Around The Castle, 1956
Here are two more slide scans, from a trip by some rowdy Jaycees who took Disneyland by storm and were put on the "Banned for Eternity" (with frowny-faces drawn next to their names) list. They thought they were in Las Vegas, apparently.
Well, sure, this is a perfectly nice view of Sleeping Beauty Castle on a gray day. It has only a few of the lightest blushes of pink on it, the rest is a dignified and appropriate stone gray. I can't see the famous dent in this diffuse lighting, but we all know it is there. It's sort of fun to look at the guests, some rather casual, others who could have come right from church. I always enjoy any view with the signboard maps to help orient guests, most of whom had probably never been there before.
Once again, a swan created enough excitement that this photographer needed to capture an image on film. "A real swan! Not a dumb mallard like we have at home". We get a nice partial view of Holiday Hill, future location of a certain Swiss mountain. BUT WHICH ONE? If you guessed "the Finsteraarhorn", you know way more about Swiss mountains than I ever did.
25 comments:
Mrs. Doubtfire, on the left of the first pic, is looking rather stern and disapproving at something. Or maybe she's just constipated.
Seriously though, she looks very prim and proper; like she's seen a lot in her time on Earth. Maybe she was a WWII vet? Or even WWI?
It looks like there's more than one swan there. Maybe it's a mother swan and her half-grown chicks (cygnets) a.k.a. teenagers. She's waiting for the next unsuspecting guest to happen along so she can teach her offspring how to efficiently strip the flesh off of a kill in one minute or less. That pathetic fence is no match for her wiliness.
They are actually white swans. We're seeing her, and her brood, in stealth mode; to better blend in with their surroundings.
Thanks for putting up with my silliness, Major.
Ah, the castle. Dignified, yet fantastical. A balance lost on current imagihacks.
You are correct JB. Also notice the small bridge that the swans would drag their victims under to finish the job in private. Grisly, but necessary for the balance of nature.
Those darn "hard facts."
Major-
Has it been determined the dent has been there from the very beginning - or close to it-? "Mrs. Doubtfire" is holding a 1955, Story of Disneyland Guidebook. Take good care of it, ma'am-!
Thanks, Major.
I love the second pic. It shows Disneyland in its infancy and primitive state. No fancy railings or manicured landscape yet.
Thanks, Major.
JB and Stu29573, love your swan stories. Nothing better than the old "hard facts" tales of Disneyland.
Are those two white swans on the other side of the path?
Just think, that stern-looking old woman was probably once a giggly young girl. She looks like she just came from church! Yes, maybe she was a nurse during WWI. On TV shows and movies they always show nurses rolling bandages when they don’t have anything else to do. “Cygnets”, eh? Why not “Chiclets”? Because they are already a candy and a gum, I guess. I think you are right, there are at least two swans, or one swan with multiple heads. It happens.
Stu29573, while I will always love the Disneyland castle the best (bias, you see), I have no issues (well maybe a little) with the other castles. EXCEPT for the abomination that they are going to have in Hong Kong once they are done with it, my gosh what a horrible eyesore.
Nanook, I do think that the dent was there from day 1. I hope Mrs. Doubtfire’s copy of “Story of Disneyland” comes with the envelope. I wonder if the envelopes were there to take if you wanted one, but were optional? I have one with an envelope, hooray!
K. Martinez, there’s just something about the early, scrawny-looking Disneyland! It isn’t lush or beautifully manicured - yet. But that’s OK, the park was only a year old, we can cut it some slack.
K. Martinez, I’m unaware of swan horror stories being shared anywhere else but here on GDB!
Lou and Sue, HEY, I think you are right! Obviously that fencing did nothing to keep them from leaving the water.
Now that I’m looking more closely, there may be 3 white, the two black ones already mentioned, and two(?) sort-of under the little bridge. Those critters are waiting everywhere to attack. Maybe that explains the low attendance count back then??
The Castle, as it was meant to be… …and perhaps could be again. Hope springs eternal.
The swan pond is double fenced, like a penitentiary. I’ll bet there are counterbattery machine guns set to cover that zone.
The famous landscaping clearly has not taken hold yet. Are we looking at the future site of Snow White’s Grotto? I’ve been on a grotto kick lately.
Fun pictures, Major, thank you.
JG
So, I guess those are orange trees-?
Nanook, the trees are green, but the fruit is orange.
Those must be the original occupants.
JG
Now I'm imagining an escape attempt by a gang of swans...
It's night, and the lookout, Ugly, gives the signal. Pretty Boy and Killer hop the waterline fence into No Swan's Land and start crawling towards the second fence line.
Meanwhile, O'Brien, in Tower D, catches movement out of the corner of his eye and switches on his searchlight. He slowly, methodically traces his light across his field of view, squinting into the gloom.
Pretty Boy and Killer hug the ground, not daring to breathe, great, steaming beads of sweat streaming off their foreheads and stinging their eyes. The light swings past them, then slowly moves back to rest on Killer's left foot.
Sure of himself now, O'Brien hits the alarm switch.
The siren goes off as more searchlights in the towers switch on. Killer looks hard into Pretty Boy's eyes, willing the cygnet to hide, but the pressure is finally too great for Pretty Boy. He yells "We're made! Run for it!" and makes a break for the second fence. Deadly accurate gunfire erupts from the castle battlements and Pretty Boy is cut down a wing's span from the wire.
Killer spits, swears under his breath, and stands slowly with his wings over his head. Head down, defeated, he waits for the guards to feathercuff him and lead him into solitary confinement in the castle's dungeon. Six weeks later he'll "slip" in the shower and be devoured by his cellmates.
That daring escape attempt turned out to be his swan song.
Stu, the swans are like 'big cats' that way. The Imagineers knew the swans would need a private place to savor their prey; hence, the bridge.
Sue, huh! I didn't notice the white swans. I think there are three of them? They blend in with the path lamps; more of their stealthery.
Major, nahhh. She may have been a young girl (maybe), but she looks like she's always been "no-nonsense".
I must admit, the multi-headed swan theory didn't occur to me.
Interesting about the swan horror stories. It's been awhile, but it seems like it was you, Major, who started it, yes? Not accusing, mind you, just wondering. And now, thanks to TokyoMagic!, the ducks have entered the act as well!
Major, "Obviously that fencing did nothing to keep them from leaving the water.: See!? I TOLD YOU! That pathetic fence is no match for the wily, bloodthirsty swans!
Sue again, yeah, I think there are three of 'em. I don't see any under the bridge, but there's a gray blob next to the bridge. That might be a fuzzy baby swan... or a rock.
JG, clearly the machine guns aren't doing the trick. I also was wondering if that's where Snow White's Grotto will be. Or if it's the future site of the House Of The Future?
Chuck, haha. You had me sitting on the edge of my chair, following the escape of the Swan Gang! Poor Killer... WAIT! What am I saying!? Killer was a bloodthirsty swan; who knows how many guests he dispatched! He got what's coming to him.
@ JG-
Now my head is starting to hurt-! (No wonder I had so much trouble back in grammar school with tempera paints...)
Lou and Sue, I agree, there seems to be a third white swan closer to the path to the right. I wonder how far they would wander throughout the park back then?
JG, I’m afraid I don’t have any hope as far as the castle goes, sadly. I feel like I need to stop reading about what’s going on at the park, it’s too depressing. I wonder if any of those swans have teardrop tattoos? Hmmm, interesting thought about the Snow White Grotto, I’ll need somebody else to help with that, since I am unsure!
Nanook, in that first pic? I wonder! The photo isn’t clear enough to see the leaves, and without obvious fruit, it’s hard to tell.
JG, if you mean that tree in photo #2, I can’t tell WHAT the heck that thing is!
Chuck, now I need to see a big budget movie about swans escaping prison. Starring Tom Cruise as JACK SWAN. He loves to run! It sounds to me like you’ve spent just the right amount of time watching old movies on the local TV station. I can just see stark black and white cinematography, and hear the music by Franz Waxman. Who was not made of wax, I recently discovered! It’s nice to have you back, Chuck.
JB, just before a swan divides, it needs to be on dry land for a few hours. Then the freshly divided swans must return to the water to feed. I suppose it’s possible that the old dame was always a hardhead, but I still want to believe that she had laughter in her heart at some point. I might have started the swan stories, who can remember. I don’t think the gray blob is a baby swan, but would not bet money on it (unless it is somebody else’s money). The House of the Future was more on the Plaza, so the Grotto seems more likely to me.
Nanook, ah, those chalky tempera paints, I can still smell ‘em! Just the right kind of paints for pictures that would spend a few weeks on the fridge before going in the trash.
Chuck, that's my kind of story with my kind of ending. I doff my mouse ear cap to you.
Major, I think the tree in question is the one in the second photo - all the way on the very right edge of the picture.
Upon closer look, that "fruit"(?) isn't only on the right of that photo, it's all over that goofy tree. But, my uneducated guess is that those are oranges.
Speaking of bad birds, as a follow-up to my comments yesterday, I was visiting with my dad tonight and asked him, "Why did your sister rob gas stations?" He responded, "She didn't. She drove the getaway car." :o/
Major-
In the 2nd photo - the trees in the center and the right.
Melissa, I thought you liked stories about Wookies!
Lou and Sue, I’m not sure those are orange trees?
Lou and Sue… that twisted tree on the bank of the moat doesn’t look like an orange tree, but hey, I’m no treeologist (that’s what they’re called, right?). The “fruits” (or are those flowers?) look very pink to me.
Lou and Sue, ha ha, Lou could only see the good in his sis! Let’s face it, driving the getaway car is pretty cool. I’ll bet she wore dark glasses and a scarf and called people "Bud".
Nanook, I am still undecided, though I wish I’d shared a photo that the Mysterious Benefactor shared with me, involving an original Disneyland orange tree. It would have been the perfect time! Oh well, I will still share it, but at a future date.
Sue, well THAT changes EVERYTHING! :)
Major, photo 2, the tree in far right background is pretty likely an orange or some citrus, it has dark green foliage even in the winter (I’m assuming winter judging from the clothes and other plants) the fruit is still hanging on, which is typical for citrus. Might not be a survivor from the Dominguez farm, but if it is an orange, then it’s pretty likely.
The tree in center foreground might be a tulip tree. These are named for their tulip-like blooms, which are white with purple edges. They bloom on bare branches in early spring and are common landscape ornamentals, both for the flowers and picturesque trunks. This one looks like one Mom had back on the old farm.
For some reason, the Dutch didn’t fixate on tulip trees, just the bulbs. Those Dutch were such kidders.
JG
@ JG-
My first thought was the tree in the center is a Flowering Peach Tree. But based on the 'twisted, heavy branches that sprawl or ascend, giving an interesting twisted character to the plant', it more-likely is a Showy Honey-Myrtle, or Pink Melaleuca.
Nanook, pretty sure it’s not a peach, my vote goes with melaleuca. Our tulip tree was more upright.
JG
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