Pepperidge said...

Nanook, ever since I was a kid, I have disliked the sweet/tangy mess that is Miracle Whip!

TokyoMagic!, since Tomorrowland is such a disorganized mess these days, I think I would choose your option #2, and enjoy the place when it was so beautiful and full of movement and energy!

Chuck, what they don’t tell guests is that every day for roughly 30 years, three Disneyland CMs were employed to sit in the Command Module every day, for accuracy’s sake. Impressive.

Mrs Sharon Sim, thank you for warm and heartfelt comment, gosh, what an amazing opportunity for dimwits everywhere.

Penna. Andrew, I’ve never really looked at Captain Hook’s ship from “Peter Pan” to see how closely it matches to the Disneyland pirate ship, but I’ve always been impressed with the level of detail lavished on this tuna restaurant.

stu29573, I wonder if those huge swept fins were a necessary part of the ride’s structure, and were themed (disguised) to look like a part of the big rocket? The orange lights on the 4 nosecones looked good at night, at least! I’d never noticed the thrusters way up high. Wait a minute, are you saying that Sharon Sim isn’t on the level??

K. Martinez, I should ask Sue if she has any photos of those Goodyear animated scenes! It sounds like Lou might have captured them. And I didn’t know Penna. Andrew had a blog, I’ll have to check it out.

JG said...

What Tokyo Magic Said. Two favorite haunts of The Correct Disneyland.

Especially fine photo of the Rocket Jets. The detail is impressive. Major, I think the three astronaut CM's alternated as gardeners in Storybook Land.

The gold leaf detail appears to be repeated on the engine nacelles also. It's a good look. The nacelle design with the extended fins may not be strictly structural but, when you look a photo of the ride mechanism at full vertical extension, it shows that the engine nacelles needed to be held off of the central orange column to allow the ring support to move up and down. So the fins and engines are plausible appearing decorations worked around the function of the ride mechanism.

This image from the invaluable Daveland archive shows what I am trying to say:

https://www.davelandweb.com/tomorrowland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day2_N27.jpg

I remember noticing that the headlights of the ride vehicles, and presumably the ones on the "engines" as well, were automotive sealed-beam headlamps like the ones we had on our car. I grew up on Miracle Whip, and as soon as I could buy my own groceries, switched to mayo.

The loss of the mermaid figurehead was sad, she was a very appropriate combination of theming and advertising, and also looked like Tinkerbelle's cousin. I wonder why Disney did not replace her with another character, other than money.

I'm going to make a tuna fish sandwich (with mayo, not Miracle Whip) and go look at Andrew's blog, and then I am going to apply for a loan from Singapore to finance my trip to Galaxy's Edge.

Thanks to Lou, Sue and You, Major!

JG

"Lou and Sue" said...


Major, as I'm looking through my dad's pictures, I'll keep an eye out for the Goodyear animated scenes, but first I need to double-check with you - are they the cute drawings on those multiple oval signs that turn?

In the 2nd pic, to the left, and behind the People Movers, am I seeing a couple sky buckets? One turquoise and one orange, peeking through? Or am I just imagining?

Years ago, remember how boring it used to be when friends and relatives would set up their slide projector and screen and make you sit through ALL their trip slides and stupid vacation stories? Now we're doing exactly that, AND looking forward to it everyday! Thanks, Major!

Sue


Andrew said...

K. Martinez, Major, and JG - I hope you like it! I think it's kind of on the dull side (at least compared to these lively posts), but I figured I'd put some of the pictures I've taken at my local parks to use. Don't tell anyone... but being a teenager "grounded" in Pennsylvania, I've never even been to Disneyland. (though I've gotten to Walt Disney World twice). But that doesn't mean I can't enjoy Disneyland history through these old pictures, which really bring the past to life. The info that people provide is invaluable, too. Once I finally visit, I'll enjoy it all the more!

Melissa said...

I think it was a step too far to rename the Pirate Lagoon the Liver Pool.

The guy on the far left in the second picture is making a face at us through time! "Take that, you stupid 21st-century blog readers! Nyah!"

Andrew, Pennsylvania has some great parks, so I'm looking forward to your pictures!

I just recently realized how much the People mover cars make me think of Mini Coopers.

Awesome sun-drenched pictures today.

Major Pepperidge said...

JG, I had actually never noticed that those gold elements were once painted silver - I’ll need to go back to pix from ’67 to see if I can tell if it is white or silver. Astronauts had real gold on their helmets (to prevent alien attacks), so why not have some on their rockets? I wish I had a good “up close” photo of one of the Rocket Jets at night with the headlamp on, that would be cool. My Minnesota grandmother used Miracle Whip a LOT, and it’s not like I couldn’t eat it, but I wasn’t crazy about it. However, she also liked margarine, which I liked for some reason. I loved the Chicken of the Sea mermaid figurehead, maybe Tink would have made a good replacement? Still undecided.

Lou and Sue, it would be awesome if you find nice photos of those diorama signs! I realize there is no guarantee though. Yes, I do think I see those partial Skyway gondolas, you have sharp eyes. I’ve only sat through a few slide shows, but I guess I’ve been lucky, because they’ve been pretty interesting.

Penna. Andrew, see my comment on your blog! I always think my blog is dull, maybe it’s like the pretty girl who looks in the mirror and only sees her “flaws”. Sounds like you have a love of amusement park history, which is something that I am interested in, but also too lazy to learn, ha ha. I think that if you have a passion for something, and write about it, it will come through… I hope you stick with your “Bayern Kurve” blog for a long time, even if you take some breaks along the way.

Melissa, why was the real “Liverpool” called that, anyway? What an unlovely name. Didn’t they know The Beatles would come from there someday? They should have called it “Coolsville” or something.

Chuck said...

In support of JG's comment about the nacelles and the ride mechanism, here's a video of the Rocket Jets naked and abused.