This is the last (so far) from my April 1977 photo collection, and starts off with an entrance shot to the Plaza Inn, my favorite source of Fried Chicken! Here's a contemporary shot of the entryway:
Moving around to the side of the Plaza Inn, our daring photographer risked being termed a "perv" by actually shooting the exterior of a bathroom. I am sure there are many of us Disney photo geeks who have taken a shot or two of the INSIDE of a Disneyland restroom. Hey, even they are themed!
And a similar angled shot from 2008:
See more vintage & current Disneyland Central Plaza photos on my Central Plaza web page.
On another topic...Todd Hoose recently contacted me, hoping I'd be able to help him and his mother contact some of the other original 1959 Disneyland Submarine Voyage mermaids. Here's what Todd wrote:
Do you know how I can locate any of the original 1959 women? My mom was 17 at the time and on a work permit, as she was in High School. She was not very social and didn't talk to any of the other girls. Her mom was in the hospital for long periods so no one came to see her or take photos of the events or her in costume. She also posed with President Nixon on that day with some others and we are hoping to find some photos of that as well.
I am hoping one of the others had family or friends who came to watch and took some photos. I just showed her the first video and photo of her working as a mermaid. She and my dad cried.
If you know how to help Todd and his mother, Susan Musfelt Hoose, please email him at: luvinlyfe@sbcglobal.net
Here's a shot of Susan during her stint in the lagoon:
And the still lovely Susan Musfelt Hoose today:
In the meantime, here are pretty much all of the shots I currently own of these beautiful ladies:
July 1960:
August 1960:
August 27, 1965:
September 1965:
June 25, 1966:
View more Disneyland Submarine Voyage photos at my main website.
More great pictures and unusual details from the 70's!
ReplyDeleteI have a few photos of mermaids, but they are too distant to make an ID. Plus I know I have some others that I haven't scanned yet... I'll keep Todd and Susan's request in mind when I get to them.
This is relevant to my interests.
ReplyDeleteYears ago I worked for an architect who spent some time at WED, working on various Disneyland projects (Haunted Mansion especially).
He said the park trips were always fun since they could visit the operating attractions to study up to make new ones.
He commented that it was the ambition of every young male drafter/designer (and probably all the other male employees as well) to get an introduction to a mermaid. For him, never happened.
On a related topic, one of my daughter's friends has a job as a mermaid, swimming in a tank over the bar in a cocktail place. Not sure where, but the job continues, if not at Disneyland.
JG
Another outstanding post. Several of the mermaid shots I have never seen and any excuse to gaze upon the Plaza Inn will be indulged.
ReplyDelete@JG..that's a really cool story.
David - my mermaid shots aren't that great either...I'm sure it was difficult back in the day with the available cameras for guests to get a good one.
ReplyDeleteJG - As always, great background stories!
Thufer - Where else but Daveland could you get Fried Chicken and Mermaids in the same post?!?
Always wondered how they changed shifts, did they swim back?
ReplyDelete@fuzzhead.
ReplyDeleteI asked my boss that question, apparently he was told that they held onto a handle on the side of a sub and were towed into the show building under the waterfall where they were helped out.
That doesn't account for how they would get out in the first place, since the sub pier slot is so narrow, so I'm not sure that's right. Maybe someone else has the real story.
My stories are third-hand and 30 years old at least.
JG
http://micechat.com/forums/disneyland-resort/132485-disneyland-mermaids-2.html this is a site I found while researching the subject. It has pix of the auditions at the DL hotel pool. You may have this info already
ReplyDelete