Fun Friday
I have a random pair of nice images for you on this Friday!
We'll start with this shot (from March, 20th, 1967) of a lady posing next to the famous Town Square water fountain (what's missing??), affording us a nice look straight up Main Street toward the misty castle in the distance. The photographer seemed to take pains to include the "Humdinger '67" sign, I wonder if they were there to see their favorite musical acts? I couldn't find any info about who was performing in March, but a few months later there was a special Grad Nite Humdinger that featured Neil Diamond, Tammi Terrell, Dobie Gray, The Mustangs, and the Humdinger Dancers!
Next is this cool shot (from December, 1965) of Mark II Monorail Blue as it shushed overhead on it's way back from the hotel to Tomorrowland.
I tried to discern what the "Disneyland Information" signs said, and can only make out bits and pieces. "Operation Hours: Closed Mon. & Tue". Then they give the hours for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (illegible), as well as the hours for Saturday and Sunday (also illegible). The text at the bottom of the sign is a lost cause, though I imagine I can read the words "Please No Picnic Lunches", and possibly something about pets.
Not sure what that distant building is, it appears to say "CASUALTY" on the sign. An insurance company?
24 comments:
Major-
A pantsuit - how stylish-! Also, I love how that family simply drove their 1965 Plymouth right up to the ticket booths, and flung-open the doors for an en masse disembarking within a few steps of the entrance. (Those rebels-!)
Thanks, Major.
The thing that is missing from the drinking fountain is a large bag of C & H Sugar!
It's interesting that the Humdinger festivities were being presented in the Fantasyland Theater. I don't remember if there was a stage in there or not, but I guess they could have set up a temporary one.
I forgot to mention the distant building in those last two pics. I forget the company that used to be in that building, but a few years back, they gutted each floor and put new windows on it, and it became West Coast University (for health sciences). The exterior of the building still has a bit of mid-century style to it:
https://www.google.com/maps/@33.8113933,-117.9117625,3a,75y,167.32h,99.14t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1szSFnSEw2qQl2VNy00CB5Wg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
The Mark II Monorail Blue image is the best! I love it! Thanks, Major.
Love that Monorail shot with the posters!! Major I think the rest of the sign reads “eating pets for pic-nics has been known to cause cancer in the State of California “ ....... I’m pretty sure that’s what it says.
TOKYOMAGIC: I remember in the mid or late 90’s when the regular tenets vacated that building it was used for a haunted house -halloween attraction a few times. Your right it still has some of its mid-century modern look , but some distinctive features were removed in the 90’s and today it has a very dark tone color scheme.
That first pic sure is a humdinger, alright! (I'm so clever). The muted tones on the castle make it look like it's twenty miles away. Now, I expect it looks like it's right next door. It's actually amazing how simple things are being messed up now. But hey, we got wookies!
Look at how clear the sky is in that last photo! You can see all the way to the Santa Ana Mountains. Not often you see Disneyland photos with natural terrain features in the background (other than the Toontown Hills).
I've seen that drab DISNEYLAND INFORMATION sign before (a stark contrast to the other posters) and wondered what all the black space in between the two areas of text was for. Maybe they could slap special event posters there?
C&H sugar? Hmm... all my mind can focus on is the lightsaber that should be in that first pic.
Andrew, that's a felt info board. There are equidistant slots running from side to side across the board, and you stick removable plastic letters of varying sizes into the slots to make messages. They probably put info that doesn't change at the top and very bottom, leaving lots of space in the middle to add or remove notices as necessary. Based on the time of year, there probably weren't a lot of special events going on, which explains all of the blank area.
I did it! I took the sugar! I'm sorry! I'm such a bad person! No I'm not! I'm just flawed!
Anyway, I used it in my coffee so I can't return it.
That Plymouth pic could be used as a car add. Everyone almost looks posed.
Thanks, Major, for some humdingers this morning.
Zach
BTW, I count a total of 9 trash cans. And 1 school bus.
Zach
That first pic does it for me. Even a couple of Madras shirts in the crowd to the left.
Zach, I count seven trash cans in this shot.
stu, the castle does have that ethereal, far away look. Love it.
Haven't heard the name Tammi Terrell in decades. Great singer, passed away very young.
Thanks for the pics Major. Really nice!
There are 2 more by the Plymouth. I looked at both scans. :)
That is a right smart "pantsuit" she is wearing. Isn't "pantsuit" kind of odd. Aren't they all. I guess I have never seen a "shortsuit" even though they may exist.? If not maybe Jimmy Buffett could come up with a line of semi-casual "shortsuits".
Nice pics today. Thanks Major. Happy Friday y'all.
@Mike & Tokyo, that building has been there a long time. It shows up in some of the very early aerials when there is nothing else out there, I'm guessing 1962 or so. It has a sort-of John Carl Warnecke/Edward Durrell Stone look to it
The bag of sugar is in her purse. Quite an outfit, very stylish. Too bad the photo was taken when she blinked. I also count 7 trash cans, not counting the ones behind me.
I think the Humdinger would be a good day to visit, since many people would be watching that, making the line at the Pirates or the Bobsled shorter for me.
Love the monorail shot and the closeups.
JG
Looking back at the first photo counting trash cans, it looks like they are regularly spaced on both sides of the street, so...
Based on the spacing of the second two on the right, there should be two on the left (west) side that are hidden by the bus and fire truck, then on the right (east side), behind the crowd crossing the street, there should be at least two more matching up the two we can see the right distance.
So, inferred total trash cans: at least 11, 5 each side plus the one by the drinking fountain, and 13 counting those in photo 2.
Sorry, couldn't help myself.
JG
You know these photos are from a by-gone era because they use the word "humdinger" un-ironically.
Nanook, that checked patter (or whatever you call it) is interesting. When you’re bored you can play tic-tac-toe. I can’t tell if that Plymouth is just dropping people off, or if they’ve chosen a place to park that isn’t a parking spot.
TokyoMagic!, I knew you would know that the C&H Sugar was gone. But HOW did you know? You’re looking awfully shifty, suddenly. I have some old brochures that mention music performances in the Fantasyland Theater… since I never went in there, I just assumed that there must have been a stage of some kind, but you’re right, it might just be something they set up when they needed it.
TokyoMagic!, thank you for the link to that building, I’m kind of astonished that it is still there.
K. Martinez, glad you liked it!
Mike Cozart, yes…. yes I see, I think that IS what the sign says. Seems a little weird, but you can’t argue with facts. Kind of cool that they used that building as a haunted house, if they did it right it could have been really neat.
stu29573, I see what you did there! Whenever something is repainted at the park, people on forums always say how much they love the new look. The trouble is, I expect professional colorists to have better taste and good reasons for doing what they do. Who knows what the castle would look like if it was left up to the public?
Chuck, I can see the mountains, which one is the Matterhorn? Usually around January someone will post a telephoto shot of Disneyland with snowy mountains behind it, the sight is almost hard to believe. “There are mountains there??
Andrew, as often happens, I was going to answer your question but see that Chuck already did an excellent job!
Chuck, I still see those felt info boards at office buildings all the time. “Dr. Papanikolas - Suite 202”. I think you’re right, being December they probably didn’t have a lot going on. BTW, notice that in the first one (taken in March), so many people are wearing coats and sweaters, it must have been chilly. I don’t have my copy of Jason Schultz’s “Disneyland Almanac” handy or I could give you the actual temps for the day!
zach, as long as you learned a lesson, then it will have all been worth it. For instance, maybe you learned that mitochondria are the powerhouses of cells. That will come in handy many times. And yes, I could almost see photo #2 as an advertisement in a magazine!
DrGoat, you love those Madras shirts! Still not sure what they are. How many madrases had to die to make a single shirt? Did you even stop to think about that?? Also, zach has trash can fu, he can see examples that our untrained eyes cannot. I wonder if the designs on the various trash cans are silkscreened on?
zach, see? Trash can fu!
Alonzo, I’ve always thought “pantsuit” was a little odd, but nobody asked me. They NEVER ask me. They’ll be sorry. I would like to see a “short shortsuit”. In burgundy, lime green, powder blue, and harvest gold. Maybe a gray one for formal occasions.
JG, you have done what I was too lazy to do… see if the building was there in earlier views. Now I need to you submit a full 20-page history of the building, and also need to know if there are any ghosts that haunt it. Carrying a bag of sugar around at the park might seem crazy to some, but when everyone else is low on energy, she’ll be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. And this is the first time I have ever heard about inferred trash cans!
The Magic Ears Dudebro, yes, it is probable that “humdinger” was hip lingo in 1967. They also had “hootenannys”!
I'm enjoying the trash-talk today!
Fun post, thanks Major and all!
Ha, Major! Instead of a 20 page essay, I will submit the following link to the building I was thinking of.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Henry_Meyer_Memorial_Library
This building has recently been demolished, too expensive to renovate to modern standards.
The red mansard and the grillework remind me of the insurance building.
JG
Major-
"Who knows what the castle would look like if it was left up to the public?" You just know there would have to be sections with stripes, plaids, and madras - but all very magical-!!
Also - The Mickey Mouse Club Theater, (re-named in 1964 as the Fantasyland theater, until it closed in 1981), very-much had a stage. I know you remember the 400-seat venue screened classic Disney cartoons, and also began screening Mouseketeer 3d Jamboree on June 16, 1956. LOOK HERE for an early image.
Lou and Sue, this blog is like professional wrestling, with all the trash talk.
JG, such a shame that the J. Henry Meyer Memorial Library was demolished. It seems like buildings from this era are not considered significant by many people at this point and time, I wonder if we will eventually regret tearing so many examples down? The original 1965 Los Angeles County Museum of Art buildings are being torn down as we speak, I believe they could have been refurbished and improved, but the museum director wants a modern architectural “masterpiece” - it feels more like it’s a monument to him than a building to display art.
Nanook, I would be OK with it if it had polka dots. You know, like Yayoi Kusama. That would be cool! I knew that the Fantasyland Theater screened cartoons, but had no idea how many seats it had. Thank you for the link to the image!
Thanks for answering my question, Chuck. :-)
Major, I would think having a copy of the Almanac nearby would be essential for your blogging activities! On March 20, 1967, Disneyland was open from 9 a.m. to midnight, with a high of 70 and a low of 50. The day must have gotten off to a chilly start. Somewhere I have the 1967 attendance figures, but not at hand.
This week of March 1967, Disneyland held a "Sneak Peek Week" to preview the summer's entertainment offerings. This Humdinger, then, was a preview of the 11 which were held beginning Monday, June 26, and ending Monday, September 4. Martha & The Vandellas, Steve Alaimo, and Tina Mason performed at the preview.
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