Happy 54th Anniversary, Tom Sawyer Island!

Hard to believe that the ol’ Island has survived this long. First up we see a vintage 1957 map showing all of the way-cool attractions available to guests on the Island. Keep in mind this was before all those pesky attorney-types had their way with things!



From opening day, we have Walt Disney posing with two children from Hannibal, Missouri, Chris Winkler and Perva Lou Smith portraying Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher. The trio is taking a raft over to the Island; in the background you can see the edge of the Chicken Plantation Restaurant.



“Chris and Perva Lou read a proclamation from the Governor of Missouri that officially annexed the Island to the state of Missouri. Following the ceremony the invited guests journeyed back across the river for a catfish luncheon at the Plantation House and the Island was declared open to the public.” (from the Disneyland News)



Glad to see you’re still around, TSI...even if Pirates have invaded your shores!

Meanwhile, back to present-day Disneyland: on Saturday, I did a quick stop at the park (as quick as I can be...I always get lulled into staying longer than I plan) to pick up some pins for one of my other Disneyland-geek friends. Taking the Monorail in, I got a few shots of the park from the open windows:





It’s been awhile since I took new pictures of one of my favorite quiet spots (there aren’t too many left anymore), so I wandered over to Snow White’s Wishing Well. I noticed that somewhere along the line, this area had been added to. Compare this shot from 2008 with the one from last weekend:





Dopey almost seems to be saying "Pull my finger!"



This could buy a few Premium Annual Passes!



Chris from Meet the World showed pics of the Sleeping Beauty Mural that has just gone inside the Castle gift shop, The Enchated Chamber; naturally, I had to check it out myself! These figures were part of the "Barbie & Ken" version of the Sleeping Beauty Diorama from the 1970’s.









Saturday, The Olszewski crew rolled out the prototype for their Fantasyland platform in front of Disneyana on Main Street. Nice to see that they are trying to appeal to us nostalgia nuts by including the Skyway and the possibility of The Chicken of the Sea Pirate Ship:







My last stop was the Disney Gallery now located in Town Square. Their current exhibit features some of the original concept art for the park as well as current art inspired by the classics.



Some of my faves included Eyvind Earle’s art for the original concept of the façade for the Snow White attraction:



As well as art for the entrance to the 20,000 Leagues Exhibit in Tomorrowland, artist unknown:



It’s great that the Disney Gallery team is labeling these pieces so that browsers can learn about what they are seeing. Some of the current art on display included this piece by one of my fave artists, Jimmy Pickering:



This one I shot for Connie; please, no tears!



Then it was up to LA, where I shot some photos for tomorrow’s post. See more Disneyland Tom Sawyer Island photos at my regular website.

Disneyland in Glorious B&W, 1955, Pt. 10 & Park Update

Although the Tahitian Terrace concept was still about 7 years away, even in 1955 there was somewhat of a Tiki/Hawaiian theme to the Pavillion Terrance Restaurant that provided guests with a view of the Jungle Cruise. Back on Main Street, it’s Frontierland-meets-Main Street when a sherrif asks a Keystone Kop for the time. Note the Intimate Apparel shop in the background, aka "The Wizard of Bras."





Now a few photos from trip over the weekend which was prompted by the release of Olszewski’s Dumbo sculpture. This guy continues to amaze me with his artistry and the way that he captures so much detail in such a tiny scale (Z scale).







And in his series of miniature gallery lightboxes, here’s his take on the Enchanted Tiki Room:



As soon as I waded through the release line at Disneyana for Dumbo, I rushed over to the castle to get a few shots. That Diorama is just too cool not to check out again; and yes, I had missed some details the first time around. The "flickering" candles in the chandelier:



A few of the goons:





This detail shot is just another example of the fantastic use of color & lighting to create the mood of each diorama:



Speaking of details; with all the times that I have visited the park, you would think that there is very little that I haven’t seen. However, as I was waiting for the Columbia to come to the dock, I noticed the descriptive signs for the flags flying overhead. Disneyland may not be a museum, but I do love the edutainment portion of the park.






I guess even audio-animatronic figures need a bathbroom break, as the shaman has apparently left for a little while. Quite a few of the figures in Pirates of the Caribbean were also missing during my ride on Saturday.



Lunch was at Rancho del Zocala; I really love the decor in here, especially the stained glass. This is detailing at a level that you would rarely see at a restaurant such as this.





I am also happy to report that small world is just as obnoxious as I remember it; however, I must admit that it sure does look fantastic. Everything is in working order and it looks better than it has in years. Got a kick out of my friends calling the new boats The Rubbermaid Boats.







That’s it for today. See more vintage & current Disneyland photos at my regular website.

Tencennial: Fantasyland

Today’s Tencennial tour includes Casey Junior and Storybook Land. The Casey Junior train is chugging along, with life beyond the berm visible in this shot from the Skyway.



This Skyway shot shows once again that Monstro was black, not blue.



And what photo tour of Storybook Land would be complete without a shot of Cinderella’s Castle? Certainly not this one!



Tomorrow’s installment will be Tomorrowland, and then Tuesday will be the last one of this series, Town Square. I am also going to include a few pics from trip to Disneyland on Saturday to pickup Olszewski’s newest release. He also displayed his upcoming release for November, the Peter Pan attraction:



The detail on these is amazing; even the mural and weather vanes are part of it. Overall, had a really nice day in the park. Got to see Queenie in the Court of Angels:



The Riverbelle Terrace is still under construction:



As is the Fort Wilderness area; I am happy that they are using actual wood for the Fort, however, it really looks too perfect in comparison to the hand-hewn look of the original:







See more vintage & current Disneyland photos on my Disneyland web pages.