A Terrific Trio
Today I am sharing the last of Mr. X's wonderful 1973 photos of Disneyland. There's been some great stuff! But as Charles Dickens observed, "What can you do?".
If this first one looks familiar, it's because it was part of a troika of images that X took as he stood in the parking lot, gazing toward the ticket booths and entry gates. I posted the other two way back in May of 2022. I love that parking lot tram, and of course the red Monorail zooming by. "Say, this Disneyland place is pretty cool!". Charles Dickens said that too.
The next two might look familiar as well. Both appeared on a January 2018 post, scanned when all I had was some photo prints. Thanks to the original negatives, you can really get a good look at this pirate's disgusting teeth. He's got some serious sun-ravaged skin - hasn't he heard of paba-free sunscreen and a nice moisturizer? And his hair, talk about "the frizzies". Some Wella Balsam shampoo and conditioner will help make his hair manageable, and it will bring back the bounce and shine that all pirates admire.
Next, we a better look (thanks to the negative again) at the Pirate Arcade and those cool customized games. Most pirates I know prefer pinball, but "times change", as a certain Chucky D. said. "Freebooter Shooter", "Cap'n Black", and "Pirates of West Hollywood" games, all good fun, and only a quarter!
While this is the last of the 1973 photos, I still have more from Mr. X!
18 comments:
Major-
That poor pirate - he really needs to go on a show where they provide 'makeovers', so he can look his best for all those 'winsome wenches'-!
The much-missed Pirate Arcade; so nice to glance at you again.
Ta-ta to 1973.
Thanks to Mr. X.
1) What a great photo! The colors! The movement! The busy-ness! The exclamation points! Seriously though, it really is nice. The best of the troika that you linked to.
2) The pirate is... hideous. Did he used to be in the Pirates ride? If so, why was he removed? Maybe the other pirates kicked him out because they couldn't stand his teeth. This is actually the Abraham Lincoln animatronic figure (note the beard and cheekbones), due for refurbishment.
3) When you put your dollar into the change machine, what do you change into? I like the rope borders on the game cabinets. The were featured in the April 1973 issue of Ropes and Pulleys Monthly.
Thanks for the photos, Major. I'm glad there are still more to come from Mr. X.
I also miss the Pirate Arcade. I mentioned this when you first posted these images (scans from prints), but the Fortune Red machine still exists, they just "updated" him, which of course means "ruined" him. I'll have to find my pic of him and share it.
In the meantime, I merged the first photo from this post, with the first photo from the other post you linked to (from May of 2022). The merge turned out okay....I think. There's just a slight bend in the Monorail track, so it belongs in a song from the monorail episode of The Simpsons ("Is there a chance the track could bend?")
1973 Disneyland Parking Lot & Main Gate Merge
Those pirate portraits in the Pirate Arcade were painted by artist Ed Kone - of the Haunted Mansion corridor of portraits fame. Several years ago the portraits were re-discovered in storage over at decorating and WDI returned only one ( the one in center of todays photo) there was no room for the others as merchandise took precedence.
Poor Fortune Red . He still survives but he is now in the arched pass through into the Royal Courtyard - he is basically now outside as he was vacated from the interior of the Pirate Arcade. Another issue with his operation today. Disneyland AP members can activate for a free fortune card . These are special and different from the regular set. The problem is .. when cash paying guests try and pay for their fortune after or WHILE a AP holder is nearby accessing the fortune from their Cel phone it throws off the machine and the guests loses their quarter and gets no fortune … and there’s always some annoying phone glued millennial hipster trying to get a free fortune from the AP ruining the experience for guests paying for their fortune with a 25 cent coin!
It’s interesting to see all the monorail pylon attraction posters are New Tomorrowland attraction posters! One of my earliest memories of Disneyland was being at a General Dynsmics company party when I was really small - and seeing a SKYWAY attraction poster … It was at night … and we were near Submarine Voyage … this had to be the very early 70’s …. So I’m assuming attraction posters were still being displayed at the Sub Voyage dock poster cases . Another memory of this trip was being in my dads arms or shoulder and seeing a PeopleMover train pass by overhead and asking “ what’s that!!??” And my dad saying “it’s The PeopleMover! “…. I remember thinking it was called that because I thought the passengers inside were pushing the cars along with their feet : like how the Flintstones propel their cars ….. I assumed it was called The PeopleMover because the people were making it move!
Here's what Fortune Red looks like now, along with some vintage fortune cards from the 70s & 80s, and one "newer" one (scroll past the Pirates of the Caribbean postcards for the images of Fortune Red):
Fortune Red and the Pirate Arcade
@ MIKE-
“it’s The PeopleMover!“ I remember thinking it was called that because I thought the passengers inside were pushing the cars along with their feet: like how the Flintstones propel their cars…
Don't give them any ideas... just think how much money they can save on electricity; and all that expelled [guest] energy will translate into hungry appetites = more $$$'s-!
Wow, you know photo 1 would be a great day!
Thanks for the links, Tokyo. I’ll be back later.
JG
Fifty years ago today...or so I tell myself. The PL picture as merged just warms my heart. Colors are so crisp and vibrant. CMs hovering around one of the PL vehicles. I can tell you they had a lot of fun with those scooters. And moving parking lot cones to direct traffic was a pre-planned chess match. It worked...brilliantly. I remember this Pirate giving out fortunes. He did look a bit scary...and that was the charm of it. Would it be a good...or bad...fortune? He looked like he could deliver either with authority! Miss that arcade. It was just to right as you exited Pirates...which I did many times on my way to get some sunlight after being bumped in rotation from Unload for a break or lunch. Other times...it was a step across one of the boats at the bow to the lLoad side and out the service door there...provided you informed Dispatch in the Tower first with a hand signal and acknowledgement! KS
Nanook, I can’t wait for the “big reveal” when the pirate walks out and is transformed!
JB, it’s funny, somehow that first photo makes the parking lot look like the coolest thing. The parking lot. A pretty neat trick! I’m OK with the Pirate Arcade buccaneer being disgusting, after all, he’s not a nice guy. He once stole a pile of hats! I’d sure love to know what happened to all of those customized arcade games, and wish that we had lots of information about each one. Maybe in the Imagineering archives? I’ll just bop on over there and ask!
TokyoMagic!, I hope the updated Fortune Red pirate now wears a backwards baseball cap and holds a skateboard. So radical! Hey, that photomerge worked great! Thanks for doing it!
Mike Cozart, you don’t mean Ed “Ice Cream” Kone, do you?? ;-) Crazy that the paintings got “lost” in the first place. What happened to the others, did they wind up in the archives? I always assume that when we see a painting in Disneyland that it is an inkjet copy (since those can look so good), they wouldn’t risk damage done to a rare original. I’m also amazed that they have the technology to manage to give AP holders unique Fortune Red cards. I once had a chance to buy a whole set of the old cards, but was ignorant, and didn’t get that excited. Then a set sold for a fortune at a Van Eaton auction. D’OH. Maybe it was the same set? I forget. I can’t blame the guests too much re: phones… Disneyland makes it so that you HAVE to use your phone all day long, whether you want to or not. That was my experience the last two times I’ve gone. And of course anyone would want to take pictures, you can’t fault them for that. I love your early memories, such as the posters, which made an impact on me without me even really being aware of it. I’ve mentioned before how I first saw some in a Howard Lowery auction, and it brought back a flood of memories. “Oh man, I would love to have one of those!”. I wish I could remember the first time I saw a Peoplemover… but I don’t.
TokyoMagic!, it’s not as bad as I’d expected, but it’s still not great. Thanks for finding the photos!
Nanook, your comment made me think of the humble paddle boats that one can rent at so many parks. What a fun idea! Then you wind up in the middle of a lake and realize that you are TIRED. And you have to get all the way back to the dock. That’s my experience anyway!
JG, doesn’t that first pic just make you wish you could step into it and see the whole park as it was??
KS, they did a great job of adding color to a parking lot scene, which could easily be pretty drab. I’m not surprised that moving the cones around the parking lot to direct cars in certain directions is an art form. I’ve watched cast members re-jiggering the stanchions in ride queues to reroute the crowds, and it’s kind of fascinating. Like 4D chess! ;-) I love the thought that you’d been in POC’s “perpetual night” so long that you had to get some sunlight on you! A detail that I would have never considered.
Those special fortune cards - I think there’s 3 series of 4 cards each are for the DISNEYLAND MOBILE PHONE AP ( not annual passholders) …. Somehow when people active it or log in or whatever they have to do on their phone it disrupts the dispensing cycle program for the coin payment and it takes the coin but doesn’t dispense the card.
Walt Disney World had a ANNE BONNY Fortune figure and machine … Sam McKim did the fortune card art for both her and Fortune Red) I’ve seen the Florida version of the cards but never the actual machine - it was around very long in Florida.
The fortune red cards were all revised a few years ago … removed were the mention of attractions ( Rainbow Caverns … and others used to be mentioned) most of the fortunes are the same but without the attraction call outs.
I don’t think the Pirate Arcade portraits were lost …. They had been removed at some point when the location became an all merchandise location from THE PIRATE ARCADE to PIECES OF EIGHT . All the Sam McKim Arcade games ( except fortune red) were removed too. At some point in the early 2000’s the shop had a big rehab and one portrait was taken out of storage and put back on display.
For all you Disneyland historians : The Pieces of Eight Shop was the LAST location you could purchase cigarettes inside Disneyland proper. They were kept hidden behind the counter and guests had to ask for them…. The banning of smoking at Disneyland is a change from the past I do welcome!!
Anne Bonny Fortune telling machine was NOT around for very long at Walt Disney World … making those cards pretty rare.
Still have my personalized doubloon (actually, lost it for several decades until my younger brother discovered it in a junk drawer when moving). The stamping machine was somewhat similar to the model you'd find in bus stations and the like, where you'd pull a big lever for each letter and get a circular Good Luck Charm.
As a cranky old guy I'm always kind of amazed to see people paying to play generic arcade games inside a theme park -- it's up there with buying ubiquitous franchise fast food at a markup, or lining up for the Starbucks coffee you find every fifty feet in the outside world.
You would think that Disney would lean even more into themed, customized games, or that some game manufacturer would offer customizing for theme parks and resorts. I recall hearing they set up working Felix Fixit machines to promote "Wreck It Ralph".
Excuse me; have to go yell at kids on lawn.
JB, that change machine is like all those garbage cans telling me to waste paper.
The line of bright orange traffic cones kicks the whole first picture up a notch. The bright lines of the Monorail and parking tram are cool in themselves, but when you add the third line it adds another level of vroom.
Today's Vintage Fashion Award goes to the lady in #1 with the patchwork shorts, black knee socks, and babushka. It's like she was in the middle of doing the laundry and said, "Forget it, let's go to Disneyland instead."
"Pirate Arrrrrcade," surely?
There is nothing wrong with that Main Entrance and it did not have to change one single bit! Today's world tends to be on the "horsey" side: horsey ticket booths (why are these even needed anymore?) horsey gate, horsey everything....just big and horsey. There is a delicate to the vintage Disneyland Gate. You could actually see where you were going. I understand change to suit a greater guest populous, but there are other ways to achieve this. Pirate Red is in bad shape. Apparently, purposefully. I will be having nightmares tonight. Looks like a bad case of scurvy and rum- throw in some kind of pox too. I am enjoying the artwork in the arcade, but the pirate on the right: the scale seems someone stilted...like the head and arms and body and face all were added at different times by different people. It's still awesome, but look closely. Also nightmare inducing. I have to say I really enjoyed the Pirate Arcade but thought it was a bit crowded being at the exit of the Pirates of the Caribbean. I went in, got my pieces of eight, and left. The arcade games were always packed with those darn kids. Wait! I was a darn kid too! I went over to Bear Country and flew the flying Elmer or Elmo...a Pepperidges Ghost game. Change machines: do they exist anymore? If they do, does the cash have to be perfectly mint, no wrinkles, no smudges, no nothing on them perfect bills? The only thing change machines remind me of are laundromats. Laundromats are never fun. When I finally got a washer and dryer of my own I think it was one of the most liberating experiences of freedom and serenity I haven't felt since. On that happy note, thanks Mr. X!
Mike Cozart, thanks as always for all the great info! I knew that the Fortune Red cards had been redone a while ago, and that they were much more bland, I am not particularly interested in them. Likewise I’m not interested in the examples that are just for AP holders. Sour grapes? Maybe. I guess I thought that the Pirate Arcade portraits were lost because they were subsequently “found”, if you know what I mean. I’m sure there were a few people who must have known where they were, but it’s still amazing. I sure miss the days when we still had items with Sam McKim’s great artwork!!
Mike Cozart, interesting!
DBenson, I have a couple of those doubloons that you stamped in that fascinating machine. The things I stamped on them were real dumb, I wish I’d been funnier or more creative. I think I bought one and didn’t stamp anything on it, just because. I agree with you about people playing arcade games at Disneyland. Why?? I feel the same way about people who played checkers in the Market House. It’s sort of cute and charming, but time’s a-wasting! You can play checkers any day. I guess I’m a cranky old guy too.
Melissa, you said it, “another level of vroom” for sure! There appears to be a lot of fun fashion, but still surprisingly neat and tidy, for the most part. Not the ripped and dirty stuff you might expect from the counter-culture era.
Bu, as we have all learned, a lot of times things are changed just for change’s sake, not because there was anything wrong with the way it was before. Now I wonder if those ticket booths will ever be removed? Can anyone buy a ticket there? I just assume everyone bought tickets online. While I am glad to see the artwork in the arcade, I can’t say that Ed Kone was of the same caliber as Marc Davis. Slightly cartoony, weird proportions… the rendering is not that strong. I’m not sure if Mr. Kone was also responsible for the stretching portraits, but I’ve seen the Marc Davis originals (probably on the “Long Forgotten” blog), and the copies are much weaker and less interesting. Just copy what Marc did, OK?! Hey, I was just looking at a certain picture with a certain somebody playing the “Flying Gomer” game! I assume you can still get change at laundromats, though I always come prepared on the sad times that I need to use a laundromat.
Major: the haunted mansion stretching portraits were designed by Marc Davis …. The prop stretch portraits used in the mansion were first done by WED imagineer Elmer Plummer . They were more refined portrait versions of Marc’s concepts , but still rather cartoonish looking . In the 70’s it was decided to redo them and WED’s concept painter Clem Hall painted new versions done to resemble more 19th Century style paintings - Clem was a studio artist but was a highly trained formal portrait artist before he left England and came to Hollywood. The Clem Hall paintings are what have been used up till today . The masters were covered on plastic and gridded out - MAPO set painters would hand paint them in quantities as needed then sent to DL, WDW and Tokyo DL. For most of the time the scenic painters duplicated the Clem
hall masters very closely, but in the 90’s the look changed a bit. Today digital prints are made from the Clem Hall versions.
2 of the 1971 versions of the mansion stretch portraits survived at Walt Disney World , as the cartoonish looking Elmer Plummer versions were replaced with the more realistic Clem Hall portraits two of the older ones were framed and displayed in a castmember passageway inside the mansion. In the 90’s they were sent back to WDI art collections for preservation and copies were sent back for the employer walls.
At first, my heart sunk when I read “last of Mr. X’s...”—but then realized there will be more images from other years—still to see on GDB. Whew!
The first one is postcard-worthy...and even better with TM’s photoshop work—a panoramic postcard!
Love all the comments today.
Thanks, Mr. X and Major.
Sue
Great comments today, everyone. Good to come back from a long day to read.
Thanks all!
JG
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