Today marks the seventh and FINAL installment featuring scans from JGs copy of "Walt Disney's Disneyland", a classic book that must have sold many millions of copies over the years in its various updated versions.
Jus copy is from 1973 (I believe), and at that time the venerable Haunted Mansion had only been open for four years at that time. It still had that "New Ghost Smell". I'm sure that when the Imagineers were working on this ride, they could not have imagined how popular it would become, still finding legions of fans over 50 years later.
And speaking of new attractions, the Country Bear Jamboree was even newer. No, I'm not going to make any cracks about a "New Bear Smell", that would be pushing it. The Country Bears debuted at the Magic Kingdom in Florida on October 1, 1971, and the Disneyland version opened just five months later on March 4, 1972.
There's Teddi Barra. Yes, a bear with a feather boa. On a swing. Wearing a hat. Just another day at Disneyland! To the right is a greenish photo of the Hungry Bear restaurant, which (as I've said before) has always been one of my favorite places to dine and relax and take in the view of the river activity.
If you put your ear right up to your computer (or phone or tablet), you can actually hear the songs from the Country Bear Jamboree playing!
Oh boy, the Main Street Electrical Parade, which was another new feature at Disneyland, having debuted in the summer of 1972. There was just something about this parade! The millions of twinkling lights, the electrosynthomagnetic sounds of "Baroque Hoedown", why, it was the bee's knees.
That hippo pulling the circus wagon shows one of the early flat parade figures, I believe that those were slowly phased out. While parades are always popular at Disneyland, I don't know if any were as beloved as the Main Street Electrical Parade. It has come and gone several times, last closing in 2016. Will it ever come back? If so, I wouldn't be surprised.
Author Marty Sklar loved to talk about all of the kings, queens, presidents, and other VIPs who came from all over the world to see Disneyland. I had to ask him to not mention me, since I am very publicity-shy.
I love a good wide-angle view of It's a Small World. The text tells us about a man who managed to get excused from jury duty by telling the judge of his planned trip to Disneyland. I'll have to try that one!
Walt wanted his later attractions to be so full of details that guests couldn't possibly see it all in just one ride, and that photo from It's a Small World demonstrates that philosophy. Notice the animatronic singing dolls as compared to the more simple doll figures.
Say, what gives! The final page of text is an ad for Walt Disney World in Florida! Which was brand-new at that time. I do remember how much I wanted to go see this newer bigger park, but it still hasn't happened (for many reasons), and I fear that I missed it when it was at its best.
Still, the editors have wrapped things up with an photo of Sleeping Beauty Castle at night, with dozens of fireworks lighting the sky - a classic Disneyland image if there ever was one.
Well, that's it! Seven parts shared over seven weeks. Many thanks to JG for taking the time to scan his copy and share it with all of us, I hope that you enjoyed visiting "Walt Disney's Disneyland"!
Major-
ReplyDeleteThe hungry Bear Restaurant was a favorite of mine, too, for its relaxing atmosphere and great views of the RoA.
As for The Main Street Electrical Parade - it will be making a re-appearance for its 50th Anniversary starting on Friday, April 22nd, and "...will be available for a limited time at Disneyland park" - whatever that means. Enjoy-!
A big round of thanks to JG for sharing all these images and "in-depth" text. And thank you too, Major.
I dunno, Major, I think the Imagineers (or Illusioneers) probably did know what a fantastic and unique attraction they were working on while designing and building the Haunted Mansion. All those interesting stage effects and animatronics... I think they knew. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for this series of posts, JG and Major. I haven't looked through our copy of the book for ages, so it was nice seeing these photos and reading through the text again. It brought back memories of our trip to the Park in the '70s.
During this time THE HUNGRY BEAR RESTAURANT was still being called THE GOLDEN BEAR LODGE. I know I’ve explained the story for the name change before , but in honor of BEAR COUNTY’S 50th anniversary a few weeks ago …….. so the Golden Bear Lodge was built with its own meat/hamburger processing kitchen …. It was designed so Disneyland would grind its own fresh hamburger meat and make hamburgers for ALL of Disneyland. The specialty Kitchen worked very well and was talked about through the restaurant and theme park industry. THEN the problem started when a cast member fell into the meat grinder….( ok I made that part up) so when the meat processing kitchen was construction ( below the upper level) the ceramic tile wasn’t sealed properly and over time blood was seeping through the tile grout and puddling . Then came the maggot infestation ….. it was in the news and Disney quickly closed the whole restaurant and removed all signs of there ever having been a meat processing kitchen . It was then used as storage for the restaurant and another section was an enlarged sound room office for The Country Bear Jamboree. To distance itself a bit from the maggot infestation and blood build up …. The restaurant re- opened as THE HUNGRY BEAR RESTAURANT. Today in 2022 if you eat at HUNGRY BEAR RESTAURANT you will hear the original 1972 Country Bear Jamboree “holding pen” ( theater lobby) BGM. The music was identical to the music recorded for The Mile Long Bar restaurant music at Walt Disney World. the same music ( minus two tracks) were featured on the CBJ record album side 2. But you’ll hear the two other songs at Hungry Bear including Home on the Range and an instrumental of The Bear Band Serenade.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info on the Hungry Bear, Mike. It's always been one of my favourite dining spots at Disneyland. And thanks again Major and JG for this series.
ReplyDeleteSo, the story goes that there were two bear theaters built in Anaheim because the Florida version was an unexpected smash hit with long lines and the second theater was intended to cut waiting time and “eat” more guests. As it turns out, due to SoCal demographics or possibly its location in a dead-end cul-de-sac, the attraction didn’t bring in the same crowd sizes at Disneyland and the second theater wasn’t really needed and was rarely used.
ReplyDeleteAs you point out here, though, there were only five months between the opening of CBJ at WDW and at its debut at Disneyland. I’d never thought about it before, but now I’m wondering…did they really note the need for a second theater (remember, WDW opened in the off season), redesign and double the size of the show building, and construct a second show set in just five months, or was a second theater at Disneyland always the plan? I’m not saying that’s outside the realm of possibility - mirroring an existing show building design would be pretty easy and repurposing a third show set originally intended for Mineral King would be a piece of cake if they had a spare just lying around (I don’t know if that was the case, just thinking through possibilities) - but I do wonder. Which may be why they took over sponsorship in 1975.
It’s interesting to note how sanitation standards have changed over the years. In the early ‘70s, they removed an entire kitchen and changed the name of a restaurant because of a maggot infestation. Fast-forward to that corner of the Park today and the standards have really gone downhill. I mean, come on - there’s Pooh literally everywhere!
Thanks again, JG and Major!
One thing to note is that it is know that the Country Bear Show was never at any time planned for Mineral King ( or Lake Independence) our friend Jason of Jason’s Disneyland Almanac has probably done more research and interviews on the project - and has been told there were no plans for any kinds of “Disneyland attraction shows “ of any kind. The myth about county bear at mineral king kinda goes back to an unofficial comment made by Marc Davis AFTER the project was dead. Another possibility is a piece of artwork done by Sam McKim as sort of a support greeting card for the WED representative going to Washington for the proposal and land use …. Signed by most of the WED team , a character of the gentleman and a Audio Animatronic Bear ( wearing a ranger outfit) is said to be joining him for added support .
ReplyDeleteAlso by late 1967 and early part of 1968 , the Country Bears are not even in a specific show or theater. Sam McKim does a series of concept paintings and sketches that feature Marc Davis’s Bear band vignette …. One a few are county / hillbilly …. The rest are a marching band , a French trio , a Dixieland band …. . They are used as entertainment for Frontierland restaurant diners at WDW …. A hillside with pine trees and waterfalls have caves that open up , boulders that slide away and waterfalls that curtain open ( a effect used at Tropical Serenade ) to reveal the bear performers . There are notes that say some of the rotating turntables can be left “ bearless” and live performers can be featured. It’s not till the late part of 68 that a cave with a 19th Century style stage is developed to house there bears ( by Dorothea Redmond) eventually this evolves from a bear cave to a stone and log lodge called Grizzly Hall. The show is first Called THE COUNTRY BEAR JUBILEE.
Early during the start of vertical construction of The Magic Kingdom of Walt Disney World, WED had determined that Disneyland would get - very quickly - one if the new theater shows developed for Florida. Documents show they really wanted HALL OF PRESIDENTS… but it was going to be part of a LIBERTY SQUARE for Disneyland and they were having problems deciding where it would go …. Behind Main Street ( like the old Liberty Street plans) but there’s concern about Space Mountain eventually needing some of that space ….. a area across the rr tracks west of New Orleans Square …. And the site that was most likely is between Frontierland and Fantasyland - it’s entrance where Carnation Gardens is located ( the dance pavilion was going to be relocated to Alpine Gardens - I show a model of it on my TOMORROWLOUNGE BLOG. This is interesting as the mine train Thru natures wonderland is removed on the drawings for this liberty square and a Runnaway mine train is shown about where Thunder Ranch was ( this means a runaway mine train was planned for Disneyland long before Tony Baxter ever got on the project ) the imagineers also didn’t seem happy with adding Mickey Mouse Revue …. Some drawings show it to the left of Small World …. Other drawings show it where the Fantasylsnd restrooms and thester were.
ReplyDeleteCountry Bear Jamboree was the most popular choice …. The attraction fit well in the space of the Indian Village …. A problem for park operstions since 1968 …. And country music was very popular at this time as well as country related shows : Hee Haw , the Beverly hillbilly’s, petticoat junction etc… and the country bear attraction was generation a great deal of interest during WDW construction ( we know even Archie Bunker was excited about it!)
Country Bear Jamboree was extremely popular in its first few years but the gas crises lowered Disneyland attendance drastically …. And it effected the need for doubke theaters…. Then when Space MountIn gets greenlighted the coasters period starts …. And you’ll notice no real new audio animatronics theater shows are ever added to Disneyland again. What is interesting is that when the Country Bear Christmas was added the both theaters were used and the show was very crowded … but for some reason Vacation Hoedown never was a hit with guests …. They would ask about the old show. Eventually they stoped converting both theaters over to the holiday shows so one theater remained Vacation Howdown and the second theater was left as The Christmas show and opened when the holiday period came around … all ready to go. But after splash Moutain opened the bear band shows were so crowded again they wound sometimes have to use the Christmas Show even if it was the middle of July!!
I wanted to stand on top of the railing in front of the CBJ stage and see the animatronics sitting still in the "down" position, sunken in the stage. I know it's not everyone's favorite, but I love the bears!
ReplyDeleteI saw the Main St. Electrical Parade in 2014 at WDW. I'm excited to see it again this summer, even if my favorite bicentennial flag has finally been put out to pasture.
Thank you JG and Major, this souvenir book sums up Disneyland as well as anything: charm, dazzle, wonder and corn.
ReplyDeleteThe Mexico scene in Small World has always been my favorite, because the details went from whimsical into the bizarre. This photo is from the New York World's Fair edition; at Disneyland the volcano behind the singing children was moved to the right of the surrealist mariachis, and the lucite umbrellas were removed altogether. The pic was probably taken along with all the others shown in the long playing record album; the cover was California but the interiors were all New York.
One of the most interesting factoids I learned from Foxx Nolte's book. Boundless Realm, is that the Disneyland Haunted Mansion, while providing record crowds, was somewhat of a disappointment. It got "Meh" reviews initially, apparently because everyone built up in their minds bigger and bigger expectations as it sat there, unopened. Also, there were things that were changed at the last minute because they just didn't work (most infamously The Hatbox Ghost, but there were other effects such as the Endless Hallway invisible running ghost). He maintains that the WDW Mansion was a "do-over" of sorts for the team, and various issues were worked out and tweaked.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, that classic photo of the Disneyland Mansion looks fantastic and I've always thought the DL facade was the best.
Major, thanks for running this series. I have found the comments fascinating. Thanks everyone for adding so much depth and back story to the book. I’m going to go back and copy all the comments into an appendix.
ReplyDeleteI remember that story about the Golden Bear Lodge changeover, pretty foul.
The deck was one of of the best spots in the old Park. Probably wrecked now by the trail to WookieWorld.
The Electrical Parade was really great, I still love the music. I’d love to see the 50th anniversary but it would just make me feel old(er).
I remember liking the Bear show, but it got old fast, for me at least. We always went in because the seats were comfy and air conditioned. I listened to part of the sound track a few months back and I just couldn’t get through it. And I was a big fan of HeeHaw. I really didn’t know how big a country music fan I was until I visited the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville (which you all should do), but the bears didn’t hold up.
Stefano, thanks for the info on IASW, the pics never felt right, now I know why.
JG
Huge thanks to JG and the Maj for sharing this awesome book. I was feeling pretty rotten this morning and the picture of the MSEP cheered me right up. I've gotten to see it in person several times, but I've never managed to catch its aquatic predecessor, the Electrical Water Pageant.
ReplyDelete"...every guest receives the VIP treatment."
Oh, how times have changed!
Thanks showing us this series. I'll get around to reading it later. The Main Street Electrical parade was my Mom's absolute favorite thing in the park. Got to see it numerous times. My wife and I were there the last year it ran and got a nifty MSEP certificate and other goodies from the 5 day package we got. It makes me think of Mom every time I hear that tune.
ReplyDeleteThe Country Bear area restroom and deck was a great spot to take a break. If you got lucky, there were only a few people there. I remember one time in the 80s, we were the only people down there for at least 20 minutes. Now that's a magical experience.
Thanks Major.
Nanook, I can’t say I’m surprised that the MSEP will be back AGAIN! That thing will never really go away. And that’s OK.
ReplyDeleteJB, I think you’re right, the Imagineers knew they were working on something special with the Haunted Mansion, but I don’t know if they could have foreseen the level of love that people have had for that attraction for so many decades!
Mike Cozart, I did know about the Golden Bear Lodge name, but… old habits die hard. They even call it the Golden Bear Lodge in the text. What a wonderful story about the blood, and the maggots, and the… URP. True Disney Magic! Strange that they couldn’t do something as basic as sealing the tile properly, something that I assume is done all over the world on a regular basis for restaurants, hospitals, etc. I wonder if I’ve ever heard that “holding pen” music? Presumably it is all instrumental.
Pegleg Pete, I like the Hungry Bear restaurant so much that I’ve managed to NOT eat at a lot of other locations in the park… so I guess I’ve missed out on “thorough park experiences”.
Chuck, I’ve wondered the same things about the double theaters for the CBJ in Disneyland. It seems awfully optimistic. As much as I am a fan of the classic Disney AA figures, it seems that at some point, people like Marc Davis (who was a genius) seemed to think that it was enough to just have lots of singing, wisecracking robots onstage. In my opinion the best use of animatronics is in attractions such as “Pirates” and the Haunted Mansion. My own desire to watch ANY AA show, including the Country Bears, diminishes drastically after the first viewing. And while they have changed up the show now and then, I admit that I only went to CBJ in Disneyland once. That was enough. Other folks love it though, so I don’t want to seem like I’m raining on their parade; these are just my own personal feelings about it. I wasn’t that much of a fan of “America Sings” either. It was fine the first time, and then got less fine when I saw it again. There were exceptions though, The Enchanted Tiki Room is always a good time, and I loved the Carousel of Progress when it was still at Disneyland.
Mike Cozart, yes, I think that at some point I’d heard that the story about the Country Bears being intended for Mineral King was a myth, but boy, it is a myth that won’t go away. SO… the story of Marc’s last meeting with Walt, where Walt was chuckling at Marc’s sketches for the Country Bears HAD to have been long after the Mineral King project was dead. If I had Chris Merritt’s Marc Davis book in front of me, I could cite other shows that Marc had cooked up; I’m really not sure why he became so sold on the idea of the guests sitting in a theater to watch different AA figures performing. The concept of watching bears perform musical styles such as a marching band, a Dixieland band, etc, is awfully similar to “America Sings”. I don’t know, maybe it’s heresy to say that I am OK with that version never coming to fruition. It’s always intriguing to think of “what might have been”, but some ideas are less great than others.
Mike Cozart, I’ve always wondered if Liberty Square had been built, what would have become of it by now, 50 years later. Would the theme be tossed out, sort of like the themed areas of EPCOT? Space is so limited at Disneyland, and if somebody wanted to add a hot new attraction, maybe the temptation to rip out a moldy old “tribute to American history” would have been too great. Same with Edison Square, which looks so great when you see Sam McKim’s drawings. Wonderful theming and atmosphere, but limited potential for change and expansion. I never saw the Mickey Mouse Revue, but it sounds pretty dull to me. Maybe you had to be there. Is it still going strong in Tokyo? I didn’t know that the Vacation Hoedown was so unpopular, my understanding is that it was a hit in Florida.
ReplyDeleteAndrew, it’s OK if you love the bears! I guess I just have a cold, shriveled, blackened heart that feels no joy. Was the Bicentennial flag your favorite MSEP float because it was so darn big?
Stefano, “It’s a Small World” has always been one of my favorites as well, and for some reason the song doesn’t bother me the way it seems to bother many others. I love the graphic style of the ride, and the whimsy and creativity. The fabric smoke/lava on the volcano was something I liked. Good eye on the scene from the World’s Fair! I sure would have never known the difference, so you are a true expert.
Stu29573, I am in the middle of reading “Boundless Realms”. When you say that the Mansion got “meh” reviews, do you mean that the general public was not as enthusiastic? Or that newspaper reviewers had their issues? As you said, the expectations after so many years would be hard to live up to. It’s like going to a movie that you have waited years to see, and then it turns out to be “just OK”. As much as I love the Mansion, I always wished that it was more scary, but I know that they have to cater to the family audience. I personally like the moody, atmospheric first half of the ride the most!
JG, good idea on putting all of the comments from all seven posts together! When you think of how many restaurants and grocery stores (etc) manage to have places where they grind meat that DON’T have a blood and maggot problem, you realize that somebody really screwed up in that regard. However, I also kind of wonder if that’s just a story to use as an excuse to remove that facility so that they can justify contracting the meat supply to an outside vendor. Ditto the work being done outside of Disneyland’s Pirates ride; they removed two trees for being “diseased”. I’ll bet they weren’t diseased at all! Call me skeptical.
Aw, I’m sorry you were feeling rotten, and I’m glad today’s post helped to cheer you up! I think the Water Pageant looks neat, but one of the advantages to the Main Street Electrical Parade is that the floats were SO close, you could really get a good look at everything.
DrGoat, the MSEP is still my favorite Disneyland parade. I’ve liked others, but nothing has made me as happy as that one. Your mom had good taste! I’ve never heard about an MSEP certificate, I wonder what that looked like? I’ve heard about several bathrooms that people seemed to think were the best, partly because the general public didn’t seem to know about them. But I probably didn’t know about them either!
Mike, thanks for all of the additional info. I can put that myth about Mineral King out to pasture now.
ReplyDeleteMajor, nobody else seems to know about my favorite bathroom at Disneyland. It's tucked in behind the trees on the trail in back of [the current structure that vaguely resembles] Fort Wilderness on Tom Sawyer Island. I've never had to wait to use it. The only downside is there never seems to be any toilet paper.
Major, that certificate is stashed away somewhere along with the one we got for the opening of the Indiana Jones ride. I'll try to find it and send you a pic of it. The little lights from the parade that they sold are also up in some closet somewhere.
ReplyDeleteMajor, I think both the public and a few reviewers were under impressed- mainly for the reason you said, I think. People expected a Haunted Mansion to be SCARY!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm with you. The first half is by far my favorite.
The worst thing they ever did was at WDW where there put that "Interactive Queue" in. The cartoonish displays totally destroy any atmosphere the original imagineers were going for. I have often volunteered to drive the bulldozer for a "remodel..."
I'll echo Major's response to Mike's blood and maggots story: So uplifting! 8-\
ReplyDeleteThere's bloooood in the kitchen.
There's bloooood on the floor.
There's maaaaaggots in the hallway.
They're crawwwwlin' out the door.
Major, I'm not bothered by the Small World song, either. I like the way the tune is played in a different style to match the different countries. Mind you, it can become somewhat of an earworm. But I just find something else to distract me long enough to get the tune out of my... SQUIRREL!!!... Sorry, what was I saying?
Melissa, I'm glad the MSEP segment was cheering to you.
ReplyDeleteYou are going to love one of the next things I plan to share with the Major. That is, if he opts to post it.
Chuck, I think I have told the story about my uncle trying to get me to not go in the TSI restroom by the old fishing pier. The building is a run-down and cobwebby shanty on the outside and I think he was expecting the same on the inside like a typical privy, only to find the bright lights, polished white tile and shiny fittings of modern plumbing. "Some imagination eh?"
JG
JG, I don’t believe I’ve heard that story before. I love it!
ReplyDeleteChuck, I can see that you live by the same motto as I do: The world is my bathroom! I’m not saying it’s a popular sentiment, but we rebels don’t care about popularity.
ReplyDeleteDrGoat, oh, I would like to see a scan of the Indian Jones certificate too, if you can find it! Don’t drive yourself crazy looking for it though, I know how things like that can elude a search. And you kindly and generously sent me an MSEP lightbulb, so I finally have one in my collection, thanks to you!
Stu29573, I must have read about the Mansion not getting a great review, but as usual, I have forgotten. But I can tell you everything about what Kim Kardashian is up to, so I have that going for me! I’m sure you’ve heard the stories that the Mansion was supposedly too frightening when it first opened (somebody died of a heart attack!), so they had to go in and tone it down. It’s just a story, but it makes me want to see a TRULY scary version of that ride.
JB, did you make up that rhyming couplet? I usually write poems about dewdrops and daffodils, but blood and maggots is good too. I used to listen to my IASW album (the one narrated by Winston Hibler) over and over, and I think that there is a part of me that remembers the warm fuzzies I felt playing it on my little portable record player.
JG, oh man, I didn’t know you had another item “in the queue”. Funny about the bathroom on TSI… I guess we might have expected a board with a hole sawn in it (I was going to go into more detail, but my better nature won out). I’m glad to hear that it was a real bathroom! Tom Sawyer would not have known what to make of all that porcelain and chrome.
Chuck, I don’t think I’ve heard JG’s story before either.
Major; is funny regarding your feelings regarding attractions like Country Bear Jamboree and America Sings . My mom could never stand things where animals are dressed as or act like humans. She hated Country Bear Jamboree and America Sings . Ironically she loved Enchanted Tiki Room ….. but she is afraid of birds . Lol. I’m not sure as to why she doesn’t like animals acting like humans …. But I know she mentioned when she was little she would sometimes go to the barbershop with her dad and the shop always had a calendar with chimpanzees dressed as humans in comic situations ( sounds like the current Jungle Cruise) and the images scared her . My sister and I are surprised she likes the Tiki Room as she has many horror stories regarding birds. The earliest was when she was little a neighbor had a pet crow or raven. It would fly to the end of the street and wait for the school kids to come home from school and chase them! Lol!!!
ReplyDeleteIt could be worse : the Munster have a pet Raven that reads their mail ! Lol!!
Major, I have four more scan packages cued up. None are as big as this one, but I think they might be of interest.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely a sign of my rural roots, right into junior high I had nearby neighbors with “outdoor plumbing”. No need to worry about recycling that Sears catalog.
Contrast that with my friends from town living in a GE “Medallion” home only a few miles away.
“The future is here, it just isn’t evenly distributed.”
JG
Mike Cozart, I think that my problem with shows like the CBJ and America Sings is that the AA figures are the feature of the attraction, whereas in rides like “Pirates” and the Haunted Mansion, the AA figures enhance each scene that they are in. Some are right there for you to look at (like the Auctioneer Pirate), while others are more in the background, but they all help to enrich the situation. Funny that you mom just didn’t like animals acting or dressing like humans. So… not a fan of Lancelot Link! Birds, I guess I can see being scared of them. They are kind of weird. I had a pet canary when I was pretty young, so I did not share that particular phobia. Wasn’t the Munster’s crow named “Charlie”?
ReplyDeleteJG, I am intrigued to see what you have already scanned! Hopefully it has lots of nudity and violence, my favorite things. And as for my outdoor plumbing comment, I was going to say something about a bucket of corn cobs, but that even grossed ME out, and that’s saying something. I told the blog that I lived in a Medallion Home - it’s where my mom still lives - it’s a nice house!
Very late to the party but will add: the Hungry Bear was when on the 1st day of orientation we had lunch. The canoe guys ride past us yelling “escape now! It’s not too late! Run!” Those crazy guys…we all giggled not knowing what might be ahead. One theatre running for the bears is brutal. You miss that window…that is a lonnng time in that lobby with not much to keep your people occupied. When bears were in rehab- one at a time so it never went down…it was not fun. I have seen that show literally hundreds of times. You learned to enjoy the back row, and AC. It’s ironic in the blood bath, that Big Al sings about blood here blood there and a “great big puddle…of blood on the ground”. He left out maggots tho. Great reading today!2
ReplyDeleteMike, Ha! That crow-chasing story sounds sooo much like that scene outside the school house in "The Birds": (children singing)
ReplyDelete"She combed her hair but once a year,
Risselty rosselty, now now now,
With every rake she gave a tear,
Risselty rosselty, hey bombosity, nickety nackety,
Retrical quality, willaby wallaby now now now.", etc.
Major, "I guess I can see being scared of them. They are kind of weird." Well yeah. They used to be dinosaurs! In fact, swans are only two or three generations away from their velociraptor ancestors.
The opening bars of the MSEP music still make the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I miss it more than most things that we've lost over the years. I'm hoping to make it out to DL this fall - hopefully it will be running then.
ReplyDeleteBu, I bet you dozed off for a bit, or at least shut your eyes, to enjoy a few calm minutes in CBJ—before continuing your tours. At night, would your mind keep playing the shows and songs, in your head?
ReplyDeleteMSEP was my mom’s favorite, too.
Melissa, GDB always helps lift my spirits. I’m glad your day got better.
Interesting info/comments, as always.
Thank you, JG and Major! I’m looking forward to what else you have in store for us.
Major, one of my old neighbors had a workbench mounted gadget to shuck off the kernels from the cobs. He fed kernels to his chickens and set aside the cobs…
ReplyDeleteJust saying…
JB, we live near the “Birds” schoolhouse, it’s still there. The playground gym is gone though. We would point it out to the Scouts on the way to our campout spot.
Dean Finder, I hope so too, have a good trip.
JG
Oh, I forgot to ask:
ReplyDeleteAndrew, are you definitely going to DL this summer? We want a detailed trip report, with pictures, if you go.
Dean, please do a trip report, too. Would love to hear about your experiences. The more details, the better. Thanks.