Monday, February 24, 2020

Ask Any Pirate You Happen To See.... January 1962

... "What's the best tuna?" Chicken of the Sea! Don't eat that Starkist garbage, I've heard it's mostly cat meat anyway and I believe it. I also believe that the Earth is flat and you'll never convince me otherwise.

Today I have two lovely photos of the Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship on a brilliant January day. No matter how many times I've seen it, I love the level of artistry and detail. For instance, I never noticed the sculpted clamshell ornament above the stern windows before! I also love the various lanterns on and around the ship, I wonder if anybody got to take those home to install them in their backyard when the ship was razed?


It was almost possible to stitch this photo and the previous one together into a delightful and crispy panorama, but the ropes didn't want to cooperate. This is why I propose banning the use of all ropes by 2025. Ha ha, the mermaid is picking Skull Rock's nose.


20 comments:

Nanook said...

Major-
I believe a couple of those lanterns are hanging-about in Elvis' backyard - (wherever that happens to be). As for the mermaid... she's merely performing her bi-monthly depilatory treatment on ol' Skull's 'cookie duster'-!

Again - still can't get enough Skull Rock.

Thanks, Major.

Chuck said...

Never noticed the treasure chest up on the forecastle before. A look through Daveland shows two of them up there in various positions (usually at the aft end of the forecastle deck) from 1960-1967.

Is it OK for me to eat tuna for breakfast?

Andrew said...

It sounds like the tuna here was somehow the best in the world... either that, or the setting and feeling of being in Disneyland just worked together to make it taste better.

"Lou and Sue" said...

I love that second picture especially and saved it on my computer! That mermaid picking Skull Rock's nose is a classic. You wonder if the photographer planned it that way ??

Thanks, Major, for the fun start to this week!

Sue

P.S. TokyoMagic! Did you notice all the redheads, today? I had to take a closer look to make sure one of them wasn't my mom, seriously.

stu29573 said...

I actually really love tuna sandwiches and I'm sorry I never had one from the ship!

DrGoat said...

Andrew, I found that everything tasted better in Disneyland. Back then at least. Especially the milkshakes from the Carnation Cafe Ice Cream Parlor! I must admit I never had a tuna sandwich from the ship. I know I should have, but I seem to remember we did most of our eating at the Cafe.
Do like a tuna sandwich now and again if made properly. I'm sure everyone has their particular way of preparing one, but not for breakfast Chuck. Fish in the morning just sounds too yukky.
Great pics Major...and I did steal one too for my desktop too.
Thank you Major and thanks Lou and Sue for the morning laugh.

Melissa said...

Now I'm really craving a tuna samdwich. And I think the mermaid is just wiping some schmutz off Skull Rock's face.

JC Shannon said...

Of course the Earth is flat. If it weren't, all the fish in the Pacific would just fall out in to space. Some people are so dumb. I'm with Nanook. Can't get enough of the Ship and Skull Rock. We had pancakes for breakfast all the time when I was a kid, but somehow they always tasted a little sweeter in Disneyland. Ditto tuna. Thanks Major.

zach said...

It's only Monday and already nose picking jokes. Skull Rock would be sad if he didn't get picked once in a while.

This area has always been high on my list of 531 favorite places in DL. We never ate there and now I want to. I have a huge list for a time machine, too.

Thanks, Major, for 'picking' these for this morning.

dz

Kel said...

I never got to see this in person - or skull rock. I feel like I missed out!


This ship seems so similar in size and design as the one in the battle scene over in Pirates of the Caribbean. I wonder if they used the same template? Either way, I sure would have loved pretending on that sea chicken!

Anonymous said...

Yes, those tuna sandwiches were the best ever. My Dad did not like tuna in any way, shape or form, but he had a Tuna Boat sandwich every trip.

Excellent pictures, Major. I have seen the treasure chests in other pictures, but do not recall the clam shells. After a bit of research, I find that they have always been there. Always something new to find in these old photos.

Thanks everyone.

JG

Major Pepperidge said...

Nanook, I have never been to Graceland, but I would like to believe that those lanterns would fit wonderfully in the famous “tiger room”.

Chuck, I would assume that certain props would move around, or be added or removed as time went by; I can’t help wondering if that treasure chest was built by Disneyland craftsmen, or if they acquired it from a Hollywood prop house. Tuna for breakfast is unorthodox, but sure, go ahead!

Andrew, I’m sure it didn’t hurt that guests were probably very tired and hungry when they got their food - stuff usually tastes better when you are famished.

Lou and Sue, if I had to bet, I would wager that the photographer didn’t notice that the mermaid was picking the skull’s nose. But it’s impossible to say for sure! I don’t think those ladies had hair as red as yours was when you were a little girl.

stu29573, I do like tuna sandwiches, and now I make spicy varieties with a little tobasco and black pepper (along with lemon juice, mayo, and pickle relish). Love ‘em!

DrGoat, I do think that we can be more receptive to certain foods when we’re at Disneyland, which might be why we are doubly disappointed if an item is no good. There’s a series on YouTube on the “Eater” channel, where a young lady goes around a particular park (Disney and non-Disney) and tries something from each restaurant and snack bar. “Dollywood” had some especially good-looking food! I admit that tuna in the morning doesn’t appeal to me, but hey, I won’t discourage somebody else from enjoying it.

Melissa, I have tried making the official Chicken of the Sea tuna burgers, but I usually get lazy and now the only thing I do is put the tuna on a toasted hamburger bun, which is very nice. On rare occasions I’ll melt some cheese on it too.

Jonathan, I don’t care if the ancient Greeks figured out that the Earth was supposedly round, I am smarter than them because I watch a lot of TV. I like pancakes, but for some reason I always tended to order French toast. Man, that sounds so good right now!

dzacher, oh if only you knew all the elementary school-style comments that I resist! It’s not easy, but I do it for you guys. 531 favorite places, hm, I guess I need to start making a list.

Kel, it is too bad that you never got to see Skull Rock, especially at night when its eyes were lit from within by an eerie green glow. But there’s always new things for folks to enjoy! Interesting thought about the “Wicked Wench” in “Pirates”, I’ll have to do a side by side comparison to see how similar they look. “Sea chicken”, ha ha.

JG, I’m amazed that your Dad would even bother with the tuna boat, considering his dislike of tuna fish. It’s all part of the Disney magic! Maybe if they’d had a liver boat I would have liked their liver sandwiches? I love finding new details, even after all these years.

Melissa said...

Me, too, Kel. If I didn't get to experience classic Disneyland firsthand, I'm glad I at least live in an age when it's so easy to see as many pictures and videos of it as I like. There are places and attractions in both U.S. parks that I've done so much reading about and seen so many images of, that I have nearly as clear an impression of them as I do of things I actually saw in person as a child. The human brain is a deeply weird thing.

I kept hearing how great Kennywood's Potato Patch fries were, but when I tasted them for the first time I didn't think they were any better than Five Guys. But add in all the other sense memories and I still look back fondly on them.

Major, I like my tuna with finely chopped celery, onions, and carrots, dill or sweet relish, mayonnaise, and a dash of black pepper. If I'm feeling particularly ambitious, some chopped boiled egg is good, too. I'll have to try Tabasco and lemon juice sometime.

They have sea cows and sea horses; why not sea chickens, too?

stu29573 said...

I either have my tuna with eggs, mayo, and dill pickles on white bread (The "srandard") OR I go whole hog (fish?) and use that same bread and basically make an extra butter grilled cheese (sharp cheddar) with 1/2 can of tuna grilled right in there. (The "Extra Special Tuna Melt Deluxe!") I like the "spicy" idea! Crud, now I'm really hungry.

Chuck said...

For those of you who now have a hankering for a tuna burger, there are at least two recipes circulating around the Interweb claiming to be the original recipe. I'm not sure which has the better claim on being more "authentic," as they both were marketing efforts for either the Van Camp Seafood Company or Ralston Purina ( depending on the year they were published), but they definitely have an authentic Disneyland connection.

The first comes from the placemats they used to put on the trays in the chicken boat: https://www.davelandweb.com/chickenofthesea/images/COTSPirateShipRestauranttra.jpg. (Note that I was unable to find a 6.5 oz. can of tuna anywhere in my local area, but it's half of a large 12.5- or 13-oz can, so it's easy to approximate; I recommend slicing the can vertically.)

The second is from an unspecified women's magazine from the late '50s or '60s and reposted at Kevin Kidney's blog: http://miehana.blogspot.com/2011/02/and-now-lets-eat.html.

I've made them both, and I found both pretty tasty. They pair nicely with the featurette Disneyland, U.S.A. (1956) or pretty much any episode of Disneyland, Walt Disney Presents, or Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color that features the Happiest Place on Earth. For a touch of period authenticity, make it with tuna packed in oil and arrange several lighted cigarettes in decorative ashtrays around the serving area for extra ambience. Enjoy!

Major Pepperidge said...

Melissa, I remember having some sort of thick-cut fries at Knott’s when I was a kid, along with a plastic cup of ice-cold boysenberry juice, and both seemed like the most delicious things I’d ever had in my life. Even now I am craving both! All of the things you put in your tuna sandwich are things that I use at various times too, it just kind of depends of what I have in the fridge. After our discussion earlier I bought some hamburger buns and cans of tuna at the grocery store!

stu29573, it sounds to me like the version with eggs and pickles is the “whole hog” version! So when you make your tuna melt you don’t make a tuna salad mix, you just put in tuna straight from the can?

Chuck, I only knew about the recipe on Kevin Kidney’s blog, and followed it. At least mostly, I never was able to slice a bun into 3 horizontal slices. Then I tried another version in which I formed the tuna into patties, adding some bread crumbs, and tried cooking it on a non-stick skillet, but it just fell to pieces, so it was a fail. If you want to cut a can of tuna in half, just use a band saw. Metal shavings just add vital nutrients. Man oh man, it’s crazy how much I want a nice tuna sandwich now!!

stu29573 said...

Yep! Straight from the can (well drained)!

MIKE COZART said...

Remember , this location wasn’t serving regular tuna sandwiches - they were serving Chicken of the Sea TUNA BURGERS!!
These were baked in foil and served warm .
The tuna was mixed with lemon juice and mayonnaise then placed onto a plain hamburger bun bottom - then sweet pickle chips Were placed on top , then a mixture of ketchup and mayonnaise sauce on top of the pickles. Finally the top bun was placed in position , then it was wrapped in tin foil and baked for awhile.

While you could get tuna salad and other ( mostly cold seafood ) items people were lining up for the warm TUNA BURGER.

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Anonymous said...

Daveland's incredibly valuable photo archive has this photo of the interior, showing the menu, which you can barely make out the sandwiches and the tuna burger.

https://www.davelandweb.com/chickenofthesea/images/60s/COTS_1_19_1968_C.jpg

I remember the little fruit pies were favorites too. The cold sandwiches were cut in triangles and pinned together with little plastic cutlass swords. I always saved mine, and might still have one somewhere stashed away in my unopened boxes. I know I never had the burger, always the little cold sandwiches, and I don't think either of Chuck's recipes are what I remember. Just a simple tuna salad with mayo and sweet pickle relish. Might have had a pickle slice on there too.

Also, this thread made me go get a cold tuna sandwich from the corner deli for today's lunch.

Thanks again everyone.

JG