Tomorrowland Beauties, September 1971
It's time for more wonderful photos from a 1971 set of images taken by Lou Perry, and shared with us by Sue B. These all feature the classic "New Tomorrowland" when it was thriving and vibrant! What could be better?
So: here we are, aboard a Peoplemover vehicle, slowly heading in the direction of the Plaza, with one of Mary Blair's much-loved tile murals to our left, and Adventure Thru Inner Space just past that. Is that one of the Columbia's topsails in the distance?
Attendance looks good, plenty of people, but not too crowded. I think it's so cool the way the Peoplemover track provided a shady corridor (with benches) for guests to sit and relax. Simple but effective. To our right, "America the Beautiful".
Here's the outside of The Character Shop, I like the way the sign's design matches up with the silver entry portals. Just imagine what treasures were for sale inside the store!
THANK YOU, Lou and Sue!
27 comments:
Major-
Tomorrowland 1971... Practically perfect in every way-!
Thanks to Lou and Sue.
Best. Tomorrowland. Ever.
Several souvenirs are identifiable in the Character Shop. That postcard rack is holding the It's A Small World and Pirates of the Caribbean pictorial souvenir books (bottom of the rack). And in the upper right part of the rack, we can see four of the pink Disneyland fold-out postcard booklets. Stu posted his mid to late 1970s version of this booklet, earlier this month:
http://stusattic.blogspot.com/2023/03/rando-postcard-palooza.html
Thank you Lou, Sue and Major!
Wow, Lou snapped this photo just as we're leaving the rotating PeopleMover platform. Our journey begins! I wonder what color our vehicle is? Going by the slight reflection on the railing, I'd say yellow (moonglow marigold, or whatever they called it).
I agree, Major, that must be the Columbia in the background. There's something else back there, too; behind the palm trees. I guess it's more of the Columbia. We can see the string of nautical flags connecting the two parts.
Mini skirt sighting in the second photo. Pink. Center of frame.
I hope we'll be seeing the rest of Lou's PeopleMover journey, it's like we're along for the ride. Thanks, Lou & Sue. And thank you, Major.
I agree, Nanook and Tokyo! This was definitely the best Tomorrowland.
Hey, Mike....are any of the Mary Blair mural tiles—that you own—showing up in today’s pictures?
Sue
“ I wonder what color our vehicle is?”
JB, Mike can probably answer your question. He probably owns this PeopleMover, too. :D
Sue
Always loved The Character Shop sign. I also remember a time when it was cracked and broken.
This was the best Tomorrowland of any Disney Park. Thanks, Major.
Forgot to say Thanks to Lou and Sue.
Thank you, Lou and Sue! Always enjoy your photos.
In the second picture, there’s another woman in a flowered minidress taking a picture of the woman in the pink minidress. That flowered pattern reminded me of one my mom had around that same time period that I think she made. That, in turn made me start looking for my family in these pictures, since my first visit was in July of 1971 and there’s often a delay between slide exposure and processing date. And then I remembered these were Lou’s photos and that he kept meticulous records of his Disneyland visits and that these dates are probably accurate, and I stopped looking.
I have always łoved that Bell System logo designed by Saul Bass, director of Phase IV. While it’s graphically pleasing in and of itself, I think a large part of my positive association has to do with the Disneyland connection. Same with the Monsanto ”M” and the GE logo.
Ken, ”…I also remember a time when it was cracked and broken…” I think that can be said about the whole of Tomorrowland circa 2001.
Thanks again, Lou & Sue! Looking forward to the rest of the ride!
The 1967-1975 PeopleMover color was “Fiesta Yellow”.
My PeopleMover car’s original color was “Bright Red” train #12 car B.
I think a big part of Lou's genius is that he took fantastic pictures of things that other people didn't bother to. These scenes are fantastic, but in an overall composition and atmospheric way. There's no Mickey Mouse juggling chainsaws here (ok, there's never any of that- but wouldn't it be cool?) but there's a "slice of life" that is pure treasure all these years later. We owe a huge debt to Lou! (and to Sue, too, of course!)
Give Lou and big hug for me Sue. Between his night shots earlier and these, it just doesn't get any better. Plus a nice view of Mary Blair's mural. Just about perfect. I want to just dive in.
Thanks Major and Lou and Sue. Best Tomorrowland, like everyone has expressed here. I remember the last thing I bought in the Character Shop. I grape juice pin from Up. Gave it to my nephew who really like the movie.
Everything said about that shop here is true.
Thank you Major and Lou and Sue.
Best. Tomorrow. Land. Ever.
Thank you Lou and Sue!
Major, I think you right, the Columbia is the Frontierland “weenie” in this view.
I agree about the Character Shop, but I do have a soft spot for the neon Mickey added later.
Chuck, same about the logos. There was a Santa Fe logo on a rail crossing near my home. Most of the track was SP, but a couple of spurs were ATSF, I got a good look at that sign every school morning when bus stopped. Seeing that familiar logo on a monorail was a tremendous leap into a positive future.
JG
Nanook, Tomorrowland 1971 even smelled good. Probably!
TokyoMagic!, I have a real fondness for those postcard booklets, and I didn’t notice them in the photo, so thanks for pointing them out! Yes, I commented on Stu’s booklet.
JB, funny, I always wonder what color the Peoplemover train is (if you can’t see it, obviously). Look at you, with the Sherlock Holmes observation! It probably IS yellow. The color is officially “Bluebonnet Margarine Yellow”. I think that is more Columbia behind the trees. Mini skirts? I have to avert my innocent eyes!
Sue, these are so fantastic! And there’s more to come, as you know.
Sue, I forget if he said for sure, but I think Mike said that his Peoplemover vehicle is yellow. So he might have this very one!
K. Martinez, these really do evoke a fantastic time in the park’s history, though I hate the thought of the Character Shop sign being cracked and broken years later.
Chuck, that’s too many minidresses! I think women should wear long skirts that hide their ankles. Just my opinion. I remember the flowered dress that your mom was wearing at Universal Studios, so great because it was so much “of the time” as they say. Or as I say, anyway. And yes, never question Lou! I’ve also loved that Bell System logo (and many Saul Bass logos). I’m sure the Disneyland connection has something to do with it… it’s the same with Monsanto. No matter how vile the company became later, I couldn’t help having a warm spot in my heart for them.
Mike Cozart, like Fiesta Ware plates??
Mike Cozart, ah, red, I misremembered which one yours was.
Stu29573, yeah, Lou really did take pictures of everything, just like Sue originally told me years ago. It’s amazing. PLUS the photos are nice, which is not always a guarantee. I take lots of photos that are generally crummy. Mickey juggling chainsaws… I love it!
DrGoat, I almost feel sorry for people who never got to experience Tomorrowland when it was like this. Sure, they love what’s there now, but they have no idea how optimistic and vibrant and COOL it was! Cute that you gave your nephew the grape soda pin from “UP”, I’ll bet he treasures it!
JG, miniskirts and weenies! I guess I’d better read the Bible for an hour today just in case. I agree, the neon Mickey from later was pretty great, I remember it vividly. The Santa Fe logo… I remember seeing one on a bridge over the 101 Freeway many years ago, and I always wanted to take it, but I’m not generally criminally minded. And then one day it disappeared. I missed my chance!
Major, I just went back to googel maps to see if i could find that old rail crossing by the farm.
The ATSF spur was abandoned at some point and I can't even see a scar from the right of way on the aerial photo. Not only did we not get a monorail, even the trains we had are gone. I feel really old.
I wish you had gotten that sign.
JG
Logos became synonymous with Disney connections...however today...I'm not sure I can tie any corporate sponsor to anything...which just reminds me of a Daffy Duck/Bugs cartoon where he is stomping on a large hill of treasure while saying: "GO GO GO...MINE MINE MINE!!!!" OK...maybe Coke...But Coke is it's own thing...and without Coke Terrace, Coke Corner is just a corner, along with other Coke products sold, but not branded. Seems like more would want to get in the action, but probably expensive and ROI may be sketchy, or without strong metrics. The Market House Starbucks is just another Starbucks, however the slowest Starbucks ever. Not, "presented by Starbucks". In the most perfect sponsor world, Starbucks should be located in Tomorrowland in a giant space, and be akin to the gigantic Reserve Starbucks cropping up in major International Markets. But Disneyland should have the most amazing, most innovative, most perfect representation of the brand...with even a ride to go with it. Starbucks in space. Hydroponic coffee fields on the roof, rain forests, conservation, roasting facilities, Disneyland grown and branded coffee. Come on people, wake up and smell the coffee! https://www.starbucksreserve.com/en-us/locations/esb I have walked past it, but never have time to go in. I am not a gigantic Starbucks fan in general, but I do enjoy it's icon-ick-ness, and it's association as an heritage American brand that leans towards an artisan approach, while providing to the masses. OK...where was I? Tomorrowland! Perfect! It used to be a place I would gravitate to. Unfortunately, now it is spurned. These photos evoke spaciousness, and freedom. Even when the line for Space Mountain snaked to the front of Tomorrowland when it opened (I think we waited literally hours...) It still did not feel claustrophobic, dark, dreary, caged, bewildering, bewitched....I can go on. These photos immediately took me back to that place after you leave the dock and the circular sidewalk and begin a very calming tour, I did not like Tron superspeed tunnel. It was noisy and had errant effects. It was not like the avalanche tunnel at Universal...which was amazing. Nothing was EVER the city of the future. The rest of PeopleMover was perfection. You can just see the edge of the proscenium of the Tomorrowland stage. For some reason, I thought it was set back further. The Character Shop sign is T-Shirt worthy, and I just may do that (to go along with my kidney boy shirt). A perfect view of the Mural, and you can see the signature tiles there on the bottom left side. Anyone have a photo of that? Thanks for the memories Lou and Sue!! Miniskirts forever! But NO long hair!
Thanks Major, and thanks Lou and Sue. Always nice subject selection from Lou.
Best Tomorrow Ever. BTW, when I saw the Character Shop photo I flashed on the smell of the air conditioning in that building. Brain neurons are funny.
Also, with the People Mover photos I could almost feel the bumpy sensation of the moving ramp going up to the loading platform. Almost positive that ramp has an official name, but it escapes me now.
Major, be thankful you’re not generally criminally minded. The guy that stole that sign was nabbed by the BNSF Railroad Police and is doing hard time making ballast (“big rocks into little rocks”) at the BNSF maximum security facility in East Leavenworth, Missouri. He’s eligible for parole in 2056.
These pictures are brought to you in stunning MuralVision 2000!
There are some really great, colorful, fun clothes on today's crowd. In a few years, fashion is going to go sander and then blander. By the 1980s the crowd is going to be mostly dressed in white with some pastel accents.
Woohoo for Lou and Sue and the Major, too! Tally-ho and yoo halloo!
I also remember a time when it was cracked and broken.
Ken, Marge Simpson has informed us that Main Street is also all cracked and broken.
LTL, I think the official name you are trying to think of is Speedramp®.
JG, every time I pass that bridge (that goes over the freeway in Ventura), I look for the Santa Fe sign, even though it has been gone for decades at this point. I wonder if it just wound up in a landfill somewhere! For some reason I remember it being unusual colors, the standard Santa Fe cross, and maybe some golden yellow? Maybe I’ve misremembered. If you find the rail crossing by the old farm, send it along!
Bu, I’ve always wondered if kids of a certain age feel the same way about Starbucks or FedEx due to the Disney connection. No idea, but it seems hard to believe. Although I admit that the FedEx Space Mountain sponsorship did give me at least a few warm fuzzies. Not being a coffee drinker, I have no fondness for Starbucks, and our friend Nanook is dismissive of their coffee! A Starbucks ride, hmmm. Could be interesting? I guess ANYTHING can be done well, but it takes creativity and money. The thing I like about Starbucks when I go with friends is finding a table (if we’re lucky) and just hanging out, talking, looking at our iPads, the general sedate vibe of the place. I don’t hate the Tomorrowland of today, but it is heartbreaking to think of how it used to be, and how mismanaged the land has been over the years. No Peoplemover? No Skyway? No Mary Blair tile murals? Yuck. I didn’t know about the mural’s signature tiles… now I’ll have to look for photos of those!
LTL, I knew people would love these. How could any true Disneyland fan feel anything but joy when looking at them? I wish I remembered the smell of the Character Shop, but no such luck. I’ve mentioned it before, but on some forum, people talked about how boring the Peoplemover must have been. They had no clue how great it was. The official name of that ramp was “Scott”. (Sorry).
Chuck, I feel as if making big rocks into smaller rocks would be one of my hidden talents. Also eating 50 hardboiled eggs. Prison is fun!
Melissa, I sure would have never pegged 1971 as a particularly fashionable time, and yet… these people look like they stepped out of Montgomery Ward catalogs. So neat and tidy! Where are the long-haired hippies??
TokyoMagic!, how about a Speedramp that really goes fast? Like 40 miles per hour? Just hang on to the t-shaped bar and hope you don’t fly off! Now THAT’S a Speedramp.
Major: the Mary Blair mural signature list the group of people who created the 1967 tile mural ( it wasn’t just Mary) one became art instructor at CAL ARTS !the signatures are on a shape that looks like 60’s goblet . It was located to the very low left of the AT&T side of the mural … I’m am not aware of there ever having been one on the Monsanto side. The signature - along with ( most) of the circle vision mural remains intact a except for metal Strap stringers bolted to the face of the mural to give something to the 1998 cover up something to hold on to. It was discovered during Star Tours construction that the murals could not be removed easily enough … the 1967 sealant was so strong many of the tiles cracked and crumbled - lots of the crumbled pieces were used in the mosaic tile patterns on the Disneyland Paris Adventureland Arabian city entry arch. The remaining Monsanto side is also still under the star tours mural … I doubt that the Disney company will ever do anything more to retrieve or save those murals …. But ideally WDI decided to leave them there for “protection” for saving another time. I also doubt that the imagineers ever expected that most of 1967 Tomorrowland’s bones would still be there in 1987 … 1997 …. 2017…… etc.
“As we approach the PeopleMover station you can see two colorful murals celebrating the boundless energy of children everywhere …. A reminder that TOMORROW will be built by our youth …” good luck with that.
The vehicles on the Starbucks ride get shakier and shakier as you go along, to simulate the coffee jitters.
The Hippie Era ended about the time of the invasion of Disneyland, Major. It really serailed with the Manson Family and was going downhill fast. Went from Flower Power to just ugly. Ah, but for a brief moment it was beautiful. I don't remember much of it though. LOL KS
@ TM and Major, thanks for refreshing my memory about the "Scott Paper Towels Speedramp"
@ MIKE-
There are mural names along the Monsanto side... LOOK HERE
Chuck, you're right...these images are definitely September 1971. I was with my dad on this trip and I vividly remember it. We were in California to visit my grandma (dad's mom) as she was terminally ill.
Lots of great suggestions, today! Major, I love your idea of a 40-mph Speedramp. That would provide great entertainment, to say the least.
I especially LOVE Melissa's idea for a Starbuck's ride:
"The vehicles on the Starbucks ride get shakier and shakier as you go along, to simulate the coffee jitters."
Major, I know you don't like coffee, but I suggest that the next time you go to a Starbucks, you try my favorite:
Caramel Ribbon Crunch - and ask for LOTS OF EXTRA crunchies to be added to the bottom and top of the drink! I say it like this to the baristas: "If you want a really big tip, please add LOTS OF EXTRA CRUNCHIES (etc.)....(it usually works)."
"A reminder that TOMORROW will be built by our youth …” good luck with that."
Mike's comment was priceless.
Thank you from my dad (and me) for all your nice comments. You folks are so kind!
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