Here's Nat, posing with one of the Three Little Pigs. BUT WHICH ONE? All we know is that he is not the perpetually-angry Practical Pig, who (let's face it) can be a little too preachy. But not this fella; he'll build his house of straw or sticks so that he'll have more time to have fun with you.
The warm summer weather has cause the glaciers on the Matterhorn to melt at an accelerated rate. And that means roaring waterfalls to cool passing bobsled riders.
John Jr. loves Frontierland, and enjoyed the performance at the Indian Dance Circle. But now he's checking out the Indian Village, with its variety of Native American dwellings. I believe that Imagineer Sam McKim was responsible for the designs on the teepees (based on research). Behind John Jr. is a delicious bison; the cutest li'l bison ever.
Here's a familiar view of Fantasyland as seen from the Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship. Look at how congested it got back near King Arthur's Carrousel! Ay caramba.
And finally, it's the good old Columbia, looking suitably dignified and impressive as a fresh load of passengers prepare to board.
Stay tuned for more vintage snapshots!
FYI, as of today I will be heading out of town, and my participation on the blog will probably be affected. But I will check in when I can, and of course there will be new posts for you every day!
Major-
ReplyDeleteNat and John Jr. look like a fine pair. And John Jr. seems to be getting into the new, 'hippie' look with some sort of "decorative neckwear" still so uncommon on most gentlemen back then - unless it's some sort of Indian decorative jewelry.
Thanks, Major.
I believe that is Fifer Pig. It would be so much easier to identify Fifer and Fiddler Pig, if they would just carry their instruments with them at all times.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that someone wrote Disneyland on each of those pics, Major. If they hadn't, you might not have ever been able to figure out where they were taken. I'm sure the one pic with the additional information of, "CALIF" written on it, was a big help as well.
The rope on that bison seems awfully short, so I hope the animal was not real. I think you know by now, how I feel about animals. Oh, and trees. Trees and animals.....I kinda like 'em.
Looks like they used a time machine to go back to august 1968 to get the photos developed. Seems like a lot of work, But whatever it takes to get good snapshots. 😂
ReplyDeleteI’d like to use the time machine to enjoy some of that wonderful time in California
Man, I would have loved to have ridden the Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship suspended from the Skyway cable like that. Peter Pan's Flight is cool, but the ships are so small. Might have been a bit rough once it got to the Matterhorn, though. ;-)
ReplyDeleteI'm also wondering if the bison was real. Even though to us it's obvious where these photos were taken, the hand-written labels add to the charm and personality of the set for me.
ReplyDeleteIn the Fantasyland picture, I believe the ticket booth that is front and center is still in the park today.
@TM!-
ReplyDeleteI thought back then, the costumed characters each wore those stick-on labels that said: HELLO, my name Is...
I see an empty raft and no people or cast members around. Perhaps Tom Sawyer Island is closed today?
ReplyDeleteI'm sure Nat wants her pictures back and I hope she and John Jr are well this Christmas season, still together, still enjoying the park with kids and grand kids.
Happy Holidays to all,
dz
Well folks, as long as I’m waiting for the rest of my family to get ready (think “glaciers moving”), I might as well respond to comments this morning!
ReplyDeleteNanook, I wonder if that’s as close to a “hippie freak” as John Jr. ever looked?
TokyoMagic!, I need three forms of government-issued IDs before I will acknowledge the Fifer Pig! As for hand labels, my favorites are when they are wrong (calling the Columbia a “Pirate Ship” for instance). I recently scanned a slide of the Moonliner and the labels says it’s a “torpedo”. I’m SURE that the bison was a stuffed (or entirely fake?) critter, so don’t you worry none.
Budblade… my secret has been revealed. I can write, but I CAN’T READ.
Chuck, as Moe would say, “Oh, a wise guy, eh?”. OK, OK, so that photo was taken from the Skyway!
Andrew, that bison was a figment of the imagination, evoked by ingesting peyote buttons (to get that true Native American ritual experience).
Nanook, that would have made life so much easier.
dzacher, it’s hard to say for sure if the island is closed, but anything is possible. They did run several rafts, and had at least two landings, so it might just be that the south landing was closed. If Nat wants her pictures back, she shouldn’t have put them on eBay!
Nanook, I'm pretty familiar with Indian (or Native American if you prefer) jewelry and I can't place that thing. Maybe just a totem that fellow liked to wear. Maybe he's a member of the Cargo Cult.
ReplyDeleteSeeing is believing, so that Bison must be real. That premise has always served me well. And don't bother with the Peyote. You'll only barf.
A Happy, Merry Christmas to one and all and thanks Major for everything.
Maybe John Jr. is wearing a rollerskate key??
ReplyDeleteI love the way Nat and Fifer(?) pig color-coordinated their outfits. They look cute together!
Major, I hope by now that you and your family have "calved" and are on your way to enjoying your Christmastime together!
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Sue (& Lou)
Thanks to Nat, and John Jr. for the photos. I hope they had long and happy lives.
ReplyDeleteMajor, thanks for the post. Have a merry Christmas. Hope you get back before the glaciers melt.
JG
Andrew, there is a Fantasyland ticket booth which is still in the park today, but it's the one that was (and still is) located just to the west of It's A Small World. I believe Ken shared a photo of it here, quite a few years ago. I was going to include a link to it in my comment, but I can't find it now. It appears that for some reason, the Major's photos from his "Photobucket" days, are not showing up on the blog right now....at least they aren't for me.
ReplyDeleteSue, if John Jr. is wearing a roller skate key, then perhaps Nat has "♫ ♪ a brand new pair of roller skates. ♪ ♫"
Thanks for pointing out the ticket booth, Andrew. That's the only one I remember buying individual letter tickets from. My parents were pretty good about managing what came in the Magic Kingdom Club ticket books, but we obviously ran out of something. Can't recall what we needed the tickets to ride, although I'm guessing it was Dumbo; for some reason, we never needed four tickets for the teacups.
ReplyDelete