Paramount on Location, Pt. 3

Before Walt Disney released his animated version in 1951, Paramount filmed a mostly live-action version of “Alice in Wonderland” back in 1933. It’s just as odd as Lewis Carroll’s literary classic from which it was adapted and proved to be a box office failure. Charlotte Henry was cast as the cute but somewhat bland heroine, Alice, who daydreams her way through a series of adventures in Wonderland. As you can see by the still below, Cary Grant played the Mock Turtle.



Hopefully you caught the sarcasm. It’s true - the star was completely covered in costume from head to toe, as was comedian W.C. Fields who portrayed Humpty Dumpty. While their voices were fairly recognizable, the actors were not. MGM was very careful in making sure that the faces of the actors in “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) were not hidden by their makeup and costumes.



Here’s a set still of the room where Alice has her daydream, which leads into her adventure:



The accompanying scene, where Alice wishes she could see what’s on the other side of the mirror.



A set still of one of the fantastic doors Alice goes through in Wonderland. The set design for this film was extremely creative, doing a great job of capturing the surreal world that Alice visits. 



The dining room table for the grand banquet scene:



A frame from the film, with Edna May Oliver on the right as the Red Queen. At least you could see her face!



Note the “Queen Alice” on the chair:



A second shot of the table:



When stitched together, you get a view of the entire room:



Last year, I went to a service for a family member at Holy Cross Cemetery in San Diego. In researching who else was buried there, I learned that actress Charlotte Henry had her final resting place outdoors on the hill.



I had to go back to take a second photo, as a friend pointed out that the plot I had captured was actually that of her mother. Charlotte was buried under her married name, Dempsey, right next to Mama.



More on Holy Cross in a future post! See more Paramount set still photos at my main website.

Disneyland Magic Kingdom Club Day, June 2, 1968

Begun in 1957, The Magic Kingdom Club was an early Annual Passport program that offered memberships to companies and their employees for free, giving them discounts and other perks. Today’s post centers around a little ginger girl who was “kissed by angels” as the saying goes. Her visit was on Magic Kingdom Club Day, June 2, 1968. Below, she poses with Alice in Wonderland in Town Square; the Mad Hatter photobombs them in the background:



Lisa Allison is the Special Guest (could they have made that paper any bigger?!?):



Here she enjoys a snack in Fantasyland with who I assume is her mother.



A hot dog was the snack of choice.



Elsewhere in the Park (Tomorrowland), The Devlin family was also enjoying Magic Kingdom Club perks on the exact same day:



I wonder if they crossed paths?

See more Disneyland Magic Kingdom Club photos at my main website.

Disneyland Tour, July 1958: Part 4

The Sleeping Beauty Castle is our portal into Fantasyland, as we continue the July 1958(ish!) tour of Disneyland.



Dressed like a guidebook salesman, it also looks like this gent could be promoting the souvenir photos that guests could have shot of themselves at the Kodak shop.



Note the banner promos for the new Alice attraction and the lack of the crest on the Castle. Just a plain old slab!



Two more sequential shots in the July 1958 set.



Need anything from Gepetto’s Work Shop?



The King Arthur Carrousel is waiting just on the other side of the Castle. Moved during the 1983 renovation, initially this was the attraction guests first saw when they entered Fantasyland.



Only 10¢!



A favorite shot from my collection with 2/3 of the famous Little Pig trio. The other one was probably busy building a sturdy home out of brick.



This Viewmaster slide image shows the Fantasyland star of 1958 herself, Alice in Wonderland:



More Fantasyland to come!

See more Disneyland Sleeping Beauty Castle photos at my website.

Alice, circa 1958

This overhead shot of the exterior of the Alice in Wonderland attraction at Disneyland was taken in August 1958.



Zooming in you can see that the cast members were dressed in Alice costumes. Surprisingly, Walt didn’t make them wear blonde wigs to complete the look. These are probably some of my very favorite attraction vehicles at the Park.



It’s amazing to see that they really haven’t changed at all over the years.



See more Disneyland Alice in Wonderland attraction photos at my main website.

Alice in Fantasyland September 1964

This September 1964 image shows The Mad Hatter, The White Rabbit, and Alice in Wonderland interacting with a few guests in Fantasyland. The oval netting in the band of the Mad Hatter’s hat is so that the cast member inside the costume can see out.



While we’re in Fantasyland, how about a 1956 shot of the Mad Tea Party? Fantasyland looks so different with its original façades meant to resemble medieval traveling tournament tents.



See more Disneyland Fantasyland photos at my main website.

Steve Allen in Fantasyland

Steve and his family welcome you to Fantasyland from the drawbridge of the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland, circa December 1957.



Here the family enjoys the Mad Tea Party attraction which was once located where the Carrousel currently is.





Donna Reed and Steve figure out where to go next.



Looks like it's Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Nice glimpse of the original queue mural.



See more vintage and current Disneyland Fantasyland photos at my main website.

Town Square Thursday

Being able to scan negatives is so much better than a print. The details that are available in a negative are crazy amazing. These images come from a 1958 batch that I recently acquired. This first one looks like it came out of a fashion magazine; how about that hat? Image two shows the Omnibus parked in front of the Main Street Train Station.



How about a detailed view? The recently opened Grand Canyon Diorama is featured on the Omnibus' banner:



This alternate angle looks like it was shot from the platform of the train.



The Alice in Wonderland attraction is featured on the opposite side of the Omnibus:



The last one for today shows the Horse-Drawn Streetcar and one of those amazingly vintage hitching posts.



More vintage and current Disneyland Town Square photos at my main website.

Inside the Fantasyland Theatre

Before Pinocchio's Daring Journey joined the dark rides of Fantasyland, that space was occupied by the Fantasyland Theater. Wonder what it looked like inside? Let's follow Alice in Wonderland who was gracious enough to take these two little gals inside one day back in July 1963.

Here's a rare interior view of the theater with Papotin's Revue in progress.



Let's zoom into what the spotlight is focused on:



This shot is even more rare considering the show only ran a few months in 1963. Direct from Paris...Andre Tahon & Papotin's Revue. A delightful musical fantasy starring the incomparable puppet-master, Andre Tahon. A show that will appeal to the young at heart of all ages.

And it only required 1 "E" coupon.

More vintage and current Fantasyland photos at my main website.