Main Street Model Monday, Part 2

Faithful readers knew that at some point I’d get around to part 2, and here we go! This recently listed vintage image from ebay shows the model that was created for Disneyland’s Main Street, U.S.A. If you look closely at the original model, you can see that the original intention was to call the store below Crystal Palace. At some point before opening it was changed to Crystal Arcade.



The model also shows the building below as being a Sporting Goods Store; Coke stepped in at the right time with a sponsorship and won this coveted location…



where it still resides today. Could the Crystal Palace and Candy Palace co-existed peacefully on the same street? I guess we’ll never know.



Eagle-eyed readers will see the concept art for Storybook Land on the back wall…



and Peter Pan’s Flight…



and the Jungle Cruise.



See more Disneyland Main Street photos at my main website.

Mary Blair Monday, September 1976

Today I present three consecutively shot images of the Disneyland Tomorrowland Corridor of Murals, designed by Mary Blair. Shot in September 1976, our vintage photographer must have really been taken with these. Installed when Tomorrowland was re-imagined and re-christened in 1967, they definitely bring to mind Blair’s nearby attraction, it’s a small world.



The first two images show the north mural (on the CircleVision 360 attraction). While the dancing children in Tomorrowland may seem a bit out of context, the satellites at the top representing global communication kind of fit.



And who wouldn’t want to see children from all over getting along in the future?



Below is the south mural, installed on the Adventure thru Inner Space attraction.



The sun portion is truly representative of some of the temperatures lately!



There are conflicting stories about the status of these murals. Glass half full reports say that the murals are intact underneath the current c&*p that was placed on top. Glass half empty photos show that during the installation of the current c&*p large portions of Blair’s art was either removed or drilled through to make way for its uninspired replacement. I believe you can still see Blair’s Grand Canyon Concourse Mural in the Walt Disney World Contemporary Hotel, as shown in my photos from January 2010:



Not only did Blair’s designs include bold colors and shapes, the tiles were…well, tactile. In the detail image below you can see the textures within the design themselves.



If you prefer Blair’s two dimensional art, here’s a concept art piece she did for Disney’s “Cinderella” (1950:



See more Mary Blair Disneyland/WDW photos at my main website.

Hollywoodland: What Happened?

Back in 1990, The Walt Disney Company released this image titled "Hooray for…Disneyland." The accompanying publicity blurb heralded:

The most ambitious Disneyland project in the upcoming "Disney Decade" will be the addition of "Hollywoodland" to the Anaheim theme Park. The new land, inspired by the success of the Disney-MGM Studios in Florida, will include a fantasy version of Hollywood Boulevard, Disneyland's own version of Florida's "Great Movie Ride," Roger Rabbit's Toontown, and "The Adventures of Baby Herman."

Zooming into the art you can see Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, and Edgar Kennedy:



a direct copy of this vintage publicity still:



So what happened to Hollywoodland? Looks like it bit the dust when the idea for Westcot came to be. What's Westcot? It was to be the west coast version of EPCOT. It also bit the dust. Instead, in 1993 Disneyland got Toon Town (without a Baby Herman attraction) and in 2001, Disney California Adventure debuted giving us...Hollywood Pictures Backlot. Just like a backlot, there was absolutely nothing behind the facades.

More DCA photos at my main website.

The Walt Disney Family Museum, Pt. 2

Today's post takes you over to the main building of the Walt Disney Family Museum. Many (including myself) raised a big question mark when the Museum's location was announced as San Francisco, but after seeing it in person, I cannot imagine a more lovely setting. With a view of the Golden Gate Bridge and a long front porch with plenty of seating, the building is extremely warm and inviting.

One of the first things you see inside is a section with furnishings from Walt's Disneyland Apartment.



Many of these original pieces can be seen in the famous photo from National Geographic:



According to the accompanying text from daughter Diane: "Dad and Mother spent many weekends in the apartment, often with some of their grandchildren. They decorated it in the Victorian style they both knew and loved."





I was most astounded by the abundance of things to see here; and not once did I feel like the museum was "padded" to fill up space. Every item on display was a revelation, rich in the history of Walt Disney. Here is his Certificate of Baptism:



An original signed cartoon by Walt himself:



A shot of young Walt using his camera to make a movie:



Lo and behold, the camera itself:



Throughout the museum, Walt's actual voice told much of his story by piecing together vintage interviews. This treasured piece of paper was Walt and Lillian's Certificate of Marriage. What I loved most about the museum was that it successfully intertwined Walt's personal life with his professional achievements, thus fleshing out a real person.



A cleanup animation drawing by Dick Huemer for the Silly Symphony "The Goddess of Spring" (1934):



A menu from the Studio Restaurant:



Note that in the steaks/chops section, the time it takes to cook some of the items is listed. Perhaps to help those on the time clock make a better decision?



A few items from "Pinocchio":





A reproduction of an Animator's Desk, based on the design by Kem Weber for the Burbank Studio.



The multiplane camera that gave so much depth to early Disney animation:



A few photos of Walt with Salvador Dali:



Concept art for "Night on Bald Mountain, Fantasia" (1940) by Kay Nielsen. So much of this concept art could stand on its own in a gallery. It is breathtaking, and often even more powerful than what reached the screen.



There was even a section on the infamous strike at the Disney Studio. In the accompanying text came this quote from concept artist Joe Grant: "I think Walt was a fair man; he would have done most of the stuff they were fighting for, but they didn't give him a chance."



A gorgeous watercolor by Mary Blair:



Her concept art for "Cinderella" (1950):



and "Peter Pan" (1953):



Even Disney's artists did their part to keep the servicemen's "morale" up:



David Hall's 1939 concept art when "Alice in Wonderland" was in its earliest stage of development. Just a tad bit freaky!



Tomorrow: Disneyland!

See more Walt Disney Family Museum photos on my WD Family Museum web pages.

Tomorrowland on paper

You want more concept art for Tomorrowland? Well readers...here it is, beginning with an “overhead shot” of what Tomorrowland was supposed to look like on day one. The ornate water fountain at the entrance was scrapped in the rush to just get this land open on time.

In image #2, looks like the PeopleMover and the Monorail spliced together in one groovy hanging vehicular transportation system:



As was pointed out yesterday, it appears that the Moonliner was originally to be on a platform, similar to what the Rocket Jets became during the “New Tomorrowland” renovation of 1967. See...if you just hold onto an idea long enough there’s a good chance it may come to fruition.



And finally, the interior of the Rocket to the Moon attraction; pretty durn close to the final concept, as can be seen by the photo comparison posted here:







And although there are some inaccuracies, just for the heck of it, I will give you three shots of the Opening Day Model that resided inside of the Opera House for a number of years:







See more Disneyland Tomorrowland photos at my website.