More Janet Leigh and kids at Disneyland, 1962

Today I am sharing a few new additions to my Janet Leigh at Disneyland circa 1962 collection. Poor little Jamie Lee appears to be suspicious of the little boy in the foreground. Janet is not really paying attention to the storm brewing.



Will a smooch from mom help?



My eye instead went directly to the cool hat this young gent is wearing:



He can be seen in all his retro glory in this shot, too:



…and this one:



Check out the ticket book and camera clutched in his left hand:



Is it time to go home yet? Jamie looks like she could be ready.



A lovely portrait of Janet and Jamie, with Kelly in the foreground:



The negatives obviously have no date/time stamp, but I would guess that by the time Janet and the girls took a ride on Nature’s Wonderland, judging by the look on her face, mama needed a cig.



Yup…let’s get those kids on the Monorail and take them back to the hotel!



See more Janet Leigh at Disneyland photos at my main website.

Melinda Goes To Disneyland, Pt. 4!

It’s the Grand Finale today for Melinda’s 1980 25th Anniversary Trip to Disneyland! Our first image shows the Skyway buckets, floating towards the Matterhorn on the Tomorrowland side. By this stage of the game, the buckets had already changed from the round shape to a square design. In case you wonder what the OTHER side of the Matterhorn looked like, here’s a December 1980 image from my collection: 



Zooming in for a detailed look…



…made me notice the trio of Farrah hairdos in bucket #49!



This detailed shot shows the Grand Hotel, which once stood at  7 West Freedman Way. Considered a first class, high-rise hotel just across the street from Disneyland, it contained  242 guest rooms. Each room had balconies and coffee makers. Now it’s a part of Anaheim history, having been torn down and replaced by the Pumbaa Parking Lot.



Melinda has these memories of where her family stayed during their trip:

My mom doesn’t remember where we stayed while in the area, it certainly wouldn't have been at the Disneyland Hotel as we didn't have a lot of money. I have a picture of us sitting outside a place with German timber and plaster styling and a barrel sign hanging from the roofline, but I can't make out what it says.



The next two images from Melinda show some wonderful views of Tomorrowland, including the Monorail and the Peoplemover. From Melinda:

The Monorail made a big impression on me, how smooth and quiet it was and I loved the view from up high of everything. I still love riding the monorail at Disney World — it’s not a trip to Disney without a ride on the Monorail! 



Melinda and her sister didn’t get to ride the Subs; they were still under refurbishment:



Three images from the Bill H. collection show the refurbishment:







Melinda also recalls Space Mountain:

I remember pretty vividly chickening out of riding Space Mountain. I literally turned around halfway through the line and walked back out to wait for my parents on a bench somewhere outside by myself. I had ridden other coasters with no problem, but the dark and spacey music and screams from riders were probably just too much at the end of the day. My sister would have been too small to ride it, but I don't remember if she was waiting outside somewhere and I sat with her or she was with my parents and they did some sort of kid exchange. If the latter had been the case, I imagine I would have stayed with them instead of leaving the line. My mom said my sister was trustworthy enough even at 5 to be told to sit on a bench and wait there. I know, it was definitely a different time back then than it is today! 

Here’s a vintage shot from Bill H. showing Space Mountain under construction in 1976:



The Main Street Electrical Parade is another favorite memory that I don't have any of my own photos of. We saw MSEP at Disney World too in 1985 and I would love to see it again now that it is back.

Here are two 1980 shots to go along with Melinda’s memories:





SOOOO many thanks to Melinda for sharing these photos AND her memories of this treasured family trip. 

See more Disneyland photos at my main website.

When Tomorrowland Had A Tomorrow

Remember when Disneyland’s Tomorrowland actually was about “tomorrow”? I know, it’s been a long time. These images from August 1970 are a reminder to those futuristic times. The PeopleMover was Walt’s idea of how to solve the congestion/transportation problems that existed in cities.



All of these images were shot from the Skyway and give a great overview of Tomorrowland. This was also the time period that the Astro Jets/Astro Orbiter sat high above the PeopleMover station and gave an even more thrilling spin to guests.



Nothing says “tomorrow” like the Rolly Crump designed stage below:



This one from February 1971 shows Lou Styles playing in Tomorrowland on the Rolly Crump designed stage:





Back to 1970…look at the little boy craning his head out of the Monorail. Yes…once it was possible to be excited about the future. Rocket to the Moon…PeopleMover…Carousel of Progress…wow!!



I’m sure it boils down to profits and money, but I still can’t understand why a corporation as large and as influential as Disney can’t partner with NASA or other innovative organizations to drum some life into Tomorrowland show that innovation (not Innovention!) is still alive and well.

See more Disneyland Tomorrowland photos at my main website.

Disneyland Hotel Monorail, July 1963

I’m a sucker for those alternate angles. Yes, I have photos of the Monorail as well as the station located at the Disneyland Hotel, but this particular angle...nope. Didn’t have it. For what a jaunt it is now to get to the Disneyland Hotel at its present location, it’s hard to believe it was ever so close. This image taken from the parking lot shows a cast member assisting guests into the Monorail:

It also appears that the major airlines had offices at the hotel, too. Makes sense! Apparently American had the preferential treatment with a location in the lobby.

See more Disneyland Monorail photos at my main website.

Welcome (Back) to Disneyland

Welcome (back) to Disneyland! Back in 1976, guests saw quite a different entrance. At that time, the U.S. was swept away with Bicentennial fever, as the country had its 200th birthday. Disneyland contributed to the celebration with “America on Parade.” I had to zoom in for a closer look at Monorail red!

This particular parade never did much for me. While it was great that the Disney celebration showed their patriotism, the parade (and its scary characters) just seemed out of place.

Whoever had this character as a nanny is probably still scarred today.

To help take the edge of those gigantic figures, how about two less scary shots from the same decade? These two ladies look thrilled to be at the Park:

Where did the attraction posters go? Based on the photos in my collection, it seems like they were taken down around 1968. It looks positively bare!

How many of you have ventured back to Disneyland? Would love to hear how the experience has been for you.

See more vintage Disneyland entrance photos at my main website.

Disneyland Monorail Red, July 1965

In this July 1965 image, you get the Disneyland Monorail, the Disneyland Hotel sign (which looks somewhat similar to the one that was on Harbor Boulevard), AND the Disneyland Hotel. Unfortunately, zooming in the sign is too blurry to read.

Don’t worry about it; in my collection I have a 1966 image that shows the Hotel sign:

Here’s the one that was on Harbor Boulevard, circa July 1965:

This view of the Park entrance was taken from the Monorail, July 1965:

Hope you all enjoy the weekend!

See more Disneyland Monorail photos at my main website.

Bubble Crazy

Call me crazy, but I do love that bubble at the top of the old Monorail! This September 1962 is a postcard-perfect view of it, along with the Matterhorn and the Skyway overhead.

BTW: I'm also crazy about the original round buckets, too.

I have to give equal time to Monorail Red’s bubble; this one is also from the 1960’s: 

The bubble was only located on one side of the Monorail, even though they traveled both ways, as you can see from this 1960’s image shot from the parking lot.

See more Disneyland Monorail photos at my main website.