Today I have some nicer-than-usual photos, courtesy of Lou and Sue! Lou was in the park in 1984, and he took a few shots of Sleeping Beauty Castle.
I love this first one, with all of those beautiful flowers in the foreground; the "Partners" statue wouldn't come along until 1993. As I've said, I certainly have nothing but praise for Walt Disney (or for Blaine Gibson, the sculptor), but man, I do not care for that statue. Just my opinion of course.
Ah, those 80's fashions. Where's the "Flock of Seagulls" hairdos that I love so much? Everybody in this photo should have one! I was more of a Kajagoogoo fan, but there was room in my heart for FoS too. Two guests are pointing at poor Pluto with one finger (each), a crime punishable by death.
It's kind of nice to get this shot with no people, Lou must have timed it just right. Notice the new tree, what are the odds that it has since been removed? My guess is that it is long-gone.
Are the dark rides considered to be part of the castle? To vote "yes", raise your left hand. To vote "no", raise somebody else's left hand. I hope you didn't have your heart set on riding "Snow White's Scary Adventures", because it was closed for refurbishing. I would have assumed that the ride had undergone some degree of refurbishment as Fantasyland was being rebuilt for the 1983 "New Fantasyland"? I blame teenagers!
MANY THANKS to Lou and Sue!
Major-
ReplyDeleteAlthough people watching is part of the thrill, the shot bereft of guests is a real nice change of pace. In the 'pointing' shot, is it possible the gal in the light blue shorts is carrying a bag in the shape of a fish-? (Maybe it's simply a portable vacuum, as she's a 'neat freak'-?)
Thanks to Lou, Sue and The Major.
Now the blues and the pink on the Castle look just right (and tasteful!) to me, in these pics. The Castle would have just been repainted the year before, as a part of the New Fantasyland redo.
ReplyDeleteI know the "heart with a dagger through it" design is featured in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (on the box that the Queens gives the Huntsman), but that's pretty bold to include the motif on either side of the entrance to the attraction. No wonder kids are afraid of that ride!
Thanks to Lou, Sue and the Major, too!
That Pluto sure can turn heads. He is very rarely photographed, but when Lou sets his sights on a celebrity, he always gets his shot. In the first photo, it looks like another shutter bug is trying to get the drop on Lou. I used to hate it when attractions were closed, but Lou saw it as a photo op. Thanks Lou. Thanks to Major as well.
ReplyDeleteI've always loved the subtle, menacing architectural details of the 1983 do-over of Snow White's Scary Adventures, which that last photo documents to well. The hearts through the daggers, the overly-weathered "stone" blocks, the spiral, snake-like columns, and the salamander-shaped door hinges all do their best to set you up for what's inside.
ReplyDeleteThanks again, Lou & Sue!
Snow White's Scary Adventures is a ride that is very high on my bucket list. It's a shame that WDW seems so deprived of the Fantasyland darkrides compared to Disneyland. I hope that they don't take too much of the sinister factor out of it with the refurbishment that's going on now.
ReplyDeleteAnd Major, for the most detail-obsessed people, a quick look at Google Street View shows that that tree is still intact. Thanks to Lou for some nice shots!
Hey Andrew, WDW may have lost Snow White and Mr. Toad, but they got...more meet and greets! (Am I the only one who doesn't get the whole meet and greet thing? They're actors in a theme park, people. That ain't the real deal... Of course I did wait for them with my grandkids...)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, fantastic pictures as always by Lou! I swear he "out Disneys" their own photographers! I especially love the Snow White shots and the castle! Bravo!
Nanook, on that particular day, the gal brought her dust buster. Two months before that, she brought along her Ronco “Inside the egg scrambler”. And I won’t go into details, but she saved somebody’s life with that scrambler. Maybe we all need to be more like her. Think about it.
ReplyDeleteTokyoMagic!, I just wish that they would get it over with and paint the castle purple. That’s what we all really want, after all. Shiny purple. I love that they included details that recall the darker aspects of some of those old fairy tales; “Bring me her heart!”, jeez Louise.
Jonathan, I think Pluto was hoping to walk through Fantasyland unnoticed, but it’s not easy when you happen to be a five foot-tall, extra-plush dog. Which I am, so I can relate.
Chuck, another detail that I have always loved in the “New Fantasyland” is the window where the Wicked Queen opens the curtains to glare down at us! I wish they included more little things like that. Well, I’m heading over to Home Depot to see if they have any salamander-shaped door hinges, those things are awesome.
Andrew, it does seem very weird to me that folks who run the Magic Kingdom seem to consider the classic dark rides to be so disposable. Replacing the fantastic version of Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride with Winnie the Pooh was not a good trade-off. I like Pooh just fine, but Disney parks need more madcap, slightly crazy experiences like the “Toad” ride.
stu29573, it almost seems beyond belief that they would remove an actual, beloved ride only to put in a meet and greet. The Magic Kingdom is huge, didn’t they have any other place they could have put it? How about somewhere in the castle? It’s fun to meet the characters and maybe get a photo, but you sometimes hear that people will wait in line for four hours to meet Maleficent - it’s nuts. You can get their autographs too, something that truly baffles me.
I love the Mom and kid in matching Mickey sweatshirts! And the picture of the arches has such great line and perspective. Lou has a good eye for capturing architecture!
ReplyDeleteI love how the little waste can and ashtray can are standing guard in front of the Snow White door - taking pride in their new assignment.
ReplyDeleteSue
Great pics for a Sunday Lou & Sue. Nice and not too busy yet.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tree pic Andrew. It looks nice and healthy.
The Dark rides evoke some of my fondest memories from when I was younger.
Sweatshirts and jackets versus shorts and t-shirts.
Sue, Is that Lou's doppelganger with the camera across from him. Love that pic.
Thank you Lou & Sue and Major.
Melissa, it seems that at around that date, you saw that Mickey design everywhere - especially on t-shirts and sweatshirts. They must have sold a million of them!
ReplyDeleteLou and Sue, I hope the “waste can” (I like that you didn’t call it a “trash can”) and the ashtray were friends! Soon to be a Pixar movie.
DrGoat, yes, I forgot to thank Andrew for the link to the picture of the tree (sorry, Andrew). Notice that they’ve cut it into a box shape, like the “square trees” that Eyvind Earle painted. And I agree, the dark rides, for all their simplicity, made a powerful impression on my young brain that I can still remember today.
Major, both the waste can and ashtray-can fill in for R2-D2, at times, in Wookiee World.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Major, and everyone! Love the tree link, Andrew!
Lou & Sue
Great post today, Major. Thanks to Lou and Sue for the pictures, and Andrew for the link. The castle colors appear toned down a bit, which is fine by me. Stepping away a bit, you can see that our tree's companion is much bigger, which is strange.
ReplyDeleteMany of the old "fairy tales" had a grim, bloody streak underlying those stories. Life was harsher then, starvation, disease and death were day-to-daythings and not everything has a happy ending. I read through some of the Hans Christian Andersen stories recently. "The Little Match Girl" will break your heart. I can't believe I read it as a kid.
I'm not sure if it's good that Disney tuned up the stories or not.
JG