It's time for another selection of scans graciously donated by "1937Fan". These are a bit more recent than the other slides we've seen, dated "1970" (don't worry, there are more of the 1964 photos coming up). In case you've forgotten, the photos are from a stash that 1937Fan's Aunt gave to her.
So, first up is this photo of a mysterious woman (not the fabled Aunt, or at least I don't think so) standing in front of the exit of The Enchanted Tiki Room. There's bamboo aplenty, but they really missed a chance to use more coconuts (a tip I learned from Gilligan's Island). Love those carved wooden shields, I need several of them for my grotto with its tiki bar. It's Martin Denny and Les Baxter music 24/7!
They sure could save a lot of time and money if they replaced these topiaries in front of "It's a Small World" with plywood cutouts.
And, as the sun sets, it bathes the Rocket Jets in a warm pink glow. You can see that the lights on the nose cones (simulating the extreme friction of reentry?) are lit up, while the Peoplemover is practically lost in the darkness.
Thank you, 1937Fan!
Major-
ReplyDelete"Entrance at the Gateway to Adventureland". Whenever I hear that something is the 'gateway' to something else, it always reminds me of those tacky, barely four-color [usually badly out-of-register] images imprinted on the backs of Spreckels Sugar packets - and the one highlighting one of Fresno's best features: Fresno - Gateway to Yosemite.
Thanks to 1937Fan, and you.
MAJOR: not to burst the mood , but those “ hand carved wooden shields” are actually Fiberglas - the old school kind with the thick dipped cloth on the backsides. Two different master tiki “SURFBOARDS” were sculpted in clay. Each featured a different top end than the bottom , so when alternately inverted it appears there are 4 different designs. What will those WED imagineers think of next? Singing bears?!!?
ReplyDeleteAlong the railing sections of the same two shields are used to decorate the rest of the building and again are used as the sign shields in the Enchanted Tiki Garden. By removing various sections of the full-size shield , each Tiki god gets its OWN distinctive sign board. Duplicate moulds from the masters are sent to other parks like Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland for use there. The shields show up at all the Tiki Rooms, and have appeared in the Jungle Cruise, Adventureland entry bridges , The Tahitian Terrace , The Polynesian Village and evening inside Great Moments In The Movies!
Today a architectural casting resin based FRP replaces the old cloth backed fiberglass technique and can be made hollow ( for wall and building attachment ) or solid ( for durable ground placement or when near guests)
When I hear "gateway" I think of "gateway drugs," like cigarettes. ;-)
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to see that the Tiki Room exit originally had a "turn" and then the stairs, and even a railing at ground level. Today, there isn't a turn before the stairs. The stairs just dump you right down into the walkway.
Awww, there is something about that lady in the first pic. She is reminding me of my mom. I guess it's mostly the hair and the cat eye glasses....and the skin tone.
What, Major - no love for Arthur Lyman or George Bruns?
ReplyDeleteDigging the guy (or gal) in all red exiting the frame at the extreme left of the iasw photo. Also love the view of the facade extension on the other side of the parade gate.
The word "gateway" always makes me think of an opening that can be closed by a gate.
Thanks again, 1937Fan and Awesome Aunt!
Whenever I see the word "gateway" it reminds me of the Enchanted Tiki Room attraction poster with its "At the Gateway to Adventureland" at the bottom of the poster. I love the word "gateway". I love Arthur Lyman's music too!
ReplyDeleteThese are really nice pics, 1937Fan. I especially like the Rocket Jets pic. Thanks!
MIKE COZART, what really surprised me was to discover that those gnarly support posts at the Frontierland Shooting gallery were fiberglass as well. I assume they replaced the original wooden gnarly posts early on?
Mike, when we were kids, we were conscripted to help my Uncle with his Fiberlass sculptures. Laying on the strips of fiberglass and using a paintbrush to brush the polyester resin on. Smelly and itchy skin is what I remember most. We hated it but no choice. For Art's sake.
ReplyDeleteThe Rocket Jets pic does have a nice quality about it.
Major, after a trip to Maui, I went through a Tiki phase a while back. Even started carving some. Went to La Mariana Sailing Club (a famous Tiki bar) on Oahu and had a great time listening to Martin Denny tunes, setting the tiki mood. Trader Sam's not too bad either. I quit drinking a long time ago, but hey there's always Shirley Temples.
Thanks 1937 and Major. Always a treat.
Bamboo is, of course, actually a "grass," not a woody plant. This makes is a great renewable building material and also ties in well with the "gateway" jokes, if you see what I did there... ;-)
ReplyDelete"Gateway" also makes me think of America The Beautiful and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri. "Signifying that this was once the jumping off place for the pioneers."
ReplyDeleteI forgot to thank 1937Fan and Major, for these great pics!
@TokyoMagic! - Oh my gosh that is what I noticed too. The Tiki Room exit was never like that... not for as long as I can remember (let's see... born in '66, started remember things around age 4 or 5...maybe... so that places it around December of 1970 or '71). Also, I have the same memory of the word "Gateway."
ReplyDelete@MIKE COZART - Thank you again for the wonderful insight. As a Cast Member at the Tiki Room it took me a while to figure out that the shields were simply copies of two molds and then flipped.
@Chuck - How did you see that guy in all red? That is too funny. I'm digging his scene too man!
Finally, what catches my attention in the Rocket Jet photo is the empty rocket near the bottom right and the man above it pointing toward the Character Shop.
Always your pal,
Amazon Belle
Whoops... I too forgot to say, Thank you 1937Fan for sharing your photos with us. Thanks Major for posting.
ReplyDeleteAlways your pal,
Well, I'm too late to bring up Arthur Lyman, but will do so anyway. I'm a little sad that Hilton tore down the Kaiser Dome in Waikiki before I could visit it, but Duke's is just down the beach.
ReplyDeleteI have a tiny collection of tiki mugs and hand carvings amassed from multiple trips to Hawaii, Trader Sam's, New Orleans, and Trader Vics in Emeryville. I love the whole tiki bar aesthetic, and of course, the Tiki Room. Now, after Mike Cozart's explanations, I want one of the masks too.
@Tokyo, I noticed the same thing about the steps. Maybe they took out the turn to make the stairs wider for faster exiting. The lady in the picture looks like one of my Mom's friends.
@Nanook, growing up in the Valley, everyone laughed at that pretentious Fresno slogan. Yosemite is the last thing anyone would associate with Fresno, but they are still reaching for it. The Fresno Air Terminal (FAT) is now officially the Fresno-Yosemite International Airport. There was a little one-horse town near my home called Armona. People would joke that Armona was the Gateway to Hall's Corner (another even smaller four-way stop with only a gas station).
Thank you to 1937Fan and her wonderful aunt for the pictures. Thanks Major, I think enough plywood cutouts could make up for losing Storybook Land.
JG
There’s an office building in our downtown that was dubbed “Gateway Plaza” about 20 years ago. It used to be a moving company’s warehouse. Literally nobody knows why they chose “Gateway” or where the name comes from.
ReplyDeleteNanook, I have at least one (maybe two?) Spreckels sugar packets from Disneyland, and I believe you’re right, the color is often out of register! And hey, “Gateway to Yosemite”… it could be worse.
ReplyDeleteMike Cozart, I didn’t really think they were hand-carved. Years ago, I assumed that the larger horizontal sign was fiberglass, and I could swear that you said it was actual carved wood? Maybe I’m remembering it wrong. Even if those shields are fiberglass, I’d still love to have one (or all four)! I do love that they went to the trouble of coming up with a system so that all of the tiki gods got their own shield. That’s mighty neighborly of them! Thank you for all the great data.
TokyoMagic!, I beg you to just say no! I don’t remember the Tiki Room exit at all, except that I am reasonably sure that there were no stairs. It makes sense that they would do away with something that can’t be navigated via wheelchair. Aw, I wish that photo was of your mom!
Chuck, NO! Those guys still owe me money! Sure that guy in all-red looks groovy, but I prefer lime green myself. “Gateway” makes me think of computers.
K. Martinez, as a poster fan, I think that “gateway” reminds me of the Tiki Room poster too. I’ve always regretted that I never managed to acquire one of the pre-1967 Tiki posters.
DrGoat, what kind of sculptures are we talking about? Sounds like your uncle was quite the artist, and smart too, getting kids to do the smelly, messy part. I could definitely see the appeal of collecting tiki stuff, and having the ultimate tiki bar/man cave. Did you carve tikis? I’d like to try my hand at that. And probably 20 years ago I bought a Lex Baxter collection on CD, that really sent me into a tiki music vortex! I haven’t had a Shirley Temple since I was a kid, but I liked them a lot! Gotta buy me some grenadine, 7-up, and maraschino cherries.
stu29573, I see what you did there! Plus I have learned all about bamboo. Thank you.
TokyoMagic!, whenever I heard that line about “the jumping off place for the pioneers”, I imagined people jumping off of the Gateway Arch. Wearing old western clothes.
Matthew, who knew that the word “gateway” would be so evocative?!? Not me! Maybe tomorrow the word “asphalt” will do the same for everyone.
Matthew, 1937Fan thanks you and I thank you.
JG, I did a post showing the Kaiser Dome years ago, and mentioned the Arthur Lyman connection. Tiki Mugs are great, but I feel like if I buy one, I’m going to buy a bunch, so I shouldn’t start. An ex-girlfriend (but still friend) has a display of tiki mugs, several that were given to her by me. In fact, one whole wall is sort of tiki themed, it has grass-cloth applied to it, pictures with “bamboo” frames, a few modern-day tiki masks, and so on.
Melissa, was the building named after Sir Albert Gateway?
Because you got everybody wondering, Major: https://gorillasdontblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/hilton-hawaiian-dome.html
ReplyDeleteMajor, the sculptures or forms were usually part of the facade of local Tucson buildings. The U of A has a bunch, one still part of the Pharmacy Bldg. Linear stuff, nice forms. The fiberglass had several coats of a concrete like stuff, similar to stucco, but much more sturdy and permanent (so to speak).
ReplyDeleteI did carve a few Tikis, about 4 ft. tall etc. Really got into it for a while but it's been many years since I did any.
JG, You are right sir. One or two really nice ones are sufficient. I started a collection about the same time I started carving, and now it sits in a cabinet. I check them out occasionally and reminisce. My favorite is one I got at the re-lighting of the torches at Kon Tiki, a popular Tiki bar in Tucson. it's been there since the late 50s I think.
@Dr Goat. I was fortunate to find a nice handcarved desktop sized tiki head which I bought from the artist. He even signed it for me. The mugs and heads make a nice desktop display since I use a lot of pens and markers for work, they are useful too. If I buy any more, I won't have room for drawings.
ReplyDeleteI've heard of the Kon-Tiki, but never visited. Forbidden Island in Alameda is pretty cool, and of course Trader Vics. I want to visit Smugglers Cove in SF, but probably never will now. The Tonga Room is the granddaddy and a fun spot, but they didn't have a souvenir mug.
Chuck, thanks for that link, I remember that post. I've stayed in the hotel that replaced the dome, almost as good. I did see the dome from a distance in 1972, barely remember that.
JG
Hmmm, wondering if an upside-down Tiki shield is back luck.
ReplyDeleteSomeone must have told that elephant a funny joke.
I thought the best part of Rocket Jets was maneuvering the rocket downward when the ride was at full speed - felt like it you could be thrown out.
Missed Tiki haunt: Don the Beachcomber in San Jose, CA. It was shaped like a giant gourd, had a rainforest inside, and was just down the street from Futurama Bowl.
Chuck, thank you! I was in a hurry (about to run out the door), otherwise I would have provided a link myself!
ReplyDeleteDrGoat, very interesting, I have always liked those sculptural, textural surfaces on buildings. Mid-century! Wow, when you said you did some carving, I did not imagine it was anything as large as four feet tall. Have any of your carvings survived? My sister has a friend who collects all things tiki, he is obsessed. She says that sometimes it’s all he talks about!!
JG, my grandmother brought me a small tiki when she went to Hawaii back around 1970. She found it in a cave, it was given to her by Vincent Price! It is supposedly carved from black lava rock, but I’m not so sure, it might just be cast from a rock-like material. I still have it and like it though. If I was more of a drinker, I would probably really enjoy going to tiki bars, I like the vibe at those, certainly more than “normal” bars.
Omnispace, if you turn a shield upside-down, all the luck runs out, everybody knows that! I loved the Rocket Jets when they were up so high, it really felt thrilling. The Astro-orbiter is fun, but the thrills are about 20% of the old ride. Wow, a restaurant shaped like a giant gourd?
MAJOR: the tiki shields are Fiberglas ( now resign)
ReplyDeleteThe tiki SIGNS are wood : Cut and lightly sandblasted western cedar.
Also , are you positive that Tiki Room image is 1970?
Major, I've got one that is still around in the backyard. He really needs a light sanding and a new coat of marine varnish. I'll send you a pic.
ReplyDeleteMajor, when DrGoat sends you his picture, please add it to today's post. We'd love to see it!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Major and 1937Fan, for today's fun pictures!
Mike Cozart, I did not scan the actual slides and have not seen if they have a date stamp on them. I forget how the date of 1970 was determined! If I recall correctly it was part of a batch of 126 format slides (the smaller square format), some that had date stamps and some that did not, so it is possible that the Tiki Room slide is from some other time.
ReplyDeleteDrGoat, sure, I'd love to see a photo of your tiki!
Lou and Sue, I might not be home until late tonight, so if I get DrGoat's tiki photo, I may share it as part of tomorrow's post.
Major, my parents brought a tiki back from Hawaii in 1970 similar to the one your grandmother brought you. It had tiny shells for eyes and used to scare me whwn I was little. Vincent Price must have had a shop.
ReplyDelete