Pre-show, February 1961
I have two very nice scans for you today, starting out with this especially good photo of a mother and her two kids, aboard the Disneyland Hotel tram. It's not very crowded at this time of the morning! The classic Hotel looks great, with the famous "erector set" beams. Both the mom and the daughter loved the color red, and they weren't afraid to show it. The girl is all ready to take pictures, with her Kodak Brownie (a "Starmatic"? Nanook will know).
The tram dropped everyone off at the entrance, and the son took a picture that included his dad.
I zoomed in hoping to ID some of the paper items they have, but the only one I know for sure is the blue "special pass" held by the girl.
Here's a better look at one! The park produced different-colored passes for different years, I have a pink one, and I've seen yellow examples as well.
EXTRA! EXTRA! I just noticed that Pops has this 1961 "Welcome to Disneyland" brochure in his coat pocket. FYI, you'll be learning more about it (and its brethren) in less than a week.
8 comments:
Since the daughter chose a different colored purse and shoes, Heidi Klum might approve her outfit. But then again, she might say that the girl is still dressed too "matchy-matchy."
Why is there a number "2" painted on the border around the "Mickey Mouse" flowers? I need to know.
Major-
That Kodak camera looks like a Brownie Holiday Flash Camera. It was a very popular camera in the 1950's - one of which I owned. We can see parts of the red, 'scripty', "Dining Room Entrance" sign partially-obscured by the shrubbery , off towards the left.
Thanks, Major.
I guess the Red Coat craze of '57 last into the early sixties. I have photos of my mom wearing a red coat in '62. I can't help but look for the little screws holding those 'erector set' beams together. I remember those little screws were annoyingly hard to hang on to when fastening erector set beams together.
I see that Dad is wearing a bolo tie. My dad would wear one of those on 'special' occasions. The floral Mickey looks bigger than usual. It isn't, but it seems that way. I wonder what the numeral "2" is for (just to the right of Mom's purse)? [Edit: TM! beat me to it!]
Nanook, I hope there's a nice little path running through the shrubbery, so you get a two layer effect.
Nice photos, Major. Thanks.
I remember the tram seats were very slippery. Of course, I never rode the hotel tram, just the Parking Lot version, but it seemed like you could slide off as the tram cornered. And no seat belts or multilingual spiel telling you to hold on… Good Times!
I love the guidebook in Dads coat, and what a coat that is! Almost an optical illusion, did Bridget Riley design fashions? Ditto on the bolo tie, Dad had several, one with a moss agate stone in the slide. I’ve been known to wear one occasionally.
The guidebook has those wonderful 50s-60s graphics. So simple and basic but getting the job done telling the story. Love the Hawaiian shirt on the JC skipper, and the Indian Chief ( not the more obvious cowboy).
Thanks Major!
JG
TokyoMagic!, so *that’s* where the term “matchy-matchy” comes from. I’ve heard it, and wondered… whu? I like the all-red, while admitting that it might have been better to have something for contrast. Ha ha, I didn’t even notice that number 2, what’s the deal?
Nanook, I knew you would know the camera model. The “Holiday Flash”, perfect for “Flash Mountain” years later. I’ve always wondered if the food at the Disneyland Hotel “Gourmet” restaurant was any good - at least comparable to what you might have found around Orange County at the time?
JB, you have to admit that red coats make a real impression. I wonder if it took Jackie Kennedy’s fashion sense to finally make the red go away? Not sure what she liked besides pink. I never had an Erector Set, though I thought they looked cool in their cases. I’ve never worn a bolo tie, those aren’t my thing. But they’d be easy, compared to tying a tie (have friends who never learned to tie a tie!).
JG, the tram seats appear to be covered in metal here, which sure looks like it would be fun on a hot day. I assume that drivers were instructed to take it easy on certain curves and turns to prevent the slippage of guests! Hey, dad’s plaid coat is actually less of an eyesore than the one I wore about 10 years later when my parents took us to church. How about a red, white, and blue plaid? Yikes. And a clip-on tie, hooray. Stay tuned for my blog post about those “Welcome to Disneyland” brochures, coming to a theater near you!
The 2 is part of the "plant-by-numbers" instructions for the floral Mickey that didn't get colored in correctly.
@ Dean Finder-
Perfect-!
The Parking Lot tram was a fine conveyance around Midnight when you needed a ride... oh that sweet summer Parking Lot air!
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