Disneyland, July 18, 1955

Disneyland Opening Day is typically celebrated on July 17, 1955. While it is true that the Park was open on that day, that was more akin to a soft opening. The actual date where Walt Disney’s innovative theme park wasn’t open to the general public until the following day, July 18. Below is a guest taken shot showing the Sleeping Beauty Castle drawbridge being lowered for guests the second time.





See the guests excitedly “storming the castle”:



A closeup of the still-blank plate for the Disney family crest:



With crest, as seen in this March 1968 image:



Back to 7/18/55 and the recently lowered drawbridge. Note the distinctive salmon colored roof in the background:



Originally, this bandstand was located just off of Central Plaza. It was too big for Town Square (it blocked the view of the Castle) so this is where it landed first:





The Mad Tea Party teacups were a popular attraction from the beginning; the Mickey Mouse Club Theater in the background was replaced by the Pinocchio dark ride in 1983:



The Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship restaurant was not ready for business just yet:



If you look closely, you can see that the windows and other details are not yet complete:



This photo from the collection of Michael Black was also taken on July 18, when scaffolding and work was taken place in plain view of guests:



The Dumbo attraction still had flapping ears at this point; they are now molded in one-piece; much easier to maintain! Note the plywood sitting in this particular Dumbo seat:



The Jungle Cruise attraction:



The Mark Twain was filled with guests, as these were pre-Columbia days. Behind the boat is the Chicken Plantation restaurant:



An unobstructed view of the restaurant:



Next to the Golden Horseshe Saloon was a row of dining establishments, including The Oaks Tavern, Casa de Fritos, and Aunt Jemima’s Pancake House:
 


Tomorrowland got the shaft for Opening Day; there simply just wasn’t enough time to get everything completed in time. An easy fix was to have the 20k League Show, which recycled some of the set pieces from the 1954 Disney classic live-action film:





Were any of you there on that magical day?

See more Disneyland Opening Day photos at my main website.

Disneyland Opening Day Celebration!

On the anniversary of Disneyland’s Opening Day (July 17, 1955), I will post an assortment of shots from one of my favorite attractions: the Disneyland Railroad. The above Genuine FauxD© shot shows the time lapse tower from Opening Day as well as an assortment of highly collectible (at least today they are) vintage cars! Walt Disney’s oft told quote made before the Park was completed was this:

I just want it to look like nothing else in the world, and it should be surrounded by a train.



This 1956 image captures the joy of Disneyland. The E.P. Ripley is waiting at the Main Street, U.S.A. Train Station and in front, the little boy is proudly displaying his souvenir for the day, a pennant with Tinkerbell!



I was one of those Park nerds who would arrive WAAAAAAAY before opening, just to see the train pull up, see the smoke, and hear the whistle toot, letting guests know of its impending Grand Circle Tour around the Park. I would do my best to hustle through the turnstiles to board that first train and at least take it as far as the Frontierland/New Orleans Depot. Below is another 1956 gem:



See any hats or souvenirs you’d be interested in purchasing from The Disneyland News stand?



An undated 1950’s Genuine FauxD© shot of the Main Street Station:



A closeup of the Colorado Rockies passenger car, complete with summer bunting:



While on the topic of Walt quotes, according to Ward Kimball, Walt made this statement about the design/comfort of the cattle cars that were part of the original Disneyland Railroad fleet:

I want all the people inside those cars to feel the way the cows feel, looking out through the slats on a real cattle train!



Mission accomplished! These passengers look more like prisoners than Park guests in this 1956 shot:



A contemporary view from July 2008:



While I can’t say for sure when my next visit to the Park will be, I can guarantee you that this is the first thing I will be looking for upon arrival!



See more Disneyland Railroad photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Grandfather Goes to Disneyland

What Shirley Temple fan doesn’t love the classic 1937 “Heidi”? The relationship between Heidi and The Grandfather is key to the charm of the movie. Actor Jean Hersholt is wonderful as the gruff and bitter hermit who gets thawed out by his charming granddaughter (Shirley) who comes to live with him. With the unkempt white hair and long beard, Hersholt could have had a side gig at Macy’s as Santa Claus.

Born in Copenhagen in 1886, Hersholt was also known as a humanitarian. In 1938, he became president of the Motion Picture Relief Fund, which helped provide medical care for industry employees suffering from hard times. The fund also resulted in the Motion Picture Country House and Hospital. From 1945-1949, Hersholt served as President to the Academy, who honored him shortly after his 1956 death by establishing the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, an honorary Oscar given to an “individual in the motion picture industry whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry.” Winners have included Danny Kaye, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, Harry Belafonte, and Debbie Reynolds.

Looking a little different without the beard, Jean attended the Opening Day festivities at Disneyland on July 17, 1955. He is pictured here at the Main Street Train Station:



In this Nat Dallinger photo, the caption reads:

JEAN HERSHOLT points out thing of interest to his 3-year-old grandson, Greg, at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. Hersholt was one of the many screen personalities attending the preview of America’s newest wonderland.

How do I know the location of the photo? Do you really need to ask? Here’s another shot from my collection taken the same day with Art Linkletter. You can match up the columns, just like I did!



Based on what I found through good old Google, it would appear that Gregg’s father, Greg, became a radio broadcaster in 1973, working at KIRO FM in Seattle from 1984-2010. He was the son of Jean and his wife, Via. Hersholt was also the paternal half-uncle of actor Leslie “Naked Gun” Nielsen. Final image for today shows Jean being escorted out of the Park for unruly behavior:



Just kidding. Of course it’s another still from “Heidi.”

See more Disneyland Opening Day photos at my main website.

Opening Day at Disneyland, July 17, 1955

These 2 kids, Michael Schwartner and Christine Vess Watkins, seem to have no idea how cool it was to be the first children through the turnstiles on opening day...and to be greeted by none other than Walt himself! Note the Smoke Tree Ranch tie that he is wearing.

In shot #2 you have a birds-eye view of the opening ceremonies held in Town Square. I have also included a closeup of the area where Walt and the others were standing.





This photo gives you a much better look at Walt & Co.; Mrs. Goodwin J. Knight and her husband, the Governor of California, are on the left. I am sure somebody out there can identify the guy standing next to Walt.



My previously posted color shot of the ceremonies and a closeup of Walt (blocked by a lamppost) and others:





Walt, sans tie, is giving his famous opening day speech:



See more Disneyland Opening Day photos at my website.

1000th Post: Opening Day Parade, Pt. 3

It’s official; today is my 1000th post...really hard to believe. To start us off, we’ll follow the Mouseketeers in the Opening Day Parade as they travel from Town Square down Main Street U.S.A. Kinda’ like the Wizard of Oz, watch ’em go from black and white to color.







Next up are some Frontierland images, including Fess Parker & Buddy Ebsen as Davy Crockett & his sidekick, George Russel.











For my last image from the July 17, 1955 Opening Day Parade, you can see TV & Film Star Don DeFore (wearing the white blazer) driving an Autopia car down Main Street:







Many thanks to all you readers out there, especially the ones who have left great comments and helped educate me on some of the finer points of Disneyland History. On another celebratory note, “Zorro” starring Guy Williams, is finally going to be released on DVD in glorious black and white.







See more Disneyland photos at my website.

Opening Day Parade, Pt. 2

Today features photos from the Fantasyland portion of the Opening Day Parade, as witnessed by the banner in shot #1, following the vintage autos down Main Street U.S.A.

Cinderella’s Coach is front and center in shot #2. Who says pumpkins can’t go on to another life? Look at those little kids hanging onto the windows at Upjohn. They could never get away with those shenanigans today!



Some random and scarily costumed Disney classic animated characters in this one: Pinocchio, Chip & Dale, the Mad Hatter, Alice, Dumbo, The March Hare, and Donald Duck.



Snow White is just entering the frame, surrounded by her dwarves. Not sure where the design for this costume came from, as it looks nothing like the Disney Snow that we are accustomed to.



Last but not least, Scary Minnie & Minnie accompany Peter Pan and friends, skipping down Main Street.



From yesterday’s post where I questioned the kiosk-looking things at the Upjohn Pharmacy, Boxcar Mike emailed with a little history:

“When the park was built, these were not kiosks but rather oversized display windows; very similar to the "bay" windows that we see in many homes today. The Upjohn Company used them to display their items. Also back then, there were two planters for some type of decorative plantings located below these windows. This was what the guest was standing on. I have another picture that somebody sent me of this same area taken from another angle and in it you can see the planters as well as the windows, complete with the guest standing on the planter. The planters were an early removal as guests used them for trash cans, and they were a tripping hazard. The windows remain but they are much smaller today.”

Thanks for the info, Mike - much appreciated. Here is a semi-current photo of these windows:



See more Disneyland Opening Day photos at my website.