A Knott's Selection From June, 1970
Here is a selection of slide scans from Knott's Berry Farm, circa 1970. Nothing amazing, but they show some of the diverse scenery guests could expect during their visit to Ghost Town - and beyond!
There's some lovely bougainvillea (a common sight in SoCal), threatening to swallow whatever that brick structure is. I honestly have no idea - can anybody help?
It's not every day we get to hear a genuine steam calliope; I wonder how that young lady learned to play such an odd instrument? Maybe it's essentially the same as playing an electric organ. Notice the canvas cover, clearly used to cover the thing at night (to keep out possums).
Here's a very familiar scene, surprisingly popular with photographers. Dr. Faust doesn't want us to have any plaque buildup or cavities. He cares. I like the sign for "Smithfield Virginia Ham", and that red/amber lantern, and the old clock that looks like a giant pocket watch. In the distance - the Pitchur Gallery!
The beautiful exact replica of Philadelphia's Independence Hall was dedicated on July 4, 1966, so it was only four years old at this point. Go see the replica of the Liberty Bell! Listen to the founding fathers discussing the Declaration of Independence! See some presidential artifacts! The last time I went there, I was the only person inside, other than a lady in a bonnet who was working on her knitting in the gift shop. It was kind of neat, as if the building was full of ghosts (not the scary kind).
The wonderful Calico Log Ride was less than a year old when this photo was taken, and after a thorough refurbishment in 2019, it's in wonderful condition. You owe it to yourself to experience this attraction!
There are more 1970 Knott's Berry Farm images to come.
34 comments:
Yay, more 1970s Knott's photos! That brick structure is a freestanding row of arches along Market Street. It's located just across the street (and just out of view) from the General Store and all of those signs in the third photo. There are restrooms located on the other side of the brick arches.
My favorite souvenirs (which I did not purchase) from Knott's Independence Hall, are the Pez dispensers of all the U.S. Presidents!
I forgot to mention that the bougainvillea is still growing on the arch, today. Also, the pocket watch sign is still there, but over the years, the other signs have been removed. Here is a "current" view, showing the subjects of pic one and three.
https://www.google.com/maps/@33.8439383,-117.9999573,2a,60y,85.88h,97.76t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1soJIP1RyA7TsddqDZ10OGpg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
- Tokyo Menace!
Major, a calliope plays essentially like a regular pipe organ except that it uses pressurized steam (as you noted) instead of pressurized wind. The pipes need to be made of brass to withstand corrosion from the hot, moist steam. Also, the steam pressure is generally higher than the pressurized wind in a regular organ so the pipes play much louder.
Tokyo Menace!, So you're Godzilla now? ;-)
Thanks for the Knott's pics, Major.
- Jaundiced Bodies
JB, ha, ha! Yeah, I guess he was a menace to Tokyo, wasn't he! I especially like your "Halloween name" for today!
Today’s pictures contain 150% of the daily recommended dosage of Charming Atmosphere.
As I think I have said before, my only real memories of Knott's are Independence Hall and seeing the Brady Kids. There's probably a political joke in there somewhere, but its too early to dig for it.
I have ridden the Calico Log Ride, but I really have much sharper memories of riding El Aserradero at Six Flags Over Texas. It, of course, was the first modern log flume ride. Fun Fact: You can actually catch up to the log in front of you if you lean into the turns. The whole "log" has to do it at once, and it tilts the vehicle so that the more slippery bits hit the turn wall. Kids! How do they come up with this stuff?
By the way, when Splash mountain opened, they made a huge deal about how it was the steepest, tallest log flume on the planet. And it was...sort of. the angle is 45%, exactly the same as El Aserradero, but the height is a whopping eight feet higher. Gotta love hype!
By the way, if you really look at the on ride photos, you can tell that they're tilted way more than the actual slope of the drop. It makes them look far more dramatic!
--SYSTEM RESET
Oddly, I had a dream last night about my grandmother’s ornately carved pump organ. Which is doubly odd because she actually didn’t have an ornately carved pump organ (although my step grandmother on the other side of the family had an electric one).
I have always liked that ruined (and random) set of arches because shut up, I just do.
Thanks a bunch, Major! Great start to a day that’s otherwise gray and ordinary, and Mary is nowhere in sight.
Chuck, you flashed me back to a memory of my Grandma's electric organ. I couldn't have been more than five ears old, and one of my older cousins had me convinced that one of the stops on the organ was the "Frankenstein Singing" stop, and that if you tuned it on, it would make the organ sound like Frankenstein singing.
(Of course, at that age I also believed that the tap room was where my father went to go tap dancing...)
Wow, I love this post.
The tooth powder sign guy looks like an illustration from Edward Lear’s Book of Nonsense.
I rode the flume with my Dad that first summer, it was a great ride. I’ll have to go back and try it again.
Thanks Major for such clear, well-composed pics.
JG
Here’s a link to the Book of Nonsense.
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/13646
The ad resembles the Old Man of the South, who had an immoderate mouth… but not really very closely.
I loved that book as a kid, I would check it out of the school library over and over.
Now I have a copy on my tablet. Sometimes the future isn’t awful.
JG
Ahhh...Knotts...the dusty farm. That's why it probably didn't interest me too much 40+ years ago...it seems much more interesting to me today. I remember seeing press/marketing photos of John Wayne riding the log ride with one of his many many many offspring. He...even after his death...had a Disneyland Gold Pass. I spoke to many "Patrick Waynes" in my day...I'm not sure who was the real one, but their Gold Pass was used quite a bit. I even questioned it once and was told to not concern myself with things that did not concern me. I didn't know JW and Mr. Disney were buddies...but perhaps they were. The Wayne/LaCava's et.al. were very much a force in the OC, with the compound in Newport Beach. I wish bougenvilla (sp) would grow in the Northeast...it is so pretty when in bloom. The first thing I want to do when I get to a theme park is buy a Smithfield Ham! Sounds like it would be a bit cumbersome carrying around all day...but who doesn't love a great ham! Those are great hanging signs and look very authentic. Perhaps they are. I thought that that hanging glass fixture meant "pharmacy" in the days of yore...like I said at the top...dusty dusty...and that's how the old West was won.
Chuck, one thing that always surprises me is how old organs and pianos are practically given away (some, actually given away). It seems that home electronic keyboards have replaced all of the classic instruments. Who wants am organ or piano that can only make one sound, when you can have a keyboard that makes literally hundreds of different sounds?
That being said, I like that charm of the old instruments. And they make pretty darn nice pieces of furniture! (Take THAT plastic Yamaha keys!)
A full blown calliope might be a bit much for the living room, however...
Growing up in North Hollywood, my Gran had a garden in the backyard . It included a trellis with Bougainvillea and two, I kid you not, plastic flamingos. I also rode the flume when it first opened on a school event of some sort. I was very impressed. I woke up to an inch of snow this morning so these terrific pics are a welcome distraction. Thanks to Major and all the great GDB comments. Now, where did I put that darn snow shovel?
Great KBF pics today - thanks, Major!
Happy Used-To-Be Columbus Day!
- L&S (Lost & Scared)
TokyoMagic!, I’m glad you like the stuff from the ‘70s. The images aren’t quite as cute as those from the 1950s, but hey, now the ‘70s was 50 years ago, so… yeah. Thanks for the ID on those brick arches. Wow, I didn’t know that Pez did a set with all of the U.S. Presidents!
TokyoMagic!, very neat, so nice that there is still some of that old stuff at Knott’s, it’s very comforting somehow.
JB, I wasn’t sure if a calliope had some weird foot pedals or something else to help deal with the steam. Instead of learning to shred on the electric guitar, I wish I’d learned the calliope. Just to be popular with the chicks!
TokyoMagic!, I thought that Godzilla was now a friend and protector of people, especially children.
Melissa, I hope you don’t OD!
Stu29573, ah, the Brady Kids. Most talented kids ever? Their sound was a little too intense for me, but I can now appreciate them as innovators. I know that Six Flags Over Texas had the first log flume ride, but the one at Knott’s is so beautifully themed. That IS fun that you can make your log speed up by leaning! You are right about the hype machine, and hey, eight feet is still higher, so it wasn’t a lie. I guess one would hope for something a bit more significant though, like 20 feet higher. Or 200 feet!
Chuck, maybe your dream was from a past life? When you worked in a cathedral or somethin’. Yeah that’s it. One of my great aunts had an electric organ in her basement, and we would all gather down there to listen while she entertained us. Her husband could play pretty much ANY instrument, it was amazing. Those farm folk were a lot of fun. Glad you liked these!
Melissa, “Frankenstein Singing”?? I don’t know what that would sound like, but I love that it exists. I would play EVERYTHING with that stop on. And there’s no rule that says that one can’t tap dance in a tap room.
JG, I remember the old posters for “Sweeney Todd” (on Broadway) had that that same ferocious little guy as the one on that sign at Knott’s. I’ve only read “The Owl and the Pussycat”, so I’m not well versed (no pun intended) in Edward Lear. You should definitely ride the Log Ride, it is worth it.
JG, you’re right, the Old Man of the South does resemble the man on the sign. Thanks for that link!
Bu, I’m surprised that you didn’t care for Knott’s back in the day, although my friend Mr. X feels the same way. I loved it, and felt lucky that my siblings and I were able to go fairly regularly (because it was so much cheaper than Disneyland - and closer to us too). The next time I go to Disneyland and tell them that I am Patrick Wayne. I’ve never read anything about Walt and John Wayne speaking, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they did at some point. Smithfield Ham was the turkey leg of those days, you could gnaw on one for hours.
Stu29573, it’s true, I’ve seen people practically giving old pianos and organs away on Craig’s List. I’d guess that a lot of people don’t want a large object like that in their living rooms. We had an upright piano when I was a kid (bought used at a farm auction) and I had to endure lessons for years. I didn’t have the knock, unfortunately. I’m OK with Yamaha’s plastic keys, no need to kill elephants just for some piano keys!
Jonathan, I used to live at a place that had a bougainvillea vine growing out of control at the side of the house (I was renting a room when I was in school). I’d go out and cut it back, and even with gloves I’d wind up covered in cuts and scratches from the thorns. And my landlady was not very appreciative of my efforts! Wow, amazing to think that you are buried in snow!!
Lou and Sue, I’m OK with “Indigenous People’s Day”, personally. Aw, “Lost and Scared”, so sad.
Hey, it’s the Pitchur Gallery! Dr. Faust reminded me of Sweeney Todd and you confirmed it, Major. I love Lear, JG, and Edward Gorey too. Calliope music is always so cheerful; it reminds me of how Steve Martin said you can’t play a sad song on a banjo. Nice pics, thanks Major.
Sue, I observe Columbo Day. There’s always “just one more thing” to celebrate.
People don’t have the same expectation they used to, of living in the same home for decades and their children living there after them. A heavy upright piano or even a parlor organ is a bear to move, and ever since recorded music became ubiquitous a century ago fewer people need one to provide entertainment around the house. (I’ve moved with a piano many times, using the Lucy and Ethel Method of getting it stuck halfway up - or down - a narrow set of stairs.)
P.S. Now that I think about it, my cousin was probably making a Young Frankenstein reference I didn't get.
"My favorite souvenirs (which I did not purchase) from Knott's Independence Hall, are the Pez dispensers of all the U.S. Presidents!"
The Hall of Pezidents!
I recognized that free standing wall with bougainvillea all over it right away and thanks to ToykoMagic for identifying it and including a link to a great photo. I have a number of photos because when that bougainvillea blooms, it is stunning. Also wanted to point out that if you go to TM's photo and move it around, you will see an area behind the wall with wooden sticks blocking it. That is where Bob sits most days and carves wooden figures. He is the man responsible for bringing the missions back to life and it is so good to see him back since the restrictions were lifted. I talk to him every time I go.
Up until Covid hit, the organ was still being played. I am expecting it will be up and running again during Merry Farm when I am told the plays "A Christmas Carol" and "Marley's Ghost" will once again be performed! I can hardly wait. By the way "Marley's Ghost" is a new play, written in house, that follows up on what happened to Scrooge after the events we see in "A Christmas Carol". It took the place of "The Gift of the Magi" and I thought was very, very good.
It's sad that so many people do not visit Independence Hall. There are a lot of great things in there. If the show isn't running (and it probably isn't given the lack of people), just ask and someone will turn it on for you.
Most weekends right now Knott's has been very, very crowded due to the kid friendly event in the daytime called Spooky Farm. You will need a lot of patience waiting in line to get in, unless you go right at opening, and waiting in line to buy food. A lot of people are coming over to Knott's because it's just a good deal and many can't get reservations for Disneyland. I plan to go this Saturday or next Saturday or maybe both! Why not :)
Is KBF like KFC? Is KBF chicken better than KFC? I would like to have PJ Changs Dynasty Orange Pez Chicken flavor please. Perhaps we can travel back in time and have that at Chao's on Harbor Blvd. I lived very close to the Pez Museum in Burlingame CA. Closed now. I now am practically spitting distance to the Pez factory in Orange CT- however like the Empire State Building, I have never been. Pez has an interesting history since 1927. Tokyo Maniacal you can get those "Pezidents" on Ebay for about $500. I am in the wrong business. I should be peddling old Pez. And Major, yes...I thought it was odd that Patrick Wayne...who was an actor...and a kind of familiar voice...had so many alter egos. I think there were even female Patrick Waynes. Columbus Day, Indigenous People Day, National Sausage Pizza Day, Southern Heritage Food Day, and National Coming Out day. A diverse holiday to say the least. Why am I working today when I could be eating some Pez, Smithfield Ham, KFC, or KBF...pizza...or hushpuppies and collard greens while watching RuPauls Drag Race? Wasn't there a Peanuts TV special where they ate Jelly Beans and Popcorn for Thanksgiving? That is my type of Thanksgiving! I'm rambling.
Bu, this year Brach's cut out the middleman with their new *gulp* Turkey Dinner Flavored Candy Corn.
A review:
https://twitter.com/momofnorank/status/1446149270793555971
Major and everyone,
What can be better than classic Knott's? These are great, and I look forward to more. In some respects, I have a bigger soft spot for Knott's than Disney. It was more down home, slower paced and just begged to be explored. Maybe growing up with the westerns of the '50s just seemed to fit overall with Knott's better. It's been 12 or 15 years since I've visited, and I wonder if I would be depressed by how it has changed.
Looks like these pics are prompting happy memories from all of us here. Thanks Major.
W
Major and everyone, again,
Almost forgot. Independence Hall is a must see. We made a point of taking the kids over there to see it when they were old enought to understand and appreciate a representation of American history.
W
Melissa, "The Hall of Pezidents!" Ha, ha! I want to see that! At the end of the show, all of the presidents tilt their heads back, and shoot candy out into the audience.
Bu, did Patrick Wayne every bring those three orphaned bear cubs with him? "Hello, this is Patrick Wayne. I wanted to let you know that the bears and I will be coming to the park, this Saturday.
This post inspired me to finally look up how to pronounce "bougainvillea." Turns out my first guess was pretty close!
Melissa, to be safe, I pronounce it “pretty pink trailing flowers.” But I still spell it bougainvillea. Sort of like Tarzan learning to speak French after teaching himself to read from English books. But much less cool.
Kathy!, ha ha, I am glad I’m not the only person who remembers the old Sweeney Todd poster! I love Edward Gorey, wish I had some of his original books (I used to be a real book collector, until I was swamped by too many books). You might not be able to play sad music on a calliope, but I’ll bet you could play some SPOOKY music on one.
Melissa, that is a day that I can support. Barely related: years ago I was taking some painting classes at a small school in the San Fernando Valley, and was shocked to see Peter Falk there as one of the students (the teacher was a man named Robert Blue, who I gathered was someone Falk admired). “Biff” from Back to the Future was around sometimes as well.
Melissa, I feel like I know pretty much every line of “Young Frankenstein”, and I don’t remember anything about a “Frankenstein stop”.
Melissa, who wants candy from Nixon’s neck??
Irene, I was hoping you would comment today. I think I’ve seen articles showing “Bob”, though I would not have been able to tell you his name off the top of my head. I hope he doesn’t have to sit outside?? I’m sure that the calliope will be back up and running once things normalize a bit more. I think that the fact that Independence Hall is on the other side of the road makes it seem out of reach if you don’t know that you can take the underpass. I agree that it is a great thing to visit. A friend of mine has never been to Knott’s, but I told her that maybe the Halloween season would not be the best time to go, due to the crowds.
Bu, I used to like KFC, but I’d say that KBF’s chicken can be pretty darn good if you get a good cook. I hope that the Pez Museum collection was acquired in toto so that it is still together, and not dispersed to hundreds of collectors. Actually, $500 for the full set of Presidents doesn’t sound so bad to me - I expected it to be higher. Maybe I’ve been conditioned by the high prices of good Disneyland collectibles? Wait, is today all of those days? National Sausage Pizza Day, now that’s an important day. Yes, the Peanuts special had them eating jelly beans, popcorn, and toast I believe.
Melissa, I tried some turkey and gravy soda just for laughs, I don’t ever need to have it again. The candy… I might try ONE.
Warren Nielsen (nice to hear from you!), I have a pretty good number of Knott’s slides to scan, though it is a drop in the bucket compared to Disneyland. So I have to be a bit more abstemious about sharing them. By now it has been nearly 11 years since my last visit to the Berry Farm, and I would love to go back when everything is truly up and running.
TokyoMagic!, that’s how they should “fix” the Hall of Presidents at WDW. Everybody in the audience could try to catch a piece of candy (I hope I get a cherry PEZ).
Melissa, it’s BOO-gain-veeya!
Chuck, how did Tarzan say “hungawa” in French??
Melissa, at "150% of the daily recommended dosage of Charming Atmosphere" we won't be getting rickets any time soon!
Tokyo Menace!, like the Major noted, Godzilla doesn't destroy Tokyo much these days; he's more like Barney, the Purple Dinosaur.
Jonathan, we also have two plastic flamingos, which my brother painted fluorescent pink (he found an abandoned can of the pink paint left over from a road crew). They look like they're made of candy, especially when it rains and the paint darkens somewhat. We also have a pair of cement pelicans (forged, no doubt). The flaming'o's and the pelicans fly south for the winter... that is, they get put away in our old pump house so they don't get ruined by the inclement weather.
"Abstemious". Hmmm, looks like Major belongs to the word-of-the-day club. I'm guessing it has the same root as abstain?
About the WDW 'Pezidents' shooting candy at the audience: "YOU get a Pez, and YOU get a Pez, and YOU get..."
- Jaundiced Bodies
I worked the Macy's Thanksgiving parade for ~25 years, so I've had that Charlie Brown dinner of pretzels and jelly beans more than a few times. Usually had a normal dinner on Friday or Saturday after.
Dead Finger
It included a trellis with Bougainvillea and two, I kid you not, plastic flamingos.
JC Shannon, I love that added touch of those crazy flaming-O's (also known as flamignos). (Hey, JB, I noticed you obviously paid close attention to all the past comments. Good job!)
Irene, ENJOY KBF! I wish I was there with you.
Major, you're teasing us by not telling us anything more about Peter Falk - in your class. Please do tell.
Dean, I bet you have a good story or two, to share!
Happy Columbo Day! (Thanks, Melissa!)
- Lou & Sue & BOO-gain-veeya!
Bu, "YOU get a Pez, and YOU get a Pez, and YOU get..." I can picture an audio-animatronic Oprah saying that.
Major, "Who wants candy from Nixon’s neck?" You are right. Maybe they should have an audio-animatronic John Wilkes Booth shooting candy at the audience? Sorry....too soon???
I guess Lincoln chucking candy at the audience would be payback for all the ball bearings that got tossed at him at the 1964 World's Fair.
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