Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Photos From Disneyland's 40th

Here's a group of photos from the celebration for Disneyland's 40th birthday (in 1995), courtesy of the Dream Team - Irene, Bruce, and James.

Displays like the one in this first image were made for each land, and they included concept artwork and early photos to celebrate the history of a specific corner of the park. In this case, Fantasyland is the subject; it kind of reminds me of the kind of collage I might have made in school.



Here's the Frontierland collage, including items such as a Tom Sawyer Island map, a Golden Horseshoe Revue postcard, and a photo from the opening day Press Preview. The artwork in the lower right looks like it could be from the Western River Expedition - only that makes no sense, since that was slated for WDW.


The Tomorrowland display shows the mermaids from the Submarine Voyage, a 45 rpm record, "Rocket to the Moon", and photos from the Monsanto "Hall of Chemistry", the Kaiser "Hall of Aluminum Fame", and the "Dairy Bar". Etcetera!


Some sort of song and dance extravaganza was performed at the Tomorrowland Terrace stage; the "Fab Five" made an appearance, thrilling the crowd! Notice the Peoplemover, barely visible to the extreme right.


Does anybody remember this show?


Here's a neat shot of Mickey and Minnie in a very cool vintage convertible of some kind. Does anybody recognize the make and model? Or is it some kind of "kit car"? The red and yellow is appropriately cartoony.


And last, but certainly not least, lucky guests manage to get Fess Parker's autograph (he's signing paper party hats)! I assume Mr. Parker was involved in some of the ceremonies going on that day.


MANY thanks to the Dream Team! Today's post marks exactly 250 images that we have enjoyed from them, and we're not done yet!

31 comments:

Nanook said...

Major-
Kind of cheesy thematic land displays, and yet still quite fun.

I'm gonna say that's some sort of 'Gurrmobile'; but maybe Mike can chime-in.

Thanks to the Dream Team for sharing.

MIKE COZART said...

That show going on at the Tomorrowland Terrace Bandstand has a group of actors pretending to be cast members celebrating the parks 40th, and one was a Disneyland expert who sang a song featuring every Disneyland attraction from 1955 all the way to Indiana Jones. “Miracles from molecules”from Adventure Thru Inner Space and a quick rendition “Lets get together “ from the original Parent Trap were also sung as well as the “40 Years of Adventure ..... 40 years of fun” theme song.

Those historical display kiosks were created by Kevin Kidney ..... they were very difficult to take photos of the inter displays because you always got a glare from the surrounding Disneyland landscape behind you.

The emptied display kiosks were some of the first things Disneyland auctioned off thru DISNEY AUCTIONIERS - Disney’s joint venture with EBAY.

MIKE COZART said...

NANOOK : that parade car was a real car that was purchased for use at Walt Disney World as Mickey’s car at Mickey’s Starland in 1988 - before a Disney made cartoon looking car could be made. I don’t recall it’s manufacture but I recall it was British post war ( like late 40’s) and I think it may have been made by a motorcycle company...( Triumph????) When it came to Disneyland I am not sure .... but they used the car during those short “non-parades” called Character Cavalcades . I don’t know if Disney has it anymore.

TokyoMagic! said...

I'm glad that James/Bruce took pics of all of these kiosks. I always intended to, but as Mike said, they were difficult to photograph. I think I only got one pic of the Tomorrowland one. I did videotape the photos in each kiosk, but I don't think I have uploaded that video to YouTube yet. The kiosks were two-sided and I remember that the other side of the Tomorrowland one had several pics of scenes from the Carousel of Progress.

That show was called, "Magic Kingdom Kabaret." I videotaped it back in 1995, and I posted the video about 5 years ago. I wish the video was of better quality, but the audio should be decent enough:

https://meettheworldinprogressland.blogspot.com/2015/11/disneylands-40th-anniversary-magic.html



TokyoMagic! said...

I forgot to thank Irene and her Dream Team....and the Major, too!

Chuck said...

I was at the Park probably 30 times that year (including on the actual birthday) and have zero recollection of these kiosks. Funny what you remember.

I do remember that show, though. And I remember not liking it, feeling like it had a faintly disdainful tone towards the Disneyland of the past (I remember a specific callout about the Bathroom of Tomorrow and what came across as a mocking rendition of "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" that really irritated me). I don't think we sat through an entire performance. It was pretty neat to see the stage in use, though - a first for me. I'll have to watch TM!'s copy later to see if it's really as bad as I remember; maybe I caught an "off" performance or maybe I was feeling "off" myself.

So cool to see Fess Parker. I have a bottle of Fess Parker Winery chardonnnay that we bought at the Davy Crockett Tavern at WDW's Fort Wilderness two days before the MK's 25th birthday in 1996. I'm sure the wine has faded by now, but that's not why we bought and kept the bottle.

Thanks again, Dream Team!

Gojira said...

My parents and I visited Disneyland about this same time in 1995. I still have my 40th anniversary mug and pen! Mickey's car is a 1938 or 1939 American Bantam roadster. Great pics!

TokyoMagic! said...

Chuck, after posting the link to that video, I went ahead and watched the show again. Between the overexposed footage, and the show itself, I was mildly annoyed. I thought I remembered the show being better. It's a LOT of jumping up and down, and kicking up of heels. I really would have rather seen the Kids of the Kingdom. Or Kurt Russell and Sound Castle. Or E.J. Peaker.

Anyway, I was waiting for you to comment (Chuck), because I was pretty sure you would remember those hats, which Fess Parker is signing. They were only passed out on July 17, 1995 and seven years ago, you shared a pic of your wife wearing one. There is also a partial close-up shot of one in your pic of the Matterhorn:

https://gorillasdontblog.blogspot.com/2014/03/more-special-guest-photos_25.html

Stu29573 said...

The car is indeed a 1938 Bantam Coupe. In fact, the color (minus the yellow) was factory. Mike was correct in that American was a US company that produced licensed British Austins. Although the Bantam owes much to the Austin 7, it is its "own car." Performance was not impressive. The 4 cylinder engine spit out only 20hp, for a top speed of 50mph. The cost eventually drove them off the market.

Andrew said...

I knew when Major asked that TokyoMagic! would definitely remember the show!

In the bottom right corner of the Tomorrowland collage, what is that line of rectangular displays? I'm also drawing a blank as to where the picture right above it (with the Peoplemover) was taken. Thanks, Irene, Bruce, and James, for more fun pix.

MIKE COZART said...

Gojira: thank you for the info on the car .... I don’t know why I recall a story that it was from a motorcycle company that tried making cars for a while. A friend of mine from WDI told me that Bantam ( she didn’t know the make ) was part of a collection of vintage automobiles and trucks purchased for prop vehicles at the then under construction Disney MGM Studios and was plucked from the group , restored quickly and saw temporary use at Mickey’s Star Land .

MIKE COZART said...

Ah .... ok so Bantam was a licensee of the British car company Austin!! That’s why the story of it having something to do with a British company stuck in my mind!!!

Anonymous said...

Big thanks to Irene and the Dream Team, and Major P for assembling all these pictures, 250! That's a lot!

These were taken right between our early trips with our kids, 1995 was a busy year for us, for a lot of reasons, and no time for Disneyland.

I remember some of those odd graphics like that on the stage, that "look" hung over until the ill-fated and much abused 1998 Tomorrowland remake. It's a sin and shame to see Rollie Crump's stage design mangled with that pasted-on junk.

I don't recall ever seeing the window displays, these look interesting, in good taste, and it's great to have the record of them. I wish I could see the contents up close. Some appear to be free-standing kiosks, while the Tomorrowland version looks like a shop window display. Might this have been in the Bell System shop area that is Store Command today?

Also great to see the identification on Mickey's little car. Perfect size for a mouse. Imagine a production vehicle with a top speed of 50 mph? OF course, on the roads of the time, that was probably dangerously fast. Now we go that fast in the parking lot. I really like the "realistically" colored Main Street facades in that picture, another reminder of how weird today's Park has become.

JG

Major Pepperidge said...

Nanook, that car has such a streamlined, stylized look - I’d love it if it turns out to be a Gurrmobile, though I don’t know if Bob Gurr was still doing things for Disney at that point.

Mike Cozart, I like the idea of a song featuring every Disneyland attraction up to that point. I’m not sure why “Let’s Get Together” was added to the mix (hey, it’s a fine song and all, but… why?). Interesting that the kiosk displays were designed by Kevin Kidney; I remember some of the pieces (like the kid flying the rocket) showed up in an early Van Eaton auction.

Mike Cozart, wow, a real car, not a kit car? Did they eventually actually make a more cartoony car for parades and other appearances? Or did they decide that this one fit the bill? I’d love to know what happened to it.

TokyoMagic!, I wondered if Bruce/James took photos of all of the kiosks (both sides), and the three that I shared here were the only ones left? I know that Irene pulled some photos for herself, and I don’t blame her! “Magic Kingdom Kabaret”… no wonder people are confused by the term “Magic Kingdom”. Is it Disneyland or is it WDW? “It’s whatever we say it is, now zip it!”. Oh man, I’m definitely going to watch that video! (OK, I watched some of it, but have to wait until later to watch the whole 29 minute show - the video quality is not bad! Whenever I watch things like this I realize how much I do not have the “actor bug” - NO desire to get up in front of a crowd and strut my stuff!).

TokyoMagic!, hopefully Irene will check in today!

Chuck, 30 times! That is impressive. I think I’ve mentioned that I once went to the park 3 times in one year, and that seemed like a lot. I feel like the folks in charge couldn’t bring themselves to actually LOVE all of those old Disneyland attractions and songs; maybe it was the Dreamworks influence, where everything had to be snarky? Except that “Shrek” wouldn’t come out for another six years! I’m OK with poking some gentle fun, but sometimes you can tell that the mockery is more along the lines of, “Gee, wasn’t this stupid? Can you believe people actually liked this stuff?”. If you’ve kept your Fess Parker chardonnay in your extensive underground wine cellar, it might have matured and mellowed!

Major Pepperidge said...

Gojira, I love that you still have your 40th mug and pen! And thank you for the ID on the car, I have never heard of “American Bantam”. It reminds me of when I went to a fellow’s house, and he had an old car built by “Playboy”. Not the men’s magazine, an actual car manufacturer. I think it had surplus WWII acrylic (or whatever it was) for windows.

TokyoMagic!, ha ha, “…It’s a LOT of jumping up and down, and kicking up of heels”. That would probably describe most Disney live stage shows! Wouldn’t it have been a trip if Kurt Russel (carried by E.J. Peaker) made an appearance? He’s probably sick of talking about his time at Disney, though I admit that I love those old Dexter Riley movies. You have an amazing memory, cool that Chuck has a photo of his wife wearing one of those paper hats.

Stu25973, man, I am impressed. Did you just know what that car was off the top of your head? The car sure looks cute, but 20Hp?? Volkswagen buses would roar past one of them!

Andrew, I believe that those displays were from the old Monsanto Hall of Chemistry. I might even have a rare photo of them, not yet posted. They also resemble some displays that were at the end of “Adventure Thru Inner Space”, but I’m pretty sure these were from the Hall of Chemistry.

Mike Cozart, you were definitely on the right track! You said that Disney purchased a collection of trucks and vehicles, I wonder who they purchased them from?

Mike Cozart, it was in your brain the whole time!

JG, 250 pictures is a lot, and I didn’t scan many of the photos that were over-or-under exposed, or maybe were just photos of the castle. There are three BIG binders full of photo prints! It was an amazingly generous gift from Irene. I wish I had a vivid memory of when I went to the park, or even which years I went, but for some reason I don’t. I think I went during the 40th anniversary celebration, though. I can’t really see enough of the Tomorrowland kiosk to be able to tell where it was, or if it was even a freestanding thing or not. Now with some of our Smart Cars, it’s not inconceivable that somebody might want a car strictly for short-distance, city driving. If you want to go on a long trip, take the Bentley!

Irene said...

Here I am! - checking in, haha. I started looking at this post and reading the comments when it was time to eat breakfast. Now I'm back.

I would bet the farm that Bruce was there that day because he always tried to go to Disneyland on D'land's Birthday. Why? Because the next day actually was his Birthday!!! And of course we (our family) went to Disneyland on July 18, 1955 the day it opened to the public (and which we always regarded as its "real" Birthday)to celebrate Bruce's 13th.

I want that little car! It's so cute. Wonder who has it now.

I love that some of you were also there and have shared memories and photos and video's. I am looking forward to watching that video - the show sounds awful therefore I must watch it! And Chuck, you really looked great in your uniform in front of the castle. In reading those comments I loved the story about helping the CM carry the ice cream.

Thanks everyone for all the comments. Yes, 3 large albums full of photos that I had no idea what to do with. I was so overwhelmed at that time and I am so glad they have given people joy and great conversion and memories. Yes, I pulled the photos that had Bruce in them, put them somewhere and now I can't find them!!! Yikes. Good thing I gave the others to the Major.

JG said...

Tokyo, thanks for posting the link to the earlier post with Chuck's pictures. I don't know how I missed that one, but I have read and enjoyed it now.

Irene, thanks again for sharing your precious family pictures. I hope you enjoy the comments today.

JG

Major Pepperidge said...

Irene, there you are! How was your trip to Knott’s? I remember that you said that Bruce nearly shared his birthday with Disneyland; I’m sure I would have made a trip to the park an annual tradition for that occasion. That live show that TokyoMagic! captured on video might be less than great, but it can’t be as bad as ALL of the Disney TV programs about the parks, most starring “C-list” celebrities, contrived plots, and singing and dancing, when all I wanted to see was the parks. It would have been cheaper to make and more watchable. Thank you again for the photos!

JG, hey, it’s easy to miss a post now and then. I get it!

TokyoMagic! said...

Because JG was asking about the location of the Tomorrowland kiosk, I got out my pics from that year and scanned them. I really liked the TL kiosk, because I took three pics of it, but none of the other kiosks. I remember there was also a Main Street kiosk, but I don't remember one for Adventureland, New Orleans Square, or Critter Country.

I also found the pics that I took of that little car. They would have Mickey and Minnie drive that car down the street a little bit before the start of The Lion King Celebration (parade), just to keep people from getting too bored while waiting for the parade to begin.

Here are those pics....sorry, I really should have posted them earlier in the day. Oh, and notice how sometime between July and September, they stuck some fake vines on the poles around the Tomorrowland kiosk:

https://meettheworldinprogressland.blogspot.com/2009/12/snowflakes-in-emporium-1995.html





Andrew said...

Hey, I'm a fan of Bantam, from local Butler, PA... where I got my first Covid shot last week. They were the makers of the first Jeep.

Chuck said...

TM!, I watched as much of the video as I could stand. "Anybody remember the Carousel of Progress?" "NOOOO!!!" Even worse than I remembered.

I did skip to the end and got the gist of the Disneyland attraction list sung to "He is the Very Model of a Modern Major General." Clever idea, but I think it lost something in the translation. It was probably more interesting in the original Klingon.

And I had meant to comment about the party hat earlier. We still have one or two in a box, although they aren't quite conical after six subsequent moves.

And those vines aren't fake - they're kudzu planted just that morning.

When we stayed at Fort Wilderness for the MK's 25th, we woke up after the first night to find kudzu vines snaking across the back of the campsite towards the tent that hadn't been there the night before. I swear we could hear it growing the second night.

Thanks, Irene! I still think that mustache looks pretty silly, but the day is a great memory. I'm so glad Bruce and James had a chance to share it, too.

My doll collector roommate reminded me of the collectors cards that they gave out for 40 days that year, a different one for each year the Park had been open. We tried to get the years we were born as well as the years of our visits, but since I was out of the country for part of the giveaway period, I had my wife go and pick up cards for us. She remembers very clearly driving an hour each way from San Bernardino and braving the crowds to pick up just one card. And then there was the day she miscalculated which year was being given out and had to go back the next day. And we're still married.

MIKE COZART said...

TOKYOMAGIC: only the 1955 “lands” featured a historical display kiosk. There was an adventureland one - it’s in the shape of the old Adventureland Cantina and features thatched roofing. I have pictures of them but will not be able to access them any time soon.

Anonymous said...

Chuck, always great stories.

Tokyo, thanks for the link to the Tomorrowland kiosk, very cool. The longer view gives the perspective. The design is pretty nice and doesn't jar me the way the plant-on decorations on the stage do.

I sure like the TWA RTTM model, now that I can see the whole thing, I realize there is a bit of it visible in today's post.

JG

MIKE COZART said...

Those Disneyland trading cards by skybox created quite a collectors fever at the time. Some were quite valuable once. There were BIG problems with them .... for one there was several mistakes by marketing as to when the cards were to be issued - a mix up for the press kick off ( those attendees received a complete boxed set of cards ) and the individual kick off date. Then there was the severe rains that took place during many of the card issues days .... so bad that it was dangerous to get to Disneyland . There was a complete misprint of ms y of the cards limited edition number sequencing .....but Disneyland ended up keeping them and used for other press gifts like the Indiana Jones opening press gift box .... there was almost twice as many boxed card sets produced .... with different number sequencing. Disneyland sold a collectors album so guests could place their card collection in them and they went quietly on the shelves of the Premiere Shop and Star Trader - marked down to start with. I remember a school teacher buying ALL of the card binders to be used by her students . Lots of guests were really pissed regarding the card issue .... I remember hearing about hundreds of people showing up thinking it was the haunted mansion card issue day - but they were a day early!!

Chuck said...

Mike, now that you mention it, I seem to remember the Haunted Mansion issue you describe. I also vaguely recall at least one of our cards having an error on it, although I can't remember the error off the top of my head and I think those are in a storage unit.

Chuck said...

Found a few cards and a redemption slip for a card in a scrapbook.

The giveaway was from 21 Jan - 1 Mar 1995. You had to present the dated redemption slip along with a valid Disneyland passport on the printed date at one of the following locations: Crocodile Mercantile (Critter Country), Perfume Shop (New Orleans)(the card doesn't say "Square"), Davy Crockett (Pioneerr Mercantile, I assume, although that isn't specified)(Frontierland), South Seas Traders (Adventureland), Tinker Bell Toy Shop (spelled exactly as I typed), and Premiere Shop (Tomorrowland).

There are four cards in the book, two of 1970 (the miscalculated date), featuring Show Me America, a summer musical comedy performed at the Tomorrowland Stage; 1971, showcasing the 100 millionth guest; and 1986, highlighting Captain EO. The one card back I can see (one of the 1970 cards) tells me that it was card number 83716 of 90000.

"Lou and Sue" said...

Irene (Dream Team) - thank you for sharing these wonderful photos! I especially love Mickey and Minnie in their cute little car on Main Street!

Well, I sat through the entire Magic Kingdom Kabaret (it was either that or do housework). I'm glad I watched it but, if I was at Disneyland, I wouldn't want to sit for 30 minutes watching that show - when I could've been on Jungle Cruise or POTC or Haunted Mansion...

Thanks for all the added links, TM! Chuck, you and your roommate make a cute couple!

Thanks, Major!

Major Pepperidge said...

TokyoMagic!, thank you for the link, so cool that you took these photos! I would have had no clue as to where that Tomorrowland kiosk was. I do now wish I had photos of the other kiosks, but what can you do. I like how Mickey and Minnie in the Bantam was just sort of a little “pre-show”. Such big stars, reduced to supporting roles!

Andrew, glad to hear you got your first Covid shot! I get my second one next week.

Chuck, ha ha, it’s funny how stuff like that can make us react. I either cringe or have to look away. I remember one of the Disney animated TV shows from the early 2000’s had Ludwig Von Drake singing a song that listed tons of Disney characters, I thought it was very clever (not sure if it was based on a Gilbert and Sullivan tune!). When I mentioned it to one of the guys who worked on the show, he handed me a CD with the song, plus a demo! Never released to the public. What happened to that CD, anyway?? No idea. I of course have heard about the legendary kudzu, and have seen photos of barns and telephone poles completely swallowed up, like something out of a horror movie. I remember those collector cards, and think that at some point I bought a complete set on eBay. I wouldn’t have bought them if they were super expensive, so maybe this was quite a bit after the fact. Yet another thing that I can’t locate. Arg. Your doll collector friend sounds like a saint, only more fun!

Mike Cozart, thanks for that bit of info; I hope you will be able to find your photos someday!

JG, yes, TokyoMagic’s photo was very helpful. You can see the Rocket to the Moon in today’s post? What am I missing?

Mike Cozart, I do seem to recall that there was quite a stir over people wanting that whole set of cards. I think I bought mine from a sports card dealer online. The marketing mixups don’t surprise me somehow, though I do feel terrible for the people who made a special trip to the park just to get the card they wanted (needed), like Chuck’s wife. Are there misprints out in the world, and do they have any demand by collectors? I usually don’t buy things that are new collectibles, but made an exception this time. I have some other set of cards too, but forget what they were for. Maybe the 45th anniversary (I don’t think they were for the 50th). I’d be curious to know about the misprints and alternate number sequencing. It’s no surprise that the Haunted Mansion card was especially desirable, I hope all those people eventually got the one they needed.

Chuck, now I need to know about the errors! I love that sort of thing. Like that funny stamp I have with the upside-down airplane.

Chuck, good grief, I had no idea that the process of getting each card was so complicated. Maybe overly so? And I have been told that “Tinker Bell” (two words) is correct, by people who seem very angry at my misspelling. Oh man, thank you for the info about the “Show Me America” card! Heaven help me, I may have to look on eBay for more error cards.

Lou and Sue, ha ha, I think any bad stage show is made more watchable when you can do other things at the same time. Like do housework! I have only taken the time to sit through various live shows at Disneyland when I was with somebody else who wanted to see them. And believe me, I sighed heavily and looked at my watch and made all sorts of annoying noises!

Chuck said...

Major, Tinker Bell is right, but Shoppe is spelled wrong. I think I'll blame Paul Pressler for that error as per convention for everything that went wrong during his tenure.

Irene said...

FYI Major - Knott's was great as always. I have one more trip planned for this final festival and that's the very last day, Sunday May 2. The next time I go to Knott's it will be as a passholder for a regular day. I will probably do one of the days they are calling passholder previews. I want to go on the newest ride that is based on Bear-y Tales.

Chuck, regarding that mustache. When you first mentioned it, I had to go back and look because I was like "he had a mustache?" And your wife is a saint!

Tokyo - I liked the photos of the kiosks - puts things in perspective. I also sat through the video of the show. Sigh. I finally had to do some fast forwarding in parts. That is not a show I would go back to see over and over!

Major Pepperidge said...

Chuck, oh I didn't even think about "Shoppe". I feel comfortable blaming Paul Pressler for everything, he was a disaster. It's still amazing to me that he was such a big hero just because he was willing to make drastic (and unwise) cuts.

Irene, I'm glad you had fun and that you are going back soon! I think I heard that there was going to be some kind of Bear-y Tales ride, but I don't really know anything about it. Time for some Goolin'!