Fans of vintage Disneyland paper items are familiar with today's brochures, a 1956 gate handout: WELCOME TO DISNEYLAND, with Tinker Bell as our hostess. They are surprisingly common considering their age; everybody’s mom put them in their desk drawer and there they stayed, for decades. Here's the cover, with a greeting from "The Disneyland Staff":
When unfolded, you get three panels of useful information. Where to eat; phone availability; rest rooms; what to do if you lose your kid; and a list of various sponsored exhibits such as the Wurlitzer shop and the Crane Company "Bathroom of Tomorrow" (though they don't call it that here - maybe "bathroom" was considered to be a bit naughty?).
I love this spot illustration of Tink!
The other side features a nice map of the park, along with Walt Disney's dedication speech from July 17th, 1955. I've seen eBay sellers claiming that this is an "opening day item", though it clearly is not.
"Say Major, you must be hittin' the sauce, you've posted the same scan two more times! Maybe sleep it off!". Well, I appreciate your concern, and yes, I did drink a bottle of A-1 steak sauce. Thanks to blogs such as Matterhorn1959's seminal "Stuff From the Park" I learned that there are, in fact, THREE different versions of this 1956 item. Things changed quickly in those early days! And I love variations.
"You don't really expect me to read that whole thing three times, do you? I got cartoons to watch!".
The easiest way to tell them apart is to look at the exhibits listed under "Main Street"; as you can see, they all vary slightly. In my experience, the example to the left, with only five exhibits, is by far the scarcest, I'm guessing it must have only been available for a few months at most. I believe that it is the earliest of the three. The middle example shows the addition of the Yale & Towne "display of the locksmith's art". And the example on the right loses the Hollywood Maxwell Intimate Apparel shop (home of the "Wizard of Bras"), and replaces it with the North American Companies information center (also known as the "INA Carefree Corner").
In 1957, a smaller brochure with the same Tinker Bell artwork was produced, but we won't talk about that one! I hope today's post was not too nerdy for you. This is the stuff I love!
Major-
ReplyDeleteIt's not too nerdy for me. I thought I had one of the 1956 versions; turns out I only have the ones from 1958 & 1961.
Thanks, Major.
"Lose your kid"? Fugeddaboutit! Your kid belongs to Disney now! Those churros in the churro mines don't make (dig?) themselves, you know. A few lucky lost kids will discover the delights of Pleasure Island... those pack mules don't grow on trees, you know. Disney thought of everything!
ReplyDelete"maybe "bathroom" was considered to be a bit naughty?" I guess "fixtures" does sound better. Makes me wonder if anybody wandering through the Crane exhibit actually 'used' the fixtures there? ;-)
I just noticed that Tinker Bell always seems to be "on pointe", standing on her tippy toes. I guess it's no problem for her; she is a tiny, light weight little being after all.
Looking at the map, I sometimes wonder how Disney convinced the authorities to have only one point of exit. Seems very unsafe. Although, in the case of a major disaster, like an earthquake, CMs would guide the crowds to all sorts of backstage exits?
We're all nerds here, Major (of some sort). We can handle it. Thanks for going through your mom's junk drawer to find this gate handout and sharing it with us. ;-)
Crane Company: Wall Urinals of the Future. Each comes with its own pack of urinal mint wafers (not for eating) to place at the bottom of the urinal.
ReplyDeleteLove the ephemera. Thanks, Major.
I like this little brochure, Tinkerbelle was part of the TV show intro by this time, Correct? So she is a plausible MC for the Park.
ReplyDeleteIt’s a shrewd move to list all the free exhibits up front to reduce the sticker shock of those outlandish ticket prices. “We don’t need to BUY tickets, look at all these things to do that are included, if we something we want to ride, we can get a ticket then”… said Dads everywhere.
I notice other chances between editions, Fixtures becomes the Bathroom, which implies that the first title was so genteel that guests didn’t get it, and Dutch Boy paints changes from Our Future in Color to Have Fun With Color, which basically proves that the world was in black and white before 1956, as I have argued forcefully in other forums.
Looking at all the other Guest Services, I’m amazed at the planning and foresight (and overhead budgeting) to design and include all these facilities in Park 1.0. How many other amusement parks in this era provided first aid, postal facilities, banking, and child services?
And food prices “…from modest to moderate…” a brilliantly alliterative line that is completely abandoned today.
Thanks Major, a fascinating bit of ephemera today.
JG
Also to be up front : those complimentary brochures list those “free” exhibits because sponsors are paying very high fees to be in there! As the Atlantic-Richfield presented said , “we are now the FIRST Disneyland sponsor to sign aboard .. I’m not exactly sure what our 500,000 dollars gets us . But we are the first!”
ReplyDeleteIt’s interesting as to WHY Richfield was never included on attraction posters (??) while every other sponsor was on their related posters .