Spurred on by a recent acquisition, I have compiled this post of Disneyland entrance images through the decades, starting off with this 1950's shot. The place looks positively primitive! No attraction posters, little landscaping, and hardly any signage.
June 1960 is a completely different situation. This is the Disneyland most people know!
Except for the prices! Just a little bit cheaper than what you would pay today!
Looks like the attendance number is either 16 or 18 million by this time. Not bad for a place that was destined for failure according to the naysayers.
Rain? In southern California? Yes...sometimes that does occur, as you can see from the damp pavement and apparel of these November 1971 guests.
This November 1978 looks almost apocalyptic; where are the guests? Where are the signs?
Things are back to normal by August, 1986. The park entrance looks like it’s on steroids with all kinds of ornamentation. Makes my eyes hurt.
Jumping forward to 2010, the landscape has grown and the band is out to welcome the guests.
I hope you enjoyed this little journey through time! On a separate note, I was contacted by a couple who recently purchased some "vintage Disneyland" stuff on eBay. The seller told them that he got a lot of things from an elderly couple who did alot of salvage around Disneyland when they renovated several times in the 70s and 80s. Anyone able to identify possible locations of where these pieces came from, if they even came from the Park?
See more Disneyland Entrance photos at my main website.
6 comments:
Great post today... especially since you hit 1986 (the year I started). That is what I remember the Main Gate looking like with the marketing promotion, "Everyone wins, every day!" Coming out of the 30th anniversary where every 30th Guest, 300th Guest, and so on won a prize, this continued that theme but allowed everyone to win!
Regarding that big key... I think (key word... whoops... Ha... didn't mean it that way... but "THINK" is the word) that would have been a Fantasyland key that may have been in a door at, near, or around the Castle area. That is my guess.
The other pieces look as if they Frontierland/Bear Country (obvious Good Luck horseshoe being more of a souvenir) set decorations that may have hung on a wall inside a shop or restaurant.
Always your pal,
Amazon Belle
Hi Amazon Belle - I'm actually the owner of the items. Thanks for the info! I actually knew what lands they might be from but am thrilled to hear someone say they might have seen the key on a door by the castle. The seller is actually trying to acquire a bigger key that it was supposedly hung with. Does that ring a bell? I'm hoping someone might have pics sonewhere but I knew this was a long shot. Just hearing someone say they might have seen it somewhere makes me feel better about my purchase. My seller has sold me other things that had a more positive ID so I'm pretty sure he's legit. If you come across any other info, I would love it. Thanks again!
I have to agree with Matthew on his guesses to the items. That one shot where the entrance is devoid of people reminds me of the days when the Park was closed Mondays and Tuesdays. KS
A word of advice. Disneyland costume pieces are NEVER marked for any specific attraction or land location. If they are, it was purposely done to deceive. Abbreviations such "DL" and methods such as stenciling are NEVER EVER used by the company on their costumes to specify.
Also words such as "might of...could of...was told" are usually used to deflect responsibility so the individual(s) won't be held accountable. Using generic postcards or an image from a Disneyland website to present an illusion that a prop was used in the park is not considered solid evidence. Remember similar or closely resembling costumes and props are NOT that exact same item.
If ever in doubt contact Disney directly to get confirmation. I'm sure the company would be very appreciative of being notified on costumes/prop from the park being sold as so called "authentic" pieces and would be more than glad to speak to the seller. Since Disney has very strict inventory control over any park related property be very wary if there are multiple items being sold by the same seller as being authentically cast/attraction related. Also note a COA is a worthless piece of paper unless it's executed by a certified party. Knowledgeable and veteran collectors are not easily deceived but others can be taken advantage of so always use caution when spending your hard earned dollar.
Anonymous: not very helpful! None of the pieces posted are costume pieces. Saying "contact Disney" is like the proverbial needle in a haystack. And while Disney MIGHT be doing a thorough job of cataloguing their props now, back in the day they most certainly did not.
Unproductive finger wagging to foster doubt, not assist with clarification, over concerns everyone is already aware of. ( COA, etc. ) Thanks Anonymous.
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