The Motorized Fire Engine: A 55 Year Celebration!

August 16th marked the 55th Anniversary of the introduction of the Motorized Fire Engine to the Main Street, U.S.A. fleet of vehicles. Today's post is a tribute to this venerable mode of transportation, which still carries guests from Town Square to Central Plaza. According to the Disney publicity machine, Walt Disney loved to drive it around the park in the morning before opening.

Its design was inspired by a 1916 hose-carrying fire engine. The primary change we made was to place seats where the hose was carried. The Studio men designed a chassis, then pored through standard catalogues for unlikely, but practical equipment – a jeep rear axel, a three-speed truck transmission, the power plant of a small pick-up truck and standard drive-line parts. The bell and siren are authentic, purchased after considerable search. At the turn of the century, gas-driven cars were considered a novelty—and a hazard—lacking the reliability of a horse.



Here's one of Richard Nixon driving his family around Town Square during a 1961 visit:



The Eisenhower Family 1961:



A September 1965 shot of the Fire Engine parked in front of City Hall:



Zooming in for a closeup of the vehicle and its signage:



From March 1968:



It has often been used in parades, as seen in these July 15, 1968 FauxD© images:





How about this batch of Disney Legends, from a ceremony commemorating the 40th Anniversary of Pirates of the Caribbean, March 18, 2007? Alice Davis, X. Atencio, Harriet Burns, Blaine Gibson, and Bob Gurr:



A contemporary close-up of the Fire Engine #1 lettering:



Thanks for the many trips up and down Main Street, U.S.A.; here's to another 55 years of trusty service!

See more vintage & current Disneyland Main Street, U.S.A. photos on my Main Street, U.S.A. web pages.

Freaky Fridays @ The Haunted Mansion: The Pet Cemetery 2 & 40th Anniversary Event

Although I’d been to the Haunted Mansion too many times to count, it wasn’t until a few years ago that I first saw this “cemetery” to the right side of the mansion (thanks to a Disneyland Tour Guide who did a great job of keeping his group entertained). Although not really a cemetery, apparently the tombstones have many inside jokes from the creative geniuses at Disney.









On Wednesday night, I attended the Disneyland 40th Anniversary Haunted Mansion Event. I am so glad that I attended.



Most interesting to readers of this blog would be the two panel discussions; one held at the Grand Californian Hotel and one held during the dinner served over in California Adventure. The first discussion had Tony Baxter, Kim Irvine, and Jason Surrell (Imagineer and author of The Haunted Mansion: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies -- Updated).



Kim showed up in full face makeup as Madame Leota, with her blond hair teased out appropriately. She truly does resemble her mother (the original Madame Leota, Imagineer Leota Toombs). Most touching part of the discussion was hearing Kim talk about her mother, whose voice as Madame Leota was dubbed by actress Eleanor Audley. Leota’s actual higher-pitched voice can be heard at the end of the attraction, where she acted and spoke for herself as Little Leota, the ethereal bridal figure that repeats "Hurry Back.” Kim said that when she went on the attraction with her children, she would always point to "Grandma" at the end of the ride. When Madame Leota had to be re-created for the Nightmare Before Christmas Holiday overlay at Disneyland, Kim stood in for her mother. With advancements in life-mask creation, the detail of Kim's head turned out to be much more lifelike than the one created 40 years ago from her mother's face. When the original film of her mother was projected onto her (Kim's) life-mask, it was a perfect fit because of the similar bone structure between mother and daughter. So when you enter the seance room, it is Kim’s head in the crystal ball year-round with her mother's face projected onto the head during the off-holiday season. Kim discussed the process at both lectures and how her head was put in a brace so that it wouldn't move while being filmed for the Seance projection; at the 2nd lecture, she let the audience know that her mom came home from the process and told her that X Atencio tied her hair to the chair when she did it; what a kinky bunch those early Imagineers must have been! Kim had many other fond memories of her mother (as well as a large blow-up of an opening day photo with her mom) and was proud to be carrying on the tradition of working at Disney.



The stage also had this photo of Leota with Claude Coats, the other very influencial Imagineer who worked on The Haunted Mansion and was a huge mentor to Tony Baxter.



Jason shared a story told to him by Rolly Crump about Marc Davis & small world. Apparently during one of the initial test ride-throughs, Marc told Walt that he noticed Luxembourg was missing in the line-up of countries. Walt acknowledged Marc's comment but things continued. After about the third time that Marc brought it up, Walt lifted the one eyebrow and told Marc that nobody gave a s&*t about Luxembourg. Apologies to all my readers from Luxembourg.



There were the usual digs about the Eddie Murphy "The Haunted Mansion" movie and Tony trotted out his Hatbox Ghost stories for the umpteenth time. Still, it was very refreshing to hear Tony breathlessly speak of his ability to go through both Pirates and The Mansion during their test phases—he was in teenage Disney Geek heaven. It is obvious that he has always had (and still does have) a passion for the Anaheim park. He also mentioned that the movie "The Haunting" (1963) with Julie Harris & Claire Bloom was a major influence on the attraction.



The second panel discussion was held over in California Adventure inside the soundstage where the Constance & George "wedding feast" was held.





Tim O’Day was the moderator for this one, with Kim, Tony, and Jason in attendance again, joined by Alice Davis (Marc's widow) and X Atencio, songwriter of "Grim Grinning Ghosts" and "Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life for Me)."





A few of the tales from the first discussion were repeated, but there were also a few new gems. I believe it was Kim who said that with the original Pirates and Mansion attractions, neither was really about telling a story; they were more like a fantastic cocktail party where guests would go from conversation to conversation. What a fantastic analogy. I believe the "error" on many of the newer attractions is that their creators attempt to cram a story into a 4 minute attraction and many of the guests just don't get it. The interesting vignettes that stand alone in Pirates & The Mansion bear repeated viewings without having to have a linked storyline that holds each vignette together. Marty Sklar's "retirement country club" sign gave the Haunted Mansion all the storyline that it needed.



Another interesting one from Tony had to do with the French/Europeans and the Mansion created for Disneyland Paris (Phantom Manor). He said that Europeans like scary and they like funny, but didn’t care for the two put together. Naturally, this caused the attraction to change quite a bit as Anaheim & Orlando’s are full of Marc Davis' humor along with a few safely scary touches for good measure. Any attempts that John Lasseter was going to make to change Phantom Manor or upgrade it were abandoned when he was told by the French that they loved their version best and thought it should stay just as it was. When in France, do as the French do.

When it comes to "scary," both Tony & Kim said that after hours when everything was "off," going through the Mansion could be a little on the eerie side. Kim said she refused to go through it alone and usually recruits another Imagineer to go with her ("Don't you have a sound check to do? Good...let's go!"). Tony said that even when the power was off for the attraction, sometimes the Audio Animatronics retain a little "juice," and often they'll continue to move at very inopportune moments, causing quite a scare.

Alice remembered Walt's wish to make the house immaculate on the outside so that guests could see that the entire park was well-manicured. She also remembered that Walt wanted the Haunted Mansion to be for the entire family and not so scary as to frighten the little ones into having nightmares. Alice has always been outspoken, and as she put it, at ago 80 she’s earned the right to say what she wants to. She was very clear in expressing her opinion that she felt that much of what Marc put into the Mansion (the gags, the humor, and his skill as an artist) had either been ruined or removed. O’Day attempted damage control by saying that his stretch portraits were still in the mansion, but Alice quickly corrected him that the versions being used now were not by Marc, nor was the coloring correct. Once that uncomfortable moment passed though, Alice did say that she and her group of Imagineers had their time to shine and explore and that she felt that today’s Imagineers should be given the chance to do the same, and that as long as people lined up for the attractions, she was okay with that. You can see in the following example that she is correct about the changing of the portraits over the years:





Besides the consistent digs at Eddie Murphy's Haunted Mansion, X Atencio also got one in when O'Day asked him if he was excited to go through the Mansion that night. X answered he'd already been on that attraction before, however, sure...he'd go on it again, and see if "they'd added Jack Sparrow to it." Much laughter followed that one. He also got a laugh when O'Day asked him if he ever imagined back in the 60's that his two hit songs "Grim Grinning Ghosts" and "Pirate's Life For Me" would still be around 40 years later. X quickly replied, "I didn't even think I'd still be around 40 years later!"

Jason said that when interviewing actress Jennifer Tilly (Madame Leota in the "Haunted Mansion" movie) for his book, she told him that she'd heard that her head would replace Leota Toombs' in the mansion if the movie was a success. Jason laughed at that one, but Kim gritted her teeth.

Tony was particularly touching in his discussion about the charm of the Anaheim park, and that he was particularly proud that when foot traffic along the Rivers of America in front of the Pirate's attraction threatened the removal of trees and landscaping, his decision to build the underpass and footbridge allowed even more plants and trees to be installed, thus preserving the charm of the park. Again, obvious that he truly cares about the Anaheim property, regardless of what many grumble about.



The evening concluded with a procession over to Disneyland for "wedding" cake at the Mansion and two hours of being able to ride the Haunted Mansion as much as you please. What a trip that was! For the first time ever, I got to ride the stretching elevator back up to the top; a little creepy, as you get the feeling that the room will crush you as it closes back up. Actor Nicolas Cage (with Goth-looking son Weston Coppola Cage) made a very quick appearance as well, posing for a handful of photos with guests before departing.







More to come...

See more Disneyland Haunted Mansion 40th Anniversary Event photos at my website.

Tempest in a Teapot

After almost a year of anticipation, it’s a small world (iasw) has reopened amidst another storm of heated rants and raves from the online community. This time though, there is a large counter-wave from those guests who have actually been on the attraction; the supposed desecration “leaked” by armchair Disney enthusiast Al Lutz last year has not turned out as reported.

Originating at the 1964/65 New York World‘s Fair, small world came to fruition when Pepsi (yes, a corporate sponsor—oh no! those actually existed back then?) and Joan Crawford approached Walt Disney about doing an exhibit for their company that would be a tribute and benefit to UNICEF. Disney had to fit the attraction to the NY World’s Fair building, as it was constructed before the ride had been created. Pepsi was not happy with small world; sponsorship for the attraction at Disneyland was picked up by Bank of America (another “evil” corporate sponsor—how did Walt let this happen?!?) and the show was expanded to fit the new larger building in Anaheim. Please note the logo prominently shown on the marquee in this 1968 photo, with not a mention of UNICEF:



One of the things that has really rankled me about this iasw debate is that Mary Blair has been trotted out like a sacred cow, given sole credit for this attraction, while people bemoan that her memory is being trampled on because of these changes. MANY others deserve just as much credit for this attraction as Blair; Rolly Crump, Marc Davis, Leota Toombs, Blaine Gibson, and Alice Davis, pictured below tending to the costumes that she created:



Below is a photo of Disneyland Ambassador, Connie Swanson, pointing to the construction of iasw:



These two photos show Walt himself on iasw on opening day, May 28, 1966:





Flash forward to present day, and iasw has been refurbished to look brand-spanking new. The light effects at night are incredible, making the exterior look even more magical:







Next up are a few shots from the interior, looking better than ever with new paint, lights, and an improved sound system:









Disney Expert & Blogger, Al Lutz, proudly headlines his MiceAge site with the statement “small world's makeover is awful, photos don't begin to capture what a misfire it is. The $75 character pin sets sold at the exit prove this was a merch[andise] move. AP has a video up with yours truly quoted at this link.” In another section of his site, an additional report on iasw states: “None of the new dolls installed feature blinking eyes and moving lips, in fact, most of the "Disney" characters do not look like the original Mary Blair dolls.” And yet, when I rode this attraction on Saturday, the eyes of the new characters blinked as can be witnessed by these photos:







Based upon this shoddy reporting, I can only conclude that Lutz has used the iasw refurb as a marketing ploy for his site to drive up the numbers. The Disney characters that have been sprinkled throughout amount to not much more than Hidden Mickeys; fun little surprises along the way that would increase the possibility of riding iasw more than once, giving the guest something else to notice. If these characters either hide or ruin the original message of a plea for peace by children of the world, then today’s world is a lot dumber than I thought. For those that say Walt would never have added Disney characters...folks, I hate to break the news to you, but Walt passed away not too long after iasw opened. We will NEVER know what Walt would have done, but we do know that he “plussed” almost every attraction in the park while he was alive and that the majority of attractions at Disneyland had their origins in Disney entertainment. While the current Disney-Detractors cry out in pain that Disneyland has become nothing but a marketing cash machine, they conveniently seem to forget that Walt was the one who signed off on Tomorrowland’s Bathroom of Tomorrow by Crane, Frontierland’s Casa de Fritos (complete with gigantic Frito-Lay vending machine), and practically had to sell his soul to ABC-TV just to get the park opened. Walt knew his way around the marketing machine as well.

Lutz also reported that the rainforest scene was to be removed: “That eclectic collection of furry animals in shimmying plastic rain showers and a small quartet of masked musicians and dancers representing Papua New Guinea are now set to be replaced by an entirely new scene representing the good old United States of America.” And yet, here it is. Yes, it has been moved to a different location, but still there nonetheless:



I can see Lutz now, patting his back with one hand while savoring his cupcakes and mocha with the other, taking the credit for the rainforest scene still being in the attraction because of his ace reporting last year.

The new “Spirit of America” scene can be viewed in the following photos; Disney has stated that original concepts by Blair herself were used to create this room. Yet, the same negative online bloggers/writers have crucified the Disney reps, saying it is an underhanded ploy to justify this new scene.







This particular scene contains my one gripe; the Woody and Jessie characters in this scene are pretty bad. They do not have the same look as the other Blair-inspired characters. In short, they look like 2 stuffed dolls who have lost their way to the toy store. That is my only negative comment about this refurb. And now before I finish up this post, I’ll leave you with three more present-day images:







I am really puzzled as to why so many are quick to villify the Disney Corporation for the “new” iasw. One blogger went so far as to say that the rain on opening day was a sign from the Gods that they were not pleased with the changes. Instead of slinging the mud at Disney for ruining this and other attractions, why not turn your attention to the guest. Compare the guest from 1955 with the guest of 2009—talk about change! But so as not to bore you, I think that topic will have to wait for another column. Please: check out this attraction for yourself and give it a fair shake; don’t let the mud-slinging on the web and the crappy-quality YouTube videos deter you.

See more Disneyland it’s a small world photos at my website.