Nice Randos

I love a good rando, and I have two of them for you today. Let's begin with this great shot from the parking lot, from sometime in the early 1960s, I believe. We don't get a super good look at any of the cars, though the red convertible to the left is hard to ignore. It's a bit overcast, but perhaps the clouds will burn off. 

It's surprising how often photos of the park are practically devoid of kids; but there are a few in this picture, leading me to believe that this was probably a Saturday. Who knows! Up on the train platform, there appears to be quite a crowd waiting for the next ride.
 

This next one is from the 50s, and is an unusual look down Main Street from the Plaza; the park looks so empty! It's nice to see the way things looked before the "Partners" statue was installed. 

Enchanted Tiki Room Brochure, 1963

Oh boy, vintage Disneyland ephemera! My favorite. Today I am featuring a wonderful 1963 brochure printed for the "World Premier Engagement" of Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room (which debuted on June 23rd of '63). These are rare-ish, but usually fetch high prices on the collector's market, often over $200. The cover graphics show talking tikis, a hint to what guests would see inside the attraction.

Unfolding the brochure once, we see an add for "Papotin's Revue", a "unique musical fantasy starring the incomparable puppet-master, André Tahon”. It was an "E" coupon attraction! For a puppet show! I gather that Papotin's Revue was only at the park (in the Fantasyland Theater) for a few months.

Unfolding it further, you can now see both sides of this item. We'll take a closer look!

It's fun to think of how amazing the Tiki Room show must have been to audiences in 1963, when "Audio Animatronics" was something new. I'm so glad that we can still enjoy it, 63 years later!

They pulled out all the stops for this paper item, with full-color on this page - it's probably not the first use of full color in a Disneyland brochure, but it has to be one of the first. See! Hear! Enjoy!

While the "Papotin's Revue" version of this brochure is the most commonly seen ("common" being a relative term), you'll sometimes find one (if you are lucky) with this ad for the 4th Annual Dixieland at Disneyland event, which included Al Hirt and His Band, The Dukes of Dixieland, Kid Ory and the Young Men From New Orleans, and MORE! I'd say the Papotin version is the one you'll find 90% of the time.

And, just as rare, or perhaps rarer, is a version of the brochure with a blank back. A mutual friend and I agree that they should have printed something there. And yet, here it is, with nothing at all. Collect all three and be the hero of your neighborhood (like me)! 

New Orleans Square, 1960s

Somebody was awfully impressed with the ornate wrought iron of New Orleans Square, which had presumably opened relatively recently. We all need more wrought iron in our lives! Think about it. They should have had an animatronic Walt open those shutters and poke his head out of the window, maybe he could even wink at the people below. I've got ideas.

OK, OK, technically this water tower was located at Frontierland Station - it would not be renamed "New Orleans Square Station" until 1996. But give me some slack (and send me some money while you're at it!). If you time things just right, you might see four beautiful sisters bathing in the water tower (yes, the roof is removable, thanks for asking).
 

More Big Thunder

"Hey, Mysterious Benefactor! Do ya gots more photos of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad?". "Sure thing, Major Pepperidge!". Gosh, what a guy.

 It's hard to believe that Big Thunder has been with us (at Disneyland) for around 47 years, opening on September 2, 1979. The much-missed Rainbow Caverns Mine Train/Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland was only there for 21 years.

After seeing so many vintage photos of Rainbow Ridge, certain buildings are like old wooden friends who never borrow money (the best kind of friend!). That pointy-roofed structure used to be the El Dorado Hotel, and the "adobe" structure mostly out of frame was "Miner's Hardware". 

Nobody does crusty old wooden buildings like Disney. The crustier, the better. Just look at that filth! It makes me smile just thinking about it. 

This next one went pretty dark, and my attempts to lighten it only got me so far. I guess I'd forgotten that Big Thunder was "the biggest little  boom town in the West". I thought that was Oxnard! (Sorry, I couldn't resist).

I wonder if this lettering and decoration was all done by hand, in the finest pin-striping tradition? Or is it a mere decal? 

The next two feature guests on board their soon-to-be-runaway mine train; the people have a 1980s vibe, at least to me. I hope the guy with the hat didn't lose his chapeau along the way, though he has nobody to blame but himself, since the spiel warned people to "hold on to their hats and glasses".

The thing that stood out to me the most in this picture is the building in the background, which (I suppose) is Casa Mexicana (formerly Casa de Fritos), I honestly don't ever remember seeing those pointed, thatched roofs before.

MANY THANKS to the Mysterious Benefactor for sharing these scans with us!

Two From August 1962

Here are two fairly standard scans from August 1962; not particularly exciting, but nice enough that they could have appeared in a publication of some kind. They didn't, but they could have!

A lonely Streetcar driver wonders why nobody loves him. "I'm polite, I bathe once a week, and I sing Johnny Mathis songs to my passengers. What more do they want from me??". I'm happy to report that later this same day, the driver met a woman who was wearing a "I ❤️ Streetcar Drivers" button, and they lived happily ever after. 

It seems crazy to describe a scene of a Submarine in a tropical lagoon with a yellow Monorail overhead as "standard", but it's standard for Disneyland. There's a traffic jam on the Autopia!

Snoozles™ From December 1962

I just scanned a batch of slides date-stamped "December, 1962", and there are some very nice photos in the batch. Mostly! Today I'll share two of the problematic pix. 

I give the photographer credit for attempting to take a picture of Sleeping Beauty Castle at night, presumably without a tripod. It's a little bit blurry, but honestly, it's not that bad!

Earlier in the day, the Oom-Pa-Pa band marched through Fantasyland; or is it a band?? Only one of the costumed fellows seems to be holding an instrument (What is it? A French horn? A mini-tuba?). Maybe the other guys yodel. Again, not a bad photo, but it could be better! 

Vintage People

Sometimes it's just fun to look at Vintage People. You get a sense of what life was like 50 or 60 years ago.

We'll start with this photo (dated June 1966) of some family members posing in front of their post-War home. The dog must be snoozing in the backyard! Mom leans on her son for an amusing tableau, while sis looks cool on her motorcycle. Right after this photo was taken, she drove downtown for a rumble!

Next, from August 1968 comes this portrait of a pretty woman enjoying some time at the shore. The sand! The sound of the waves! Seagulls! Colorful umbrellas! Hopefully there was a snack shack nearby where she could go to get a hotdog and Coke, the perfect thing for a day at the beach.

 

Two Nice Ones

Here are two nice Randos for you on this warm Friday. We'll start with this great view from April, 1973, as guests exit the park. There's still plenty of daylight left, so I can only assume that they all remembered that they left the stove on. It's the only excuse I'll accept! It looks like April (of 1973) would have been a great time to go to the park, it's a perfect day. You can just see a sign for the GAF Photo Trail to the left (the blue sign). "GAF - Our Film Is Terrible!". That should have been their slogan, anyway.

It's quite amazing to see a rare photo of Waldo himself, minus his knit cap and glasses (at some point he'd had lasik surgery).

Next is this nice portrait of Screechy the Iggle as she soars (?) above the Fantasyland Autopia queue, circa June, 1967. I like that a guest appreciated the noble magnificence of Screechy and wanted to capture this awesomeness in a photo.

November, 1961

I realized that it's been quite some time since I shared some scans of slides that were very faded and pink. As usual, I attempted to color-correct them, and they definitely look better, though they still leave something to be desired. 

So... here's one, in its unrestored state. Pretty bad!

The restoration improved things a lot, we even have a bit of blue in the sky. There's still a pinkish cast to some of the buildings; after fiddling around with it for a while, I decided that this was about as good as I was going to get. Imagine going to the park on a November day (presumably a weekday), and seeing it so empty! Walt was surely not happy about it, but the holidays were approaching, and I'm sure tens of thousands of people would show up soon.

Next: Fantasyland, right next to Merlin's Magic Shop (to the right). There's not a child to be seen! 

Well, there might be a youngster or two on King Arthur's Carrousel. I'll call the truant officer immediately!  There are some fun details, like the Keppy Cap in the window of Merlin's (above a sign advertising Kodak Film); the funny little ticket booth; the sign telling us that the Carrousel was 10 cents, and the yellow sign with general ticket information.

Nature's Wonderland, 1960s

I'm always happy to find photos from the classic Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland attraction, gone nearly 50 years now. These aren't the greatest pictures in the world, but I still like 'em.

If there's one thing I know about bobcats (having majored in Bobcatology at Yale) is that they will climb things at the drop of a hat. It's just their way! You can't stop them. This fellow has scaled a saguaro cactus, if I remember correctly, there was a family of wild pigs at the base of the saguaro, ready to eat Bob (you could tell they were going to eat him because they had little knives and forks in their hands).  

Next we are crossing the trestle bridge in Bear Country; sure enough, there are bears there, scratchin' and fishin' and sleepin'. This scenes seems to have been in shade for much of the day, as it is here. If you look closely, you can see the baby bear climbing that dead tree to reach a beehive fully of hunny. 

Blinking Next to the Sub Lagoon, June 1967

You can see why I had to post today's photos as a pair! They're not super exciting, it's fun to see this groovy gal posing next to the beautiful Sub Lagoon, filled with Bombay sapphire gin. I blink in about 90%  of the photos taken of me, so I feel a camaraderie with this girl. I'll bet dad waited too long, fiddling with some knobs or something.

The second try came out perfect! Knobs were properly twiddled. The girl's short hair, Op Art dress, and frosted lipstick all say "1967" to me.

Scenes From the 1970s

The Swiss Family Treehouse in Adventureland is one of those attractions that I always looked forward to, growing up. When it morphed into Tarzan's Treehouse, I liked (but didn't love) it, though I was glad that it was changed and not removed. Now the Swiss family is back, and the attraction is pretty different. They have so much free time on their bountiful island that they are able to build things like orreries, or nutty music machines. There's definitely more "fantasy" than there used to be, and it took me a little bit to get used to it. And as before, I'm still so glad that this was not ripped out for something less imaginative.

The Matterhorn is looking particularly rosy in this photo (not sure why), as if it is made of southwestern sandstone rather than Alpine gneiss. This is a perfectly OK photo, but I am amused by the family hurrying toward their next destination - perhaps the bobsleds! Even Dad is running. I appreciate his enthusiasm! 

 

Snoozles™

Photos of the Jungle Cruise yield more Snoozles™ than you can shake a stick at. Whatever that means! Issues range from "same old, same old" images, photos with big silhouetted heads, or pictures of a lush jungle (and not much else). 

This first Snoozle was taken as the naphtha-powered launch approached Schweitzer Falls; I wonder if the photographer knew that he was about to see the Back Side of Water? "This is my favorite part!". It's too bad that the Back Side is a a black hole, devoid of hope or happiness. 

You might not know it, but there's a headhunter behind that log and that grass. Maybe even more than one! But the photographer's timing was way off, a common problem among Jungle Cruise pictures. The skull looks great though!

Marineland of the Pacific

Let's set the Wayback Machine to Palos Verdes, California, to visit Marineland of the Pacific! Marineland of the Pacific was a public oceanarium and tourist attraction located on the Palos Verdes Peninsula coast in Los Angeles County, California. Architect William Pereira designed the main structure. It was also known as Hanna-Barbera's Marineland during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Marineland operated from 1954 until 1987, when it was purchased by the owners of SeaWorld San Diego.

This first one is dated "July 1958", and is an interesting look at some signage that I don't recall seeing before. Perhaps it predated this one that I am familiar with (see it HERE), with the leaping pilot whale and two dophins. Don't just go to Marineland for the fish (and sea mammals)! Go get a cocktail, a nice meal, and maybe stay in their hotel (I didn't know they had their own hotel). "Honey, there are goldfish in the toilet!". 

This next one is undated, but certainly from the 50s; a family poses for a group shot in front of a large flowerbed, with some of Marineland's buildings in the distance (possibly the restaurant, based on that sign that we can barely see). "I'll have a seal burger, one fried-fish sandwich, and some tuna ice cream for dessert". "VERY good, sir". 

And finally, here's another group, from July 1960; they are in front of the iconic large amphitheater with the zig-zag ramps. I'll bet you would have seen Corky and Orky in there - two orcas who liked living in a little swimming pool. Or perhaps Bubbles the pilot whale. Or Pablo the porpoise. OK, I made that last one up, but he would have been a star!

Delicious Leftuggies

Happy Friday! I have two Leftuggies™ for you today. This first one is date-stamped "May, 1967", and seems to be taking place during a parade featuring members of the Horseless Carriage Club. I thought that the HCC stopped participating in Disneyland events long before 1967, but here we are. It would be fun to have old flivvers putt-putting up Main Street again, but I suppose the logistics (or crowds) might make it impossible. The boy to the right is holding a pinwheel with Mickey's likeness, I wonder if it was a Disneyland-specific piece of merchandise? If so, I've never seen one on eBay.

Next is a photo of the Motorized Firetruck, also from 1967 (only this time it's October). I was happy to see this vehicle out and about during my last visit, Cruella de Vil was on board, enjoying the adulation. It's nice to see the Plaza Gardens looking so busy, it was of course the place where many great big bands performed for years, especially on warm Summer nights.

Main Street Stuff, March 15, 1957

Good old Main Street USA; under-appreciated by some, but not by anyone who reads this blog! I have admitted that, as a callow youth, I liked Main Street, but did not love it the way I do now. 

The floral Mickey portrait looks fine here, in full bloom. It's almost as if your walking into Disneyland was like walking into a Mickey Mouse short subject, since this version of his smiling face is the same as the one that was featured at the beginning of so many films. Where's the Kalamazoo handcar?? I'll bet teenagers stole it for a joy ride while listening to rock and roll music. 

Next is this great photo of Town Square as seen from the steps up to Main Street Station; you get a feel for the charm and appeal of Main Street, with the Disneyland Band performing at the base of the flag pole (there's Vesey Walker, just visible). 

Along the River, June 1962

Gosh, it's been about ten minutes since our last visit to Frontierland. I still maintain that it is the most-photographed land, though I have no hard data to back up that claim.

First up is this nice sunny photo of the Friendly Indian Village, at the north end of the river (and right near the train tracks). Shiny boy and his faithful pooch watch as our steamboat passes, perhaps wondering what life is like for the people on board. The tribe members are all involved in useful chores, from food preparation and preservation to the cleaning of hides.

I feel like the photographer must have been a guy (though I suppose that is sexist) - the mechanical wonder of the steamboat would be fascinating to somebody in the mid-20th Century.

More Stuff From the Box

I think today's selection of STUFF FROM THE BOX is pretty nice! Hopefully you will agree.

First up is this fun "encased cent" from the Stork Club in New York City - as you can see, this one also commemorates the 1939 New York World's Fair. Back in the old days, encased cents were common souvenirs and were used as "good luck" giveaways by hundreds of businesses and tourist destinations. There's a nice 1939 Lincoln "wheat back" penny in this one! The Stork Club was one of the most prestigious clubs in the world. A symbol of café society, the wealthy elite, including movie stars, celebrities, showgirls, and aristocrats all mixed in the VIP 'Cub' Room. It debuted in 1929 (a year where nothing else happened).

Next is this very nice pin in the shape of the Atomium, which was originally built for the 1958 Brussels World's Fair. This unique structure, which you can still visit today, stands 102 metres (335 ft) tall, making it one of the tallest structures in Belgium. Its nine 18-metre-diameter (59 ft) stainless steel clad spheres are connected in the shape of a unit cell that could represent an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times. Cool!

As usual, you'll see more examples of my fondness for various kinds of employee pins, including this tiny (about .75" tall) pin that was once worn by an employee of Greyhound bus lines. Leave the driving to them!

This next item is extra-cool, a rare employee pin from Hal Roach Studios! Hal Roach was a film producer, director, and screen-writer, notable for such things as the "Our Gang" comedies, Laurel and Hardy films, early Harold Lloyd films, and so on. After owning a number of studio spaces, he eventually built one at 8822 Washington Boulevard in Culver City, which became known as "The Laugh Factory". Many years ago, somebody on eBay auctioned off a series of beautiful employee badges, mostly from Universal Studios. Those all went for big money, but I was the only person who bid on this Hal Roach employee badge. I'm happy to have it!

Here's a 1959 photo of Hal Roach Studios.

Another one of my "mini-collections" involves die-cut tin-litho badges, you'll find them for everything from political campaigns and TV shows to cereal and automobiles - you name it. This one is from an  organization dedicated to helping "crippled children" ("Easter Seals", is one example), though I'm not sure which specific charity gave this one out.

This last one is another teensy employee pin, presumably given out for 30 years of service at General Motors. Even teensier logos for Buick, Oldsmobile, and Cadillac are above those pink "rubies". 

I hope you have enjoyed today's STUFF FROM THE BOX!