Scenes From the River, April, 1959
I have three scans of slides from 1959, all taken around the Rivers of America. Boy oh boy, have we seen a lot of similar pictures, or what?? Yes, we have.
There it is, the Mark Twain, reflecting in the river that is lightly rippled by a soft breeze. This one isn't quite "postcard worthy" (that clump of hair at the bottom of the photo), but it's close, in spite of the fact that it is so familiar.
This next one might have been taken just a few moments before the first one, with our photographer pivoted slightly to the left. A group of guests are boarding the raft for a trip back to the mainland (which should take about three days). The Columbia's masts peek up above the trees. I sure love that old grist mill.
Next, our photographer was in a different location - the load dock for both the Columbia and the Mark Twain. A bale of cotton needs to go up river, maybe you can carry it on with you. I'm noticing the split-rail fence along the shore of Tom Sawyer Island, and am pretty sure that there are other areas that have no such fence - I wonder if people had fallen in right at that place?
23 comments:
Major-
The Rivers of America... as God intended.
Thanks, Major.
In the first photo, that rope in the upper right corner, really completes the image.
And in the last pic, the bale of cotton does the same thing.
Nice photos today, Major; clump of hair and all.
- Jekyll's Bane
Man, with the Columbia that close, the Twain had better get the lead out or it’s going to get rear-ended. Which I think is bad for the sternwheel.
The grist mill was a crucial component of the Tom Sawyer Island experience. Without flour, you couldn’t bake bread, and without bread, passengers would starve and resort to cannibalism or even worse forms of socio-economic organization (Socialism! Communism! Botulism!) on their three-day journey back to the mainland.
Note Tom & Huck’s Treehouse atop Indian Hill in the second photo, “the highest point in Disneyland.” It was only two years old at this point and probably still had that “new treehouse smell.”
Similar to past offerings? Maybe, but we almost always manage to find something new, and even if we don’t, there’s still comfort and joy when seeing the familiar. I’m still not tired of looking at my wife some 30 years after we first met.
There is a clear difference between hiring set designers and not theme park designers when you are setting out to create scenes like this. Of course, there was no such thing as a theme park designer back then- so I get it. I suppose there were not so many lawyers interested in Walt’s Folly- or else there would be 10 ft fencing, guard rails, plexiglass barriers, et. al. Where was the boarding area on the main land for TSI? Did they have to sail from way over by the haunted mansion? Seems like a long journey! Very peaceful photos this morning. Thank you! Except for that clump of hair- that’s a bit of a crime scene…
I especially like the last picture...would love to be sitting on that bale now, watching all the river activity...
Major, I recall those raft trips, even now, with fear and trepidation.
No food or water, clutching ropes and railings with freezing fingers, coats turned up against the wintry blast. No place to sit or sleep. Surrounded by fellow refugees and kegs of high explosive. Chances of being run down by a steamboat. Three days of pure terror.
And I would endure it all again, with a $300/day entry ticket to boot, for chance to roam Tom Sawyer’s Island as it was back then, before marauding pirates and their attorneys ruined it all.
Great pictures, thank you.
JG
Love the old mill pic. Now it's just a big ugly stage killing of the natural feel of the Rivers of America. Remember when they had the Mark Twain, Columbia, Keelboats and Canoes all going at once? What a sight it was. Thanks, Major.
Nanook, while it’s always nice to have “more to do” in Frontierland, the place sure looks beautiful in these photos!
JB, I didn’t really notice the ropes until you pointed them out, but you’re right, they make for a very nice composition. I hope to have more clumps of hair for everybody coming up!
Chuck, if the steam-powered “Mark Twain” can’t outrun the Columbia sailing ship, it has nobody to blame but itself. Himself? Herself? I love a big mouthful of healthful, organic grist. With extra gluten, please. I doubt Tom or Huck washed very often (especially Huck), so I am not sure I want to smell anything that they were involved with. Aw, I hope your wife sees the nice thing you wrote about her!
Bu, it sure seems like those old movie guys really did have that magical “something” that really made so much of Disneyland very special. Decades of experience, helped by the craftsmen who realized their designs. There were several raft-boarding areas on the mainland, with the primary one being right near the old Plantation House.
Lou and Sue, I wonder how many of today’s guests would be bewildered! “Where is everything??”.
JG, you forgot to mention the flying alligators. That’s what really kept me awake at night! Of course they didn’t fly so much as glide on the air currents, but still. And I kind of agree, I’d gladly pay a little more for “classic Disneyland” experience.
K. Martinez, maybe I wouldn’t mind that big ugly stage if I loved “Fantasmic!” more, but I saw it twice, and that was once too many times. It’s “fine”, but not worth the chaos it causes in Frontierland.
Just wanted to thank you all for the well wishes. It's going to be a long recovery, she will be in rehab for at least another 2 weeks. Being the sole cook and bottle washer at home has proven to be a workout. Like rolling that rock uphill. I find myself in a constant state of "am I forgetting something?".
Better get that bubble-wrap ready Melissa.
Thank you all again, and thank you Sue.
Thanks Major. Keeping up with GDB and the Jr. Gorillas gives me a bright spot in my day.
Any time the comments veer into cannibalism, you know it's gonna be a great day! Actually, that might seem to be a viable option if park food prices keep climbing. Or maybe Disney can take advantage of it for park food. "Billy went IN to Small World, but did he come out?" (Cue Charlton Heston running down Main Street screaming. "The churros! They're PEOPLE!!!")
Oh, and the pictures are nice today too...
Stu-nningly Evil (plus some numbers)
Stu, just like the song ‘Timothy’.
Yay, DrGoat, glad to see you here!
Just remember, GDB comes before bottle-washing.
I'm with Chuck and Stu, et al, nothing beats cannibalism to start a lively conversation!
"Is this a turkey leg I'm gnawing on? Or..... "
DrGoat, thanks for the update on your wife (and yourself). Sounds like it was a very serious mishap, but it seems that she is indeed making progress; yes?
- Jekyll's Bane
JB,
Yeah, it was pretty serious. broke Femur right below the hip socket. Making slow progress. You know what they say about old people and breaking their hip. She's quite resilient and luckily 5 years younger than me, but it will be at least 5 months and hopefully get to about 80-90% normal. Never know about these things.
Thanks for asking
DrG
Dr. G, thanks for the update. That is a serious injury, prayers and best wishes for both of you.
Best regards.
JG
@ Sue-
A Timothy reference, from 1971-! Performed by the Buoys, who hailed from Wilkes-Barre, PA. Their one and only real hit. The song was written by Rupert Holmes, who would later write and make (in)famous Escape (The Piña Colada Song). #1 for three weeks in December, 1979. [What were we thinking-?]
@ DrGoat-
No kidding on the seriousness of that type of injury. Godspeed, indeed.
Nanook, EEE-GADS! Rubert Holmes is batting zero, when it comes to lyrics. And I like The Piña Colada Song as much as I like THIS SONG.
(My sincerest apologies to anyone who likes these songs.)
@ Sue-
The frightening thing about You Light Up My Life is, not only did it reach the #1 Billboard position (for 10 weeks-! back on October 15, 1977), but it also won the Grammy Song of the Year, and Oscar for Best Song. I guess we were pretty desperate back in 1977/78-!
Although there are many #1 songs deserving of that honor, the sad thing about so many other '#1 Billboard Hits' is, they stink to high heaven, and should never have seen the light of day. Period. Again - go figure.
Nanook, THIS was another one of my favorites from the 70s. NOT! I took an art class in high school summer school, to get an easy credit, and the teacher would play the radio while we were drawing or painting...this was one of the songs that played on the 'pop music' station, over and over.
DrGoat, great to hear from you, and while I am sorry that your wife’s recovery will be long, I’m glad to know that she will be back home, where I’m sure she wants to be, in two weeks. Please keep checking in when you can!
Stu29573, I don’t get what the big deal is about cannibalism, once we all got into Soylent Green I figured that the taboo would vanish. That stuff is delish! The idea of the occasional guest being turned into hamburgers sounds like a top-quality horror movie. I’ll write it, direct it, and star in it. Buy your tickets today!
Lou and Sue, er, um, “Timothy”? I don’t know that song off the top of my head.
JB, all I have to say is that a good barbecue sauce makes all the difference. Words to the wise!
DrGoat, OUCH, your poor wife, the thought of breaking that large bone… oof. But I’ll bet she will recover faster than they predict. As long as she does her PT, so important.
JG, somehow I have made it this far without breaking any bones, and I hope to keep it that way.
Nanook, I guess I’ll need to look that one up on YouTube. I sure don’t remember The Buoys, though I do remember the Piña Colada Song. Not my thing, but hey, if someone out there loves it, I don’t want to “yuck their yum”.
Lou and Sue, Rupert Holmes is crying all the way to the bank! I’ll bet that dumb song made him a pile of money, you still hear it regularly (unfortunately). Debbie Boone, she’s too hard core for me!
Nanook, yes, you couldn’t escape that Debbie Boone song back then. I can’t believe that “Nobody Does It Better” didn’t win, but I guess the Academy wanted to vote for something wholesome instead of slightly naughty. Or what about “Theme from New York, New York”?? Come on! Awards are famous for not going to the truly best song (or film).
Lou and Sue, jeez, I don't remember "I'm Not Lisa" AT ALL! Maybe that's for the best?
@ Sue-
I'm Not Lisa isn't one of my fav's either, but musically it has a lot going for it. Apparently so, as it managed to make it to #4 in about August, 1975 on the Billboard Top Pop Singles chart; and to the #1 position of the Billboard CW charts.
I don't know what I was doing in August of 1975, but I wasn't listening to "I'm Not Lisa." I've never heard of it! How weird! Of course at the time I was totally NOT into country. I would have more likely been jamming to Ballroom Blitz, lol!
Stu, the funny thing is that I'm Not Lisa was not only played on the country stations, it was on the 'pop stations,' too - believe it or not. I definitely preferred Ballroom Blitz...
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