Monday, February 21, 2011

"Big, Bad" Disney



And the dumbest headline goes to...this July 1954 blurb from the New York Bureau which accompanied this photo:

WHO’S AFRAID OF THE 'BIG, BAD' DISNEY

HOLLYWOOD: The creator of Mickey Mouse, Pluto, and Donald Duck, Walt Disney, with gun in hand, halts a stagecoach bulging with smiling youngsters in the Frontier Land realm of Disneyland in Orange County, California. The youngsters are (left to right): Carolyn Graybill, Pamela Sue Bornemann, Joan Graybill, Richard Graybill. When completed in 1955, the amusement and educational center will cost an estimated nine million dollars.


Obviously those with sharp eyes will see that the Stagecoach is actually located at the Disney Studios in Burbank, not at Frontierland in Anaheim. I believe the $9 million figure was off by about $8.5 million if you go by the accounts published on opening day.

Here’s another shot of the Stagecoach backstage at the Disney Studios well before opening:



For more Disneyland Stagecoach photos, visit my main website.

2 comments:

Connie Moreno said...

LOL, before I even started reading, I noticed the windows! My first thought was that this was taken backstage behind Main Street but then I realized that it was at the studios. Funny!

Vintage Disneyland Tickets said...

Both great photos! Its funny how they didn't even try and hide the fact that the Walt shot was taken at the Studio!