Frontierland at Dusk, April 1959
Disneyland by day is wonderful, but (as everyone knows), the park becomes a whole different experience once the sun goes down. Today I have two photos from Frontierland, taken when the sun had dipped below the horizon, but there was still some afterglow in the sky.
The burning settler's cabin is 300% more impressive in this photo, with the bright flames lighting up the immediate surroundings - including the sad sight of the settler's dead body sprawled in front. The Matterhorn is mostly obscured behind the trees of Tom Sawyer Island, which is a shame, since it was still under construction in April of 1959.
I love this beautiful shot of the Friendly Indian Village, with two fires providing the only sources of illumination. I wonder if more light (perhaps a few torches) was added as it got darker? You'd think that a lot of details would get lost. The boy and his dog are regarding our passing steamboat with curiosity, as usual.
36 comments:
Major-
That image of the Settler's Cabin a-Fire gives an entirely new meaning to the word 'afterglow'-! (A favorite word of mine, BTW). And the image of the Friendly Indian Village is another swell moment captured at the 'magic hour'.
Thanks Major, for these beauties.
You would think that after several years of watching the boats go by every few minutes that Shiny Boy's curiosity would be satisfied vis-a-vis the boats. Apparently not... Perhaps he has short-term memory loss. Think of all the changes he's seen that have come and gone over the years.
It does seem odd that the only light for this tableau comes from a couple of campfires. Looks like the top flaps of some of the teepees are slightly illuminated, maybe from the remaining sunlight or perhaps from hidden lights?
Thanks for more twilight-time pics, Major.
- Jettisoned Bodies
I just noticed something that I never have before. Namely, that arrow looks dang long! It you account for the part that has to be sticking into the guy (ok, maybe a bit gruesome, but follow me here) it would have to be about four feet long. Were arrows really that long? I suppose they could have been, but it just never occurred to me before. May it have been increased to "play" better to the boats? Heck, I don't know. I always thought the cabin should have been sponsored by Kingsford.
Whatever condition keeps Shiny Boy shiny also apparently stunts growth. The guy is, like, 65 years old by now! You know, maybe I need some of that...except I wouldn't want to be frozen in place forever, so maybe not. What am I talking about? No clue.
S-illy T-errible U-nicorns (ok, I'm really stretching now...)
Wow..that's no small fire...that's fully engulfed rager. I am still baffled about why we all thought an untended burning house in the middle of a forest was a good thing in a theme park...but it was a different time. I never knew the friendlies had open flames as well. Those look a little more "bridled"...especially since the friendlies are made of concrete (?) If the animals along the river were concrete would the humans also be concrete? Please confirm. I am going to be shiny boy for halloween. I don't expect anyone will "get" the costume, and I will have to be quite still most of the time. Makes it difficult for the candy collecting- which is another strange custom. "Let's dress up as other people or things, go to strangers houses in the dark, and beg for candy" because: that seems normal, right?
Major, these are very rare and unusual shots.
I can’t recall the campfires in the FIV at all, and the Cabin is just spectacular.
I wonder if the gas campfires had remote lighters, or if someone had to run out at dusk to light them?
Shiny Boy was expecting us, he is wearing a fresh coat of shellac for the occasion.
Wouldn’t it be great to have a photo from his vantage point at the same moment, MT all lit up with little popcorn lights.
Shirts by Arrow, Cabins by Kingsford.
JG
Stu, you're right. Those are practically spear length arrows. I guess the effect was not as eye catching with a regular sized arrow.
I like dusk anyway and dusk at the park was a particularly magical moment in the day.
Melissa, thanks for the link, that cracked me up. Pretty much sums it up.
JG, thanks for the Arrow shirts and Cabins by Kingsford. Needed a smile today.
Great pics Major, thanks!
Nanook, I’m glad I used one of your favorite words! I was happy to find these, and doubly happy that, when I scanned them, they turned out to be fairly sharp and clear instead of blurry as I expected.
JB, Shiny Boy never gets tired of watching the boats go by. They may look the same to the casual viewer, but he sees all kinds of subtle differences. You make a good point about the only light coming from the fires. With the cabin, that would probably be sufficient, but for the Indian Village, those campfires are pretty measly for such a large area.
Stu29573, I know that arrows that were meant to fly a long distance tend to be longer, but I’m sure that you are right about that particular arrow needing to play to an audience that was 100 feet (more?) away. Maybe instead of stunted growth, the Shiny Boy has discovered the fountain of youth. Just a sip each day keeps him perpetually 11 years old.
Bu, I always thought that as long as they kept the nearby brush well away from the cabin, there wouldn’t be any real danger. But I’ve seen later photos in which the trees are encroaching SO closely that it really did look like a hazard. Since there was never any fire incident (that I am aware of), I guess they knew what they were doing. I have no idea about which animals are concrete, or fiberglass, or cast iron, or whatever! Please send pictures of yourself as Shiny Boy.
JG, I’m not sure I ever experienced the Mark Twain at night until later in life, although you can see the Friendly Indian Village from the Disneyland RR too. We probably didn’t ride that at night either! In fact it was always one of the first (if not THE first) attractions we would do. Interesting thought, did those fires have little piezo-electric starters? I’m sure the flames were actually burning long before it got dark. And yes, it would be great to have a photo from Shiny Boy’s vantage point!
DrGoat, I don’t understand why those Indians didn’t just use bazookas and be done with it. That’s what I would have done! When I was a kid I really loved the “twinkle lights” in the trees of the Plaza - Tony B. has some of those trees in his yard, still with the lights in them. Did Melissa leave a comment that has vanished??
A cabin's life is ending, while a mountain's is just beginning. Nature. The circle of life.
Yep, that's an XXL-Arrow shirt!
The cabin's fire is reflecting in the water.
Unique photos - thank you, Major.
P.S. Major, my comments JUST disappeared as I was posting the same time as you. *sigh*
I've commented twice today, and got confirmation of them back in my email, but neither comment showed up here. Weird.
Okay, well that comment showed up. But my other two very long, and very thought out comments disappeared.
I should have said, "very well thought out" comments. So now my comments are showing up. I think I'll leave a comment every so many minutes, just to make sure that they are still showing up. ;-)
- Tokyo Mausoleum!
TM! Though I didn’t do it today, I usually copy my comments before sending/posting them. It avoids the frustration. I just re-paste them, then.
Sue, I used to do that, when I had a computer that used to just "shut down" on me, without warning. I would also compose my comments in another place (like in an email) so that if that happened, a draft would be saved. But that was the only time when that would happen to me....when there was an actual problem with my computer.
Also, I always click the box below that reads, "Email follow up comments to....," so not only do I get a copy of my comment sent to me, but I get everyone else's comments throughout the day, in my inbox. Early this morning, I left a comment and I got the copy in my email, plus everyone else's comments that have followed mine. But mine did not show up here. I left a second one, and the same thing happened.
TM! Please try sending your original comments, again - would love to read them! Maybe Major’s playing a Halloween trick on you (and me). ;o)
These 'dusk' pics so remind me of the Indian Village and War Canoe area (pre Bear Country). I vaguely recall the torches being lit by a CM with an active torch in hand. With so many lit, the area had its own mysterious ambiance. As it got darker, the Village would be closed off to guests. It was cool to take the MT around the river to enjoy the look of the now closed area, dimly lit solely by torchlight. KS
Lou and Sue, so THAT’S what that song was about. I never knew. I love those reflections, even though the flames are subtle. I’m sorry about your lost comment, I swear it has nothing to do with me!
TokyoMagic!, it makes me mad that Blogger somehow loses comments. If you get a confirmation in your email, is your lost comment sent as well? Maybe you could “copy and paste”? Probably not, I’m sure you would have thought of that. Sorry about the lost comments, I wish I knew what to do about it.
Lou and Sue, definitely a good practice, considering Blogger’s bad track record.
TokyoMagic!, wow, you had one of those rare and valuable computers that would shut down at random! Lucky! I promise that I didn’t get really drunk this morning on an entire bottle of creme de menthe and angrily deleted random comments because I thought they were actually from the aliens who talk to my brain using microwaves. That never happened! Nobody can prove anything!
Lou and Sue, nope, no trick, at least that would be a logical (if crummy) explanation.
KS, ah, interesting, thanks for the info about how the torches were lit. I know that several Frontierland areas “close at dusk”, obviously for safety issues, but as you said, the lack of guests definitely added a mysterious ambiance.
DrGoat, I can't take credit for those jokes.
The Arrow shirt joke is from a keelboat spiel (according to KS), I recalled it from youth but couldn't recall which boat ride.
JB just made the brilliant Kingsford joke up above in this thread.
KS, I definitely recall CM's lighting the torches by hand. Once, very early in my memory (1964?), we were in the queue for the Tiki Room, and the attendant came out to light those torches along the walk (where the tiki theme fades into the Main Street theme), he lifted up a rock (!) and turned a valve, and then lit the torches. The rock was a fiberglass shell hiding the gas plumbing, long since gone. Mom never really got over that. She laughed about it for years afterward, "Disneyland, even the rocks are fake".
JG
JG, t'weren't me! The Kingsford joke was Stu's.
Maybe that was a Na'vi arrow sticking out of the settler's chest.
- Jettisoned Bodies
Major, Melissa left a link in yesterday's post about Stan Lee, the Muppets and Disney.
Sue, here's my original comment from shortly after midnight. I thought maybe it was deleted for being too tacky:
Major, you are right, it's amazing that more details aren't lost, due to the low lighting.
I don't remember ever seeing the settler with his arms across his body, like that. Aren't they usually down at his sides? It almost appears as if he is attempting to pull the arrow out of his chest. Either that, or he has a stomach ache and he's wishing he had a hot water bottle.
I hope someone moves those papooses closer to the fire, as the night gets cooler. Maybe they could build a little Ferris wheel type of ride, over the fire, for the papooses to ride on. That way, they wouldn't get bored.....or cold.
- Tokyo Mausoleum
Papooses on a Ferris Wheel sounds like chickens at Costco. The OC Register report: “The papooses, long lost for decades and found during the excavation of the new Lucasland, were returned to their original home where they were found to be….delicious.”
Beastial Bu
Haha! I bet they were very juicy and tender after all those hours of rotating next to the fire. (don't hate me)
-Jettisoned Bodies
JB, thanks!
Stu, my apologies!
That Kingsford joke was great.
Oh dear, I forgot the papeese. Tokyo, that’s funny!
Great thread today, thanks Major!
JG
Wow!! I have NEVER seen images of actual camp fires in the friendly Indian village .... smoke from the cook pots and Indian teepees .... but never actual campfires.
There’s a KPBS series that features artists who still create of do things long ended or replaced by other methods and one show was on indian arrow making ..... and I was surprised at how long they were .... however it was never explained as to the reason for the particular length.
I think every time I see the dead settler he is in a complete different position : I suspect that being outside he was visited my maintainence a lot and probably moved and adjusted.
Eventually the dead settler went from being killed by Indians to being passed out drunk to being killed by opening his California property tax bill ( even with the protection of proposition 13!!)
I know people call those small disneyland tree and building trim lights “ popcorn” but I had never heard that before. On some drawings the Mark Twain trim lights and building roof lights are called “GIMBLE LIGHTS” . I don’t know if this was a historical name or something Disney created.
Thise round illuminated signs often attached to the end passenger car on railroads were historically called DRUMHEADS ..... and Disney sometimes uses that term as well ... but WED and WDI graphics calls them railroad “BANJO SIGNS” ...... while reading some stuff written about the Virginia & Truckee Railroad written one the 1940’s was the first time I ever heard the term BANJO SIGNS outside of Disney ....( they called them BANJO LIGHTS however .... so somebody at Disney was familiar with the alternate nomenclature.
Now ..... CARRIAGE can be a SURREY or a WAGONETTE ..... but a WAGONETTE cannot be a SURREY . A SURREY can be a BRUNSWICK however ......but this is all another story.
Oh .... I was getting at that Disney has always called those horse drawn passenger wagons on Main Street USA “SURREYS” .... none of them are actually surreys but “WAGONETTES” also called Depot or Hotel hacks . Disneyland had two actual Surreys .... a fringe top Surrey ( olive green with yellow and cream trimming) and a Auto-top Surrey ( black with red trimming ) but these seemed to have been regulated to Frontierland use and parades .... it’s debatable they saw regular use on Main Street USA.
The mistake of Disney having called the WAGONETTE attraction SURREYS is lost of people of the mid 20th century and later .,,, but it would be the same if Disney had a 1970’s theme land and guests could ride in 1974 Station Wagon ( some with estate wagon faux wood paneling and done in standard finish ! Lol) but in the guide books and signage Disney calls the Stationwagons “ Towncars” . The attraction does not use Towncars ... but so much time goes by with the incorrect name .... people still mistakenly call Wagonettes , Surreys.
By the way ... a Surrey with a wicker body for summer jaunts to the beach or lake was called a “SUMMER BRUNSWICK” or “BRUNSWICK”
A WAGONETTE features a forward facing drivers seat with open rear passenger bench seats with a center access aisle ( DISNEYLAND SURREYS)
Shiny Boy is actually a series of shiny boys, one of a large family of lookalike brothers, cousins, nephews, and sons. Only the shiniest boys in the family are chosen for the job of standing there looking shiny. He functions as a human lighthouse, reflecting the light of the campfires to passing boats.
(I was an adult before I found out that Grandma’s long-lived blue parakeet Mr. Bird was really a series of short-lived blue parakeets named Mr. Bird.)
Chicks and ducks and geese better run quick
When I take you out in my Brunswick
JG, I wonder how many people did not get the “Arrow shirt” reference? I think of vintage advertisements from the ‘20s and ‘30s, though the brand was probably around for much longer. I have to say that if the rock that fooled your mom was that good, then they should be proud. I’ve never wanted to use a “hide-a-key” because they look like phony rocks. “Aha! There’s the extra key!”.
JB, I am still baffled by Disney’s adoption of “Avatar” (BEFORE they bought Fox), of all the properties they could have capitalized on. Ugh.
DrGoat, ah I see. Sometimes it’s hard for me to keep up!
TokyoMagic!, thanks for reposting your original comment! I’m not sure about the settler’s arms, but I think you’re right, they usually weren’t across the body. “It almost appears as if he is attempting to pull the arrow out of his chest.” YIKES. That would be so gruesome! Those papooses have been just fine for years, I guess they are nicely insulated in their carriers.
Bu, I like my papooses to be crispy on the outside, and juicy on the inside!
JB, doesn’t everybody enjoy some nice cannibalism now and then?
JG, wow, I assumed that Stu’s Kingsford joke was an official Disney gem.
Mike Cozart, I’m glad that I could share some photos of something you haven’t seen before! That PBS show sounds like my kind of thing, I love watching videos of people making things. Or restoring things! I subscribe to many such channels. I agree, I think the settler was moved a LOT, sometimes draped over a bench, sometimes more on his side, etc. “Gimble Lights”, like Barth Gimble from “Fernwood 2 Night”? I’ve heard the term “banjo lights” before, maybe from you. I just can’t see myself riding around town in a Brunswick, but hey, that’s just me.
Mike Cozart, I’m not sure where I got the idea that they were called “Surreys”, but I have friends who always use that term. Maybe it was used on some vintage postcards? Do you know if any of those Surreys are still in Disney’s ownership?
Mike Cozart, the more I think about it, the more I think that the Wagonettes were referred to as “Surreys” on old postcards. Unfortunately all of my postcards are at my mom’s house, so I can’t dig them out to check. My buddy Mr. X always called them surreys. We had a green station wagon (sort of a frosty green, not sure what the official name of the color was) with magnificent wood paneling, it was a Buick. Somebody poured sugar in the gas tank and ruined it!
Melissa, I wish I was shiny, but I’m kind of a boring matte finish. What a bummer. I love that your Grandma was perfectly happy to call her parakeets “Mr. Bird”. Why fuss with anything fancier?
Melissa, you’ve obviously discovered the rare original lyrics for that song.
@Tokyo & Major, it just occurred to me, the settler may have left his toaster plugged in with the cozy on, but how to account for his shirt?
Major,mom giving Stu credit since I’ve never heard it before.
JG
Must have been cleaning his bow and it went off.
Sadly, later lost the bow in a boating mishap…
JG
@ Melissa-
The song that keeps on giving-!
Major: Disneyland theme-selves called them “Surreys” ..... on signs and brochures Etc. I’ve seen photos of the brewery wagon ( with barrel loads) and the Bekins Furniture Van ( wagon) hitched up with full horse teams ...... it doesn’t appear that guests ever rode on them..... but maybe they were driven around for authentic atmosphere ??? So I’m assuming at one point early on two of the actual surrey reproductions were used on Main Street . I suspect THATS when the term was used . Since the surreys couldn’t carry much more than a driver and 3 passengers , the larger capacity Wagonettes ( Depot hacks) were added and the name Surrey was just left .
Up until the closing of Big Thunder Ranch Disneyland still had both Surreys ( the olive green fringe top -and the black auto-top Surrey ) they also had at least 3 of the 4 WAGONETTES or “Surreys” ( blue w /yellow wheels , Boxcar red with yellow wheels, black with red wheels ) there was a black with red wheels too that may still have been on property somewhere.
For Disneyland ‘s opening there were other scales down horse drawn vehicles and many Disneyland still has - the Victoria carriage ( used for parades still) there were a few buggies ... a Phaeton type and a coal-box buggy ( livery buggy ) The coal-box body buggy was still at Thunder Ranch but was rotted so bad it’s wheels and springs were gone. There was also two buck board wagons - a two seater ( pick - up) and a four seater ( often called a spring wagon) backstage were other horse drawn wagons , some were relocated to the new Circle D Ranch - off site . The new prop stagecoach added to Frontierland entrance to GALAXYS EDGE appears to have very detailed under carriage with a hokey child -like stagecoach body .... the undercarriage is very accurate for a hitch wagon but not a stagecoach . I suspect one of the vintage 1955 wagons were canabalized to make the new cartoonish stsgecoach. I think the four seat buckboard or one of the Main Street “Surreys” ( WAGONETTE chassis were used.
Bu, I hope those papoosi haunt Lucasland, for all eternity!
JB, tender and juicy, also because they had been "aged to perfection"....whatever that means.
JG, the settler's toaster cozy....of course! That is the reason you should always unplug small appliances, when not in use!
I also thought the settler's shirt was always red, in previous photos. Although, I suppose it could have been kind of pinkish here, but the lighting is washing it out and making it appear white.
Major, I forgot to answer your question. I ended up getting my original comment sent to me in my email, right after clicking on "Publish Your Comment," but it never appeared here. I wrote a second one and the exact same thing happened. But then I received everyone else's comments that followed mine, in my email inbox. I know it's not your fault, so no worries!
Tokyo, you are right about the red shirt.
The original "Bill" had a red shirt, which, according to my Dad, was the upper part of his red flannel long underwear. I guess this was a typical garment of that era and would be true to the theme. I think it was meant that he was driven out of the cabin by the fire without time to dress and shot on his doorstep.
I figured he wore a red shirt like all the Star Trek Security guys who end up getting zapped by the aliens. There's probably a Starfleet badge on there somewhere.
JG
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