Frontierland

Well, what do you know, it's more scans from The Mysterious Benefactor! As usual, these show details from Frontierland.

Here's a random kid, climbing on some random rocks. He's up to no good! Maybe I'll report him to Disney security. "No, he didn't sass me, but he could have!".  "Don't worry sir, where he's headed, he'll never sass anyone again".

I have no idea what's going on here, and I don't WANT to know. But you have to admit that you don't see four men hugging on a log every day.

I'm guessing that those kids are on Teeter-Totter Rock, named after Sir Albert Teeter-Totter. Or are they on Bad Smelling Rock? It's nice that the little girl is giving the young woman a helping hand. Before she bites her! Notice the Columbia passing in the background.

A family has just deplaned from a Huck Finn Raft, and aren't sure what to do next. The little girl is content with her box of popcorn, but Dad will need an hour or so to look at his complimentary map of the Island (held by Mom), so that he can make a full itinerary. I believe that the man with the yellow sweater is wearing an early version of a park passport around his neck.

And finally, more teeter-totter action! So many kids waiting their turn for such a simple thing. But there was a risk of injury, and so it had to go bye-bye. Let's just be grateful that we got to experience it for ourselves.

 As always, THANK YOU, Mysterious Benefactor!

Snoozles™

It will be no mystery as to why today's scans fall into the "Snoozles™" category. The most controversial category of all?? "Colliers" magazine wrote a piece about it, and Colliers hasn't even been in print since 1957! The article was titled, "Are Snoozles™ Corrupting Today's Youth?". The answer is YES.

Yeesh, this one is pretty lousy. It's the familiar African Veldt tableau, which always reminds me of the scene in "The Lion King", where all the animals gather at Pride Rock to see baby Simba. Only the Jungle Cruise has some lions munching on a dead zebra. Maybe the other animals are just glad it isn't them on the menu? "I never liked Zoltan anyway".

From a different lot we get this "meh" look at Castle Rock, an incredible natural rock formation caused by tectonic forces, erosion, and bugs. Seeing this image make me have the overwhelming desire to plant a Yippee flag at the top and be a general annoyance (more than usual, I mean).

Freedomland USA - "Colossus" show, August 1961

I finally scanned the last of my Freedomland USA slides - not that there were that many to begin with. As you probably know, Freedomland was located in The Bronx in New York, and was intended to be the east coast answer to Disneyland. The project was headed by C.V. Wood, who had been instrumental in the development of Disneyland, until he and Walt had a falling-out. Wood even hired away many people who'd helped design the Anaheim park, presumably with larger salaries. It opened on June 19th, 1960.

All four of today's scans were something of a mystery to me, but a little bit of research told me that these are from a show called "Colossus" that was only performed during the 1961 season. As you can see, the show featured riders on horseback - from what little I've found online, it seems to have been an odd mix of cowboys, Roman-style chariots, and so on. One website said that a man named Ben Rossi was in the show and played an American cowboy; he later became part of Disney entertainment. I wonder if that's Ben in this first scan? 

It's hard to see, but one fellow is wearing an Arab keffiyeh, two others are dressed as Mongolian warriors (I think?), and the rest are too indistinct. It seemed to be a bizarre combination of disparate cultures, but I found a mention of a segment of the show called, "The Greatest Horsemen in History". 

 

"Ben Hur" had been a sensation at the box office in 1959, so it makes sense that a thrilling chariot race would be a part of this horse show. Gladiators glare from the distance, yelling curses in Latin. The one guy isn't dead, he just yelled "I am Spartacus!". WRONG MOVIE. So he was hit over the head with a rolling pin. Much to my surprise, there is one lady on horseback to the right. She played Gladys Khan. 

It looks like the performers could have been in some real danger, those horses are galloping at a furious pace. I hope they each get an apple and a sugar cube after the show (the horses I mean), and if they need volunteers I will give those treats to them. I'm glad to have these photos of this short-lived show!

Freedomland USA closed forever (after its fourth season) on September 13, 1964.

Fantasyland and Frontierland

Here are two scans from a lot that only consisted of this pair. But they're worth a look.

First up is this fun one with two ladies excited to see Pinocchio. He looks as if he was caught by surprise. For some reason I'm imagining that both women are from Italy, they have a fun 60s European vibe - I'll bet they were extras in "Love Italian Style". Henry Mancini go-go music could be heard whenever they were nearby. Or… they lived in Fullerton. The woman in pink (with the crop top) probably got a lot of looks! 

Two photos could hardly be more different, but that's how it goes. This one is from the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland, we're passing through the mysterious Saguaro Forest. A recent (and rare) rain has caused the saguaros to bloom. Saguaros can live up to 150 years, or even more! Sometimes they take on strange shapes, and sometimes they talk to me.

Main Street Views, July 17, 1980

It's time for more photos from Lou Perry - Sue B's father (she scanned these). Lou apparently took a ton of photos during Disneyland's 25th anniversary, and these pix were taken on July 17th, 1980 - the actual anniversary day. 

If you happened to visit the park and didn't already know that it was the park's 25th "birthday" (having somehow avoided the avalanche of publicity), there were banners along Main Street to inform you. I was also there, yelling the big news to people passing by. Don't worry, it was friendly yelling (i.e. less spit flying).

There's some low-key bunting on City Hall, and Old Glory was flying as usual. Some say guests might see a pale, haunted face in one of those round windows, but it's too scary so I'll never look.

Looking at the shadows, this is well into the afternoon, but the crowds don't seem as crazy and I would expect on such a significant day. You'd think that many locals would stop by to take part in the celebration.  Looking through the trees in the Plaza, it appears that there is some sort of giant "cake" on display. Chonklit, I hope.

We're outside the Coca Cola Refreshment Corner. Why yes, I'd love a refreshment. Not too much ice, I ain't paying for frozen water! That vertical sign always makes me think of a thermometer. 

And finally, here's a nice view as seen from Main Street Station. The giant cake is gone, guests ate it like piranhas eating a water buffalo. They all had chocolate on their faces for the rest of the day. Pooh is in the lower left corner, greeting some fans. It looks like it was a fun day!

MANY THANKS to Lou and Sue!

Uggies. LEFTuggies, that is.

I grabbed two "Leftuggies"™ from my stash of scans. First up is this August, 1969 look down Main Street, with the Main Street Cinema and the Wurlitzer store - well, not exactly, since Wurlitzer vacated the premises about a year before. The space eventually held the exhibit, "Walt Disney: A Legacy For the Future". I wish I had more of these nice big 120-format slides, the image is bright and clear. And we get a good look at the handsome devil to the right, with his camera mounted to a monopod. No Blurzles™ for him!

Next is a fun picture from August, 1968. A whole bunch of guests are posing with Mickey Mouse in Town Square. Do all the people belong to one family (there's a lot of blond hair)? Or did everyone try to get as close to Mickey as possible, no matter who was manning the camera? We'll never know. I like the late-60s fashions, including a colorful floppy hat on the girl to the right. She's far out! You can't really make it out in this jpeg, but the girl holding hands with Mickey is wearing a souvenir hat with Mary Poppins' likeness on it.

Frontierland, August 1970

Before we get started, we have to address the mouse in the room. "Hello, mouse". Ha ha ha ha! See what I did there? Why aren't you laughing?? Today is Mickey Mouse's birthday, something I would have never thought about, but Sue B. is always thinking. One time she said something about an isosceles triangle, and she might as well have been speaking Esperanto.

Anyway, she remembered that November 18th is Mickey's big day - his 97th big day, in fact! She sent along two scans of photos by Lou Perry (her dad), from a parade. Sue said that these are from Mickey's 50th Celebration, which was in 1978, which explains why everyone is in disco clothes. There's the mouse of the hour, looking pretty spry. I need one of those big crutch thingies for emergencies.

Behind him, at a court-mandated distance of over 100 feet, rides Minnie Mouse and Donald Duck. They are riding with a giant Hallmark Card, purchased at the last minute just up the street. "Have you got anything BIG?". They filled it with balloons from the "Fun With Latex" shop next door. Two CMs carry a rope that might ward off evil spirits, or else that's the end of the parade. Two floats? TWO??

*****************************

Given the occasion, I feel kind of bad, there have been a lot of very MEH scans on GDB lately, but it's just the way things worked out, as far as going through my current box. I promise there will be more good stuff! Meanwhile here's a standard view of Rainbow Ridge, looking deserted and a little spooky if I'm being honest. 

Like most GDB readers, I miss Cascade Peak, and I'm happy to see photos of that long-gone landmark (torn down 27 years ago), even if it's not the greatest picture!

This one almost wound up in the Snoozles bin, but I didn't want to upset its parents, who I know pretty well, so I'm just placing it with the other two scans. The woman to the right wants us to see how her shampoo has left her hair bouncy and manageable, but she did it right when we were trying to take a photo of Old Unfaithful and the Devil's Paint Pots. 

Fun in Frontierland, July 1962

Before we get started with the regular blog post, I wanted to share two photos from GDB pal Ken S. You know Ken! A former CM with fond memories of his years working in Frontierland. A few days ago Ken mentioned that a tribute to former Mine Train cast members, in the form of a poster, was added to a building in Rainbow Ridge as part of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, which (as you know) replaced the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland.

The President of the Order of the Red Handkerchief wrote: The Order of the Red Handkerchief has been honored and recognized by Disneyland with a Poster on the side of a building in Rainbow Ridge on the Big Thunder Mountain Attraction. You will have to ride the attraction to see the Poster. The Order of the Red Handkerchief is the oldest Disneyland Alumni Club. It is also the only Disneyland Alumni Club that Walt Disney was a member.  Next time you visit Disneyland take a ride and view our Poster.

Take a look!

Ken also sent a photo from the last meeting of the ORH, which he unfortunately missed for personal reasons, but here's the picture:

THANK YOU, KEN!

***************************

I need to have a machine installed into my forehead that will continually (every 10 seconds) feed vintage Frontierland images directly into my frontal lobe. But, until that happy event can be made a reality, here are two more scans for you. 

Dad wanted to get a photo of his wife and two sons (circa July 1962) with the magnificent Mark Twain right behind them. That big rock seems tailor-made for photo-ops, and yet, as far as I am aware, this is the first and only picture that I have that takes advantage of that chunk of granite.  Or maybe it's a big piece of schist! 

Next we see the two boys paddling their little hearts out in an Indian Warrior Canoe. From this angle, I'm surprised that the inside of the Canoe looks to be molded plastic, or (more likely) fiberglass The little princess in front of the boys actually provided 77% of the forward momentum due to her skill and strength.

Snoozles™

I'm using up more of the (sadly) big batch of too-dark slides. I'm not proud of it! 

Not only is this one too dark, but it's boring too. And it's a little blurry. And it smells like old onions (you'll have to take my word for that one). I love the mighty Columbia sailing ship, but it doesn't look so mighty when it is berthed in Fowler's Harbor. A Keelboat sits nearby, like the Columbia's little brother. Or rather, "sister", since it's the Bertha Mae.

And oh man, this one is just weird. The photographer accidentally placed his Ray Bans over the camera lens. You'd be surprised how often that happens. The result is a fairly terrible photo; I assume that the two boys are assuming "searching the horizon" poses, or else they are saluting me (Major Pepperidge) in acknowledgment of my heroic service during the Cola Wars.

 

Knott's Berry Farm, February 1961

It would have been fun to see Knott's Berry Farm in the early days. The Ghost Town goes all the way back to 1940, a stroke of genius on the park of Walter Knott. And of course it all continued to grow, bit by bit, for decades. I love the idea of a family heading to Buena Park for one of Cordelia's famous chicken dinners (and boysenberry pie for dessert); the wait is several hours, but it's no problem, because there's so much to do! 

Today's photos are from 1961; this first one has Dad and his four kids - three boys and a little girl (I hope her brothers were nice to her). They're all in front of the Red Cliff, old #41. I've always wondered if the odd colors were historic to one particular railroad? The pavement is wet as if a rain shower just passed through - or else the streets were hosed off every morning. The wonderful Calico Mine Ride had opened just four months earlier.

Next is this fun photo of the three boys posing with one of the Native American characters - the oldest boy got a magnificent Chief's headdress, while the younger boys (Twins? Not sure) get two feathers each. They look pretty happy!