Mark Twain, 1956
I love the Mark Twain, but I do find myself grumbling a bit when I have so many pictures of it. Maybe I need therapy! I just have to put my brain into the correct gear, and then I can appreciate the steamboat. Both of today's photos are from 1956, or possibly 1957 (if they are from 1957, I will give you your money back).
The sternwheeler has chopped up some ducks into a delicious chowder as it churns past the Plantation House (juuuust peeking in from the left). The Frontierland shoreline looks wonderfully wide open and undeveloped. Sure, I love the attractions that were to come, but there's something about the way the place looked back then.
OK, OK, I should have posted this one first. But I like to mix things up to keep you from getting complacent! One boy standing at the rail looks down into the turbulent water, wishing that he could scoop up a cup of that chowder.
15 comments:
Major-
You may have "many pictures" of the M T, but it sure is a thing of beauty-!
Thanks, Major.
MmMMm... Duck chowder! I hope there weren't any AEDs in that soup. Nothing worse than chomping down on a brass cog or a bit of servo mechanism. No need to worry about an explosion though; that would've occurred when the MT chopped and churned the ducks into bite-sized pieces.
It IS a nice, sunny picture of the Mark Twain. And there's a Christmas tree next to the Pilothouse.
Actually, there are several boys looking down at the carnage below. They look rather disturbed at the sight of chunks of duck floating lifelessly in the wake of the Paddleboat. Another example of Walt's "hard facts". Looks like one of the ducks managed to escape the whirling blades of death..... this time!
Nice vintage Twain pics, Major. Thanks.
I can think of worse things than more riverboat pics. Root canals. Pestilence. Famine. Kodachrome slides of the old paint job on Red Cliff.
These photos are no earlier than May of 1956, when the Indian Village opened in its present location (note the banner over the walkway west in the second shot) and no later than July 4th, 1959, when a 49th star was added to Old Glory (thanks, Alaska!).
Thanks, Major, and Happy National Hamburger Day!
Oh, boy - I think I may be living in vintage photos in my head. I referred to the Indian Village “in its present location.” It’s been gone since late 1971. I blame municipal water fluoridation. This is what happens when you let the international Communist conspiracy sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids!
That does look like an actual Christmas tree on top of the Mark Twain, as JB pointed out, and not just the top of a pine tree in the distance. What's up with that?
The duck carnage narrative had me laughing this morning. Thanks!
Few know that the Twain's duck chowder was all that was fed to employees (not yet called "castmembers") in the early days of the park. It was also the reason that "pro duck" forces pushed for the development of the original AEDs, although some have said that it was because people got sick of eating the chowder.
We're looking at Twain Number four here. The previous three had been sunk in the war which still goes on to this day. No one knows the Twain number now, as those records were lost in the "Mighty Unpleasant Tussle of 1972." A sad duck day for sure...
I really enjoy one of the first attractions at Disneyland: Root Canals of the world. Not oral roots, but actual roots. Akin to turning trees upside down in the Jungle Cruise, since there was no money for the Canal Boats, they amassed a HUGE collection of other trees, and their roots....hence "Root Canals of the World". (and this is how the legends begin...). There's not a bad vintage photo of the Mark Twain to be had, also known as "Two Fathoms". I went down a Mark Twain rabbit hole this morning....very interesting story indeed. This steamboat perhaps does go down two fathoms...perhaps, maybe....I also enjoy the spartan nature of these early Frontierland landscapes...as they are such a contrast to the East side of the park with spaceships and castles and whatnot. Disneyland USA should be re-launched....by calling it a Park or a Resort REALLY make more people want to come to it? I think Disneyland U.S.A. tells the entire and authentic original story. I know Walt wanted more hustle and bustle on the river: hence rafts, canoes, Columbia, Keel Boats....but a sole Mark Twain seems very peaceful, and I'm sure this was a peaceful scene, with only the sound of the paddlewheel and the steam. The waterfowl are aplenty....and the legendary story is that Walt said "I'm not sure how they got here, but it's the only thing in the park that didn't cost any money". If anything, it's a plausible true story....and how DID the ducks find this water (?). That WDW would lose this "story" due to "progress" is unfathomable to me. Walt ultimately planned the element before his death. I'm not a believer in "sacred cows"....but the Rivers of America...hmm...seems like there would be plenty of land "for all the dreams...et al." in Florida....for a "Cars Land"....and seems like that would be better suited for Hollywood Studios down the road....I digress. Thanks Major.
Bu, I didn't even think of that. While I was lamenting the loss of WDW's Rivers of America, the question of the birds never came to mind. I guess there is plenty of water in the area and the state, that they will just relocate. But if Disney ever decides to give Anaheim's Rivers in America the axe, where would all those birds go? Over to the Jungle Cruise and Storybook Land? A few seem to end up over there now, anyway. Can you imagine if they ALL moved over there?
Whenever I visited WDW, it seemed like I saw more of these birds hanging around, than ducks. I'm assuming they are a type of crane?
Walt Disney World Birds
Oh, no! Now I'm worried about where the alligators will go when WDW gets rid of their Rivers of America! I guess it's back out to the Seven Seas Lagoon, for all of them.
Major, I sympathize with your affliction, although I do not understand it. For my part, there are no bad pictures of the Mark Twain. It’s perfectly designed, no odd proportions or off colors, no gold leaf except where gold leaf belongs etc. and it absolutely makes the River scene something marvelous. You don’t even have to ride it to enjoy it, but it helps. When the WDW steamboats are finally scrapped, the MT will be sole surviving example of Walt’s chutzpah, to make a River and a whole world out of the dreams and stories of childhood into reality again. I’m grateful for every picture we can get because I’m afraid of what the future might bring.
Funny comment about the ducks being free, there’s certainly nothing else free in the Park now. If the River is closed they may just go somewhere else in the same way they arrived, magically. Duck chowder sounds pretty good, especially if served in a bread bowl.
Thanks Major.
JG
Nanook, at least these are nice early pix!
JB, it might be unusual, but I like to eat duck chowder with Lucky Charms mixed in. A taste sensation! I hope that they someday paint flames on the side of the Mark Twain and put hydraulic lifts on it so that it can bounce like a low rider. And the sternwheel can be shiny chrome! It’s true, most of the boys are dreaming of a pipin’ hot bowl of duck chowder. And hey, that IS a tree on the actual steamboat!
Chuck, well I’m afraid I CAN’T think of anything worse than riverboat pix. It’s World War III all over again! Was the second location of the Indian Village not originally accessible only by that tunnel? Because that would answer a question I had about another slide that won’t publish for months! National Hamburger Day, I’d better put the flag out again.
Chuck, I’m just glad that I never make a mistake, it must be so embarrassing.
TokyoMagic!, many of the photos from this batch are from Christmastime, but I’m not sure I’d ever noticed a tree on the Mark Twain before!
Steve Tanner at Magical Trash, cheers!
Stu29573, duck chowder doesn’t sound too bad, except that Disneyland’s version had uncooked chunks of ducks in it, which was not ideal. Still, Walt kept reminding the employees about the “hard facts”, and they suffered in silence. I think I remember reading about the MUT (“Mighty Unpleasant Tussle”) of ’72 in US magazine. The Journal of Record.
Bu, I have (happily) never had a root canal, so I can’t speak about how terrible they are. I spend 30 minutes each evening doing root exercises, and exposing them to red LEDs, which as we all know is a magical treatment. I’m happy to learn so much about Disneyland’s collection of roots. I thought the Mark Twain went down 20,000 Leagues, but I might be confused. Only true Disneyland nerds look at these photos of a barren, sparsely-built park and think that it looks great. Normal people take one look, and proclaim that it was boring. I suppose once DCA was built, they could use the term “resort”, since there were now multiple things to do, but I still don’t love the word. I’m so glad that we still have our steamboat, and will appreciate it even more every time I ride it (and will be worried that some genius will decide that the Rivers of America have to go). The Walt quote sounds legit because it’s about money! Marty would never go there. Ducks just have their way, it helps that they fly above anything that looks like a puddle. Do the ducks live exclusively on a diet of popcorn? Seems not that great.
TokyoMagic!, those dumb birds have had it too good for too long. Did you know that they don’t pay taxes? Maybe now they will go get jobs! I don’t know if those white birds are a kind of crane, or maybe an egret?
TokyoMagic!, with the popularity of turkey lets, why not alligator legs?
JG, it sounds like I’m joking, but because of the blog, I feel like I look at a LOT of Disneyland photos - possibly more than the average bear? Maybe not. Anyway, I do find myself getting burned out with images of the Mark Twain, IASW, the castle, etc. Even the authors of the book, “Disneyland: The Nickel Tour” made a joke about the sheer number of postcards featuring the Twain. Ducks will find ponds, my mom’s local park put in a pond, and it seemed that the ducks found it within days.
Major, I think you are right, those WDW birds are probably egrets.
TokyoMagic!, with the popularity of turkey lets, why not alligator legs?
Major, believe it or not, Knott's Berry Farm actually sells alligator chunks/bites. I think it's only a seasonal thing, during the spring festival they have for that fruit that Walter Knott "borrowed" from Mr. Rudolph Boysen. The alligator chunks are battered and deep fried, and served with boysenberry aioli sauce. I tried them once and they tasted like chicken. Why do they sell alligator, did you ask? Maybe it's a nod to their former neighbor from across the street, the Buena Park Alligator Farm. They should also sell venison chunks and wax beans, as a nod to Japanese Village & Deer Park, and Movieland Wax Museum, respectively.
Chuck, thanks for identifying the flag. I was wondering if the MT had a contemporary flag or a historic one from the era in which its type was common.
TM, I think those are Ibises.
Major, there was a restaurant in my hometown in NJ called Rattlesnake Cafe that served deep fried alligator, rattlesnake, and the like. I ate there a few times - everything tasted like cod, not chicken.
TokyoMagic!, as soon as you mentioned “alligator chunks”, I thought of the old Alligator Farm! My brother watches fishing videos on YouTube, and some of his guys were fishing canals in Florida that were so chockablock with gators that it was unbelievable. And a little creepy. By all means, harvest some for CHUNKS! I remember when they were endangered, but they sure aren’t anymore (gators, not chunks). You and I went to a party where the generous host served (among other things) alligator, done very much in the KFC style. I was happy to be able to try it! “Wax beans”/Movieland Wax Museum, ha ha!
Dean Finder, I always get a kick out of seeing the 48-star Flags, my mom used to have one and for some reason she gave it away. Boo. My grandma had a 49-star Flag, those are pretty rare, and we have no idea what became of it. Boo, the sequel. Ibises, hey, I’m not going to contradict you! I can’t remember if I ever ate rattlesnake or not - I would if I could, I suppose. The idea of it possibly being slightly fishy isn’t very inspiring.
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