Fresh Air! Town Square! July 1959
Here's a pair of July, 1959 views of Town Square. They turned blue, something that happens with some old slides. It's annoying! And for some reason (probably my own lack of skill) I find it much harder to restore the color of slides that have turned blue (as opposed to magenta).
Anyway, here's a look at Main Street Station as seen from the front of City Hall (or near there at least). There's a Horseless Carriage, and a Surrey - perhaps the people standing at the curb are waiting for a ride. Maybe if they showed a little leg they'd get better service. I always assume that the patriotic bunting is related to the 4th of July, but look how uncrowded it is!
Next is this view looking toward the Opera House, which, as far as I am aware, was not being used for anything in 1959 (it had served as a lumber mill early on, and I believe that silkscreened attraction posters were made there as well). the "Babes in Toyland" exhibit wouldn't be there until 1961, and the Opera House also served as the Mickey Mouse Club Headquarters in 1964/1964. Note that folding chairs are under the awning, presumably the Disneyland Band performed there.
9 comments:
Major-
I believe you are correct in that the Opera House stayed 'vacant to guests' until the Babes In Toyland' exhibit opened. I see Submarine Voyage and Monorail attraction posters in the poster cases flanking the opening to the 'house'.
I tried 'showing a little leg' once... Uh-Uh. Clearly I needed some advice from Claudette Colbert-!
Thanks, Major.
I dunno, Major. Seeing a guy's hairy leg probably wouldn't make the service any better. The color looks good enough, and sometimes good enough is good enough. The Mickey flag is flying over on the right side of the photo.
Those petunias are gonna get trampled into powder, without any little white wire fences to keep the barbarians out of the flower beds. I sorta expect to see Marty McFly and a DeLorean in this scene.
I guess the thing that sets these photos apart is the location of the photographer; we don't see these views from these angles very often. Thanks, Major.
Major : the attraction posters were done in the original sign shop in back not far from where BEAR COUNTRY JAMBOREE THEATER would be built. The mill that was located in the shell of the Opera house was long gone shortly after Disneyland opened . Also technically not many attraction posters were screened AT Disneyland … they were mostly done by vendors in the Los Angeles area and sent to Disneyland. The signshop had a wall of locker like cabinets rolls of attraction posters were kept in . Next to the sign shop was the mill shop ( relocated for GALAXYS edge) here obsolete posters were often torn into pieces and used as sawdust “dust pans” the paint shop - next to the sign shop also used obsolete attraction posters as painting masks and overspray shields. The sign shop kept attraction posters in those cabinets until 1987 when they were removing the cabinets to expand facility and engineering offices . The rolls and rolls of old attraction posters were sent to the Disney Gallery where they were sold to cast members and guests for $300.00 each . The very rare ones were mostly sold to employees , but the Disney Gallery was still selling some remaining original attraction posters till about 1996. At this time they still had stacks of 1967 AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL, ROCKET JETS, PEOPLEMOVER , ADVENTURE THRU INNER SPACE , ITS A SMALL WORLD , PRIMEVAL WORLD , DUMBO , DISNEYLAND HOTEL , SPACE STATION X-1. The last three titles were the least popular at the time. Today even these sell for thousands of dollars - a far cry from 300.00 each!
“Current” Attraction posters were kept in metal drawing files by the sign shop ( unframed - unmounted) in small quantities into the late 90’s WED/WDI would send replacements or new posters as needed and the BIG attraction posters inventory was kept in Glendale. Once a poster was mounted or framed and had been used it was inventoried by decorating. When Marty Sklar ( yes Marty) closed down the in-house silkscreening & print shop most of the posters that still had operating attractions were cleared out of WDI and sent to the respective parks. I know that Disneyland used many of these in the park - for example removing any of the 60’s posters out of Carnation Plaza Gardens and replacing them with newer poster from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s . HOWEVER I know that most of the attraction posters WDI sent down to Disneyland were kept by Disneyland based imagineers - like from SQS ( show quality standards)
“Goodbye City Life…”
Yes Major & JB, these views are interesting for their rarely-seen angles. Most folks seem to be looking outward upon entry and not back. Interesting too, only one trash can visible out of two Main Street pics, which usually a Happy Hunting Ground for cans.
Thanks for the Main Street shots today, Major.
JG
Mike, what criteria determined which posters were displayed in any particular location? I know we have seen that the locations flanking the Opera House entry seemed reserved for the latest and greatest, but were there rules for other locations? Who decided?
JG
Never realized how dominant the cornice/pediment on the Opera House is! And they are interesting views.
Love the little fellow in the red cowboy hat in the second photo helping along both of his parents. He's just to the right of the trash can.
Holy cow, Steve - you're right! I'd never noticed that, either.
Nanook, I’ve never understood why they made the frames (on the front of the Opera House) too small to hold the full posters, so they have to lop off some of the image. Painful!
JB, you just never know what’s going to stop a Horseless Carriage. Thomas Edison knew it, and now you do too. Not only is there a Mickey flag, but I believe that the middle flag is a Disneyland flag! I have no doubt that most people were respectful of that flower bed, but… you know… there’s always those jerks who ruin it for the rest of us.
Mike Cozart, it might be The E-Ticket Magazine where I saw the bit about the early print shop being in the Opera House. “Early” being the operative word, it might even mean “pre-opening”. I have no doubt that they were not produced there for long. The E-Ticket also had that tidbit about the posters being torn up and used as dustpans, which makes my skin crawl. I’ve heard that Wally Boag had a bathroom wallpapered with attraction posters - I’d love to see a photo of that, even if I don’t wish that on any poster. You’ve mentioned the low prices that the posters fetched in those early days, I know at least one of our Junior Gorillas got some very rare examples for a pittance. I got in on collecting those fairly early, but not THAT early. Still, I’m thrilled to have the ones I have, and doubt I’ll be able to buy any more at these prices.
Mike Cozart, I heard that at one point large quantities of obsolete posters were going to be discarded (maybe at Marty’s instruction), and a person known to be a poster aficionado “rescued” them from going to the dumpster. Thank goodness he did! I believe that some of the examples that I own were some of those rescued pieces.
JG, I wonder if they put out more trashcans on days when they expected bigger crowds? Probably not, but it’s possible. I could see them not wanting the cans right in front of the often-photographed train station and Opera House.
JG, good question!
Steve DeGaetano, yes, that cornice/pediment is quite impressive, it makes sense, a prosperous town would want their Opera House to make a statement.
Chuck, yes, that little family is very cute, with the buckaroo right in the middle!
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