Wednesday, September 25, 2024

All Aboard! Casey Jr. Circus Train, circa 2007



Take a ride aboard the Casey Jr. Circus Train at Disneyland, circa February 2007! Based on the circus train from Disney’s animated classics “Dumbo” and “The Reluctant Dragon” (both 1941), it has been part of Fantasyland since pretty much opening day; technical difficulties caused a brief shut down for repairs.



Even seventeen years ago, establishing shots were important to me, including the original ticket booth (photo #1), the entrance sign, and of course the engine itself!



How Casey looked pulling into the station:



I scored the backseat on this ride, which provides unfettered views of Storybook Land:



…without any other guests, flailing arms, or selfie sticks to get in the way. In 2007, cellphones had yet to invade the world to the degree that we are unable to enjoy living without them.



The Matterhorn looks even larger against the back drop of the miniature landscape of Storybook Land.





An overview of the homes of the Three Little Pigs, the Three Windmills, and Toad Hall.



Gepetto’s Village:



Zooming in for a better look; who wouldn’t like to be able to walk around at their leisure to see all of the little details here?



Alice’s Village:



The French Village below Cinderella’s Castle:



The details of this still blow me away; even decorative items sitting in the windows.



Hope you enjoyed your ride aboard Casey Jr.!

See more Disneyland Casey Jr. Circus Train photos at my main website.

3 comments:

Jimmy said...

WOW. These photos are beautiful.

Fifthrider said...

This post sent me down the rabbit hole researching The Reluctant Dragon. I'd heard about it many times but never seen it. It's kind of neat that Casey Jr. can claim two screen credits that year alone. As for that first staged shot, I'm assuming you shot that from the boat with an incredibly steady arm. Impressive. Until now I'd never noticed the specific way Casey's eyes were built. They can really appear to be looking at you from any angle.

Anonymous said...

I purchased a Blu-ray of two Disney movies, years ago, because it included "The Reluctant Dragon" as a bonus feature. (I wanted to see how the animation studios looked.)