TPE: Casey Jr. & Storybook Land

This may be one of my weirder requests for my Time Machine, but I would really want to visit Disneyland between Opening Day and June 1956 so that I could see Storybook Land...without the Storybook.



It seems hard to believe that Casey Jr and the Canal Boats actually gave guests a tour of the muddy (and apparently weed-filled) banks of Storybook Land, aka Canal Boats of the World.



At least the ornate circus-themed vehicles of Casey Jr. provided an element of fun.





The boats though...how did the cast members drive these and point out the "scenery" and keep a straight face?



Apparently they got very good at the deadpan as they recited lines like this: “The miniature landscaping is so miniature you can't see it!”







I'd also want to ride Dumbo, too. Why? Because I could get a good aerial view of the construction, and because I'd want to capture the Dumbo ears in movement, back when they flapped up and down.







The next 9 photos were shot sequentially, circa 1955:













I have to zoom in to see the Ticket Booth window:



Some of these vehicles were salvaged from the original carousel that most of the King Arthur Carrousel horses came from:







The Chicken of the Sea Mermaid from the Pirate Ship Restaurant is visible in the foreground as Casey chugs along in the background:











The Russian Olympic Team from 1956 that we saw a few days ago is back, this time trapped in a monkey cage.



Construction of the patchwork quilt:



Signage geeks rejoice with this March 8, 1956 image:





Workers are visible as we zoom in, catching them with less than 3 months left to finish the new and improved Storybook Land attraction:



See more vintage & current Casey Jr. photos on my Casey Jr. web page.