Haunted Mansion History For Sale!

More items today from the upcoming December 7th Van Eaton Galleries History of Disneyland auction. This post is for the Haunted Mansion nuts (of which I am one!). Anyone interested in an original Haunted Mansion Model Ghost Maquette?

An incredibly rare 1969 maquette of a pop-up ghost from the original model of Disneyland's Haunted Mansion. This rare artifact was rescued by an Imagineer working at WED when the model was dismantled. The haunting figure is constructed of plaster, fabric, and hair over a metal spring that was attached to the model. Measuring 3.5" tall





Haunted Mansion Door Knocker Prop, c.1970s-80s. An original prop door knocker from Disneyland's Haunted Mansion. The prop is cast in metal so that when animated (through a small hole in the mount) it would create a realistic "knocking" sound. The prop is a functional and exceptionally rare artifact from the attraction's iconic Corridor of Doors. Measuring 7"x4.75" and 3" deep.









Are you a Grim Grinning Ghost fan?



How about some original Grim Grinning Ghosts Sheet Music?

An original 1969 vocal lead sheet used by actor Ernie Newton while performing the vocals for the Beheaded Knight within the Haunted Mansion. This sheet music is for the iconic theme song Grim Grinning Ghosts, and has many handwritten notes and changes throughout from its original use, which helped Newton in this memorable performance. This incredibly rare sheet music is an astounding artifact in the history of the Haunted Mansion. Measuring 13"x19" when opened.









This next auction is listed as an original Haunted Mansion Stretching Portrait.

An original c.1969-70s hand-painted stretching portrait on canvas used within Disneyland's Haunted Mansion attraction. As the elevator descends, the portraits would "stretch" to reveal their full image. However, the consistent "stretching" would eventually cause some wear to the canvas, and these portraits would need to be replaced. In the early years of the attraction, the portraits were all hand-painted with imagery designed by Imagineer Marc Davis, whereas later versions were printed. This stretching portrait depicts the man standing on a barrel of dynamite. The canvas measures 130"x35" and the portrait is in very good condition with some wear from use. These portraits are exceptionally rare and sought-after artifacts from the earliest years of the Haunted Mansion.

While it appears to be an original Mansion-used portrait, it is definitely not an original Marc Davis. Here’s a vintage shot from December 1969. Compare and contrast, folks!



Set of 3 1960s Haunted Mansion Changing Portrait Concepts.

A set of original concepts by Imagineer Ed Kohn for a series of changing portraits to be used within Disneyland's Haunted Mansion. The set includes an original painting in acrylic and marker on art board, and two pencil drawings on art paper. The two drawings appear to be early renderings for Guy Fawkes, who was originally planned to be included as a talking portrait rather than a changing portrait. These concepts range in size from the smallest 8.75"x8.5" painting to the largest 11"x8.75" drawing.



Are you Mansioned out? Want to bid? Check out the upcoming Van Eaton Gallery auction for yourself!

See more Disneyland Haunted Mansion photos at my main website.

60th Anniversary Trip, Pt. 14: The Haunted Mansion

Today's journey to Disneyland takes us on an in-depth tour of the Haunted Mansion, probably one of the most famous attractions at the Park. Feast your eyes on the panoramic view of the entrance. With all of the anticipated traffic for the Hatbox Ghost, the Fast Pass area was open again.





See no evil.



Lovely Charmaine was working the Fast Pass area.



The queue has lots of details to keep my camera busy:





It didn't take long to get to the foyer, where it appeared that some of the cobwebs had been cleaned off.



How many Mansion fans have purchased this Victorian pattern for their own home?



For all of you Stretch-Portrait fans, here is a shot of each one, beginning with Alexander Nitrokoff:



The Tightrope Girl:



The Widow Patecleaver:



and the poor gents sinking into the quicksand:



Finally, we reach the end of the journey:



EVERYONE has skeletons in their attic…so to speak:



A few animated gifs of the Changing Portraits:





As well as the dimensional bust in the loading queue hallway:



I am in light fixture heaven...



What? How did Charmaine get here so quickly?



The ghostly green effect in the loading queue area:



This Rolly Crump chair is one of the few items from his Museum of the Weird that made it into the final Mansion:



Dying to get out of the Conservatory:



The 13 Hour Clock. Who couldn't use an extra hour each day?



Madame Leota; somebody needs to fasten her back to that table.



A windy Ballroom:



One of these days I'll get a decent shot OVER the railing:



Let's hope that chandelier continues to hold this trio of revelers:



The Shooting Portraits:





The duel that goes on forever:





The Ghostly Organist



And then we enter the attic, which has photos of all of Constance's (dead) hubbies:









This shadow effect of the pianist is one of my favorite things to see in the attic:



Constance herself, who has just been upstaged by...



the Hatbox Ghost:













Instead of a hat, the Cemetery Caretaker is holding a lantern:



A panoramic view of the Grim Grinning Ghosts so that you can see all of them at once:



A few shots of the very difficult-to-shoot Cemetery:













The appearance of the Hitchhiking Ghosts signals that yet another tour of the Mansion is almost over.



The creepy Hand Sconce that I can't get enough of!



And Little Leota:



Let's zoom in on her so that we can enjoy her beautiful face up close:



MANY more Disneyland Haunted Mansion photos at my main website.