Temple Tuesday: Shirley and Santa

Back in the day, famous stars like Shirley Temple had to do their share of holiday publicity shots. This darling photo from 1934 (before the Twentieth Century as added to Fox!), little Shirley sleeps through Santa’s visit. The stylist for this photo was on point; notice the clock has been set to midnight.



While I was overwhelmed in trying to find out info about the Nativity painting hanging over the mantel, I was able to find the Popeye toy in the stocking on ebay; it’s a J. Chein Popeye Boxing Punching Bag Wind-up Toy. J. Chein & Company was an American toy manufacturer from 1903 through the 1980s, best remembered for their mechanical toys made from stamped and lithographed tin produced from the 1930s—1950s. If you’d like one of these for yourself, there’s currently one on ebay for the bargain price of $1,495!



Couldn’t match the paper doll book either. Am guessing it was one of the many that Saalfield publishers printed.



By 1937, Shirley was old enough to be awake at midnight. Wait! The clock says two-thirty; who was in charge of styling this photo?!? I am surprised that no Shirley dolls are in sight under the tree; I guess 20th Century-Fox was not interested in promoting the Ideal Toy Company.



Shirley’s last Christmas shoot at Fox was in 1939; Santa was relegated to a silhouette, and Shirley was sound asleep!



If you celebrate, I hope you have a very Merry Christmas!

See more holiday Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

Chateau Christmas

The Lafayette Hotel in San Diego isn’t the only Daveland favorite place to get decked out for the holidays; the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood has tastefully put the red and green into their hallowed halls. When you enter this legendary landmark, you are greeted by poinsettias and wreaths.



Best looking poinsettias I have seen this season!



The entryway elevators just need a touch of mistletoe to complete the picture!



“Live” garland has been strewn around the stairwell rails. This must be hell to clean up!



The lobby desk:



In the lobby display, green surrounds the art and merchandise that will cost you some green to acquire:



In the bar/dining room area, more greenery:



The Christmas tree in the lobby restaurant which is my favorite place in the entire hotel:



The pool had its share of wreaths and poinsettias, too:



I dare you to find some that look better than these:



For brunch after my swim, the fluffy pancakes (which are truly fluffy, not just marketing speak) were accompanied by Meyer lemon butter. Off the charts sensational (note the famous Chateau bacon surrounding the plate).



See more Chateau Marmont photos at my main website.

Frontierland Friday: Cascade Peak

When Disneyland first opened, the banks of the Rivers of America were positively barren. Dirt on both sides did not make for very interesting views. Tom Sawyer Island was a welcome addition on the left side; on the right, as you can see, there was nothing but a bank of dirt next to the Mark Twain dock. In the Spring of 1960, that would all change.



The following undated photos below show the initial construction for Cascade Peak (aka Three Sisters Falls), a 75' tall addition to the Park that was built to coincide with the nearby Nature’s Wonderland attraction upgrade.



The overhang you see in the detail shot below was built for the Nature’s Wonderland Mine Train to be able to pass through underneath the Peak’s thunderous waterfall.



This recently acquired undated image also shows the construction of the new “mountain.”





By October 1960, Cascade Peak had been entertaining guests for months.



The water added movement to the Park and much needed aeration to the river!



A November 1960 shot of the Mine Train about to enter the short tunnel underneath the falls:



The structure that formed Cascade Peak and its waterfalls was demolished in 1998 after it was found to be suffering structurally from the decades of water that flowed over it. This was during the era of cheap, when Paul Pressler was the President of Disneyland. Deferred maintenance contributed to the demise of this beautiful structure, while the cost-slashing of Pressler was the final death knell. The shot below is from 1994, just four years before the peak was removed.



This April 2012 shows the empty bank. With the growth of the trees in this section of the Park, the 75' peak would have been difficult to view anymore. 



See more Disneyland Cascade Peak photos at my main website.

Christmas at the Lafayette

At Thanksgiving, I saw the Lafayette install a sleigh and reindeer on top of their sign out front of the Hotel. I incorrectly assumed that they were doing a token nod to Christmas.



I couldn’t have been more wrong. Going back for an early breakfast at Beginner’s Diner this weekend, it appeared as if I was at the North Pole! This incredible gingerbread house (patterned after the historic hotel itself) sits inside the entrance:



The lobby was adorned with ornaments and garland. Too much? Well, it is the Lafayette, and their theme does appear to be “more is more.” It works.



This empty little area that sits to the side of the lobby is normally empty and a bit sad looking, devoid of purpose.



Now, it appears to be the perfect place for a visit to Santa; or maybe just a Christmas selfie. I didn’t see any signage about appearances by Mr. Claus.



On the right side of this nook are a variety of vintage Christmas albums; do you see any that you recognize from days gone by?



Another selfie opportunity awaits in the courtyard outside the Gutter bowling alley and bar:



Inside the trophy case sits Santa; do you see your name? Looks like Steve has nothing but coal in his future.



The lobby bar has trees, too…HANGING FROM THE CEILING!



Garland has been strewn across the Olympic-sized Johnny Weissmuller pool:



There are nods to the Jewish faith as well, near the pool:



…and on the lobby mantel:



If you’re in the San Diego area over the holidays, be sure to stop by the Lafayette!

See more Lafayette Hotel and Club photos at my main website.

85 Years Ago In Atlanta…

Today marks the 85th anniversary of the Atlanta premiere of “Gone with the Wind,” produced by David O. Selznick. Starring Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O’Hara and Clark Gable as Rhett Butler, it is a tale of survival, growth, and loss, filmed in glorious Technicolor. The art shown above and below are by Wilbur Kurtz and were used in the trailer for the film.



Below is a 1939 storyboard of Tara, Scarlett O’Hara’s home, by Dorothea Holt & Mac Johnson which I was able to see at the Margaret Mitchell Museum in Atlanta:



The production team faithfully recreated the art for the movie, as seen by these shots from the opening scenes of the film:



Leigh with Thomas Mitchell, who played her blustering land-loving father, Gerald O’Hara:



Storyboard art for the Atlanta Bazaar sequence, where Scarlett scandalously broke with the conventions of widowhood by dancing with Rhett Butler.



When Scarlett flirts with Rhett saying that she is dancing her reputation away, he replies: “With enough courage, you can do without a reputation.”



At the Atlanta History Center, a photo of the premiere accompanies a first edition of the book, with dust jacket cover art by George Carlson. Author Margaret Mitchell felt that the cover should convey a “Southern sensibility”; Carlson was from New England his mother had once served as a housekeeper for northern Civil War General Ulysses S. Grant. Oops.



In the film’s dramatic final shot, we see Scarlett silhouetted against a burning sunset sky:



Here’s what her costume looked like:



See more “Gone with the Wind” photos at my main website.