Wednesday, July 28, 2021

Hump Day at the 1950s Castle


It’s hump day, that day that signals we’ve made it half-way through the work week. I rarely post shots of the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland because there are SOOOOOO many of them out there that after it while it becomes a snoozefest. Image #1 is from August 1958. Note that there is still no coat of arms above the drawbridge.


This December 1958 shot shows a very stylish lady carrying her Disneyland Guidebook. I am fairly certain that my brothers had the same white with blue/red stripes sweater that the kid on the left is wearing.


Let’s take a closer look, shall we?


Here’s what the cover of the 1958 Disneyland Guide looked like:


The back cover, which we see tucked under the woman’s left arm:


Another shot from December 1958, which was most likely taken from Tom Sawyer’s Island:


Zooming into the Castle you can see that the Matterhorn is still in the dream stage as the Skyway buckets float from Fantasyland to Tomorrowland:


This 1955 shot gets me every time; look at the barren Frontierland landscaping!


Last one for today is a 1950’s 3D shot of the Castle, before it received the Kim Irvine treatment:



See more Disneyland Sleeping Beauty Castle photos at my main website.

11 comments:

Andrew said...

You deserve a shout-out for posting so many rare images in a single post.

Fifthrider said...

The castle without a coat of arms? I don't think I've ever paid attention to that detail before.

Kim Irvine has that magical Disney touch where she can take something beloved and turn it into the interior of a cruise ship. Truly, it's magic.

...also, black, dark evil magic is still technically magic.

Anonymous said...

What an unusual shot from TSI. That treehouse was way up! KS

Daveland said...

Thanks Andrew!

Bryan - Here's a previous post on the Crest: https://davelandblog.blogspot.com/2012/02/crest-on-castle-january-1964.html

KS - I wonder if the treehouse will ever open up again?

Anonymous said...

I was thinking the same thing Dave. Probably deemed to be too dangerous now. KS

Chuck said...

Don’t recall ever noticing the stumps at the entrance to Frontierland before. More if those amazing details that helped bring the place to life.

Nanook said...

The shot(s) from the Treehouse are pretty swell - but are actually flopped.

Those white rocks-? next to the stumps almost appear as giant sea shells. Yes, the barrenness of that shot is pretty jarring.

A wonderful series of images. Thank you, Dave.

Daveland said...

Nanook - THAT is embarrassing - I should have noticed that one! Especially with the words “Mineral Hall”! All fixed now. Thanks for catching that.

"Lou and Sue" said...

Now, the El Dorado Hotel is flopped...

Great pictures! Thanks, Dave!

Daveland said...

Hi Sue - You just need to hit refresh/clear your web browser; it was fixed already.

"Lou and Sue" said...

Thank you, Dave - that did the trick!