This blog has nothing to do with gorillas (though I love 'em)...fellow bloggers have inspired me to share vintage images of Disneyland from my personal collection. But don't be surprised if you see something from a World's Fair, Knott's Berry Farm, or someplace else that is cool!
From the same batch of Instamatic slides as last Thursday's post come today's snooze-tastic Jungle Cruise pictures. Not the worst things you'll ever see, but far from the best, also. It's that familiar African Veldt tableau, presumably an excuse to populate the Jungle Cruise with a significant number of critters. Why would they all be grouped into one rather small area? To watch one of their pals…
In a large box of slides, I found this group of photos from a defunct amusement park in Ocala, Florida - Six Gun Territory! There isn't a lot of information about this park on Wikipedia. The short version says Six Gun Territory was a Western-themed theme park in Ocala, Florida, United States. It opened on February 2, 1963 and closed on January 1, 1984. The rest of the article is about the Southern…
After observing a large weather balloon (launched from the top of Mt. Everest), I have determined that this would be a good day to share some RANDOS. First up is this nice photo, date-stamped "August, 1967", featuring the entrance to Adventureland. There's the arched sign, made of bamboo and woven palm leaves in the finest "Gilligan's Island" manner. Ivory tusks might be seen as problematic, but…
Way back on May 27th of this year, I shared some 1973 photos taken by Lou Perry from a visit to SoCal's now-defunct Lion Country Safari. After a too-long wait, here is Part 2! You can tell that these antelope feel pretty safe on this faux veldt, they could hardly be more relaxed. Some might not be alive, who can tell? My memories of LCS are mostly of animals half-asleep in the Irvine heat. It's a…
If your Spidey Senses were tingling this morning, it might mean that: A) You were bitten by a radioactive spider, and/or B) You knew that it is Steve DeGaetano's birthday. As always, Sue B. has something for the occasion, and undated photo of a vintage birthday party. 3 elves with pointy blue hats sit in a basement (?) at a card table with a magnificent tablecloth, and the finest, most comfortable…
It's time for some Vintage Disneyland Ephemera! I have three good ones for you, starting with this wonderful caricature, shared with us by GDB pal JG. He said I was going through yet another old box of stuff that hadn't been moved for 25 years, much less opened. No idea what I would find, and there this was... A caricature portrait of me in 1965. This has to have been made on the same trip as all…
Here's a fun pair of scans featuring two friends who were aboard a Matterhorn bobsled, preparing for their thrilling ride through the icy slopes and caves! A Cast Member ("George") appears to be telling our riders how to behave. Keep your hands inside the vehicle! Don't stand up! No smoking! No spitting or cursing! And so on. I like his shirt and need one to wear every day. Imagine if they sold…
Unlike a box of chocolates, you pretty much know what to expect from Snoozles™. Bad pictures! I understand that guests aboard a Skyway gondola had limited mobility and not a lot of control of their view inside that tiny bucket, but having a photo perfectly bisected by one of the gondola's supports is pretty bad. It's too bad, otherwise it would be a decent picture. From the same batch comes this…
Let's head on down to Orlando, Florida, to visit Walt Disney World, circa March 1976. The park had been open for less than five years at that point! As I've said before, I sure wish I could have seen it in its early state, but... I still haven't visited. D'oh. Today's images are from a small batch of only five slides. First up is this view from near Cinderella Castle, which I assume is more or…
Here's a pair of especially nice photos of Disneyland, circa September 1959. Only about three months after the Matterhorn, Monorail, and Submarines debuted, which was an exciting time! It seems that the photographer was attempting to capture the general ambiance of Tomorrowland in a single photo, with the Mark I Monorail ("Li'l Stubby"), the crowds waiting for their Voyage Through Liquid Space,…
Here are two pretty nice photos from Main Street, USA - undated, and probably from the early 1960s. Here's Vesey Walker and the Disneyland Band performing in front of the Opera House, which was not used for much until the sets from "Babes in Toyland" were exhibited (1961 through 1963). Since we can see the attraction posters for the Submarine Voyage and the Monorail, we know that this photo is…
Here are two slide scans, both date-stamped "July 1962", though they are not from the same batch. Huggable Pluto stands in front of the turnstiles to greet guests (but only after they have purchased their tickets); he strikes a Napoleonic pose, if only he had a bicorne hat. He would have looked like he escaped from Elba, or perhaps the Funny Farm. Could it be that our guest was just showing up at…
Here's a pair from January, 1962. Old Major Pepperidge wasn't around quite yet! BUT SOON. A family in sweaters and coats passes the Crystal Arcade, where one could buy Crystal Light, Crystal Pepsi, and Cristal champagne. I can only imagine what other wondrous souvenirs were offered in '62, I'll bet there were things that would fetch astronomical prices today. The photographer's timing was a bit…
It's time for another selection of BUPIX! Photos from the personal collection of GDB friend Bu, from his days in the 80s, when he worked as a balloon vendor, and in Guest Relations, AND as a Tour Guide. He has kindly provided some fun commentary to go with today's pictures, which makes them more fun. Here we go! These photos are from another “Tour of Tears”…(as the TG’s called them) where we would…
Here's a pair of not-bad Snoozles™ featuring the Snow White Grotto in Fantasyland. This charming feature was not even a year old, having debuted on April , 1961 (this first photo is from August 1962). Snow White was placed at the top of this water feature, which is very reminiscent of the Villa d'Este near Rome. The story goes that she's up there to disguise the fact that she is the same height as…
Today's "Anything Goes Saturday" images were a mystery to me; we see a small, unusual-looking sternwheeler on a glassy body of water, with the name "S.S. Priscilla" visible on the life preservers on the upper level (the "hot dog deck", I believe). It turns out that this was enough of a clue - the "steamboat" was at the Great Danbury Fair, in Danbury, Connecticut, circa October, 1958. We've visited…
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…
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…
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…
"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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…