1950s Visit to MGM

This genuine FauxD© image shows two lovely lasses on the MGM lot, posed perfectly in front of the Thalberg Building. Stitching the left and right sides together gives us a wider view:



Zooming in, you can see the MGM lettering and Thalberg name on the right:



By the time I visited in 2018, MGM was gone and Columbia Pictures/Sony had moved in.



A rainbow was installed in the courtyard to acknowledge the filming of “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) on this very lot.



The building still looks like MGM in all its art deco glory…



but it now bears the name of Columbia.



I should be grateful that they kept the light fixtures in front. And I am.



Surprisingly, they also kept the Thalberg name, visible on the nameplate at right:



Thalberg, Vice President of Production, was known as the “Boy Genius” of the lot. Studio head Louis B. Mayer liked glamour; Thalberg preferred more cerebral material for his films. Inside the Thalberg, his portait is on display.



The Oscars on display are all for Columbia films.



Back in 1941, Shirley Temple joined the MGM stable of stars. She was welcomed to the lot by Gable, Rooney, and Garland. What a powerhouse quartet! Here they are in front of the Thalberg building.



See more MGM studio photos at my main website.

Disneyland Transportation Cutbacks: The Keel Boats

One last part to my Disneyland Transportation Cutbacks series; how could I leave out the Keel Boats? Appearing on the Rivers of America, the 38' Bertha Mae and Gullywhumper Keel Boats were based on two episodes of the Davy Crockett miniseries from the 1955 Disneyland TV show: "Davy Crockett's Keel Boat Race" (November 16, 1955) and "Davy Crockett and the River Pirates" (December 14, 1955). The attraction was named after Mike Fink, the "King of the River" who lost the keel boat race. Once again, Walt showed his genius in reusing items already available to him by putting the props from the show into the Park. Over in Tomorrowland, it was the 20K Under the Seas exhibit. But I digress…below are Fess Parker and Buddy Ebsen, who appeared in the Davy Crockett episodes as Davy and George “Georgie” Russell:



It would appear that the show also featured a third boat, the Monogahela Belle:



A close-up with Ebsen and Parker:



Some of my earliest shots of the Keel Boats at the Park are from August 1956, both featuring the Bertha Mae:





This October 1956 shows the Gullywhumper, which was much plainer in the decor department:



March 1957:



A June 1957 overhead shot taken from the Mark Twain (or the Columbia!) showing the Bertha Mae docked in Fowler’s Harbor:



This August 1958 image shows a Mike Fink popgun that was found on the deck of the Gullywhumper:



Undated 1950s:



LOVE those early Disneyland Paper Hats!



June 1965:



Some marvelous hairdos and glasses:



June 1967:



From July 17, 1977, the most recent shot in my collection of a Keel Boat still in action:



The Bertha Mae was removed in May 1997 after it capsized; shortly after that the entire attraction was 86'ed. The Bertha Mae was auctioned off on ebay for $15k and the Gullywhumper sat permanently docked in the Rivers of America. From December 2006:



May 2008:



By April 2010, the Gullywhumper got a bit of a reprieve. It was cleaned up, restored back to how it looked in the 1955 shows, and put in front of the former Burning Cabin, which was turned into Mike Fink’s home:



How it looked in May 2015:



Were they comfortable? Probably not. Did they have a high guest capacity? No. Did they add to the flavor and movement of Frontierland? DEFINITELY YES! Slowly but surely, the budget cuts have removed the energy and excitement of what Walt originally created.

See more Disneyland Keel Boat photos at my main website.

The Art of Banksy

Recently I checked out “The Art of Banksy” exhibit at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. Art and the Fairgrounds are two things I rarely associate with each other.



My history with the Fairgrounds is tied mainly to the racetrack. That’s me on the right, many moons ago.



While I am now aware that racing horses is not a popular viewpoint from the perspective of animal cruelty, I admit that back in the day I enjoyed watching many a thrilling race as the horses and jockeys ran neck-to-neck.



Back to Banksy…I knew very little about him before seeing the exhibit, and apparently he likes it that way. Photos of him are impossible to find, and his street art pops-up unexpectedly (temporarily and illegally). When I first entered, I thought, “Oh crap, I’m going to have to check in my camera.” Nope…the security area was part of the exhibit itself, having to do with Banksy’s Dismaland work.



Dismaland was a temporary art project in the seaside resort of Weston-super-Mare in Somerset, England. Like most of Banksy’s work, it was prepared in secret, and opened August 21, 2015, closing September 27, 2015. The artist described it as a “family theme park unsuitable for children.”

A map of the park took up a large wall of the exhibit:



T-shirt art:



This trio of work includes “Toxic Mary,” meant to be a social critique on the toxicity of religion as well as the relationship between mother and son.



Banksy would appear to have a very dark view of life, and loves to point out the evils of crass commercialism. The piece below, titled “Napalm” (2004), takes the famous horrific image of Kim Phúc from the Vietnam war in 1972 and sandwiches her between Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald, blissfully guiding her forward.



One of the more lighthearted pieces was part of the “Pulp Fiction” series where Banksy replaced guns with bananas.



I can’t disagree that Hollywood often leads the world into paranoia and other conspiracy delusions.



Besides prints, stencils, and sculptures, the exhibit had a number of rooms with video installations. This one was particularly cool.



While I found the exhibit to be a bit on the depressing side, Banksy is definitely brilliant, and his dark satires definitely make you think. I’m just not sure how many people at the Fairgrounds actually understood the messages. Another favorite of mine was “Love Is In The Air” (2003). War and love are mixed together in a very powerful image.



“Christ With Shopping Bags” (2004) shows Jesus weighed down by shopping bags, aka consumerism.



The message of “Trolley Hunters” (2007) is brilliant: it compares how our ancestors had to gather food vs. the modern day trials and tribulations of going to the grocery store. Hunted animals are replaced by trolleys, aka grocery carts. FYI: Banksy is British!



“Simon Cowell judges the Ballet” (2019) was one of the more amusing pieces. The idea of sticking the critical Cowell in the middle of a Degas painting is genius.



Towards the end of the exhibit is a large wall of various stencil/grafitti art colorfully lit:



While I appreciated the message of “There Is Always Hope” sprayed on the wall, it seemed at odds with the dark and depressing (albeit brilliant) showcase that was on display.



The exhibit was capped with a wall where people could put their own messages. Did the kids even understand a fraction of what they had seen? Did the parents? It would be interesting to hear what dialogue transpired after these families shared the art together.



Do I recommend it? Hell yes. It was a very well curated and installed exhibit. You can find more info at The Art of Banksy “Without Limits” website.
 
See more Del Mar Fairgrounds photos at my main website.