Sunday, September 04, 2022

Leftuggies from April 1959

Here is a pair of less-than-exciting photos for your Snoozer Sunday, starting with this closeup of one of the signs affixed to a flagpole along the "Avenue of Flags" - one of 48 flags (one for each State!) that flanked a walkway in Tomorrowland. I honestly don't know if Alaska and Hawaii were ever added to the original 48 flags. I'd say it is a safe bet that whoever took this photo was visiting from Colorado. The crane behind the House of the Future might have something to do with construction of the Matterhorn or Sub Lagoon.


It's a shame this next one is not entirely in focus, because I like the long-lens shot of a brave guide helping to navigate an "Indian War Canoe" down the Rivers of America. Watch out for 20 foot-long snapping turtles!


22 comments:

Nanook said...

Major-
That image of the Indian War Canoe is still pretty exciting in spite of it being a bit on the soft side. The surface of The Rivers of America appear a bit on the choppy side at the moment - there must be excessive snapping turtle activity-! Paddle safely.

Thanks, Major.

JB said...

That blurry person in front of the HotF is looking up at something; presumably the not-yet-open Matterhorn. Like you said, Major, the crane must have some to do with the Mountain. Probably installing the basketball hoop. It seems too far away for the Sub Lagoon?

I guess this photo is too early for any of our former Cast Members to recognize this Canoer.
Now we have to add 20-foot-long snapping turtles to our long list of Disneyland hazards. They sound worse than the Animatronic Exploding Ducks! The snapping turtles would eat the swans for breakfast.

Thanks for the vintage goodness, Major.

Anonymous said...

Major, tsk tsk. Again, you pick out ‘snoozers’ that aren’t snoozers*. These are both unique shots, which makes them great to us Jr. Gorillas. I love ‘em both.

* True ‘snoozers’ are images that are so blurry—we can’t recognize anything in them. But, if they have lots of pretty blurry colors, they still don’t qualify as snoozers.

Thanks, Major.

—Sue

K. Martinez said...

That second photo has gotten me thinking that Bruce, the mechanical shark from "Jaws" would make a great addition to the Rivers of America.

Thanks, Major.

TokyoMagic! said...

Funny, I just watched the 1972 horror film, Frogs, last night on "Svengoolie." In one scene, Lynn Borden gets stuck in the mud on the bank of a river, and a large snapping turtle comes along and kills her. Fortunately by the film's end, Joan Van Ark and Sam Elliot survive the repeated attacks by nature.

Major Pepperidge said...

Nanook, I guess I could be charitable and say that the soft-focus gives that second photo a dreamy quality. But I still wish it was sharper! I always watch out for snapping turtles, even at the local pool.

JB, you might be right, that fellow could very well be looking at the nearly-completed Matterhorn. There was a famous billboard in Tomorrowland that told folks what the mountain was going to be, but I wonder how many people didn’t see that billboard? What did they think the mountain was for? I’d be amazed if anybody could ID that canoe cast member, but stranger things have happened! Thinking about it now, it would be kind of cool if they added a big animatronic snapping turtle to the banks of the river.

Sue, I don’t think these are the worst photos I’ve ever posted! Damning with faint praise? That first one is clear enough, just not super interesting. But a *little* interesting! Like I said to Nanook, I still wish photo #2 wasn’t so blurry.

K. Martinez, that would be awesome! Supposedly bull sharks can swim up the Mississippi hundreds of miles, and they have been known to attack people. I can hear the clanking and hissing of the mechanics of the shark already!

TokyoMagic!, whoa, I’ve never seen “Frogs”, but remember an issue of “Famous Monsters of Filmland” with the poster image on the cover, I was intrigued! But back then, if you didn’t see a movie in the theater, who knew when you would ever have a chance to see it elsewhere? Joan Van Ark, ha ha; she had her moment!

Anonymous said...

TM! I bet there were swans in it, too!

—Sue

TokyoMagic! said...

Major, I remember Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine! My brother used to buy it pretty regularly. As many things as Joan Van Ark did throughout her career, I think the one thing everyone will remember her the most for, is Temperatures Rising.

Ray Milland was also in Frogs, but he only had one head in this film.

Another funny coincidence is, while going through my vintage TV Guide collection recently for my current post, I found this ad for Frogs. It's a mini version of the film's poster:

"Frogs" Advertisement - 1981 TV Guide

Sue, there were some attacking birds (cranes?) near the end of the film, but they might have been swans in disguise!

Bu said...

Joan Van Ark...although slightly famous on Dallas...even MORE famous on Knotts Landing...which in retrospect would have been slightly more interesting to this group if Knotts Landing was a housing tract across the street from a famous berry farm. They could have woven so many story lines ...berry growing...and kind of a Falcon Crest/agriculture thing to it. What I liked about not-so-nice Jane Wyman in the story line of Falcon Crest is that the grapes and the land always came first no matter what. It gave the character some humanity. The funniest line ever, I think that I've ever heard on TV...is when her character got locked up in a looney bin, and one of the super- loonies in her pajamas came over to her in a panic saying "MY APPLE IS MISSING"...and Angela Channing turns away and says dryly: "Well, that's an understatement". Hawaii and Alaska joining the US doesn't seem to be connected to too much pomp and circumstance. Where's the commemorative merchandise? The plush? Colorado...spent a year there. Enough said. House of Future: this would still be relevant. Cranes: always relevant. I've rented more than a few in my day. People think that closing a street and all the stuff that goes with a crane is "hell on wheels"....it's actually an easy thing. Just takes some cash- actually not a huge amount for what you are getting. I was flying 100 year old olive trees from Fresno over Houston to a roof top garden. It's a little nerve wracking...but crane people know what they are doing. My thought at the time: "hope they survive...or else get another crane and take them down.... (they lived.) More to tell on next post.

JG said...

For some photos, it’s the details that count. These two show things rarely spotted any other way.

Photo 1, for instance, I have zero memory of these signs, and don’t recall ever seeing them before. I’m sure that crane is straining the frogs out of the Sub Lagoon.

Photo 2 is quite good in my book, capturing the exertion and exhilaration of speeding that canoe across the River, just before the hydrofoil kicks in. I will hazard that it was taken from Tom Sawyer’s Island since the direction of travel is wrong for the Frontierland shore. Undoubtedly frogs in that bank vegetation.

I’ve never seen “Frogs”, was it Good Bad, or Bad Bad? Seems like there was a low budget horror film for every kind of vermin, now including Ray Milland. Sad to see him reduced to those kinds of films, but they probably paid the rent. “Dial A for Amphibian”, “Dial B for Batrachian”, “Dial C for Caecilian”… …he could have made a whole series!

JG

Melissa said...

I can' believe they came right out and admitted to being the 38th state! That takes a lot of nerve!

My one degree of separation was meeting David Selby at a Dark Shadows convention. He was utterly charming. He laughed at my stupid joke and gave me a big bear hug. He smelled wonderful.

Bu said...

Ok. The time has come: I went "THERE" last week. Yes. Cathartic. Odd. Things have changed. Some things have not. I may be forever changed, or forever damaged, or a combo platter. At a high level: yes...there is TRE...but not for everything...there are a few snippets of '55, '59, '65, '75 etc etc....it was fun to be on a scavenger hunt for ANYTHING of the past. There are things like the cabinetry in the Magic Shop, elements in the Fire House, you can see construction "ghosts"...things that changed, but the footprints of the past are there. Very old trees. If a talented painter came in and everything "went back to ONE"...a lot of TRE would reverse. Some very strange things were changed: like the marquee of the Main St. Cinema. Of all the things, that was the thing? The interior is actually very well preserved. I was the only one who entered. I was in there for a while...probably 15 minutes. No one else came in. I see this part of 1955 evaporating soon. The Penny Arcade is not a penny arcade- I think this has been discussed. Very surprisingly, the only thing in there was the electric shock machine (?) amongst all of the plush and other generic souvie stuff. Note: that after taking numerous photos of odd things....like pavement curbs, close ups of paint finishes, and other things that I will actually use for my "real job", Security got nervous and started following me. Eventually in Tomorrowland I was approached with "may I ask exactly what you are doing?". They followed me for a while afterwards, and clearly there was probably a "51/50" call on the radios, as I was tracked by different people all the way back to Main Street. I had to connect to work, and the battery in my phone was dead. I remember that at the back of the Tour Guide Garden there is an outlet. No one goes in this area. It was a perfect quiet spot, with following up with some work things, having a cup of coffee (Disneyland, not Starbucks...was actually really good!) I was tempted to go back to the hotel, get my laptop, and just hang out there. I was perfectly fine there, but Security did follow me in, then looked at me and then went about their business. Guess they just figured out after they listened to my phone call I was just a guy on business, who happened into Disneyland. Which...was what happened... Headlines of the day: Sleeping Beauty Castle: Beyond Tre. Plaza Inn: Still a lovely place, although I prefer the yellow to the now "pink". Frontierland: surprisingly intact. New Orleans Square riverfront: TRE. Adventureland: you can still see the bones of the past: some new gags on the JC. New Orleans Square: very pretty still. Frontierland DLRR station: YES! Tomorrowland: Embarrassing- however MANY small snippets of '59 and '67- but you have to dig! Tom Sawyer Island: actually....kind of liked the rural-ness of it! Not '59, and generally NOTHING to do- even for kids....but I liked the dirt and the lovely trees. Bear Country: too far. The Star Wars thing: I think this may be a post unto itself. I actually didn't go as I have no desire, but the headline on the Disneyland APP was the almost rapid fire insistence to get a $20 lighting lane for this ride/experience/I dunno "thing". It is very nicely hidden, or for folks like us who don't acknowledge it's existence, you can actually pretend it's not there...and it isn't in your face at all. I wanted to drive to the last orange grove in Anaheim, but ran out of time, and more so...ran out of steam. More for later. The visit did spark my curiosity for Orlando where I'll be in a few weeks....

TokyoMagic! said...

Bu, I only watched the last couple seasons of Falcon Crest, but I was a huge Knots Landing fan, and watched it through all 14 of it's seasons. I was joking about Joan Van Ark being best known for Temperatures Rising. She was only in the first season, and was replaced by Paul Lynde for the second and final season of the retooled and renamed show, The New Temperatures Rising. Funny that you bring up Knott's Berry Farm, because in 1983 when Camp Snoopy opened, there was a sign on the loading dock of the Walter K. Steamboat which read, "Knott's Landing." Someone was trying to be cute and clever. The steamboat ride was ripped out in 2006 (because TRE) and the sign turned up at the Knott's auction in 2017. It sold for $1,075!

JG, the film is kind of "Bad Bad." Sam Elliot, Joan Van Ark and Ray Milland are decent in it, but the other actors aren't that great and the writing is even worse It's odd that it was called "Frogs" since people in the film are attacked by snakes, gila monsters, tarantulas, leeches, snapping turtles, and alligators, but they are never actually attacked by the frogs.

TokyoMagic! said...

Bu, that's odd that you got approached by security for taking photos. Whatever year that was that they added the extra little "lip" or "ledge" on top of Space Mountain, I was at the park and taking a few pics of the construction workers on top of the structure. Suddenly, a female "plain clothes" cast member came up to me and asked me what I was taking pictures of. I wanted to say, "That is NONE of your business!" But since I didn't want to be kicked out of the park, I just used a tone with her that made it seem like it was the stupidest question in the world, and said that I was taking a picture of the men walking around on top of Space Mountain. I should have told her that I worked for Six Flags and that we were planning on "duplicating" Space Mountain in all of our parks, and we needed photos of it.

Anonymous said...

Bu, I enjoyed hearing about your DL experience. Please share more. I wish I was there with you! Am looking forward to hearing about your WDW experience, when you go. Btw, regarding your Main Street Cinema marquee comment—I recall Mike Cozart sharing his story about it. He almost OWNED that, TOO. (Mike, if you’re still there, please share it, again. It’s a great story.)

—Sue

TokyoMagic! said...

Bu, even though you didn't go into Wookie World, did you ride the Mark Twain or the DL R.R., to see how they truncated both the Rivers of America and the back end of Tom Sawyer Island (and also destroyed the berm along with it's 50-60 year-old trees)?

Anonymous said...

Hahaha, TM! You ARE a trouble maker. It’s funny how DL security gets so bent out of shape when folks (you and Bu and others) are taking pictures...as if that’s abnormal behavior there. They should’ve thrown my dad in jail, by now, with ‘that thinking.’

—Sue

Major Pepperidge said...

OH my gosh, I was just about to head out the door and see that there are SO many more comments! I always love the conversations, but I'm going to be gone all day. Sorry about that! I will check in either very late tonight, or else I'll have to wait until tomorrow. Thanks everybody!

Bu said...

TM: I did ride the DLRR...and I was very impressed with the Primeval World and the Grand Canyon...these are amazing things, and for them to hold up from 1964 is even more amazing. The fog in the swamp is especially appealing to me :) The other RR things: LOOVEE that Frontierland Station, and it's defunct bathrooms on the other side of the tracks. They could shoot a movie here and it would be completely believable. The trip "round the river" was a bit disconcerting...not much to really take in...and on the back side of Star Wars...but I was thankful that it didn't go through it to subject me to it. The stop at Fantasyland, although old, is new to me, and kind of annoying...can't you just walk from Tomorrowland? "Hideopolis" is as hideous as ever. It was the site of an important civil rights thing though...but I liked it better as an open field of grass. The Tomorrowland station is "50's tastic, and I took a lot of photos of it. There's also a little wooden hut there in Tomorrowland that is ancient-ish. Looks like a little troll house, but it does something Train-related. I did not go on the Mark Twain, even though it would have been simple- it was crowded, but not oppressive. I saw they put new railings on the front where the chain used to be, and it is completely out of scale. It perturbed me so much, I couldn't bear it. By that time of the day, on the hot west side, I was kind of pooped. Perhaps for next time. I answered the Security Guard with "I gave 12 years to this property as an employee" "I may even be partially responsible for the longevity of the park, as I was on a steering committee to engage with local politicians to encourage certain variances that had to to with the environment, new roads and new ordinances before the expansions of the 1990's." "I am taking photos of certain parts of the park that were once meaningful to others, and meaningful to me" "I understand that this may seem odd to you or others as I am traveling alone." "would you like to see the photos I have taken thus far? Most of them are of trees. Do you know that that tree there is called a "paper birch tree", because of how the bark comes off in sheets like paper?" He declined my offer to show him photos or engage with me anymore after that verbally. After a very long week of work I did not have the effort to give anything else but "eccentric middle age dude". I suppose if I was younger, or had the fight I would have answered "none of your business", but I also did not want to get "fired" or "on the list"....I thought it was odd they take a photo of you at the entrance. Enough said. I did have a very nice day, but it was rather exhausting. I don't know how people would or could do three days of that. As a side note, staying at the Disneyland Hotel although expensive, is so convenient for someone like me with little patience. It was worth the extra as normally I would have stayed at a business hotel like the JW Marriott or similar.

Bu said...

More...Canoes...I wanted to ride...however...they must operate for just a few hours of the day...and must close down early because of "that show". The mechanics of that show are obnoxious, but I'm not sure as a guest who's never seen Tom Sawyer Island in it's prime would notice. The canoes didn't seem to have the usual jocular types as front and rear rudders. An overall note is that the employees, although very nice, did not seem to convey the "NASA" type of the past. I suppose if the "land" supports certain types, like handlebar mustaches, etc. I would be more for it...but long hair, and beards on guys that should not have beards because they are not old enough to grow one....just looks "non NASA" to me. Just my POV. I don't need Versace models/Barbies/Kens etc. but I prefer a more tailored look. I chatted with a few Tour Guides and pointed out the spot where I would line everyone up and check nails, makeup, hair, costume, etc. Two of them LOVED that I did that, and one was completely horrified. Times have changed. I suppose if you have to inspect and correct you've hired the wrong people. That's one way of looking at it. It was odd to see costumes that were not pressed correctly, and costumes that did not really look like a costume at all and more just...trousers/shirt. Food service people seemed to be "done" for the Summer, and towards the end of August...I soooooo get it. It was like "will it ever end?" I suppose now it never does end. BTW: I got a DL text message as I was getting to "the end of my normal operating day" saying that due to unforeseen circumstances, Fantasmic has been cancelled. (?) I so wanted to go back at night and stroll along the river without all of the crazy, but my Air Conditioned room beckoned me to come back. For next time. I wondered why some guy asked me on the TSI raft if I was one of the techs on the show. I dress all in black, all of the time. I said "huh". He said "since you are all in black I thought you worked on the show." I said semi-kiddingly "no...I am from NYC...we all wear black." He laughed...and then I got the text that the show was "done". He was an DL electrician back in the day, so we swapped a few war stories. Then he said "my wife want's passes this year for her and the kids!" I said "hope your second mortgage is worth it..." he said..."no...college fund...if they want this stuff, they can pay for their own college" I asked him if he was getting forced into a pass of his own, he replied with an "ugh"..."happy wife, happy life"...I told him he should be grateful that she's only asking for passes and not a Club 33 membership....more laughs. That was my only interaction with a guest and of course, it was an ex-employee.

DrGoat said...

Got really busy this morning with the Farmer's Market and errands. Got a text from Sue at 11:48am and just saw it now. It s said to be sure to check comments today. Enjoyed them all.
Bu, captivating to say the least. Was interested in your recent visit and insight into your thoughts about the park. Always sorry to hear of the Penny Arcade. Sad. Good reading, thanks.
Frogs was/is bad bad. Ray Milland really did a few like that around then. I recall X, The Man with the X-Ray Eyes being the one that sticks out in my mind.
Thanks Major, Like Sue said, your snoozers aren't that at all. Low key but they fit the bill. Love any canoe pic anyway.
Thanks one and all.

Nanook said...

@ Bu-
An 'insiders' perspective [with a critical eye] is certainly most-welcome. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.