Unknown Carving

This image is from September, 1966. I am calling out to the experts to see if they know where in the park this is from. My second shot is for Matterhorn: this is the Country Bear Jamboree model that was on display at the Main Street Opera House.



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Inside the Shops

Here’s an interior shot of Tinkerbell’s Toy Shop, circa September, 1966, showing a number of dolls. Alice appears to be the only Disney character in the bunch.



My last shot for the day is from the same set and shows the inside of what is now the Market House, where you can still play a game of checkers by the pot-bellied stove.

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The Lovely Ladies of Disneyland

For some reason, yesterday’s post seemed to strike a chord with the viewers(!), so today, I searched through my DL slide collection and culled a few that showcase the fair maidens who worked at the park. Today’s tour begins with Lesley, a pretty dark haired lass from August, 1967.



And for Dave Rogers, here’s a beautiful blonde lassie from the Storybook Land, showing off her shapely gams, September 1965.



And I couldn’t forget about the Major, so here’s a pretty and perky mermaid, sitting amongst a few conch shells, August 1960. And for the grand finale: this is for all my fellow tiki-lovers. A lovely goddess from the Tahitian Terrace, circa August 1966. I think I’ll go have an orange flavored doughnut now.



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Kinky Wednesday

I don’t know, I’ve just always thought there was something kinky about the DL Tour Guide Outfit. Here are 2 blonde tour guides from September, 1966, complete with riding crop (I wonder if anyone got whipped with one of those?) Notice Nature’s Wonderland poster on the right.

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Keel Boats

One of the things I continually lament over is the Keel Boat. Here is a great August 1958 closeup of the deck of one, showing why I like it so much: you have a cool enclosed place to sit and Mike Fink’s “popgun” (given to him as a gift by Davy Crockett in “River Pirates”) to shoot all those bad injuns on the shore with. Hang on a minute; forget the injuns, there’s a burning cabin on the right! Yup, here’s yet another burning cabin shot, with close-up included at no extra charge. This one’s from November, 1959. Thanks to Wonderboss and the others for providing the correct information on Mike Fink’s popgun.





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Castle Rock

This cool mini-mountain with steps called Castle Rock has been significantly changed over the years; here it is in July, 1960. Another slide from the same batch shows the interior of Fort Wilderness.



And while we’re on the subject of Fort Wilderness again, my last pic is a double exposure of the Mark Twain (what a surprise...can’t imagine anyone taking pics of it...). Yes, this slide would be like thousands of others, except in the background, it appears that Fort Wilderness is under construction. The slide is undated, and of course, I have provided a close-up.





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Mineral Hall

Apparently, from what I pick up on from Tangaroa’s comments, Mineral Hall is the Holy Grail of the slide world. Here’s a nice 1958 Rainbow Ridge shot that includes Mineral Hall on the right. My second shot isn’t necessarily a wonder of composition, but I thought it was cool that it shows the tunnel that the mine train enters; not something you’d normally photograph.



My last pic looks pretty run of the mill on first glance, but if you zoom in on the left, you see the Haunted Mansion, circa 1963, way before it’s even open yet.





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Return to Fowler’s Inn

Now that I’ve seen the “rebuilt” version, this Fowler’s Inn thing has me a little fascinated. Here’s an undated slide that has a lot going on: the defunct Keel Boats, the train ( I definitely prefer this encased car instead of the open cars being used today), Fowler’s Inn, and of course, a nice sunset. For those of you burned out on FI, here’s an undated shot of the Storybook Land scenery, with some backstage stuff barely visible in the back.



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100th Entry!

Today I am celebrating my 100th Disneyland Blog Entry with a few vintage 50’s shots. These are undated, but again, I would guess 1950’s. This first one couldn’t have been setup any better by the publicity department. Here is an amateur slide of the chemical wagon with a little dude in Mouse Ears standing by the hitching post. The second shot is of the Chicken of the Sea Restaurant Ship, but a view I have not seen before. Anyone out there know what 10¢ gets you at the vending machine the kids are intently engaged with?



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Fort Wilderness Today

Although these aren't vintage, thought the readers out there might like to see what it looks like on the inside of Fort Wilderness these days. Also—I will be off from blogging for a few days. See you all later in the week.



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Fort Wilderness without the wilderness

Although slightly blurry, I do like this early view of Fort Wilderness. Once again, an undated slide, but obviously from the dirt and lack of landscaping, this is slide is from the younger days of the park. I've said it before, but I sure do wish they'd open up good ol’ FW again. Can you imagine how excited these kids in the slide must be to be entering this way cool fort?!?

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Mixed Bag

Here is a closeup of yesterday’s lady’s shopping bag. Based upon Matterhorn’s ID of the bag, he believes the shot to be around ’57—’60. Okay, moving onto new stuff...Here’s a nice one of the Skyway Station in Fantasyland, most likely from the same vintage (once again, this slide is undated). The Skyway had a long run of 1956—1994. Many a great overhead photo was taken from these buckets.



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Peter Pan Entrance

I am a HUUUUGE dark ride fan, so I was pretty stoked when I came across this slide for the beginning of the Peter Pan ride. Just wish this photographer had taken photos INSIDE the ride as well. Oh well...not sure of the year of this one, but it does look like there were significant changes, as currently, the entrance is just a straight shot into London, and not a turn.

My second photo is of the Chicken Plantation Restaurant, the current spot of New Orleans Square.



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Universal Studios

This shot is from July, 1966 and shows a riverboat on the backlot at Universal Studios. The second shot was marked Disneyland, but in actuality is probably Knotts from the 1950’s.



BONUS! Since it turns out that neither of the first 2 photos is DL related, I have tacked on this 3rd photo (wow, what a value!) from June, 1967 that shows a board behind these visitors advertising Disney’s Wonderful World of Color TV Show. Enjoy!



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Fowler’s Inn

June, 1965 shows Fowler’s Inn looking like it’s about ready to cave in. Anyone know if this was torn down or what ended up happening to it? BONUS PHOTO! For me, it’s kinda' like a Holy Grail thing whenever I find photos from my first trip to Disneyland. This one I just found in a drawer the other day; still looking for the original negative and hoping there are some cool shots on there. From December 27, 1970 (I’m the one in the middle with the corrective shoes...talk about geek...).



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Indian Burial

From August, 1958 comes this shot along the Rivers of America, showing an Indian Burial amongst the deer and skulls-on-a-stick. I have also included a close-up for all you detail sticklers. Enjoy!



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Gone Fishin’

I thought this was a pretty interesting shot, since it’s definitely not something you’d see these days: fathers and sons fishing at Disneyland in the Rivers of America. Anyone know much more about this short-lived phenomenon?

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Coming Soon: The Haunted Mansion

Here’s a great shot of the perfect 60’s mom with her little boy, enjoying the day at Disneyland. But what’s this? She’s smoking! Hasn’t anyone told her this isn’t a designated smoking area? Oh, yeah...it’s June 1965, and smoking is okay. On the left side, our photographer was smart enough to include the “Coming Soon” sign for the Haunted Mansion. Somebody, give this guy a prize—he just made my day. I’m also including a close-up of the sign for you other signage and/or HM geeks.



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The Nile Princess, Day 2

Here’s the Jungle Cruise’s Nile Princess on the 2nd Day of opening. The skipper looks bored out of his goard, and it is rare not to see the dock swarming with people.

See more vintage & current Disneyland Jungle Cruise photos on my Jungle Cruise web page.

Frontierland: Would somebody please remove these tree stumps?

On the 2nd day of being opened, you can still see traces of how the park was unveiled in a rush. Are these tree stumps intentional? Did somebody forget the sod? Or maybe this is just part of the Wild West Theming. That must be it. Sad to say, but nowadays, I rarely enter through the Frontierland Gate; other than a few pin and souvenir stores, not much is happening on the other side.

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Stagecoach Two-fer, July 18, 1955

Here are two shots from the 2nd day the park was open of the Stagecoach ride. I sure do miss all the different forms of transportation once available in Frontier/Adventureland; they just seem to be shrinking away. The Keelboats, The Stagecoach, the mules...well, maybe not the mules.



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Entering Adventureland, July 18, 1955

As you enter the gates of Adventureland, this is one of the first buildings that you see. Currently, this building has gift shops and restrooms, and tons of strollers just waiting to knock you down on the way to Indiana Jones or Pirates (but not the Aladdin Show). It can be brutal out there.

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Mark Twain and parking lot, July 18, 1955

Here’s the mighty Mark Twain with the Chicken Plantation in the background and a number of pickup trucks. Could that be a cotton bale in the foreground?

See more vintage and contemporary Disneyland Mark Twain photos at my main website.

Fantasy of Disneyland, July 18, 1955

Once again, from the 2nd day of the park’s opening comes this slide from Fantasyland. Cute window display, and are those military on leave or a previously unseen DLand uniform?

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Chicken of the Sea, July 18, 1955

If you pay attention to my blog, then you know that I'm a signage freak. Here’s a beauty of the Chicken of the Sea ship from the 2nd day the park was open. Squint and you can see Casey Jr. in the background.

See more vintage Disneyland Chicken of the Sea restaurant photos at my main website.

Mary Blair Murals, July 1968

Every now and then, I stumble upon a batch of slides that makes me think, “Wow! These are the types of shots I would have taken if I’d been taking pictures 40 years ago!” These two slides are from said batch. Although I do not really care for Mary Blair’s style, I definitely appreciate her talent and vision. I am astounded that these beautiful murals have been covered/removed. Anybody know the story of why, and what the chances are of them seeing the light of day again? The second shot gives a perspective of where these murals are; am I correct that this is where the Star Wars gift shop now resides?



See more vintage and contemporary Disneyland photos at my main website.