Christmas, The Magic Kingdom, December 1983
It's LOU AND SUE time! Sue B. scanned some of her dad's (Lou Perry) slides from a visit to The Magic Kingdom in December, 1983. Let's take a look!
We're looking south along Main Street USA, with what seems to be light attendance - maybe this was typical of those days. Is somebody boarding the Horse Drawn Streetcar? If so... weird. You'd think that everyone would be required to be seated. The Sweepers are out in force, dealing with some horse apples. The tree in the distance must be a good 50 feet tall!
Speaking of trees! I like the way the lower branches have been pruned to leave plenty of room for presents for ME. I want a Thingmaker from Mattel, and a Corgi Yellow Submarine. And a pony. No, two ponies, so they can keep each other company.
A similar view to the first one, only that Streetcar got in the way, so I am going to Sue the Disney Company for ten million dollars. See you on the beaches of Rio!
Cinderella Castle is so big. I know there is a restaurant inside it ("Walt's Slurp and Burp"), but is there anything in the upper levels? A private apartment for when I eventually visit?
Where is the fake snow, the artificial icicles? Where are the LED lights that cycle through all the colors of the rainbow? How am I supposed to know that it is Christmastime?
Once a day, a young child was given a bow and arrow, and if he could fire a flaming arrow through all of the wreaths, he would be arrested for arson. Luckily, most kids are klutzes.
As the sun sinks slowly into the west, let's take one final look at the Town Square Christmas Tree. Notice the larger ornaments at the bottom, with others getting smaller and smaller on the way up. This helped protect the tree from predators. Near the watermark we can see several men in shirtsleeves and ties (accompanied by a lady), maybe they are Cast Members?
THANKS SO MUCH, Lou and Sue!
3 comments:
Major-
From a time when the Magic Kingdom was truly magical-!
Thanks to Lou and Sue.
CORGI! Still have a Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, complete with the front and rear wings and all four passengers. Corgi was way cooler than Matchbox, which was all about boring realism, and Hot Wheels, silly "custom" cars whose main purpose was to fly off orange plastic strips and hit the wall. Corgi meant James Bond cars, the Batmobile, Steed's classy antique and Mrs. Peel's sports car, Green Hornet's Black Beauty, and even the psychedelic woody from the Hardy Boys cartoon ... and yes, Yellow Submarine. Most with tiny hand-painted figures.
Another British company called Dinky did the Supermarionation shows. Still have my Thunderbird 2 with the tiny Thunderbird 4 inside, but legs on one side don't work.
1) This looks nice! Very green, earthy, and traditional. It looks like the driver of the Horse Drawn Streetcar is turning his head to look at red-jacket guy as he attempts to board the Streetcar... Do they have churro mines in the Orlando Park? In the distance we can see Rodan soaring overhead at supersonic speed, looking for a nesting site.
2) Major, I think you'll have to settle for a My Little Pony. The scale of the Tree makes the size of the ornaments look deceiving. I bet those gingerbread men are more than a foot high. Is the Tree leaning a bit to the right? The Castle is barely visible through the misty air.
...4) Major, there IS a VIP room up inside the Castle, but I'll let more knowledgeable Jr.Gs supply the details. I wonder if Cinderella Castle has a Dent?
...6) If the little kid's name was Odysseus, I bet he could shoot an arrow through all the wreaths. The Castle makes a nice background for the wreath garlands. (Wreath Garland is Judy's brother.)
7) On the left, there is a gaggle of colorful balloons, which looks nice. On the right, there is a red Mouse-ear balloon peeking around the tree trunks... Or maybe it's red-jacket guy again, trying to make an escape from the churro mines.
Thanks again to Lou. Thanks, Sue and Major.
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