Palooza Pt. 1: The Fox Lot

The 90th Anniversary of Shirley Temple's birthday caused a celebration of epic proportions for the group of people who flock to Southern California annually for what has been dubbed "Shirley Palooza." If it sounds nutty, well...you'll just have to go with it for the next few posts. I was hooked as a young tot the first time I saw her dancing on a milk white piano and have continued to be a fan. As most of my trips to LA do, this one began at the Chateau Marmont. It was my third time to stay in Room 33...and I wasn't going to complain about it. I had one night to get some rest before the action-packed itinerary for Palooza began. Unfortunately, a loud industry party going on in the courtyard did not cooperate with those plans. Still, it's the Chateau. Who cares. It's all good.



The next morning I journeyed to Century City for my first ever tour of the Fox Studios lot where Shirley filmed all her classic movies. I was excited beyond belief, but still had to stop to photograph the St. Timothy Catholic Church down the street from the Studio.



When I have a camera in hand, there are lots of "squirrel" moments.



Back to Fox. Our designated meeting place was the Fox Studios restaurant, which was once called the Café de Paris because it was built on the site of one of the semi-permanent sets, a French restaurant.



Note the rooster detail which still exists from the original Café entrance which is now the Studio Retail Shop:



This art deco styled mural from the interior of the restaurant was unveiled in 1935 and includes a portrait of Shirley.





Before:



After:





Service was good here and so was the food, as the group exchanged stories of their travel to arrive in Hollywood that day.



Portraits of famous Fox stars were strategically placed throughout the building:



One of the rooms has been dubbed the Shirley room, with walls covered in shots of the Child Star herself.



A group shot was necessary; one of the few times Melissa (aka "The Colonel" of the gang) would willingly allow a photo of herself.



Is everyone ready for the lot tour to begin?



Line up in single file and be sure to return tomorrow for more!

See more Fox Studios photos at my main website.

Dumbo Interlude

While I am intently working on a multi-part story for my blog, I will post this short (but AMAZING!) find. Recently, I was sent the above photo and accompanying note from Rudolph Parducci's granddaughter, Marcella. Who? Just read on, people. It's not all about the pictures!

I have always been curious where you got your information about Chris Mueller Jr. sculpting Dumbo. I assume that maybe he did the update but wasn't the sculptor of the original ride casts, as we were always told that our grandfather Rudolph Parducci did (see above photo). He, too, worked for Walt Disney along with other movie studios. It is possible that he was acquainted with Chris Mueller Jr., although we will likely never know since he died in 1973. His brother Corrado was the more famous Parducci sculptor, as Papa shied away from fame, even post-mortem when movie studios requested to make a film about his life.

While it is currently under renovation, the Dumbo Flying Elephants attraction at Disneyland still entertains guests of all ages as it soars over Fantasyland.



What a great example of how a Google search can yield something wonderful.

See more Disneyland Dumbo attraction photos at my main website.

Fifi and Jose, 1966

In this October 1966 shot, José the red plumed Barker Bird is drawing customers in with his spiel, voiced by Wally Boag:



Originally, it was the blue plumed Juan who spoke to guests at the entrance of this attraction as shown in this image taken just a few months earlier in August:



Back to the October 1966 batch, the photographer captured Fifi in action during the show:



See more Disneyland Enchanted Tiki Room photos at my main website.

Miracles From Molecules

Not quite as memorable as "it's a small world," but "The Miracles From Molecules" is yet another Sherman Brothers tune that has difficulty exiting the brain once hear. Today's post features four images from the Adventure Thru Inner Space attraction at Disneyland, circa April 1970, where this catchy little tune could be heard.

This attraction was located where Star Tours currently resides.



It was a wacky attraction of which I still have vivid memories, even though it closed down over thirty years ago.



The most memorable moment for me was seeing the Omnimover vehicles "shrunken" down in this tube. How the heck did they do that?!? Yes, I was gullible for a short time.



Here's the Sherman Brothers song; listen at your own risk, as you might end up humming it all day long!



See more Molecular Miracles from Disneyland at my main website..

View from the Tower

Often it takes a visitor to get you to fully explore the city where you live. Such was the case with the California Tower at Balboa Park which began allowing visitors to climb (almost) to the top over three years ago. Built for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, it was one of the few structures that was constructed to last as a permanent building. Shall we begin the journey up?



The first thing of note was the 100-chime electronic carillon that makes the California Tower’s music. I was expecting something much larger and more elaborate, as its melodious sounds carry across the canyons to my house every day.



An innovative way to honor donors:



And the views....wow.



The Globe Theatre complex:



A leftover from the Grinch production at Christmas can be seen on the rooftop:





Like something out of "Vertigo":



What a great experience! I would definitely sign up for this tour again...but would bring my wide angle lens!

See more California Tower photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Follow the Light

I am still woefully behind on life, but starting to see the "Light" at the end of the tunnel. Thus, today's post featuring the first "new" vintage still I have acquire from the Shirley Temple movie "The Blue Bird" in over a year. Tipped off by Shirley's #1 fan (Thanks, Colonel!), this shot is one I had never seen before. At this point in the movie, Shirley and her gang are just beginning their journey to find the Bluebird of Happiness.



I remember the first time I saw this movie that I was fascinated how the "light" followed the character of "Light," played by Helen Ericson, as she traveled up the steps here. With her diaphanous gown, Ericsson gave the movie a bit of sex appeal for the adults.



See more "The Blue Bird" photos at my main website.