tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-292499212024-03-28T20:28:56.702-07:00DavelandblogPop Culture, Disneyland photos, and a generous sampling of my art and travel photography.Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.comBlogger4992125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-59933215679264136072024-03-28T08:35:00.000-07:002024-03-28T08:35:37.741-07:00Betty Lou Gets A Book<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/Gerson.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/Gerson.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I was recently contacted by a marketing rep about reading the book, <i>The Voice of Villainy: The Betty Lou Gerson Story</i> by Lona Bailey, PhD. Admittedly, Gerson has never really been high on my radar, but I was aware that she was the vocal talent behind one of the most famous animated villains of all-time, Cruella de Vil, from Disney’s “101 Dalmations.” Having recently finished the book, I can’t say I’d recommend it. Clocking in at a little over 100 pages of biographical text (in large print, no less), it reads more like a college term paper, with plenty of gaps of info that unfortunately seem to hit just as the author stumbles upon something halfway interesting. The book also includes a large appendix with chronological listings of Betty’s work; in fact almost half of the book is dedicated to these exhaustive lists. I commend Bailey on her work in digging up the list of vintage radio broadcasts, but can’t applaud her for her writing skills or ability to create a biography that digs deeply into the source material beyond what could be found on Wikipedia.<br /><br />If you want to learn new information about Betty’s work at Disney (which began with the voice-over narration of “Cinderella”), you’ll be sorely disappointed. In fact, her work at Disney is glossed over with a scant four pages on “Dalmation.” I patiently waded through pages upon pages of background info about Betty’s family history and the abundance of explanatory text of the hurdles women had to overcome because of the societal constraints of the time. In describing Betty’s narrator gig for “Cinderella,” the author states:<br /><br /><i>
No cast or crew member of “Cinderella” knew they were contributing to a legendary film or legendary production company that would become and stay a household name for decades after. It was simply business as usual, though the element of animation was certainly a twist of novelty.</i><br /><br />You lost me, Lona. Business as usual? At the point “Cinderella” got the green light, Disney animation was struggling as it hadn’t had a financial hit since “Snow White” (1937). The studio was staying afloat thanks to making Government films during the war. The studio’s financial livelihood and success rested on the shoulders of the animated heroine and her glass slipper. I’m not sure who Lona interviewed for this portion, but it couldn’t have been anyone associated with the Disney Studio. In the few pages she writes about “Dalmatians,” she completely disappoints again, giving very little new info about Gerson’s part in the production. Bailey manages to misspell the name of Mary Wickes, the actress who was used as the live-action reference model for Cruella because Gerson didn’t quite have the physical look that animator Marc Davis was seeking (even though Bailey claims that Cruella was “Gersons’s wicked animated alter-ego”). For me, the book offered few relevatory bits of info, other than discovering that Gerson was an acting coach for a very young Mary Tyler Moore. Even that tidbit was a disappointment as there was no further information about whether the two kept in contact over the years or what Mary thought of her in retrospect.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/Ainley-Gerson-1936.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/Ainley-Gerson-1936.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />As far as photos, the cover shot is all you get. Thanks to ebay, I can provide these two images. The shot above shows Betty Lou and her husband, Joseph Ainley. From the accompanying 1936 publicity blurb:<br /><br /><i>Radio Actress Married In Chicago Photo shows Joseph T. Ainley, Chicago Advertsiing Company official and his bride, the former Betty Lou Gerson, 22 year old radio actress. The couple were married in Chicago April 27, upon Miss Gerson’s arrival from the West Coast where she appeared on a radio program, and the couple kept the marriage secret until April 29. <br /></i><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/TheRedMenace-1757-43.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/TheRedMenace-1757-43.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Above is a shot from Betty’s 1949 anti-communist film, “The Red Menace.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/TheRedMenace-1757-43-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/TheRedMenace-1757-43-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Finally, a painting I did a few years back of the most famous character that Betty Lou voiced, Cruella de Vil.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/gallery/images/Cruella_DSC_4958.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/gallery/images/Cruella_DSC_4958.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Betty, you deserved better.<br /><br />See more photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/photography" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-40181507949958941882024-03-26T04:00:00.000-07:002024-03-26T04:00:00.132-07:00Temple Tuesday: More Marilyn<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/curlytop/CurlyTop-216-25.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/curlytop/CurlyTop-216-25.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />In this publicity still for Shirley Temple’s 1935 film, “Curly Top,” her first stand-in, Marilyn Granas, can be seen standing next to Shirley on the left side of the photo. This was one of the few times that Marilyn got any actual screen time in a Shirley movie.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/curlytop/CurlyTop-216-25-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/curlytop/CurlyTop-216-25-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />A year before, she posed for this still taken during the making of “Bright Eyes.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/brighteyes/BrightEyes-184-P30.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/brighteyes/BrightEyes-184-P30.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />From the accompanying caption:<br /><br /><i>FRIENDS — Shirley Temple, helmeted, and Marilyn Granas, her stand-in and playmate, about to take “Rags” out for a promenade along dressing room row at the Fox Film studio where Shirley is now engaged on “Bright Eyes.”</i><br />
<br />If Rags looks familiar, that’s because you probably recall her (yes, her) playing Toto in “The Wizard of Oz.” Shirley met him before Judy did! Below is a shot of Marilyn when I met her in 2018 at a little get together in Los Angeles commemorating what would have been Shirley Temple’s 90th birthday.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/losangeles/images/fox/SPalooza/DSC_6102.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/losangeles/images/fox/SPalooza/DSC_6102.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />You can read more about that evening from <a href="https://davelandblog.blogspot.com/2018/05/palooza-pt-4-party.html" target="_blank">my previous blog post.</a><br /><br />
See more Shirley Temple photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-29128317734043545752024-03-21T08:01:00.000-07:002024-03-21T08:01:38.555-07:00All In The Details, Pt. 2<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/tomorrowland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day2_N27.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/tomorrowland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day2_N27.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />One of the great advantages to having the original source material is that it allows you to zoom in on specific areas and look at some of those glorious details! In this September 1969 shot, we can see that the ticket booth is closed (what’s a guest to do?!?) and get a better look at the signage. “Purchase tickets here for Tomorrowland Adventures.” No ticket, no adventure.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/tomorrowland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day2_N27-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/tomorrowland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day2_N27-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The ho-hum Astro Jets attraction got a lift with the “New” Tomorrowland revamp in 1967…literally. Here the newly christened Rocket Jets attraction sits high atop the PeopleMover platform.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/tomorrowland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day2_N27-d2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/tomorrowland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day2_N27-d2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Here’s a somewhat run-of-the-mill Main Street shot from 1957 with the Omnibus lumbering towards Central Plaza.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N01R.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N01R.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Zooming in, we can see that the photographer captured the sign for the former Hollywood Maxwell’s Intimate Apparel shop all covered up, waiting for the new sign that would say, “China Closet.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N01R_detail.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N01R_detail.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Over in Fantasyland, on the Peter Pan’s Flight attraction, we see Peter flying the Darling children back to London.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/peterpan/images/DSC_2587.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/peterpan/images/DSC_2587.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />In the lower portion of the image you can see the Crew List book:<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/peterpan/images/DSC_2587-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/peterpan/images/DSC_2587-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Walt Disney himself gave these lucky kids a tour of Frontierland before the actual opening of the Park.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/KiddiePreview1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/KiddiePreview1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Looks like Mickey Mouse was included as well.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/KiddiePreview1-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/KiddiePreview1-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
See more Disneyland photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/disneyland" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-43331392921885382762024-03-19T04:00:00.001-07:002024-03-19T06:49:44.879-07:00Temple Tuesday: Shirley in the Clubhouse<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.12.50-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.12.50-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />On Halloween of 1969, the sixth episode of season 1 of “The Brady Bunch” aired on ABC-TV. Titled, “A Clubhouse Is Not a Home,” it dealt with the common theme of the boys vs. the girls. In a classic battle of the sexes, the Brady boys do not want their sisters to have access to their clubhouse. In this overhead shot of the Brady girls’ bedroom, I noticed something on the bed near Jan.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.15.20-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.15.20-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Could the soft brown curls of that doll be those of an Ideal Shirley Temple doll?<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.15.20-PM-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.15.20-PM-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Mike talks things over with the boys and tries to get them to understand the situation. He doesn’t do a very good job, and his heart is obviously not in it.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.17.02-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.17.02-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The girls redecorate the boys’ sacred space, and this makeover does not go over well!<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.18.04-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.18.04-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The doll hanging on the wall is the same one from the bedroom. Note the Raggedy Andy doll next to it.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.19.11-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.19.11-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Yup! That’s a 1950’s Shirley Temple vinyl doll. At the time this episode was shot, the doll itself would have been about ten years old, as the most recent release of Shirley dolls occurred in the late 1950s to coincide with the actress’ TV series, “Shirley Temple’s Storybook” and “The Shirley Temple Show.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.19.11-PM-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.19.11-PM-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Here’s how that 19" doll looks today:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/shirley/50svinyl/19/DSC_8606.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/shirley/50svinyl/19/DSC_8606.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />She had what were called “flirty eyes,” and they would roll from side to side, giving shade and attitude depending upon the angle the head was tilted. Unfortunately, all these years later, they don’t always work in coordination, giving Shirley a bit of a wonky-eye. A simple slap to the side of the head can remedy this situation! Long enough for a picture, that is.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/shirley/50svinyl/19/DSC_8604.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/shirley/50svinyl/19/DSC_8604.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The curls on the back of the 1950’s vinyl doll were much looser and softer than those of the 1930’s dolls that Ideal released. While the vinyl of these dolls was much more play-friendly than the brittle composition used in the previous incarnation, these dolls often discolor over time.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/shirley/50svinyl/19/DSC_8601.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/shirley/50svinyl/19/DSC_8601.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Back to the Brady episode: the final solution was that the boys helped build a beautiful pink clubhouse for the girls so that each of them had their own retreat in the astro-turfed backyard.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.19.50-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.19.50-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />It was definitely not one of the stronger episodes, and if I recall correctly, neither clubhouse was viewed again.<br /><br />See more classic Movie & TV photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-43465681483801764702024-03-18T06:00:00.000-07:002024-03-18T06:41:31.569-07:00Milestone Running Monday<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Lemon.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Lemon.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />For more years than I can remember, I have both shopped AND run at Milestone Running store in the North Park neighborhood of San Diego. It’s been so long since I first discovered this place that I don’t even quite remember how I stumbled upon them. Most likely it was from my days of half marathons when I became dissatisfied with the zero-knowledge super stores that purported to be for runners but were more about the sale than being truly helpful. Milestone is in a league of their own, with employees that know about running and take the time to help each person that shops there until they find exactly what they need. If they don’t have it they’ll order it, rather than shove you into something that doesn’t quite do the job but does help clear the inventory. Greg and Chad are the owners that I have gotten to know over the years (no photos of Chad; he’s the shy one that hides in the wings!). Besides running gear, they also “sell” their Wednesday run club. I use quotes because they charge ZERO for this weekly experience. Here’s how run club works: you arrive at 6pm, listen to announcements from Greg (upcoming races, introducing various vendors that are onsite that evening, tips about the evening’s routes), run either the 3 or 5 mile course through the neighborhood, regroup at Milestone, win any number of fun raffle prizes (the coveted one is the weekly pineapple), and then meet at a different eating/drinking establishment afterwards. In case you missed it the first time, they charge zip, zilcho, zero.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-May-12,-6-02-13-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-May-12,-6-02-13-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />When the pandemic hit, many activities went down the toilet as businesses shuttered and we were told to stay inside. No activity was missed more than Wednesday night run club. I was overjoyed when it came back with a vengeance. I forgot that after the run, Milestone also supplies water and either watermelon or orange slices for replenishment.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-Aug-18,-6-46-35-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-Aug-18,-6-46-35-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The prizes are creative beyond belief. Even if I don’t win, half the fun is hearing what Greg and team have concocted. For national coconut day, the bounty I won included a coconut, coconut water, coconut brew, and an almond joy bar.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-Sep-01,-7-06-51-PMn.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-Sep-01,-7-06-51-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I have also won the weekly pineapple prize a few times, too.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-Jul-28,-7-12-04-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/milestone/Photo-Jul-28,-7-12-04-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Run club is about more than just running and prizes; it is an amazing weekly social connection. I have invited many friends and most say, “I’m really not a great runner!” IT DOESN’T MATTER. All skill levels arrive and walk away with having had an incredible time. The camaraderie of this group is off the charts. At last week’s run club, Greg shared a video put together by Brooks. In just about ten minutes, they perfectly capture the spirit of my favorite running store and the incredibly selfless team of people behind it. Definitely worth the watch.<br /><br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="255" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OhL_AfVjvF4?si=5PoIxh2VRyO8CNNK" title="YouTube video player" width="400"></iframe><br /><br />Thanks, Greg & Chad!<br /><br />See more Daveland photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/photography" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-81866840811343613652024-03-14T12:23:00.000-07:002024-03-14T12:23:26.917-07:00All In The Details, Pt. 1<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N08.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N08.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />This shot of the white swans in the Disneyland Sleeping Beauty Castle moat from approximately 1957 yields some interesting info. When zooming in, you can see the banner promoting the Richfield Autopia Fantasyland Autopia. Yes, the myths are true. There were once multiple Autopia attractions at Disneyland!<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N08-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/1957_KTPBK_N08-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Don’t believe me? Just take a look at this December 1956 image:<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/autopia/images/50s/KTPBK_12_56_N18B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/autopia/images/50s/KTPBK_12_56_N18B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I’ve always wondered if that Eagle “landed” anywhere?<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/autopia/images/50s/KTPBK_12_56_N18B-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/autopia/images/50s/KTPBK_12_56_N18B-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Back to the first image…if you shifted your camera to the right, you would see the Monsanto House of the Future, as long as it was June 1957. I am guessing the swan shot was taken before construction on the HOF had begun.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/hof/images/KTPBK_HOF_N02R.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/hof/images/KTPBK_HOF_N02R.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />This panorama from December 1956 gives you an idea of what the area surrounding the moat looked like at that time.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/CalColor_12_56_14HW.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/CalColor_12_56_14HW.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />No Matterhorn…no Snow White Wishing Well…no House of the Future. Just a mound of dirt and some trees, “themed” as Holiday Hill, Lookout Mountain, Snow Hill, and unofficially “Lover’s Lane.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/CalColor_12_56_14HW-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/castle/images/50s/CalColor_12_56_14HW-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Snow White’s Wishing Well joined the landscape here in 1961:<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/sw_well/images/60s/DrewryPC_9_61_N06C.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/sw_well/images/60s/DrewryPC_9_61_N06C.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/sw_well/images/60s/DrewryPC_9_61_N06C_detail.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/sw_well/images/60s/DrewryPC_9_61_N06C_detail.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />So many tangents from one image.<br /><br />See more vintage & contemporary Disneyland photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/disneyland" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-43753834508998766352024-03-12T04:00:00.000-07:002024-03-12T05:58:15.349-07:00Temple Tuesday: Dimples and Romance<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/Dimples-Rehearsal.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/Dimples-Rehearsal.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Actress Astrid Allwyn had supporting roles in two back-to-back Shirley Temple films, starting with “Dimples” (released October 16, 1936) and followed by “Stowaway” (released December 25, 1936). Allwyn was born Astrid Christofferson on November 27, 1905 in South Manchester, Connecticut. At age 13, she was offered a scholarship to the Boston Conservatory of Music for her singing, but declined rather than move away from home. After high school graduation, she moved to New York, hoping for a career as a concert singer, but ended up taking classes at a business college and becoming a typist on Wall Street. She studied dancing and dramatics while in New York and later gathered experience by joining a stock company. Allwyn made her Broadway debut in 1929 in Elmer Rice’s “Street Scene,” and on the strength of her second play, “Once in a Lifetime,” was brought to Hollywood in 1932. Her first husband was actor Robert Kent, who also starred in “Dimples.” Although she played the gold-digging “other woman” in “Dimples” (Delma Byron, seen below with Robert Kent and Shirley, played the romantic lead) Allwyn ended up winning the leading man in real life. Ain’t that grand?<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/dimples/Dimples-268-64.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/dimples/Dimples-268-64.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Allwyn told the story of how she and Kent fell in love in the November 1937 issue of <i>Hollywood Magazine:</i><br /><br /><i>Astrid up and got herself married about six months ago to Robert Kent, 20th Century-Fox star, and a mighty good actor in his own right and a chap who is going places in the picture business before he is through. “Frank Morgan can take credit for the start of our romance,” Astrid reveals. “We were shooting a scene in the Shirley Temple picture “Dimples” where Robert was supposed to kiss me. Whether it was because he was shy or because he scarcely knew me, he suggested to Bill Seiter, the director, that he merely kiss my hand. Bill had some suggestions of his own—and Robert was told to kiss me the way a boy should kiss a girl. Well, the cameras began to grind and we began to kiss. Frank Morgan was supposed to interrupt the embrace with a bit of dialogue but as he said later ‘I didn’t have the heart’ so we kept it up until Bill finally yelled out. From that time on—thanks to Frank Morgan—we began a friendship that ended where we are now—happily married and deeply in love.”</i><br /><br />The marriage took place shortly after “Stowaway” wrapped up production, when the two headed south to Tijuana for the ceremony. They married on January 10, 1937, as announced in the Hanover Evening Sun on January 18, 1937:<br /><br /><i>Astrid Allwyn and Robert Kent, film players, have disclosed they were married Sunday, January 10 in Tijuana, Mexico. The only attendant was J. Edward Bromberg, screen actor. The couple obtained their marriage licenses under their true names of Astrid Christofferson and Douglas Blackley. Their romance began last spring.</i><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/Kent-Allwyn.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/Kent-Allwyn.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Bromberg also costarred in “Stowaway,” seen at left below with Alice Faye, Temple, and Robert Young.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/stowaway/Shirley_Stowaway-289-158.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/stowaway/Shirley_Stowaway-289-158.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Below are Allwyn and Eugene Pallette in a scene that was ultimately deleted from the final film. Once again, she played a woman with less than desirable morals, about to blackmail Robert Young for some moolah.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/stowaway/Shirley_Stowaway-289-99.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/stowaway/Shirley_Stowaway-289-99.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The scene below was also deleted from “Stowaway.” Allwyn is barely visible in the final film, hardly earning her onscreen credit.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/Stowaway-ChooChoo.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/Stowaway-ChooChoo.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Despite being “happily married,” Astrid and Robert were divorced in 1941. Allwyn had the distinction of appearing in three Best Picture Oscar nominated films: “The White Parade” (1934), “Love Affair” (1939), and “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (1939). She married a second time in 1941 to businessman Charles O. Fee. After filming Hit Parade of 1943 (1943), Astrid made a decision to retire so she could focus on family and raising her children. One of her daughters, Melinda Fee, had a modestly successful career in movies and television. Astrid remained married to Charles until her death in Los Angeles on March 31, 1978 from cancer, at age 72. She is buried in Forest Lawn in Glendale, Court of Freedom, #955.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/AA-F9-134.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/AA-F9-134.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Above is a publicity shot for Fox, shot by Gene Kornman in 1936. The accompanying blurb:<br /><br /><i>Hollywood continues to smile upon the small hat and triumphantly demonstrates that size imposes no limits in either beauty or variety. Turbans are strong in the mode and imbued with exceptional charm — as witness this black velvet model by William Lambert, 20th Century-Fox stylist, and worn by lovely Astrid Allwyn, featured player of the same studio. The round crown is effectively trimmed with a black cellophane novelty. The ring worn by Miss Allwyn is one of her heirlooms from Sweden — a floral design in mosaic is set in jet and mounted in antique gold.</i><br /><br />She may not have had a huge career, but in Shirley-world, Astrid Allwyn was the perfect villainess for “Dimples.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/dimples/Dimples-268-116.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/dimples/Dimples-268-116.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
See more Shirley Temple photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/tcf.html" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-65918572787844838702024-03-11T04:00:00.000-07:002024-03-11T04:00:00.136-07:00Lou & Sue and Papel<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/Photo-Aug-21-2023,-5-41-24-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/Photo-Aug-21-2023,-5-41-24-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />One of the many pleasures from doing this blog is the connections that I have made over the years. Although I have yet to meet her, frequent reader/commenter Sue is a total joy. After reading last week’s post about <a href="https://davelandblog.blogspot.com/2024/03/ruggles-on-main-street.html" target="_blank">Ruggles on Main Street</a>, Sue shared a few pictures of a cherished souvenir in her possession.<br /><br /><i>Seeing these Flower Market pictures brings back wonderful memories! My parents and I loved shopping at the Park and at the Disneyland Hotel, in the 60s and 70s, as they carried unique items we didn’t see in the Chicagoland area, where we lived at the time. My mom purchased a number of those items (napkin holders, etc.) that you see on display in the Flower Market, for Christmas presents and birthday gifts. I do miss those days when Disneyland carried lots of fun items, with each shop carrying things you didn’t see in all the other Disneyland stores, unlike today where it’s quite predictable that you’ll find a lot of the same pins, mugs, key chains, T-shirts, and stuffed animals in most every store. Thanks, Dave, for this trip down Memory Lane!</i><br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/Photo-Aug-21-2023,-5-41-42-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/Photo-Aug-21-2023,-5-41-42-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Thank YOU Sue for sharing these very cool photos! I found this blurb on <a href="https://giftshopmag.com/news/papel_giftware_license_becomes_available_to_the_industry/" target="_blank">giftshopmag.com</a> about Phil:<br /><br /><i>
Established in 1955 by founder and industry icon, Phil Papel, the company’s roots were on Main Street, Disneyland (Anaheim, California) as a retail shop known as Ruggles China & Gifts. The company quickly grew to a successful retail chain of more than 20 stores in Southern California, and established a wholesale division called Phil Papel Imports. This wholesale division was sold to Russ Berrie in 1987, and in 2000 to Cast Art Industries.</i><br /><br />
The vintage images below are from my collection and show not only the artificial flowers you could buy at the Disneyland Flower Market on Main Street, but the other decorative items available that would have made a nifty gift for anyone’s home. Circa 1960s-70s, of course! From 1969:<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/60s/CT_1969_N19_44.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/60s/CT_1969_N19_44.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />This closeup view shows the yummy vinyl grapes (hard on the tummy, though) and a variety of miniature glass potted “plants,” similar to what Sue shared.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/60s/CT_1969_N19_44-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/60s/CT_1969_N19_44-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />From 1974: <br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/BWNeg_1974_N17B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/BWNeg_1974_N17B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Anyone need a macrame owl wall hanging?<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/BWNeg_1974_N17B_d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/BWNeg_1974_N17B_d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />These gigantic ladybugs are sure to spruce up your yard; or are they fly swatters? I can’t tell.<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/BWNeg_1974_N17B_d3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/BWNeg_1974_N17B_d3.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />From March 1975:<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The first thing that caught my eye was the vintage Japan Air Lines bag.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Fairly easy to find on ebay!<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/s-l1600.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/s-l1600.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I remember this vintage Disneyland shopping bag!<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B_d2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B_d2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Back to the topic at hand…more of the miniature flower pots!<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B-d3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/70s/CSFTSTS_3_75_N09B-d3.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />July 1977:<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />There’s a surplus in this shot! And are those glass mushrooms on the shelf?<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The owl is still for sale. I wonder if he ever found a home?<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R-d2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R-d2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I do like these wrought iron candle holders. Hopefully they’ll still be around at the end of the day. I guess that’s what the lockers on Main Street were for!<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R-d3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/westside/flowermarket/EkSPBK_7_77_N04R-d3.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />By April 1979, the Flower Market moved from West Center Street to East Center Street:<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/centerstreet/70s/EkGagelPSLtd_4_79_N19B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/centerstreet/70s/EkGagelPSLtd_4_79_N19B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The flower pots made the transition!<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/centerstreet/70s/EkGagelPSLtd_4_79_N19B-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/centerstreet/70s/EkGagelPSLtd_4_79_N19B-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Want a Phil Papel piece of your very own? There are plenty <a href="https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524.m570.l1313&_nkw=phil+papel+imports&_sacat=0&_dmd=1&rt=nc&_odkw=papel&_osacat=0&_sop=10" target="_blank">on ebay</a>!<br /><br /><b>THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU</b> to Sue for inspiring this follow-up post!<br /> <br />See more Disneyland Flower Market photos at my <b><a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/flowermarket.html" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-52793838159350139532024-03-08T08:15:00.000-08:002024-03-08T08:15:00.696-08:00Ruggles on Main Street<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/60s/KIITrans-7-7-1963-N10B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/60s/KIITrans-7-7-1963-N10B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />When we last visited Main Street with <a href="https://davelandblog.blogspot.com/2024/02/sexy-sunday-on-main-street.html" target="_blank">my story on the Hollywood Maxwell shop</a>, I mentioned that it was replaced/combined with the Ruggles China & Glass Shop. Ruggles? Who came up with that name? Apparently it was named after actor Charles Ruggles, who starred opposite Hayley Mills in “The Parent Trap.”<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/disney/images/parenttrap/ParentTrap-TO-2054.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/disney/images/parenttrap/ParentTrap-TO-2054.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />From the <a href="https://issuu.com/vaneatongalleries/docs/souvenirsofdisneylandissuu2/61" target="_blank">Van Eaton Galleries catalog</a>:<br /><br /><i>Created by Phil and Sophie Papel, “Ruggles China and Gifts” was selected by Disney to be among the first few shops to operate on Main Street U.S.A. when the park opened in 1955. Phil Papel’s experience in the giftware industry and his commitment to quality and customer service made him an excellent partner for Disney. When Papel was informed he had been selected to be an opening day merchant on Main Street, he decided to name his shop after Charlie Ruggles, and actor in the 1932 film, “If I Had a Million,” in which the owner of a China Shop receives an unexpected gift of a million dollars. To Papel, the possibilities of what could happen from a partnership with Disney rivaled the level of excitement that the actor felt in the film, and “Ruggles China and Gifts” was born.</i><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/Ruggles1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/Ruggles1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><i>The shop flourished on Main Street, and the company would grow to have numerous retail chains and sales in over 15 countries. While Ruggles’ partnership with Disney eventually ended in 1964, the high quality souvenirs from this cherished shop are still sought-after today as reminders of the great early days of Disneyland.</i><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/Ruggles3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/Ruggles3.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Renamed the China Closet in March 1964, the shop remains in the Park today, although its inventory is less about china and more about whatever the Disney Corporation cares to sell. The first shot above is from July 1963, shortly before the name change. The previously posted image below from October 1960. I wonder how many of those wacky lamps were sold?<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/60s/KTPBT_10_60_N08R2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/60s/KTPBT_10_60_N08R2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Moving into the 70s, the shop appears to be all about the electric lamps that were attempting to evoke the gas lamps of yesteryear.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/BWNeg_1974_N07B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/BWNeg_1974_N07B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I’m not quite sure how I feel about the doll with the bulb up her skirt.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/BWNeg_1974_N07B-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/BWNeg_1974_N07B-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />An undated color shot from the 1960s.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/4_GiftShop.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/4_GiftShop.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The exterior sign, circa September 2010:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/DSC_5859.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/DSC_5859.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />An exterior overview of the shop from May 2011:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/2011/DSC_6716.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/2011/DSC_6716.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />See more Disneyland China & Glass Shop photos at my <b><a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/east.html#china" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-33413401175961855442024-03-07T04:00:00.000-08:002024-03-07T04:00:00.142-08:00Album Cover Mystery<a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/Fahey-John-Of-Rivers-And-Religion.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/Fahey-John-Of-Rivers-And-Religion.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />These days, it takes a lot to surprise me or pique my interest on all things Disneyland. Yes…I admit it. When it comes to vintage Disneyland, I’m fairly jaded. Yesterday, I was contacted by someone who was looking for background information on the album cover shown above. Originally released on August 15, 1972, the photo for John Fahey’s <i>Of Rivers and Religion</i> is from the CD reissue. At first glance, it appears to be a vintage Daguerreotype from the Civil War era, portraying a group of slaves on a raft with an Old Mill behind them. For sharp-eyed Disneyland nutz (like myself), you can see that it was snapped on the Rivers of America with Tom Sawyer’s Island behind them. The liner notes shown below… <br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/s-l1600.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/s-l1600.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
confirm that the photo was taken at Disneyland, with art direction and photography by Ed Thrasher.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/s-l1600-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/s-l1600-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Don’t believe it? Compare with this photo from my collection taken a few years earlier. Even the vegetation on the Old Mill matches.<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/oldmill/60s/CT_CP_N05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/oldmill/60s/CT_CP_N05.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The raft and the red buckets match, too. The photo was taken before Photoshop was available, and it is too good to be a composite from the time. So now that we know it’s genuine, what’s the story behind it?<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/keelboat_rafts/KT2TPBKYC_6_61_N12B-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/keelboat_rafts/KT2TPBKYC_6_61_N12B-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I contacted my usual sources and they were all stumped. One was genuinely interested and wanted me to do a post; the other didn’t seem to care too much. Maybe he had just woken up and hadn’t had his Wheaties yet. I took the advice of the former and am now creating this post!<br /><br />For the photographer, here’s what I found. What a pedigree! Edited from his August 2006 <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-aug-21-me-thrasher21-story.html" target="_blank">L.A. Times obit</a>:<br /><br />
<i>When Frank Sinatra ended his two-year retirement at 57 in 1973, Warner Bros. Records art director Ed Thrasher came up with the perfect title for the legendary singer’s comeback album. The album — for Warner’s Reprise Records label — with its cover photograph by Thrasher showing a relaxed and grinning Sinatra during a recording session, was called “Ol’ Blue Eyes Is Back.” “Ed showed the artwork to Frank, and he just flipped, as we all did,” recalled Joe Smith, former president of Warner Bros. Records. “Frank thought ‘Ol’ Blue Eyes Is Back’ was a great phrase, and it later turned out to be an ad hook when Frank was out on the road again.”As an art director, Smith said, “Ed had the talent for getting along with the talent, especially with a Frank Sinatra, who could get very cranky. With Ed, Frank was a pussycat. He never gave Ed any trouble about the covers.” Thrasher, who worked on hundreds of major albums as an art director, died of cancer Aug. 5 at his Big Bear Lake home, said his son, Jeff. He was 74. Thrasher received 12 Grammy Award nominations as an art director from 1962 to 1974. Joining Warner Bros. Records in 1964 after having been an art director at Capitol Records, Thrasher was the art director on a long string of albums from major artists. Among them: the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s “Are You Experienced?,” Joni Mitchell’s “Song to a Seagull,” the Grateful Dead’s “Anthem of the Sun,” Sinatra’s “My Way,” Van Morrison’s “Tupelo Honey,” Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Earth, Wind & Fire,” the Doobie Brothers’ “Stampede,” Commander Cody’s “We’ve Got a Live One Here,” Bill Cosby’s “Wonderfulness” and Richard Pryor’s “Was It Something I Said?” Thrasher did the photography for many of the albums, in addition to working on print ads and posters. Said Stan Cornyn, a former Warner Bros. Records executive vice president who was director of creative services when he worked with Thrasher in the 1960s and ‘70s, “He was skilled and flexible, and flexibility is not a bad attitude to have when you’re dealing with rock ‘n’ roll stars.” Thrasher, Cornyn said, was able to “handle whatever came along,” because of his “charm, sense of humor, and he knew his job.” Thrasher’s humor extended to occasional practical jokes. Noticing that the company’s top executive routinely made a 10 a.m. stop at the sole upstairs restroom in the old Warner Bros. Records building, Thrasher installed a life-size dummy — with shoes, socks and pants pulled down to the ankles — on the toilet in the restroom’s only stall. Thinking the stall was being used, the executive made repeated trips to the restroom, Cornyn said, before “he finally got down on his knees and figured it out.” “This was Ed’s idea of a good time, and I must say it was shared by all,” Cornyn said. After leaving Warner Bros. Records in 1979, Thrasher formed Ed Thrasher and Associates, an advertising company that created art for films, including Prince’s “Purple Rain” and Mel Gibson’s “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.” Thrasher studied art and illustration at Los Angeles Trade Technical College and the County Art Institute before being hired as an assistant in the art department at Capitol Records in 1957. Thrasher, whose 22-year marriage to actress Linda Gray ended in divorce, is survived by his son; his daughter, Kehly Sloane; two grandchildren; and his sister, Marilyn Ball.</i>
<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/Gray-Thrasher.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/riversandreligion/Gray-Thrasher.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Yes. That Linda Gray. The one who played Sue Ellen Ewing on “Dallas.”<br /><br />According to <a href="https://www.allmusic.com/album/of-rivers-religion-after-the-ball-mw0000467745" target="_blank">allmusic.com</a>:
<br /><br /><i>On Of Rivers & Religion, the ensemble included many of the New Orleans players who performed on Walt Disney's Song of the South film soundtrack.</i><br /><br />The musicians listed in the credits on Fahey’s album are:<br /><br />John Fahey – guitar<br />
Chris Darrow – second guitar, dobro, fiddle, mandolin<br />
Joel Druckman – double bass<br />
Jack Feierman – trumpet<br />
Ira Nepus – trombone<br />
Joanne Grauer – piano, calliope<br />
Nappy La Mare – banjo<br />
Alan Reuss – banjo<br />
Joe Darensbourg – clarinet<br /><br />While I was unable to find the names of the musicians who specifically played on the “Song of the South” soundtrack, I did find a number of Disneyland connections for Fahey’s musicians. <a href="https://www.allmusic.com/artist/chris-darrow-mn0000108096" target="_blank">Chris Darrow</a> put together a bluegrass band called the Dry City Scat Band which played at Disneyland during the summer of 1964. On <a href="https://www.iranepus.com/" target="_blank">Ira Nepus’ website,</a> he states: “I have been a professional musician for over 40 years, beginning at age 17 while I was still in high school and working at Disneyland and numerous recording sessions.” Nappy La Mare played for the Straw Hat Strutters and with Bob Crosby at Disneyland. Alan Reuss played rhythm guitar for the song “Grim Grinning Ghosts” at Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion. Joe Darensbourg also played at Disneyland according to <a href="https://www.disneyhistoryinstitute.com/2011/03/dixieland-at-disneyland-at-dhi_20.html" target="_blank">Disney History Institute</a> with the Dixie Flyers in 1960.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/SteveC_Strawhatters.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/SteveC_Strawhatters.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/chickenplantation/KTPBKYC-12-1963-N16R-RT.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/chickenplantation/KTPBKYC-12-1963-N16R-RT.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />For a taste of Fahey’s album, you can listen to this track on YouTube:<br /><br /><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="255" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lJ7nUIgEwnk?si=PG_NzduD3J7usAWf" title="YouTube video player" width="400"></iframe>
<br /><br />That’s all I could find for now. Unfortunately, the details of the photo shoot itself are still unknown to me. I think it’s fairly safe to say that a photo like that (and its story) is not something the Disney Corporation is going to discuss any time soon. If you have any information, please drop it in the comments section!<br /><br />See more photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/photography" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-16195982902755111592024-03-05T04:00:00.000-08:002024-03-05T04:00:00.138-08:00Temple Tuesday: The Dinehart Connection<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/btab/BTAB-BOW4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/btab/BTAB-BOW4.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Actor Alan Dinehart co-starred with Shirley Temple in two films. First, he played a private investigator determined to get Shirley’s father (played by James Dunn) behind bars again in “Baby Take A Bow” (1934). Four years later, he had a short role as Purvis, the rival radio executive of Tony Kent (Randolph Scott) in “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm” (1938). Below is a screenshot with William Demarest, Ruth Gillette, Shirley, and Dinehart.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2020-07-18-at-1.45.42-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2020-07-18-at-1.45.42-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />How did Dinehart’s name appear in my brain? As I was re-watching childhood TV favorite, “The Brady Bunch,” I encountered yet another Shirley connection.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.25.22-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.25.22-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The Season One November 14, 1969 episode was titled, “A-Camping We Will Go.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.26.02-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.26.02-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I noticed on the credits the name Alan Dinehart as one of the writers. Did Dinehart become a writer? Thirty-one years after “Rebecca” was made? It didn’t seem possible.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.26.07-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.26.07-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The episode is cute. This panorama shows the location of where the blended Brady family went camping, the Upper Franklin Canyon Reservoir in Los Angeles. If it looks familiar, you might recognize it from the opening of “The Andy Griffith Show.”<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.26.56-PM-Pano.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.26.56-PM-Pano.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The story is a mix of boys vs. girls and “The Parent Trap” (1961). With the family unable to catch fish for lunch, Carol (Florence Henderson) pulls through with her backup picnic basket.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.28.10-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.28.10-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Fried chicken and cold cuts for days! Greg (Barry Williams) scoffs at the basket, calling it “sissy food.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.28.11-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.28.11-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Yes, there are some cringe moments when watching this vintage show, but for the most part, the stories promote equality, and not just between the sexes. It was also groundbreaking in showing the mother and father’s love for each other. Almost every episode shows them in bed (the same one!), kissing, hugging, and flirting with each other. While today’s jaded generation may find the show laughable, for me, it evokes a sadness for a time when healthy relationships were promoted in the media. Sadly, “healthy” has become “corny.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.28.37-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/dinehart/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-12.28.37-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />As always, I digress. Turns out that the Alan Dinehart in the credits was actually Alan, Jr., son of the actor and his first wife, Louise Dyer. This 1934 photo shows Alan and his son, with Dinehart’s second wife between them.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/DinehartFamily.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/30s/DinehartFamily.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />From the accompanying vintage publicity blurb:<br /><i><br />
Alan Dinehart, stage and screen star, and his bride, flew back to California April 17th, after a brief ten days sojourn in New York, accompanied by Dinehart’s 16-year-old son, Alan, Jr. who is to make his home henceforth in California. Like his dad, Alan, Jr., is a polo enthusiast and the new estate they have secured in Riverside, Calif., will offer plenty of opportunity to improve his game. The trio is shown above at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York, shortly before leaving New York. Mrs. Dinehart is the former Mozelle Britton. 4/18/34.</i><br /><br />Alan Dinehart, Sr. died of a heart attack in 1944 and was buried at Forest Lawn (Mozelle would “join” him there in 1953). Alan, Jr. (1918-1992) worked as a producer, scriptwriter, voice-over artist, and voice director for “Top Cat” and “The Flintstones.” Besides “The Brady Bunch” episode, he also wrote for “Gilligan’s Island.”<br /><br />Yet another mystery solved here at Daveland! See more Shirley Temple photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-33747651784646909682024-03-04T04:30:00.000-08:002024-03-04T04:30:00.140-08:00Tales From The Trunk<a href="https://davelandweb.com/adventureland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day1_b_N15.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/adventureland/images/CTTSTS_9_69_Day1_b_N15.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />When the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse opened at Disneyland in 1962, it had one massive tree trunk.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_6538.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_6538.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />When it morphed into Tarzan’s Treehouse, a second (albeit smaller) tree was added to the mix.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_6547.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_6547.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />One of the tree knots was supposedly a tribute to Jabba the Hutt from Star Wars.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_8057.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_8057.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
Yes, I guess I can see that. I am assuming (and we know how dangerous that can be) that with the recent remodel and removal of this second tree, that Jabba also bit the dust.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_8059.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/treehouse/images/2000/2012/DSC_8059.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
Over on Tom Sawyer’s Island, the young ones could climb up into Tom and Huck’s very own treehouse. You could get some pretty spectacular views of the Park from up here.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/KTPBK_3_58_N24.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/KTPBK_3_58_N24.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />If you look a little closer at the March 1958 image, you can see that Tom and Becky have their names “carved” into the artificial tree.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/KTPBK_3_58_N24-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/KTPBK_3_58_N24-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />It’s also visible in this July 1965 shot:<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/KTPBKYC_7_26_65_N23R.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/KTPBKYC_7_26_65_N23R.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/KTPBKYC_7_26_65_N23R-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/KTPBKYC_7_26_65_N23R-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Just before Tom Sawyer’s Island was converted into Pirate’s Lair, I snapped as many photos as I could in February 2007. The carving appears to be the exact same one, unchanged after over fifty years.<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/2007/DSC_4869.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/2007/DSC_4869.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Huck had his own little spot at the base of the tree.<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/2007/DSC_4853.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland/images/treehouse/2007/DSC_4853.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Whether these little details are still around or not I have no idea. I remember Tom and Huck’s treehouse was closed for quite some time, but it appears that guests are able to climb up into it once again. Anyone know if that’s correct or not?<br /><br />See more Disneyland Tom Sawyer Island photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/tomsawyerisland" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-52469120310096376532024-03-02T15:31:00.000-08:002024-03-02T15:31:23.134-08:00Girl 27: The Patricia Douglas Story<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.41.24-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.41.24-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Although it came out seventeen years ago, the documentary “Girl 27” is still shocking. It begins with a passage from Luke 8:17, which perfectly sets the tone. Writer/director David Stenn made public the tragic story of the 1937 rape of Patricia Douglas at the hands of an MGM exhibitor/salesman, David Ross. As Stenn told <i>Vanity Fair</i>, “I managed to find old newspaper coverage, previously unseen photos, damning studio documentation, long-forgotten legal records, privately shot cinematographic evidence hidden in an MGM film vault, and, most amazing, Patricia Douglas herself. I tracked the reclusive invalid down and eventually persuaded her to break her 65-year silence.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.41.37-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.41.37-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Hollywood’s most glamorous studio, Metro-Goldwayn-Mayer, invited exhibitors to come to Hollywood to stay at the Ambassador Hotel and attend a wild party at the Hal Roach Studio’s ranch. Over a hundred young girls (many underage) were hired for what they thought was a film. Louis B. Mayer told the exhibitors that <i>anything</i> they wanted would be provided to them during their visit.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.41.55-AM-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.41.55-AM-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />One of those exhibitors was David Ross from Chicago. What a charmer.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.58.22-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.58.22-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />A natural-born dancer, Douglas drifted into movies “just for something to do.” Since she was supported by her mother, Douglas had no need to work. So when a casting call came on the afternoon of Sunday, May 2, 1937, she demurred at first, but later agreed to show up. “They never mentioned it was for a party,” she recalls. “Ever. I wouldn’t have gone! Oh God, oh God, I wouldn’t have gone.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.46.06-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.46.06-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The call sheet with the name of Pat Douglas, aka Girl 27. What did the girls receive for their “role”? What they thought was a shot at stardom, hot meal, and $7.50 for the day at the remote Culver City ranch, aka “Rancho Roachero.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.57.23-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.57.23-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The exhibitors who had been partying all day assumed the professional dancers were theirs to do whatever they wanted to. Isn’t that what Louis B. Mayer told them upon arrival? The girls were trapped at a location with no phones or transportation and had to fend for themselves. Douglas ended up being violently raped, losing her virginity to a man she had no interest in. With guts rarely shown by women at the time (for fear of repercussions), Patricia went public and pressed charges against her rapist. “I did want him punished,” she recalled. “I couldn’t get him out of my mind, because he took my innocence, because I was a virgin, and he left me with horrendous memories of my first time. And believe it or not, it affected the rest of my life physically. I was a frigid woman, and I never changed. I believe that I was about thirty-five when I stopped dating. But you can never miss what you never had.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/WildPartyDailyTimes.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/WildPartyDailyTimes.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Stenn’s compelling documentary shows his journey of how he uncovered the facts of the case, long buried or destroyed many years ago. Here he is with USC archivist, Ned Comstock, as he first looks at the file from Patricia’s case, full of papers not seen since the 1930s.<br />
<br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.44.34-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.44.34-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.44.27-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.44.27-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Stenn also sought out Douglas herself. “I was furious when I heard from David. Imagine, sixty-five years nobody knowing what happened to you when you were young, and here comes some young fellow from out of the blue, and wants to talk to me about the case. I didn’t care about the story being told; I kept it a secret for sixty-five years. Why not die with it? Who would care?” Stenn did, and he patiently chipped away at Douglas’ reluctance. Eighty-six at the time, she finally agreed to tell her story.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.57.20-AM-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.57.20-AM-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />David asked her, “Have you ever been in love?” “No,” she replied. “I have never been in love, and I have never known what it is to love somebody.” Pressing on, David asked, “Do you think that was taken away from you by what happened at the MGM party?” “Yes, because I believe no matter how much I feel towards a man, I don’t trust.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.54.47-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.54.47-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In a touch of irony, while a rape victim was crucified in the press, a movie star was completely protected. The documentary reveals how Loretta Young and Clark Gable (married at the time to Ria Langham) had a child out of wedlock but covered it up by telling the public her biological daughter had been adopted.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.54.54-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/blog/girl27/Screen-Shot-2024-03-02-at-11.54.54-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />As her daughter, Judy Lewis, tells the camera: “Hollywood knew the true story; I was the only one that didn’t.” The contrasting story shows how Hollywood treated people according to their earning potential.<br /><br />Make sure you see “Girl 27.” You won’t regret it. See more Classic Movie & TV photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-57283542228930795142024-02-27T18:32:00.000-08:002024-02-27T18:32:34.605-08:00Temple Tuesday: Deleted Broadway<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/LMB-362-20.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/LMB-362-20.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />In 1938 Shirley Temple film, ‘Little Miss Broadway,’ there are a few <a href="https://davelandblog.blogspot.com/2019/02/temple-tuesday-shirley-eleanor.html" target="_blank">deleted musical numbers</a> that still survive today. Typically, those could be recycled into shorts and were kept in the studio vaults because of that possible re-use. Dramatic numbers usually ended up in the landfill. Thanks to Melissa (aka “The Colonel”), we can get an idea of what was removed. According to a script from February 8, 1938, this is what occurred:<br /><br /><i>Pop Shea (Edward Ellis) is at the lobby desk of his hotel, The Hotel Variety, looking for his recently adopted daughter, Betsy (Shirley Temple). Flossie the switchboard operator calls upstairs to find Betsy. She calls up to the acrobats’ room, but they haven’t seen her. A man practicing a knife-throwing act gets the call next and says he saw Betsy about 20 minutes ago. Then a call comes to a ballet dancer, and finally to the ventriloquist’s room </i>(photo above)<i>. A ventriloquist’s dummy answers the phone. Betsy is holding him on her lap but the ventriloquist is doing the talking. She takes the phone and says she’ll be right down and the dummy says, “Come back and sit on my lap sometime!” As Betsy exits the elevator she’s greeted by a group of performers </i>[photo below]<i>. She stops to talk to a performing dog which jumps over her foot and does a backflip.</i><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/lmb/LMB-362-27.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/lmb/LMB-362-27.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In the final film, Shirley descends the stairs, not the elevator, and most likely the idea of a trained dog was rethought, too.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/Screen-Shot-2024-02-27-at-6.19.30-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/Screen-Shot-2024-02-27-at-6.19.30-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Above is a screenshot that shows Betsy just before the film quickly cuts to her at the lobby desk (below), showing her homework to Pop and his daughter, Barbara (Phyllis Brooks). They have been talking about the overwhelming bills that they owe.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/lmb/LMB-Ellis-Brooks.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/lmb/LMB-Ellis-Brooks.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />If you ever wondered what color this cute little dress with the embroidered leaves was, don’t rely on this vintage lobby card. These hand-colored promotional items rarely got the color right of the actual costumes and set pieces.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/1938-LMB-LC-Set.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/1938-LMB-LC-Set.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Thanks to the Theriault’s <i>Love, Shirley Temple</i> auction from 2015, we know that the dress was actually red.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/text-xl.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/text-xl.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />From the catalog description:<br /><br /><i><b>Red Silk Polka Dot Dress Worn by Shirley Temple in the 1938 film “Little Miss Broadway.” </b>Of fine red silk, the dress features a high-waisted bodice of cream organza, under a faux jacket with puffed short sleeves and embroidered cream flower and leaf trim. The skirt is of alternating flat panels and pleated panels. Included is a vintage photograph of Shirley Temple wearing the costume. The costume was worn by Betsy (Shirley Temple) in the 1938 film "Little Miss Broadway", notably in the first scene at the Hotel Variety as she bounces down the staircase and proudly shows the (completely incorrect!) arithmetic lesson that Mr. Berdini, the magician, has taught her, while greeting (and thus introducing the movie-goers) to all of the zany entertainers who call the hotel home. Sold for $4,750.
</i><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/Shirley-Temple-Little-Miss-Broadway-Dress-59383b_lg.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/Shirley-Temple-Little-Miss-Broadway-Dress-59383b_lg.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />The current owner graciously shared an image of the dress in her collection, along with a vintage Cinderella Frock from the same time period that was most likely inspired by this very costume.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/CinderellaFrock-LMB.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/CinderellaFrock-LMB.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Here’s the tag that would most likely have accompanied one of those Cinderella Frocks:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/s-l1600.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/s-l1600.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The reverse side:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/s-l1600-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/LMB/s-l1600-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Next time you watch this movie, you can keep your eye out for what’s left of this scene!<br /><br />See more Shirley Temple photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/tcf.html" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-88323709049499056912024-02-26T04:30:00.000-08:002024-02-26T06:57:47.314-08:00Preston Sturges: The Players<a href="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/LadyEve-1882-132.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/LadyEve-1882-132.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Playwright, screenwriter, and film director Preston Sturges is best known for his screwball comedies, including “The Lady Eve” (1941) with Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck (above), “Sullivan’s Travels” (1941) with Joel McCrea and Veronica Lake, and “The Palm Beach Story” (1942) with Claudette Colbert (below).<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/PBS1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/PBS1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Below is a shot of Sturges himself between Stanwyck and Fonda during the shooting of “The Lady Eve.”<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/230410_r42157.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/230410_r42157.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />I recently finished James Curtis’ biography of Preston Sturges, <i>Between Flops</i>. The book was quite a downer, painting a sad picture of how this creative genius was tortured by the constraints of the studio system and his need for total control over every facet of his productions. While he was one of the highest paid people in the biz, he rarely had a dime to his name. By the end of his life, he was a battered man, accepting whatever crumbs he could get from the industry that now hails his brilliance. The reason I purchased this bio was because of Sturges’ ownership of a club located next door to the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood on Sunset Boulevard. Known as The Players, the building still exists today.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_Pre-1953.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_Pre-1953.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Sturges purchased a residence on Sunset Boulevard next door to the <a href="https://davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/" target="_blank">Chateau Marmont hotel.</a> The home belonged to the father of actor Chester Morris and was functioning as a wedding chapel when Sturges bought it. His idea was to have a multi-concept facility with three levels: street level for a drive-in with counter service, second level an informal restaurant for table service, and the top (the house itself) would be formal with a dress code. Sturges wanted to bring the establishments he missed from his days on Broadway to the west coast. That was his inspiration for the name The Players, after the private social club in Gramercy Park, founded by 19th century Shakespearean actor Edwin Booth (brother of the infamous John Wilkes Booth) in 1888. This is also where Edwin died. But I digress.<br /><br />Sturges decided to leave the old Morris house where it was. Instead of building on top of it, he directed that the hill be dug from underneath and that The Players be built from the top down. It was more expensive than demolishing the old house and building from scratch, but Sturges couldn’t be budged. This was typical of his downfall on so many endeavors. He enjoyed going against the grain and doing it his way, regardless of the cost. “It was just the way Preston wanted to do it,” said producer David Lewis. “He didn’t need a reason.” Sturges was the original micro-manager. “They couldn’t drive a nail without Preston’s OK,” said Dominick Maggie, who later became head bartender. “I really think he was having fun with it.” To run The Players, Sturges imported the proprietor of his old 45th Street hangout, Pirolle’s. Monsieur Pillet had spent years propping up his losing venture. When he wrote to Preston for help in the fall of 1939, Sturges urged him to come West and pilot The Players. The fact that Pillet was not an especially good businessman failed to bother Sturges. Pillet had helped him when he was down many years ago, and now Preston wanted to return the favor.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/s-l1600-6.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/s-l1600-6.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The <i>L.A. Times</i> reported that Sturges personally interviewed over 150 applicants, choosing as his first hire the only lad who had the decency to push in his chair once the interview was over. The menu was strictly American. Dishes, like “food for the gods steak,” were served in the formal dining room, known as “the blue room.” The Players opened quietly in the summer of 1940. According to his wife, Louise, the lure of The Players for Sturges was that it allowed him to “be Grand Pasha after hours - that was the main attraction...” He relished the role of genial supper club proprietor and being at the center of a convivial crowd, dining, drinking and carrying on into the wee hours. Along with the Chateau Marmont and the Garden of Allah Hotel, the three formed a kind of “Golden Age of Hollywood Triangle” into which many film colony luminaries frequently disappeared, including Orson Welles, Humphrey Bogart, Howard Hughes, F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Faulkner, William Wyler, Ernst Lubitsch, Barbara Stanwyck, Joel McCrea, and Lana Turner (who came with Howard Hughes to celebrate her birthday).<br /><br />A vintage color shot:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/Players.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/Players.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />A visiting tourist sent a postcard home on which she gushed about dining at “the glamour spot of Hollywood” and sighting both Miriam Hopkins and Boris Karloff while eating “the best raspberry shortcake I ever had.” A good part of the enormous income Sturges earned at Paramount was funneled into The Players. Sturges was pleased with the early popularity of his restaurant, but not the first-season loss of over $250,000. The original redesign and reconstruction of the building had been expensive; out-of-control operating costs along with constant renovations and additions prevented The Players from breaking even. He’d been warned that the multilevel idea was a bad one “because nobody wants to be second-class, especially in a place like Hollywood.” Barbara Stanwyck even admonished Sturges, “That goddamned greasy spoon is ruining you!”<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/Players-Barbershop.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/Players-Barbershop.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />To make The Players a truly all-purpose night spot Sturges enlarged the top floor for dancing and created a new area called The Playroom. He designed a hydraulic revolving bandstand for a group of house musicians. When renovations were about to begin Sturges closed The Players, announcing its reopening sometime in the fall—after an extensive program of rethinking and remodeling. He then set to work on “Sullivan’s Travels.” <br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/ac97f7ba-9010-4652-ba9c-314fdbf27a3b.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/players/ac97f7ba-9010-4652-ba9c-314fdbf27a3b.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Construction on The Playroom was not finished by Christmas of 1941 but plans were under way for its gala opening just after the first of the year. It wasn’t long before The Players became one of the most popular night spots on the West Coast. “It was the TOP place,” said Dominick Maggie, Sturges’ head bartender. “There was nothing like it in the West—nothing like it in the world, for that matter. Anybody of consequence at that time frequented The Players. There were movie moguls; superstars, like Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck, Charlie Chaplin…all the stars of that era; writers of all sorts.” Though exceedingly busy with movies, Preston was typically onsite, greeting guests, table-hopping, and enjoying having the most powerful figures in the industry under his roof. Sturges considered the restaurant his own private domain, expecting the same deference accorded a visit to one’s home. “It was some place,” wrote screenwriter Earl Felton, “absolutely a marvel, matchless food, service, decor, etc., but with the serious drawback of Preston usually present, turning baleful eyes on any patron he did not know personally.” Sturges often retired to The Players after a day of shooting, arriving between nine and ten o’clock, just as the dinner crowd was thinning and the atmosphere became more relaxed. “Whenever we’d work too late to get home to dinner,” recalled Joel McCrea (shown below with Veronica Lake in “Sullivan’s Travels), “he would invite us to dinner at The Players. You could never pick up a check with Preston, either at the commissary or at his restaurant. He always managed to get the check and you couldn’t even tell what it was.” To Preston, allowing his guests to pay the check at his restaurant would have been tantamount to presenting them with a bill for a meal at his house.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/ST-1908-7.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/celebs/images/40s/ST-1908-7.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The Playroom re-opened on January 14, 1942. It had restaurants operating on all three levels, a barbershop on the mezzanine, a drive-in burger stand, and a 350 seat “ultra-modern intimate restaurant theater.” The theater featured one-act plays directed by Sturges and performed by his many loyal friends. Actor Eddie Bracken (shown below with Judy Garland in “Summer Stock”), who had starred in Sturges’ “The Miracle of Morgan's Creek” (1943), recalled: “We played it for eighteen weeks and I didn’t take any salary at all. Sturges was in trouble and I wanted to help him. For eighteen weeks I worked there for nothing and he was doing six thousand dollars a night. Packed. You couldn’t get in. And at the end of the eighteenth week, he was further in debt than when we had started. That’s when I quit.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/judygarland/images/50s/summerstock/SS-1477-55.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/judygarland/images/50s/summerstock/SS-1477-55.jpg" width="400" /></a>
<br /><br />There was the long-standing rumor that Sturges had gone to the trouble of building a tunnel beneath Marmont Lane connecting The Players to the Chateau so celebrities could slip away discreetly - for clandestine affairs or to avoid the press and/or the police.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_Pre-1953-d2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_Pre-1953-d2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
Such a bummer that the photographer cut off the sign on the right side of this vintage postcard!<br />
<br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_Pre-1953-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_Pre-1953-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
As his subsequent pictures continued to lose money and his relationship with Paramount tanked, he ended up losing control of his beloved club. Creditors forced the sale of The Players in December of 1953, when the government put a lien on its income. The contents were auctioned off and the property sold to cover taxes and debts. Sturges spent much of the last years of his life aimlessly floating around Europe, depressed about the situation he had left behind in the States. A friend recalled meeting with him in Paris in a café on the Champs Elysee, months before Sturges died. “He talked grandly of his plans of a comeback both as a writer and director. When the check came he pulled in his sails (but only a little) and in a lower voice addressed me ‘I hope you have a large expense account. I’m broke you know.’” In 1959 Preston Sturges died penniless in a comped room at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City. He was 60 years old and had been working there on his memoirs.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/newyork/images/algonquin/DSC_0937.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/newyork/images/algonquin/DSC_0937.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Coincidentally, two months earlier The Garden of Allah (seen below) had been demolished.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_40s50s_d2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/Chateau_40s50s_d2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The Players lived on though, going through several incarnations in the decades to come.
<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/KSPBK-3-79-N01R.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/KSPBK-3-79-N01R.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
Beginning in 1953 it was Imperial Gardens (above), a huge Japanese restaurant with reflecting pools on the upper floors, popular with musicians and actors. Next, in 1989, it re-emerged as The Roxbury, a trendy and notorious nightclub where A-list patrons included Tom Cruise, Prince and Eddie Murphy.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/exterior/DSC_0220.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/chateaumarmont/images/exterior/DSC_0220.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
In 1997 it changed hands again and became Miyagi (above), a restaurant/nightclub with 7 sushi bars, 5 regular bars, a Zen garden, a waterfall, a dance floor, pool tables and more. In April 2012, it opened as Pink Taco (below), the second location for this Mexican restaurant chain owned by 30-year-old Harry Morton, oil-slick heir of Hard Rock Café founder Peter Morgan and grandson of Arnie Morton, founder of the Morton’s restaurant chain.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/hollywood/images/sunset_blvd/pinktaco/DSC_9224.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/hollywood/images/sunset_blvd/pinktaco/DSC_9224.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />During the renovation of the property, Morton had the site excavated deeply enough that not only was the revolving stage beneath Sturges’ dance floor found, but also the entrance to The Players’ “legendary VIP tryst tunnel” to Chateau Marmont - apparently sealed off by the city long ago. According to Harry Morton, he dug through layer upon layer of debris, “But when I stripped it all down, incredible things came to light.”<br /><br />I really need to explore more inside the Pink Taco — which probably means I need to eat there again. Sigh.<br /><br />This post was edited from <a href="https://www.ladyevesreellife.com/2012/05/tales-of-hollywood-preston-sturges-wild.html" target="_blank">Lady Eve’s Reel Life</a>, <i>Between Flops</i>, and <a href="https://www.pbssocal.org/food-discovery/food/the-players-preston-sturges-screwball-times-on-the-sunset-strip" target="_blank">PBS SoCal</a>. See more Classic Movie & TV photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-62346154146089618012024-02-20T04:30:00.000-08:002024-02-20T04:30:00.121-08:00Temple Tuesday: Lions, Rebels, and Cake<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/marker/LMM-Candid2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/marker/LMM-Candid2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />In the 1934 Paramount Production, “Little Miss Marker,” Shirley Temple catapulted to stardom thanks to her performance and a solid supporting cast. From left to right, Charles Bickford, Dorothy Dell, Shirley, Adolphe Menjou, and director Alexander Hall. Bickford played Big Steve, a gang kingpin, who helps little Shirley live by allowing for a blood transfusion between the two.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/marker/LMM-1491-55.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/marker/LMM-1491-55.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />A year later, the two were cast together again in “The Littlest Rebel,” Shirley’s first production for the newly merged 20th Century-Fox film corporation. Playing a similar role, Bickford was a Colonel for the Union army, whereas Shirley’s father was a soldier for the Confederacy.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/rebel/Rebel4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/rebel/Rebel4.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Although Bickford’s name can be seen on this publicity still, he never made it into the film. Instead, the role of Colonel Morrison went to Jack Holt, since Bickford was mauled by a lion during the filming of “East of Java” over at Universal. Despite the attack, Universal had no problem featuring it in their promotion for the film!<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/rebel/EastOfJava-LC.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/rebel/EastOfJava-LC.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />“East of Java” was held up because of Bickford’s bite. He returned for added scenes on November 4, 1935, allowing the film to be released a month later on December 2, 1935; “Rebel” was released December 27. Not only did Bickford lose the role in “Rebel,” he lost his contract with Fox and leading-man status thanks to extensive neck scarring from the attack. On top of that, he was pushing 44, which was considered over-the-hill for a romantic lead. Making lemonade out of lemons, Bickford went on to play a number of memorable character roles, including that of Oliver Niles, the studio head in Judy Garland’s “A Star is Born” (1954).<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/LittlestRebel-236-124.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/LittlestRebel-236-124.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Although it would have been interesting to see Bickford and Temple together again, Jack Holt did a fine job. You can see from these photos that Virgie (Shirley’s character) eventually won over Colonel Morrison in the film.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LR-236-176.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LR-236-176.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Virgie even visited him in prison, since Morrison tried to help her father, Captain Carey (John Boles) escape Union soldiers to get his daughter to safety. No less than President Abraham Lincoln pardoned both Colonel Morrison and Shirley’s father.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/LittlestRebel-236-168.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/LittlestRebel-236-168.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Other changes were made along the way. According to the script dated September 12, 1935, the end scene was to have Virgie singing while flanked by Uncle Billy (Bill Robinson) and James Henry (Willie Best). Captain Carey and Colonel Morrison were watching while standing under a flower covered arbor. The two men would be dressed in the uniform of their respective armies, as seen in the still below.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LR-236-195.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LR-236-195.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Instead, the film ends with Virgie singing a reprise of “Polly Wolly Doodle” to all the Union Soldiers in the stable where the two men had been imprisoned. An odd place for a celebration!<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-236-230.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-236-230.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Unfortunately, this still is somewhat blurry in key areas; I have a feeling it was more of a printing than a lens error.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-236-230-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-236-230-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Holt and Temple also celebrated career milestones during the filming of “Rebel.”<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-HoltCake.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-HoltCake.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />From a vintage publicity blurb (thanks, Melissa, aka “The Colonel”!):<br /><br />
<i>Two popular screen stars celebrated their respective screen anniversaries with a private party consisting of cake, ice cream, etc. Shirley Temple, child screen star, eats cake with Jack Holt, film actor, on the anniversary of her second year as a star and Holt’s twenty-third year before the cameras. The party was held on a film set at 20th Century-Fox Studios. October 16, 1935.</i><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-HoltCake-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/rebel/LittlestRebel-HoltCake-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
See more Shirley Temple photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-27608271115121677742024-02-18T09:39:00.000-08:002024-02-18T09:39:30.325-08:00Sexy Sunday on Main Street<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/LgBWNeg55_8_N07.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/LgBWNeg55_8_N07.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />One of the most infamous shops at Disneyland was the Intimate Apparel Shop on Main Street, U.S.A., which (not surprisingly) didn’t even last a year.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/LgBWNeg55_8_N07_detail.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/LgBWNeg55_8_N07_detail.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />See the stuffed granny in the rocking chair on the porch? She would welcome you into the splendor of a “museum” that taught you everything you wanted to know about women’s undergarments dating back to the late 19th century. Naturally, you could buy current merchandise, too. I wonder if the tree was put there to intentionally cover the signage from the little kiddies?<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/LgBWNeg55_8_N06_d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/LgBWNeg55_8_N06_d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />This angle from October 1955 gives an unobstructed view:<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/BW_10_55_ScanE_detail.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/BW_10_55_ScanE_detail.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />For those eagle-eyed viewers, you might have noticed the HM Company circle on both sides of the Intimate Apparel shop sign. Here’s an ad from the Hollywood-Maxwell Company, aka “The Wonderful Wizard of Bras.” The little wizard on the left can also be seen on the Disneyland sign between the H and the M.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/hollywoodmaxwell/HM-Ad1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/hollywoodmaxwell/HM-Ad1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Edited from the <a href="https://underpinningsmuseum.com/museum-collections/hollywood-maxwell-v-ette-whirlpool-brassiere-advert/" target="_blank">underpinningsmuseum website</a>:<br /><br /><i>Hollywood-Maxwell was the first in a line of Californian brassiere manufacturers which entered the American market in 1929. Hollywood was a place of glamour and aspiration in the 1930s and it wasn’t long before the American woman’s desire for a movie star look had boosted the sale of the latest bra innovations from these companies, simply via their association with this famous Los Angeles neighborhood. Although most brassiere adverts did not feature movie stars, Hollywood-Maxwell claimed that its products were used exclusively in motion pictures made by Paramount. Hollywood-Maxwell founder Joseph R. Bowen patented a cup stabilization technique he called ‘Whirlpool stitching’ in 1935. This much imitated innovation used concentric rings of stitches to produce a rounded shape in the 1930s and a more pointed cup in the 40s and 50s.</i><br /><br />Want to see a Hollywood-Maxwell label? Of course you do.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/blog/hollywoodmaxwell/HM-Label.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/blog/hollywoodmaxwell/HM-Label.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The location of the former Hollywood-Maxwell company on Hollywood Boulevard is now the Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre, located next to the Snow White Cafe. I wonder if Snow wore HM brassieres?<br /><br />This color slide from the opposite angle was stamped August 1956; either the photographer took a long time to develop their slides or the sign (and stuffed lady in the rocking chair) stayed around after the store closed.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/Drewry_8_56_MS1_d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/50s/Drewry_8_56_MS1_d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />By the time of this May 1958 image, all signs of the Intimate Apparel shop had been erased.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/silhouette/KTPBKYC_5_58_N20B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/silhouette/KTPBKYC_5_58_N20B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />From July 1959, a young guest sits on the porch where “granny” used to rock:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/KTPBKYC_7_59_N25B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/KTPBKYC_7_59_N25B.jpg" width="400" /></a>
<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/KTPBKYC_7_59_N25B-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/chinacloset/KTPBKYC_7_59_N25B-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The China Closet took over the space; this rare interior shot from October 1960 shows the former location of the Intimate Apparel shop. Note how the trim on the porch matches!<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/60s/KTPBT_10_60_N08R2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/60s/KTPBT_10_60_N08R2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I shot this 2007 image from the Omnibus; the rocking chairs are gone and have been replaced with somewhat uncomfortable wooden chairs.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/DSC_0529.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/DSC_0529.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Today, the door is permanently sealed and there’s a Rolly Crump tribute sign (for Fargo’s Palm Parlor) that hangs over the porch.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/2013/DSC_3546.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/2013/DSC_3546.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Does the Disney Corporation trust its guests? Hell no. NOBODY is walking away with these chairs. They are permanently affixed to the floor.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/2013/DSC_3546-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/mainstreet/images/eastside/2000/2013/DSC_3546-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
See more Disneyland Main Street photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/mainstreet" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-14103941893511718942024-02-16T04:30:00.000-08:002024-02-16T11:09:41.890-08:00Frontierland Friday: Concept Art Comparison<a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept1.jpg" width="400" /></a>
<br /><br />I love comparing concept art with the actual execution of a project. It’s interesting attempting to figure out why changes were made (budget, time constraints, change in direction) and what might have been if plans had been carried out as originally designed. In the art above, it appears that the <a href="https://davelandweb.com/indianvillage/" target="_blank">Indian Village</a> was planned to be located at the entrance to Frontierland. I would agree with the decision to move it behind the gates further back, as it would most likely have created a bottleneck of guests at the entrance. From July 18, 1955, the opening day of Disneyland for the normal folk:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/63_7_18_55_N31R.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/63_7_18_55_N31R.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />This shot from December 26, 1955 shows the festive holiday decor at the gate:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/12_26_55_N13.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/12_26_55_N13.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
In this detail view of the concept art, it appears that the original name was to be Frontier Country:<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept1-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept1-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />It’s clearly Frontierland in this October 1959 shot! I do like the addition of the flagpole at the entrance inside the “fort.” I can’t remember there ever being a flag ceremony here like the one in Town Square; anyone know about that?<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/PBTStars-10-1959-N07B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/PBTStars-10-1959-N07B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
For this piece of concept art facing the river with the Mark Twain in the background, Frontierland looks like your typical movie western main street, with lots of shops and services:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />In this July 18, 1955, the final product had fewer shops and a lot of real estate for the miniature horse corral instead.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/61_7_18_55_N38R.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/61_7_18_55_N38R.jpg" width="400" /></a>
<br /><br />
If you compare this detailed view of the art with photos of Disneyland’s neighbor, Knott’s Berry Farm, it looks very much like that Park’s Ghost Town:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept2-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept2-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Knott’s Ghost Town, circa May 1966:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/knotts/images/60s/KTPBKYC_5_66_N17B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/knotts/images/60s/KTPBKYC_5_66_N17B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />A contemporary view of Knott’s<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/knotts/images/ghosttown/DSC_8498-Pano.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/knotts/images/ghosttown/DSC_8498-Pano.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
In this third piece of concept art, the name is Frontier Land, but spelled out as two words instead of one (same with True Life Adventure Land in the upper right).<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />This aerial construction view shows a somewhat similar vantage point. The Mark Twain/Columbia dock area for guests was nowhere to be found in the concept art; that was a nice addition.<br /><br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/construction/images/50s/1955_ROA_Construction.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/construction/images/50s/1955_ROA_Construction.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Closeup of the construction for the New Orleans Street area (where River Belle Terrace is now):<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/construction/images/50s/1955_ROA_Construction_detai.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/construction/images/50s/1955_ROA_Construction_detai.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/construction/images/50s/1955_ROA_Construction-d2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/construction/images/50s/1955_ROA_Construction-d2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />A color view from October 1955:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/KTPBK_10_55_N19C.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/KTPBK_10_55_N19C.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Without mature landscaping, it was much easier in the early years to see the other lands in the distance. Still no Matterhorn or Skyway at this point; just the spires of the Castle and the Carrousel.<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/KTPBK_10_55_N19C-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/KTPBK_10_55_N19C-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />A 1950s view taken aboard the Mark Twain:<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/KTPBK_MIUSA_50s_N19B.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/KTPBK_MIUSA_50s_N19B.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The flagpole or “town square” portion of Frontierland seems to have been closer to the river according to the concept art:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Here’s the flagpole and plaque as shown on Opening Day at the front gate:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrLandOpening-18.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrLandOpening-18.jpg" width="400" /></a>
<br /><br />The concept art also seemed to include a larger two-story building at the entrance to the Stagecoach/Wagon attraction that took guests through the “desert.” <div><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3-d2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3-d2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Value-engineering at its finest:<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/stagecoach/50s/BlueStripKRM_2_1_59_Stagec.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/stagecoach/50s/BlueStripKRM_2_1_59_Stagec.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />You can see the New Orleans inspired balconies on the building connected to the Golden Horseshoe in this detailed view. The bandstand by the river appears to be in the lower right:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3-d3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/frontierland/images/50s/Drall_FrontierlandConcept3-d3.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The New Orleans Street bandstand on the Rivers of America as it was constructed:<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/4x5_ROA_50s.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/50s/4x5_ROA_50s.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Overall, not too bad as far as building what was promised!</div><br /><div>See more Disneyland Frontierland photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/frontierland" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-12242500770180842024-02-13T04:00:00.000-08:002024-02-13T06:46:32.955-08:00Temple Tuesday: The Brady Bunch Connection<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.25.22-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.25.22-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />If you were a kid growing up in the 70s, Friday nights were for watching “The Brady Bunch.” One of my favorite (albeit silly and cringeworthy) episodes was “The Snooperstar,” which originally aired on February 22, 1974, during the show’s fifth and final season. Pain-in-the-butt nosey Cindy Brady (Susan Olsen) is annoying all her family members by listening in on their conversations.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.42.34-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.42.34-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Older sisters Marcia (Maureen McCormick) and Jan (Eve Plumb) catch Cindy reading Marcia’s diary:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.43.23-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.43.23-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
The sisters decide it’s time to teach snooping Cindy a lesson!<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.44.01-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.44.01-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Marcia arrives at the perfect solution. “This is going to drive Cindy absolutely ape!” Marcia tells Jan. “You know how she loves watching those old Shirley Temple movies on TV?” “Do I ever!” exclaims Jan. “She thinks Shirley Temple is the greatest!” “Well, wait til Cindy reads this!” Marcia’s voiceover is heard as Cindy reads the fake diary entry: “I talked to that talent scout again. The studio people loved the photo of Cindy I submitted. Wouldn’t it be fabulous if they picked Cindy to be the new Shirley Temple they’re looking for in that movie?”
<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.53.57-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.53.57-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Cindy is beside herself. “The new Shirley Temple?” She strolls over to the mirror and envisions her newfound stardom. “Cindy Brady, the new Shirley Temple!” The girls watch, giggling with glee at how Cindy has taken to the bait. Retreating to the bathroom with no toilet, Marcia tells Jan, “If you think she’s hooked now, wait till she reads the next entry!”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.53.52-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.53.52-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Cindy comes back the next day and reads the phony entry: “Cindy’s chances of starring in that movie are great. One of these days the talent scout is going to come over to the house to observe Cindy anonymously. I sure hope Cindy can sing and dance like Shirley Temple.” Shirley is overcome; she grabs cousin Oliver (that’s a whole other story there!) and gushes. “Oliver, the talent scout’s coming over here to see me anonymously! I have to buy a Shirley Temple record album. I have to start being Shirley Temple right away!”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.55.38-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.55.38-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Where does Cindy get the money for the album? From Alice (Ann B. Davis), the minimum wage hired help who lives in the closet located off the kitchen.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.56.36-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.56.36-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Cindy brings her new album home and shows it off to Oliver. “Look closely. Do you see any resemblance?” “Well, you’re both girls,” he replies. “Yeah, but I bet if I curled my hair the same way, I’d bet we’d look a lot more alike. I’ve got to learn these songs!”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.59.47-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-6.59.47-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
The album used was an actual 2-record set called “Remember Shirley,” released by 20th Century.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/s-l1600-8.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/s-l1600-8.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.01.59-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.01.59-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The label matches!<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/s-l1600-26.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/s-l1600-26.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />When Alice enters the room, Cindy hides the record. Notice a little sticker on the back of the album with red lettering?<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.00.21-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.00.21-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The album used was a promotional copy. That’s one way to save money!<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/s-l1600-20.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/s-l1600-20.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
When Alice tells Cindy that her father has a very important client coming over to the house, the little girl thinks that means the talent scout. Marcia and Jan realize their sister might try something funny, so they confess their joke to her. Cindy doesn’t believe them.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.12-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.12-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Getting ready for her big audition, Cindy starts rolling her blonde locks into curls, exclaiming, “Get ready, Shirley!”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.34-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.34-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
As night time sets upon 4222 Clinton Way…<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.38-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.38-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Mike Brady’s snooty client, Penelope Fletcher (played by none other than Natalie Schaefer, aka “Lovey” from “Gilligan’s Island”), arrives and tells Alice to get Mike pronto. Chop chop…she’s a very busy woman.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.59-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.04.59-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Cindy rushes down the staircase to meet the “talent scout.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.05.29-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.05.29-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
In her “Heidi” style dirndl and Mary Jane shoes, Shirley wastes no time, launching into her painful rendition of “On The Goodship Lollipop.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.06-PM-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.06-PM-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
The snooty Penelope is baffled at first.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.11-PM-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.11-PM-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
But not quite as baffled as Carol (Florence Henderson) and Mike (Robert Reed), her parents. Mike can kiss this job goodbye!<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.21-PM-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.21-PM-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Just like a Shirley Temple movie, the cold woman thaws and joins in the song and dance with Cindy.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.29-PM-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.06.29-PM-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Penelope explains the situation to Carol and Mike. “This child seems to be under the impression that I’m a talent scout looking for a new Shirley Temple. Oh, the cherished memory she just brought back. Shirley Temple, that adorable, little golden hair type. How I adored her. What a marvelous time of life I just relived. Oh, I’m sorry to get so carried away. I have a plane to catch. Good bye, dear little curly top, thank you, thank you for a wonderful evening!” <br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.07.16-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.07.16-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Penelope dances out of the Brady household, clutching Mike’s architectural plans while singing another refrain from “Lollipop,” getting the lyrics wrong in the process.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.07.49-PM-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.07.49-PM-1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Cindy gets scolded afterwards. “Young lady, there better be a good explanation for this!” her mother tells her. “That’s what I was just thinking,” replies an embarrassed Cindy.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.07.59-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.07.59-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Like most Brady episodes, the show finished with a mini lesson. “Yeah, I learned my lesson,” Cindy tells her sisters and parents. “I’m not gonna snoop anymore.” Marcia has learned her lesson, too. “We’re finished with tricks like that, too.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.08.09-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.08.09-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Once the girls leave the family room, Carol says to Mike, “I hope you learned your lesson, too. Mike.” “What’s that?” asks a confused Mike Brady. “Next time you have to deal with Penelope Fletcher, just do your Shirley Temple imitation.” And just when you thought the episode couldn’t get any worse, Florence Henderson and Robert Reed launch into their own version of the Temple tune.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.08.33-PM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/brady/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-7.08.33-PM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />From the <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2014/02/brady-bunch-child-actress-susan-olsen.html" target="_blank">Cult Film Freaks website</a>, we learn that besides the season two episode, “The Tattle-Tale,” this one is the second of two episodes which Susan Olsen disliked. This episode was originally planned for the first season, when Susan was a more appropriate age of eight for playing Shirley Temple, yet it wasn't made until Season 5. At the age of twelve, Susan felt very uncomfortable playing a five-year-old Shirley Temple.
“I was too old for it,” Olsen recalled. “It had been an idea for me to do when I was 8 or 9 but at 12 I looked and felt like a dork singing Goodship Lollipop.” Her interviewer asked if she was already a Shirley Temple fan? “I loved Shirley Temple when I was really little... like five. I felt very stupid playing a 12 year old who wants to be like her. I truly adore her now as a woman who grew up as a true example of how great a former child star can be.
This is why you never hear of her. She had a wonderful attitude and far more of an adult career than most people know. I read her memoir and she is just so very classy and smart and forgiving of any misdeed ever done to her, a woman of true grace and dignity. She very willingly put family first and then went on to become a diplomat and Cancer survivor. She ROCKS! I'm definitely a fan of hers NOW.”<br /><br />Today, this episode has very little relevance to kids who typically only know Shirley Temple as a soft drink. Thanks to Disney squelching all the Shirley Temple movies (along with the other classic 20th Century-Fox catalog that they acquired back in 2019), most kids have not had an introduction to her childhood movies. Disney’s adversity to home media has not helped, either.<br /><br />I discovered another Shirley Temple / Brady Bunch connection on the <a href="https://www.outsider.com/entertainment/the-brady-bunch-star-eve-plumb-gunsmoke-dress-once-worn-shirley-temple/" target="_blank">outsider.com website</a>:<br /><br /><i>Eve Plumb, who played Jan Brady on “The Brady Bunch” discovered that she was wearing a dress previously worn by Shirley Temple. During a recent interview, Plumb talked about working on the classic TV show, “Gunsmoke,” and discovering that her costume was previously worn by a Hollywood icon
“‘Gunsmoke,’ now I don’t remember. I was really young. But I do remember because I loved getting dressed up. And going to western costume, and getting fitted for costumes,” said Plumb. “One of them, I think it was the fell down the well one. They had to have a few dresses for me because I had to be dirty in one scene and clean in the other. And I swear there was a tag sewn in there that said ‘Shirley Temple.’ These days we take a picture of everything. I would have loved to have a picture of that.”</i><br /><br />Indeed Eve was on the January 27, 1969 “Goldtown” episode of “Gunsmoke,” which would have made her ten years old at the time of filming. Hard to tell what costume of Shirley’s she might have worn, but it could have been something from “Susannah of the Mounties,” made when Shirley was eleven.<br /><br />Back to the “The Snooperstar,” here’s a clip of Cindy doing her best Shirley Temple imitation:<br /><br /> <iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="255" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XliASJh4uHI?si=sR03llTKK1_jNcLX" title="YouTube video player" width="400"></iframe><br /><br />See more Classic Movie & TV photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/celebs" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-58803976467553425042024-02-10T09:35:00.000-08:002024-03-14T09:22:00.790-07:00Disneyland Weather Vanes<a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/DSC_7588.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/DSC_7588.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Inspired by one of my favorite readers, Eric C., I decided to put together a photo display of all the weather vanes at Disneyland (DCA can be another post!). The first one is from the Red Rose Taverne location when it was formerly known as Village Haus in Fantasyland. A closeup:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/DSC_0058.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/DSC_0058.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />This one is debatable; there are no NESW markings, but it does have an arrow and appears to spin, so I'll include it. It is also part of the former Village Haus complex.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/villagehaus/DSC_5722.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/villagehaus/DSC_5722.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />From Mr. Toad’s:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/DSC_0068.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/DSC_0068.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />From Pinocchio’s Daring Journey:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/DSC_0062.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/DSC_0062.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />From the Haunted Mansion in New Orleans Square:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/hauntedmansion/images/exterior/DSC_1878.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/hauntedmansion/images/exterior/DSC_1878.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Atop the Toon Town Depot:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/dlrr/images/fland/2000/2009/DSC_2613.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/dlrr/images/fland/2000/2009/DSC_2613.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Minnie Mouse house in Toon Town:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/toontown/images/2013/DSC_5620.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/toontown/images/2013/DSC_5620.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Mary Poppins rests atop the Jolly Holiday Bakery in Central Plaza:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/centralplaza/images/pavillion/jollyholiday/DSC_7899.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/centralplaza/images/pavillion/jollyholiday/DSC_7899.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Across the Plaza is this rooster at The Plaza Inn:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/centralplaza/images/plazainn/DSC_0014.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/centralplaza/images/plazainn/DSC_0014.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Edelweiss Snacks in Fantasyland:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/DSC_6213.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/DSC_6213.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Zooming in:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/DSC_6213-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/DSC_6213-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Another one that is debatable; no arrows, no NESW markers, but it is often lumped into the category of weather vanes.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/peterpan/images/DSC_0065.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/peterpan/images/DSC_0065.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Any others I missed?<br /><br /><b>Later additions to this post:</b><br /><br />Bryan - Thanks for jogging the memory! This one on the Harbour Gallery:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/fowlersinn/DSC_5746.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/riversofamerica/images/fowlersinn/DSC_5746.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Back in Toon Town, you can find Miss Gadget Hackwrench on the roof of the loading area for Gadget’s Go Coaster:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/toontown/images/2015/DSC_4055.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/toontown/images/2015/DSC_4055.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In Town Square at the Guided Tours waiting area:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/townsquare/images/2000/2008/DSC_1945.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/townsquare/images/2000/2008/DSC_1945.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Thanks to Daveland friend Stacy, I now have a snap of the Matterhorn weathervane:<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/Photo-Mar-12-2024,-11-35-42-AM.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/fantasyland/images/weathervanes/Photo-Mar-12-2024,-11-35-42-AM.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />See more Disneyland photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/disneyland" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-12017691419572535622024-02-08T17:01:00.000-08:002024-02-09T10:33:33.024-08:00Is That All There Is? DCA 23rd Anniversary<a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/DSC_8956.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/DSC_8956.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I had the opportunity to visit Disney California Adventure on May 18, 2001, just a few months after it opened (hard to believe it’s been 23 years!). I was part of a behind-the-scenes tour of all the dining facilities that were part of the Disneyland Resort second gate. One of the dining managers in my department was friends with Mary Nivens, who was Senior VP at the Disneyland Resort at the time, thus our tour. What did I think about DCA? As soon as the tour was over, I went home. I didn’t ride a single attraction nor did I take any photos. If you know me, that speaks volumes. I kept thinking of the Peggy Lee song, “Is That All There Is?”<br /><br />It wasn’t until April 2002 that I returned with camera in hand and began to document the second gate. True to Walt’s quote about change, none of what you see in these photos remains at DCA today. Below, you can see the stationary California Zephyr, on of my favorite aspects (designwise) of the new Park.<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R3_N15.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R3_N15.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Because of their ownership by Disney, there was significant cross-promotion going on for ABC programs, especially the soap operas.<br /><br /><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R3_N14.jpg" width="400" /><br /><br />One of the restaurants at DCA was titled, “Soap Opera Bistro,” featuring themed dining areas based on the sets from your favorite ABC soap operas.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R4_N13.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R4_N13.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />These tile murals at the entrance were gorgeous.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R4_N19.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R4_N19.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />An overhead view showing the first incarnation of Paradise Pier, before Pixar took over.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R1_N05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R1_N05.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
These imposing elephants at the Hollywood Pictures Backlot were an homage to the ones used in D.W. Griffith’s silent epic, “Intolerance” (1916).<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R4_N11.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/4_02_CA_R4_N11.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
Whoopi Goldberg in DCA? That’s right. Where the Little Mermaid attraction now resides, guests once entered a theatre to watch a film entitled “Golden Dreams,” starring Whoopi as Calafia, the Queen of California. She lost her thrown when the theater was torn down for Ariel in July 2009.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/bayarea/DSC_1487.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/bayarea/DSC_1487.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
Was there ever a need for Fastpass for It’s Tough To Be A Bug!?!<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/bugsland/4_02_CA_R4_N08.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/bugsland/4_02_CA_R4_N08.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Over at the Hyperion Theatre, a Reader’s Digest version of the Broadway show Blast! was playing.<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/hollywood/4_02_CA_R3_N17.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/hollywood/4_02_CA_R3_N17.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />In 2004, I returned for my birthday and posed with Minnie in the Condor Flats area.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/condorflats/40Bday_LastRoll_N28.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/condorflats/40Bday_LastRoll_N28.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
The Tower of Terror was the first big draw to be added to the Park in 2004, followed by Monsters, Inc. This aerial view is from August 2006.<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/DSC_0953.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/californiaadventure/images/DSC_0953.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In other news, I just realized that DCA, James Dean, and Lana Turner also share the same “birthday.”<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/gallery/images/jamesdean/DSC_3572.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/gallery/images/jamesdean/DSC_3572.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/gallery/images/postman/DSC_2542.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/gallery/images/postman/DSC_2542.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />See more Disney California Adventure photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/californiaadventure" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-76496380677927681182024-02-07T04:30:00.000-08:002024-02-07T04:30:00.142-08:00I Love A Parade: 1968 in 3D!<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/townsquare/images/60s/3D_7_17_68_R_PearlyBand.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/townsquare/images/60s/3D_7_17_68_R_PearlyBand.gif" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Back in July 1968, a photographer shot these 3D images (now presented in genuine FauxD©) of a Disneyland parade. It’s as close as you can get to being there, folks!<br />
<br />
Captain Hook, Peter Pan, and Mr. Smee are waving to the crowd.<br />
<br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_15_68_R_Parade2.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_15_68_R_Parade2.gif" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Any idea what these ribbons/tags are on Pan and Smee?<br />
<br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_15_68_R_Parade2-d1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_15_68_R_Parade2-d1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Donald is feeling lazy, too:<br />
<br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade3.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade3.gif" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Snow White and her Seven Dwarfs (Dopey is hiding in the back):<br />
<br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade4.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade4.gif" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
From Pinocchio comes J. Worthington Foulfellow:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade5.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade5.gif" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Even the recently released Jungle Book was featured in the Parade:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade6.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade6.gif" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Alice skips by the Wurlitzer Shop:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade7.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade7.gif" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />With Splash Mountain gone, will we ever see these characters back in the Park?<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade8.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades/images/1968/3D_7_17_68_R_Parade8.gif" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
See more Disneyland Parade photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/parades" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-46078477937067933232024-02-06T05:12:00.000-08:002024-02-06T05:12:39.538-08:00Temple Tuesday: Memos and Letters<a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/40s/sywa/SYWA_TC.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/40s/sywa/SYWA_TC.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Producer David Selznick was known for his prolific memos; a rather large book was published in 1972 filled with his correspondence titled Memo from David O. Selznick. Two of the memos from the compilation include our gal Shirley. In a June 15, 1943 memo the producer wrote to his Director of Advertising and Publicity, Joseph Henry Steele:<br /><br /><i>When we’re ready, the story on “Since You Went Away” should be built on the following:<br /></i><br /><i>David O. Selznick today announced that…</i><i>“Since You Went Away” will mark the return to production of Selznick, and be his first picture since “Gone With the Wind” and “Rebecca.” At the same time, Selznick confirmed previously published reports that Claudette Colbert will play the role of the young wife and mother in the film, which is based upon the Whittlesey House and Ladies’ Home Journal story of the same title…</i><br /><br /><i>With Claudette Colbert, Jennifer Jones, Monty Woolley, and Shirley Temple, the cast looms as one of the most important of recent years. Selznick also stated that there would be other important players cast shortly, to give the film a cast rivaling that of the producer’s famous production of “Dinner at Eight.”<br /><br />Rewrite the above as much as you want to, but please be careful to: (a) handle the mother and sister angles almost exactly as above; (b) use the casting in the recapitulation as stated above, i.e., Colbert first, Jones second, Woolley third, and Temple fourth; (c) I’m anxious to get the accent off this as a Temple vehicle and start hammering away at its tremendous cast.…I’m getting tired of being referred to solely as the producer of Gone With the Wind and Rebecca, and would like to get some of the other pictures alluded to as often as possible (I can see my obituary now: ‘Producer of Gone With the Wind dies!’)…
</i><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/homes/rockingham/ST-Wilder-VP22.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/homes/rockingham/ST-Wilder-VP22.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />The above shot of Shirley taken in October 1943 was accompanied by this publicity blurb:<br /><br /><b>Fresh Start for Shirley Temple</b><br /><br /><i>Brentwood, Calif. – Now 15 and a typical teen-age girl, Shirley Temple is launching a “second” career. As a child actress, she was at the top as film box office drawing card from 1935 to 1939, under a 20th Century-Fox contract. Since 1941, she has made only two movies, and in 1942 she starred in a radio series, “Junior Miss.” At the same time she gave more attention to her school work at the Westlake School for Girls, and to growing up as a normal girl.
</i><br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/homes/rockingham/ST-FoyerStair2-Wilder.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/homes/rockingham/ST-FoyerStair2-Wilder.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br /><i>
Now, under a new contract with David O. Selznick, a new program is being worked out, with adult stardom as the aim for the future. For the present Shirley will continue her schooling and make occasional pictures in which she will have important roles but not be starred. She is at work now on“Since You Went away,” in which she plays the tomboy daughter. These photos were made at the Temple home here. Shirley is seen with her new friend Abby Wilder, whose mother, Margaret Buell Wilder, wrote the novel “Since You Went away.” Shirley plays Brig Hilton, who in real life is Abby Wilder.</i><br /><br />
The below image shows Ingrid Bergman visiting Selznick (who she was under contract to at the time), Shirley, and Jennifer Jones on the set of “Since You Went Away.” Selznick may have been looking at Shirley, but his romantic attentions were about to be focused on Jones, who he would eventually marry.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/40s/sywa/SYWA-VP-46-HR.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/40s/sywa/SYWA-VP-46-HR.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
This November 3, 1944 memo from the Producer was to Reeves Espy, a Selznick executive:<br /><br /><i>Shirley is exceedingly hot at the moment. We can”t commence to fill demands for interviews and other press material on her from newspapers and magazines; and this is, of course, an indication of the interest of the public. At the preview of “I’ll Be Seeing You,” costarring Ginger Rogers, Joseph Cotten, and Shirley Temple, Shirleys name was received with the biggest applause of all three, despite the fact that the Gallup poll shows that Cotten is the great new romantic rage, and that Ginger is one of the top stars of the business.<br /><br />Shirley’s publicity in the New York press, both in connection with this appearance and in connection with her prior trip East to sell bonds, received more publicity_including, astonishingly, big front-page breaks in the middle of a war—thank I think has been accorded the visit of any motion-picture star to New York in many, many years. Indeed, it is said (and I believe a check would confirm it) that her visit received more space than that of General de Gaulle! She has made a great hit in Since You Went Away; and in her first grown-up part, that in “I’ll Be Seeing You,” is a sensational success. Her fan mail is great than that of any other star on our list—actually exceeding by a wide margin that of Ingrid Bergman, Jennifer Jones, and Joan Fontaine, who are the next three, in that order.</i><br /><br />If Shirley was so hot, why didn’t her teen career flourish more? You can probably chalk it up to Selznick’s obsession with promoting Jones. All the choice lead roles for a young woman went to her, as the Producer ended up loaning Temple out to other studios while he focused on building up Jones’ career.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/40s/IBSY-107-G.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/40s/IBSY-107-G.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
See more teenage Shirley Temple photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/index2.html" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-60227789079231239122024-02-05T04:00:00.000-08:002024-02-05T04:00:00.137-08:00Barbie, The Movie<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie1.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />I finally saw “Barbie,” the blockbuster 2023 Greta Gerwig movie starring Margot Robbie in the title role and Ryan Gosling as her male counterpart, Ken. The fact that Mattel played a part in the production was a slight turnoff to me. I wondered how edgy and innovative could a film be when sponsored by a high profile corporation? It worked for the 1971 classic, “Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory” (sponsored by Quaker Oats, who was hoping to sell candy as a result of the movie), but that was over fifty years ago when the world was different (and there was no social media or internet). Still, “Barbie” surprised me in a good way. Overall, I would recommend seeing it; unlike “Wonka” though, the finale was a bit of a disappointment for what was generally a very creative production. <b>If you haven’t seen the movie, fair warning: plot spoiler alerts ahead! Read at your own risk.</b><br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie2.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In a nutshell, Stereotypical Barbie (Robbie) resides in a live-action world with the other Barbies, Kens, and discontinued dolls (Midge, Sugar Daddy Ken, Earring Magic Ken, and Skipper). All the diverse Barbies hold positions of power in Barbie Land. Like their doll counterparts, they don’t factor into the storyline in a very meaningful way other than as supporting players. It would have been interesting to see a storyline that examined how the lesser-selling (aka more diverse) Barbies felt about being relegated behind Stereotypical Barbie. Would Mattel have backed a movie like that? Doubts.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie4.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The Barbies live in luxurious dream homes with fulfilling lives, while the male dolls have little to do but play at the beach and serve as the Barbies’ male arm candy. Beach Ken (Gosling) unsuccessfully seeks Barbie’s approval, constantly trying to outshine the other Kens to gain her attention. Interestingly enough, the Barbies are completely asexual; the Kens seem to lean towards the homosexual side (wrestling and offering to “beach off” each other). Beach Ken seems to have some heterosexual hormonal drives, as he desires to spend the night at Stereotypical Barbie’s place; she wants no part of that.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie3.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Because of actions going on in the real world with a teenager (Ariana Greenblatt as Sasha) and her mom (America Ferrera as Gloria), Stereotypical Barbie begins to undergo some strange transformations: her previously arched feet fall flat, cellulite appears on her legs, and worst of all, she begins to have thoughts about death.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie5.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie5.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Like Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz,” Barbie is told to seek out someone who can help: Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon), who is the result of what happens when little girls play too hard with their dolls. Weird Barbie tells Stereotypical Barbie that she must go to the real world to fix the hole/rift in the “space-time continuum.”<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie6.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie6.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Beach Ken stows away with Barbie on her road trip and the two encounter all kinds of people when they arrive in Los Angeles, including the CEO of Mattel (Will Ferrell). I’ll leave the rest of the plot discovery to you, dear readers, as I hope you will watch this film for yourself<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie7.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie7.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><b>What works:</b><br /><br /><i>The casting and performances are spot-on. </i>A movie like this depends so much on the actors, especially when you are representing both a fantasy world and the “real” world. Robbie and Gosling give nuanced performances that separate them from the other Barbies and Kens. They have neuroses, fears, and problems just like people in the real world. Robbie obviously has the larger part in the film, but Gosling does even more with what he is given.<br /><br />I normally do not care for Will Ferrell; “loud” does not equal funny for me. In “Barbie,” he is genius casting. As the CEO of Mattel, watching him attempt to explain to Barbie the lack of females in the boardroom is one of my favorite scenes. You can hear him speak the typical rhetoric while knowing damn well that it is an extremely hollow stream of bulls&*t.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie9.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie9.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><i>Visually, the film is stunning. </i>Making use of classic old Hollywood techniques, the film avoids relying on CGI and other digital tricks that rarely hide a poor script. Instead, the visual artistry of the film stays consistent with the tongue-in-cheek tone of the film. I especially like the transition scenes where the characters travel back and forth between Barbie Land and the real world.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie8.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie8.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Rhea Perlman has a cameo as Ruth Handler, the real-life creator of Barbie. This seems like a good segue into…<br /><br /><b>What didn’t work:</b><br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie10.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/Barbie10.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
Attempting to escape getting “boxed in” (figuratively AND literally), Barbie runs away from the Mattel CEO and stumbles into a vintage kitchen where Ruth Handler seems to just pass the time away. Perlman is great casting in this role, but it ends up being a wasted opportunity. Was Gerwig trying to allude to the fact that Handler spent less time with Mattel when she went through her ordeal of breast cancer and eventually resigned from the company after being charged with fraud and false reporting to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission? Was she trying to say that the originator of Barbie was just shoved into a corner while the men took over? This is never really explained. Instead, the film’s Handler speaks in a benevolent manner to her doll creation and helps her escape the CEO. Later, the Handler character reappears to give some more lengthy mumbo-jumbo that just comes off as very poorly written Psychiatry 101. With Perlman as Handler, so much more could have been done. Below is the real-life Ruth Handler and a shot of the first Barbie doll from 1959.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/ruth-handle-inventor-of-barbie-061923-tout-b5653bddbe77419a9a6076c8f500e3ea.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/genemarshall/images/barbie/35anniversary/ruth-handle-inventor-of-barbie-061923-tout-b5653bddbe77419a9a6076c8f500e3ea.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />In general, “Barbie” tries to be too many things in just two hours. How would I describe “Barbie”? It’s “The Wizard of Oz” (lost girl seeks happiness in a strange land and meets friends along the way) meets “Back to the Future”/“Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (gotta’ fix that time-space continuum in the alternate reality!) meets “Legally Blonde” (not all pretty/blonde girls are stupid) meets “Enchanted”/“Splash!” (fish out of water gags). While it does an admirable job, that’s mainly because of the actors and the visual aspect of the film. The storyline begins to lose its way about the time Stereotypical Barbie returns home with Gloria and Sasha. Speaking of the Gloria and Sasha storyline; more backstory is needed on those two to fully understand the conflict and motivation; a few quick flashback scenes don’t provide enough meaningful context. This speaks to my point about the movie trying to be too many thingse.<br /><br />The saddest part for me is that a movie that supposedly celebrates women gives two very poor messages at the end: first, to get what you want from a man, you have to result to subterfuge and sexuality, and two, the world is either all about women or all about men. The movie doesn’t teach the two sexes how to effectively communicate, learn from each other, and cohabitate in a meaningful way. While the Barbies promise to do better, it’s hard to believe after they choose deceit to get to a place of power again.<br /><br />The long-ass “epiphany” dialogue towards the end between Stereotypical Barbie and Beach Ken seems to be “you need to find yourself.” I need a two hour movie to tell me that? While the ending is a cute twist, I was expecting to see Barbie’s exciting new career and how she grows as a “human.” Instead, we get a joke that emphasizes Barbie’s body, not her brain. “Barbie” is a thought-provoking movie that gets the dialogue started, but does very little to provide positive solutions.<br /><br />See more Daveland photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/photography" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29249921.post-9184995380012723642024-01-30T04:00:00.000-08:002024-01-30T04:00:00.135-08:00Temple Tuesday: Leading Men and the Couch<a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/sotm/ST-Goodrider-Publicity.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/sotm/ST-Goodrider-Publicity.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />In this publicity shot from 1939, Shirley is shown in her 20th Century-Fox bungalow with her future costar, Martin Good Rider. From the accompanying blurb:<br /><br /><i>HOLLYWOOD, JAN. 26 — SHIRLEY GETS HER FIRST LEADING MAN - Shirley Temple gets her first leading man in her screen career in her new picture (Susannah of the Mounties). He’s 13-year-old Martin Goodrider, full-blooded Blackfoot Indian boy. Shirley and Martin are shown after their first meeting at Miss Temple’s dressing room in a studio here.</i><br /><br />As so often happens with publicity stories, this one is not entirely true. Just a year before, Shirley had her first on-screen romantic pairing with Bennie Bartlett in “Just Around the Corner.” Shirley’s character uses her womanly wiles to get the young boy to cut off his curls and adopt a more sophisticated hairdo. Ah, young love. No, I don’t count the “Baby Burlesks” as far as a “leading man” for Shirley goes. At the tender age of four, that ventures into “ick” territory.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/JATC-372-98.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/30s/JATC-372-98.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Always looking at the details, I noticed the fabric on the couch that Shirley and Martin are sitting in. I immediately contacted Melissa, aka “The Colonel” for the 411. She filled in the deets on the decor for Shirley’s Fox Bungalow, where the young girl held court for a plethora of celebrities, dignitaries, and politicians. “The wallpaper in the living/reception room was originally ivory with a conventional tree design in jade green,” Melissa told me. “The couch was described as a ‘small davenport upholstered in linen printed in bright colors with a kindergarten design.’” The couch print looks like it was inspired by the buildings in Colonial Williamsburg, which had finished restoration in the late 1920s.<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/foxbungalow/kindergartencouch.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/foxbungalow/kindergartencouch.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />Of course “The Colonel” had more! “At some point between April and September 1936, the kindergarten print couch was reupholstered in a striped velvet fabric - the wallpaper remained the same.” The striped couch is visible in the corner of the photo below:<br />
<br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/foxbungalow/stripedcouch.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/foxbungalow/stripedcouch.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />
“Both the living/reception room and schoolroom were updated some time in 1937, possibly when the Temples were vacationing in Hawaii. The living room wallpaper was changed to the leaf pattern seen below in the image with J. Edgar Hoover, as well as the first image with Good Rider. The couch was redone a third time (flowers and bow pattern). The curtains in that room were changed as was the lamp.”<br /><br /><a href="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/Hoover-&-Temple.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://davelandweb.com/shirleytemple/images/blog/foxbungalow/Hoover-&-Temple.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />And there you have it; yet another Shirley rabbit hole to enjoy! See more Shirley Temple photos at my <b><a href="https://www.davelandweb.com/shirleytemple" target="_blank">main website</a>.</b><div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-9471132036441503";
google_ad_width = 250;
google_ad_height = 250;
google_ad_format = "250x250_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "6F3C1B";
google_color_bg = "78B749";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script></div>Davelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10720475138513029144noreply@blogger.com0