Snoozles™
It feels like a Snoozly Sunday to me. This first slide is not bad, I am ordinarily a fan of photos of the old Astro Jets, but this one is too close, and there's too much motion blur. Admit it, it's true! I guess one could argue that the motion blur really gives a sense of... er... motion. But it's still not great.
Next is this "too dark" photo (from March 1963) of the Zambezi Miss as it sat at the dock awaiting a new load of passengers for the Jungle Cruise. "I'd better take a photo in case anybody asks me which boat I was on!", Marge thought to herself as she raised her camera.
13 comments:
Major-
In the 2nd image we get a close look at the 'fluorescent version of the jungle "kicker" lights'. Back on November 12th, we saw AN IMAGE with incandescent lights. That photo is ID'd as from 1974; but I would argue the photo is much older and pre-dates the 1963 image from today. (But what do I know-?)
Thanks, Major.
Au contraire, mon frère. (Bet you didn't know I can speak French... neither did I. I had to Google the spelling). I think this photo is wonderful! It looks like an artsy picture you'd see in a Disneyland guide book. I actually added it to my Disney Stuff folder; the first Snoozle to make it there!
Hmm, the Zambesi Miss photo looks a lot like a similar photo we saw here a month or so ago. OK, so this one qualifies as a genuine Snoozle (accept no substitutes!). But only because it's not very exciting and it's a little too dark; although the Boat is nicely lit. Poor Marge, she doesn't have this photo anymore to show which boat she was on. But thanks to Major P. we all get to see it! Maybe Marge will see it here too... if she's still around.
Nanook, is that the image I was thinking of? I thought it was more like today's image. Maybe there's another one?
Thanks for the 'keeper' and the Snoozle, Major.
The kid in the red rocket on the left, looks just like a childhood friend of mine.
Holy cats, TM! - he looks like a friend of mine, too!
TokyoMagic and Chuck, of course you recognize hm - I think that's JG!
I spy a yellow Skyway gondola and Screechy's wings, too.
Fun Snooze's, thank you, Major.
^ Snoozles. *sigh*
In the first picture, everybody is about to hit the "Release" button on their joy sticks and be flung into parts unknown!
Hey, it could happen...
In the second shot, one has to wonder if it would still be a Snoozle if the boat was the Zambezi HIT?
Ok, maybe one doesn't.
Snoozles(tm) : "Art". The Rocket Jets seem to be more 40's than 50's inspired: in my mind anyway...a great artistic shot: worthy of some artistic offline doctoring of types: the red and white checks on the stem are a specific choice: would be interesting to hear the story of who, why, etc. I miss the design of the original Jungle boats: it gave it a "jolly" feel...more than the more serious cammo of today. There is a mixed bag of who "likes" and who "doesn't like". I don't like. I suppose what exists now is better than purple or gold embellishments. I have a lot to say about the Jungle Cruise: all totally controversial, so I will keep my mouth closed. I like this Jungle costume. With the cravat, or whatever they were calling it back then. So jaunty for a jaunty tongue-in-cheek journey though the jungle of Anaheim. I'm not sure anything can be tongue-in-cheek anymore...also forget about double entendre's ...actually forget about everything that is remotely funny or "clutching pearls" worthy....oh...I wasn't going to say anything...so I will stop now. I am grateful that the Jungle Cruise still exists. How 'bout that? Thanks for the Sunday Snoozles(tm) Major.
Yup, that’s probably me on the Rocket Jets. Agree, these are more Buck Rogers than Tomorrowland. The whole ride feels more off-the-shelf than almost anything else in the old Park. Still fun.
The fluorescent lights are the JC lights I remember. Could it be possible that different boats had different lights at the same time?
Notice how clean the roof tarp is, no leaves, spiders or bird poop. Were the canopies scrubbed every night or replaced? “What was your job in Disneyland Dad?” “I scrubbed the JC boat canopies…”
Thanks Major, hope you are enjoying your holiday!
JG
Nanook, well I’ll be hornswoggled. Whatever that means. It sounds painful, that’s for sure. If I wasn’t so lazy, I’d dig through my box of slides to see if I messed up the date, but… you know how it is!
JB, I speak 12 languages fluently, but only one of them is an Earth language, so it doesn’t do me much good until my friends come to pick me up. Jungle Cruise photos tend to show up on Snoozle Sundays often, as you know, and the Zambesi Miss photo is very similar to the one that Nanook linked to. Or should I say, “To which Nanook linked”? I do sometimes screw up the dates somehow, so it is very possible that I messed up the one from earlier in the month.
TokyoMagic!, I’d recognize those freckles and the gap-toothed smile anywhere.
Chuck, I guess you have a friend who drives Formula 1 race cars, and you only see him as he drives past?
Lou and Sue, ha ha, I feel ashamed that I did not recognize JG. Oh yeah, I did not notice the Skyway gondola!
Lou and Sue, I knew what you meant.
Stu29573, now THAT would be a ride! And nobody should hit Zambezi, violence is never the answer.
Bu, the Rocket Jets do look a lot like the Buck Rogers-type of spacecraft. Which is half the charm, though not very futuristic. The Star Jets at WDW had that “flying wing” design that seems a lot more like “things to come”. I think many GDB readers prefer the old striped awnings on the Jungle Cruise boats. The current design isn’t bad, per se, but as you said, there was definitely a “jolly” feel to the old ones. No leeches or rust or weathering could possibly ruin those boats. Did the Jungle Cruise use naughty double-entendres? Maybe only a little naughty.
JG, ha ha, see my comment to Bu! Nobody said “Flash Gordon”, for some reason. I’ve seen the exact same ride at other amusement park, with only a slightly-different paint scheme. I know I’ve posted at least one on this blog, but it was so long ago I doubt I would ever find it. Your point about the clean roof tarps reminds me of my friend Mr. X, a former popcorn vendor, who looked at the current popcorn carts and was outraged at how filthy they were. Yuck. My holiday is over! It’s sort of nice to be home.
I'd guess the orange and white squares on the pylon were added to match the Purina logo sunshades elsewhere in Tomorrowland. I guess it looked very "test pilot" which would be appropriate for spaceflight at the time. I wonder if those Purina logo patches on uniforms in Star Wars were inspired by the ones in Tomorrowland.
Well...we called that item of the costume around our necks an "ascot". And I so hated it as it irritated my skin. I would put it in my pocket every time I got the chance and waited to hear that I needed to put it on. When the temps hit 90, the foreman would tell us and/or put a message on the small chalkboard which we'd see as we'd move the boats up from unlaod to load. I was so happy when Wardrobe ditched the item permanently.
Now...as for the lighting. I know that boats had florescents when I started in late '70. Whether the entire fleet was the same, I can't attest to that, but I suspect that was the case. All boats were eventually converted to the spots during my tenure in the 70s. That could have been during a JC rehab or, most likely, when a boat went into repair as a gradual process much like the conversion from gasoline to NG.
Good catch on how the canopies were cleaned. Nothing like a good pressure wash backstage now and then.
I wish the shot would have included a picture of the CM. I spent many a cruise on the Zambezi. One of my 'old' JC buddies, who was a scream, later had a few year's career as a DJ in Boston. He ended up a retired pastor. Never saw that one coming! KS
Dean Finder, I think you are right about the checkerboard pattern looking more “test pilot-y”. I have a few vintage pinback buttons from air races from the 1930s, and they almost always have a checkered flag on them.. When the Astro Jets first opened, that pylon had colored stripes on it. Those didn’t last long.
KS, I’m kind of surprised that employees who actually had to wear that uncomfortable ascot couldn’t let their opinions be known. Just thinking about it makes my neck itch! Somehow I think about the Jungle Cruise boats of my childhood and picture fluorescent lights, but admit that it is all very foggy now. I wish I had a good picture of a Jungle Cruise CM too!
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