Nice Tomorrowland, April 1962
Boy, I sure love some vintage Tomorrowland pictures, yessiree Bob! I was just saying so to my Aunt Florence, and she agreed.
SO... I labeled these files as being from "April, 1972", which is clearly wrong. Sure, I could dig them out and check again, but I assume that the year should have been 1962. Notice the old round Skyway gondolas; seeing how tiny those get as they near the Matterhorn really helps convey the size of that structure. It looks like it was a pretty busy day, perhaps it was Spring Break? Or just a weekend, I suppose. I'm wondering where our photographer would have been standing in order to get this elevated view, do you have any ideas?
Speaking of the Skyway, now we are aboard our own gondola, and are helping other people get a sense of the size of the Matterhorn (it's nice to be helpful). The Yacht Bar is bustling, though I do see a few empty seats. That funny little bandstand where The Yachtsmen would often perform is silent, though I hope the musicians will show up later in the day. "Sloop John B! Sloop John B!". That's what I would yell, while waving a churro that doesn't exist yet.
18 comments:
Could the photographer have been standing on the stairway up to the Skyway station, for that first pic? Or was the stairway on the other side of the station and the cables?
I don't know if I ever noticed how the Monorail had it's own little covered queue area. After it got a new station, didn't the line just go down the Speedramp, and then curve around the Submarine lagoon?
Thanks for these Nice Tomorrowland pics, Major!
Major-
"I'm wondering where our photographer would have been standing in order to get this elevated view, do you have any ideas?"
It kinda has to be on the stairway going up to the load side of the Skyway - unless of course someone is trying out the first drone... Either way, it's a swell image of Tomorrowland, Version [let's say] 1.6.
The Yacht Bar is sporting [what appears to be] a rather odd-looking poster or menu board sitting in one of the adjacent planters.
Thanks, Major.
I was thinking the same thing as Tokyo! and Nanook, regarding the POV of this photo. Although, it looks like we might be too far over to the left to be on the Skyway stairs? Just like Major waving his churro that doesn't exist yet, maybe the photographer is standing on the CoP ramp that doesn't exist yet. :-D
Looks like there is only a smidgen of Fudgie's tail fluke, so not worth mentioning. We do see a Monorail poster handcuffed to that olives-and-toothpicks lamp tripod. Plus a pale blue Mickey ear balloon. The kid in the bottom right is wearing a traditional black Mouse Ear hat. And there are a couple of people taking their turn slurping water from the drinking fountains.
These really ARE nice Tomorrowland photos! In the 2nd pic, There's a guest wearing an alpine hat with a blue ostrich feather in the lower center of the photo. Looks like there might be another one over to the right.
A couple of fine Disneyland exemplars. Thanks, Major.
1st pic: (Near bottom of picture, center). Standing in line, at the 2 drinking fountains, is a lady carrying a complete roasted chicken dinner. [Note to new readers: This is an example of an inside joke that I was referring to, in my comments late yesterday.]
2nd pic: (About center of picture) Dad is walking along side of an invisible wife, while pushing a stroller with an invisible baby. Clearly, the baby 'takes after' its mother's side of the family. [Again, for new readers, that last sentence is intended especially for Chuck. You'll need to read the past GDB comments to understand that inside joke.]
Thanks, Major.
Sue, that actually looks like a picnic basket that the lady is holding. She might even have a blanket to spread out on the ground! It was actually a whole fried chicken, but that's perfectly okay, I'm just grateful that you and other junior gorillas remember my great-grandmother and reference her every so often! :-)
It's not often that you get two panoramic views of the General Dynamics sign and only one trash can.
I spy the Santa Fe logo, too.
Thanks for the skyway ride today, Major.
Zach
Ooh, a British racing green skyway bucket!
There is a distinct shortage of trash cans in these views, which are otherwise wonderful. Photo 1, lady in denim and cowboy boots strikes a jaunty pose while deciding what color Autopia car she might get. And the Skyway pioneers what would later become the signature of Southwest Airlines, all coach class and no assigned seating. Those classic drinking fountains with the “orange crate” booster steps for the youngsters could be imported from fantasyland.
Photo 2 shows what might be results of a sale on alpine hats. Ostriches do not approve. The odd little conning tower/bandstand is the forerunner of the elevator bandstand at Tomorrowland Terrace. Interesting to see how the program of the land stays the same, while the architectural elements evolve.
Great stuff in 1962, thanks Major!
JG
And I agree, the elevated perspective of photo 1 can only be from the landing of the stairs in the Skyway queue, which was on the south side of the cables in this era.
JG
TokyoMagic!, I know the stairway *up* to the Skyway station was on the other side, but perhaps the stairway down was over to the left (as we face the Matterhorn). It’s really the only explanation! I’m sure we’ve seen that covered queue area for the Monorail many times, we’ve certainly seen that sign more than once. But sometimes a different angle can make things pop out at you!
Nanook, those first drones were made of Bakelite, and they had 15 large vacuum tubes inside them. They weighed 30 pounds! Yes, as I said to TokyoMagic!, the photo almost has to be taken from the Skyway steps.
JB, you’re just joining TokyoMagic! and Nanook to be with the popular kids! Yes, had this been a few years later, I would have posited that we were on the CoP ramp! Don’t you worry none, we’ll see Fudgie in all his (her?) glory, and it will make you weep with joy. “Why are you crying, JB?”. “FUDGIE!”. I saw those blue ostrich feathers too, I love that guests seemed to get a kick out of those silly hats.
Lou and Sue, you seem pretty sure that there are new readers all the time. I don’t think there are! Ha, what is up with the dad and the invisible baby in the stroller?? I read this blog every day and I don’t understand Chuck’s inside joke.
TokyoMagic!, that lady’s basket is so big, I would believe that there is a whole roast chicken in it. I remember old photos of people having picnics (like you’d see in magazines) and there was always a beautiful cake or pie, and I thought, “We got sandwiches and Twinkies IF WE WERE LUCKY”.
zach, “What kind of Dynamics do you guys deal with?”. “Oh, I dunno, just sort of general ones I guess, nothing too exciting”. Always love that Santa Fe logo.
zach, that Skyway bucket went 10X faster than the others!
JG, nobody ate hotdogs in the future, so there was no need for the “Hotdog Standard” in Tomorrowland. Instead, they ate pills that were the equivalent of a hotdog, potato chips, and an ice cold soda. You could put mustard and relish on your pill if you really wanted too. I wonder if those wooden crate steps were somehow fixed to the ground? Kids could easily knock them over. There are no ostriches in the Alps, silly! Or not many, anyway. That little bandstand is so tiny, barely room for four guys with their instruments.
JG, don’t ever walk on the south side of the cables, that’s a bad neighborhood.
Have you considered a jetpack for the POV in the first photo? Seems obvious.
Now, if it were 1972, the photographer could have gotten that perspective from their hoverboots, but hoverboots hadn't been invented in 1962. So they must have just been using a flying robot camera. My uncle broke his flying robot camera trying to look up some girl's skirt at a Dave Clark Five show. Served him right.
"Dad is walking along side of an invisible wife, while pushing a stroller with an invisible baby."
It's the Cheshire Baby! In a minute, the baby will reappear without the stroller! (Wearing a pink-and-purple striped onesie.)
I think I spy a middy collar on the lady in the white skirt and blue blouse at the bottom center of the first picture. Helloooo, sailor!
When I first saw that "MONORAIL" sign, my brain was doing that thing where it tries to fill in the middle of words one of my blind spots is blocking before my eye can pan and scan over it, and it registered as "MONTREAL." And for a second I was all, "Montreal? Were they doing some kind of cross-promotion in advance of Expo '67? Before the New York World's Fair?" And then my peepers caught up and I was all, OK. (Looking at the Wikipedia page for Expo '67, though, it looks like the site WAS announced in '62, so justice for the weird connections in my brain, I guess.)
@ Melissa-
"I think I spy a middy collar on the lady in the white skirt and blue blouse... Helloooo, sailor!"
Good sleuthing-! And shouldn't that really be sailorette, in spite of the Navy's refusal to use that lovely moniker-?
"It's the Cheshire Baby! In a minute, the baby will reappear without the stroller! (Wearing a pink-and-purple striped onesie.)"
I prefer to believe it's actually the Lindbergh baby frozen in time-! (And wouldn't it be a tragedy if his disappearance, lo these many decades ago, was due to interference from the Cheshire Cat-!!)
zach, I admit that I did not consider a jetpack!
Melissa, hoverboots sound cool until you think about the inevitable breakdowns. How high up do you hover? How fast can you go? I’ll just stay on the ground with my in-line skates, thank you very much. Wow, I wonder if Disney ever made a Cheshire Cat onesie? Seems like something like that would be popular. Perhaps Walt Disney dreamed up a fabulous Montreal ride. What would you do? Eat poutine? I’ve never been to Montreal, all I know about it is… well, not much.
Anonymous (Nanook?), I have literally never heard the term “sailorette” before. Are you sure you didn’t just make that up? Lindbergh baby jokes - too soon?
Yes, that was me. (I really don't understand Blogger these days. It's officially screwed up beyond any help). I suspect Goggle is just waiting for a good excuse to jettison the "app", as it's 'too costly to operate'...)
That poor woman appears to have used a bit too much vanishing cream and then spilled it on the baby. I hope the little one doesn’t crawl out of the stroller or she and her husband won’t have a ghost of a chance of finding the wee barin.
Sue, it would seem that TM!’s family isn’t the only one appearing (or, in this case, not appearing) here with such a strong family resemblance.
They seek him here,
They seek him there,
Gorillas seek him everywhere.
Is he in a stroller,
Or in a teapot,
That darned elusive,
Invisible tot?
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