59th Anniversary 20k Exhibit at Disneyland

59 years ago today, Walt Disney showed great economy by having the sets from his movie "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea" moved from Burbank to Anaheim and installed in Tomorrowland as a walk-through exhibit.



The giant squid fight sequence was a thrilling action-packed highlight of the film.



From the book "Walt's People: Volume 14: Talking Disney with the Artists Who Knew Him" comes this story:

Walt Disney wanted the squid transported to Disneyland. It was one of the quickest jobs special effects whiz Bob Mattey ever handled. On Monday he got the order, and by Friday the squid was installed at the park, with a whole new set of innards.

The park budget would not allow for several men to spend the day operating the squid, so Mattey had to devise a motor to do the job. He did. Key to the squid's operation was a Hudson eight-cylinder engine block. The flywheel was attached to an electric motor. Each cylinder operated about twelve piano wires that were attached to the squid tentacles. The wires are placed so that no "cycle" or repeat action was noticeable. Early cable soon wore out, so stainless-steel cable were finally attached to each piston, and the stainless shell led to the pulleys high over the exhibit. From the pulleys, the piano wire stretched to the individual tentacles.

The squid had a parrot beak, and the beak from the film (which operated on a vacuum pump), was retained. However, the beak was originally designed for one sequence of the film—not for continuous action in the park. Every few minutes the beak snapped open and shut, but after two years it suddenly disintegrated—the constant tapping and snapping was too much for the material, which shattered. It was replaced with a new and better beak.



A July 1960 shot of the entrance to the Disneyland exhibit:





A shot of Captain Nemo's pipe organ from the film:



And an October 1956 Genuine FauxD© image of the organ at Disneyland (before it was moved to the Haunted Mansion!). Be sure to give it a few seconds to load so you can see the effect:



Daveland reader Larry B. sent this image of himself at the exhibit, cavorting with the squid:



I sneaked behind the 20,000 Leagues Walk-Thru Exhibit back in 1963 to see the giant squid up close. I actually touched it. What I didn't know was that my friend, Tom Scherman, who was with me on this Disneyland outing, had followed me with his camera and snapped this picture of me reaching out to the squid at the "perfect moment." I've treasured this photo for many years.



You can see the beak discussed previously on the left side of this detailed shot. The exhibit remained open until August 28, 1966. Today, this space is occupied by Star Tours.

There are still remnants of 20k at the Park.



An homage to the diving apparatus seen in these two photos with Kirk Douglas and Master Diver Fred Zendar...



can be seen outside of Trader Sam's bar at the Disneyland Hotel:



Tomorrow: Pt. 2 of the Tomorrowland Anniversary Celebration!

See more Daveland Disneyland Tomorrowland photos at my main website.

Screen Gem Saturdays: Making Over Judy Garland

Much has been written about Judy Garland and the poor self-image she had of herself, thanks to the MGM top brass. She was too fat. She wasn't young enough; she was too old. Her teeth were crooked. Her nose was wrong. Hearing those things as a teenager can be devastating; being put up on the big screen and being scrutinized by the public can make those insecurities even worse. Judy eventually got the plum role of Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz," but only after it was made abundantly clear to her that the studio wanted Shirley Temple. Just in case she didn't get the message that they didn't want her, the makeup wizards put Judy in a blonde wig, a false nose, capped teeth, and a ton-o-makeup. As Judy later jokingly recalled, "I looked like a male Mary Pickford!"



Under the guise of Director Richard Thorpe, filming actually got underway with the real Judy Garland buried under this layer of Hollywood artifice. Once the rushes were watched, it became painfully clear that Thorpe didn't have the right touch for the movie and that something had to be done.



Thorpe was canned and George Cukor was asked to take over the project. Not really interested in directing "Oz," Cukor turned the film down, but stayed around long enough to make a few important decisions. Cukor wisely realized that the Dorothy role was the key to the film's success, and that if Garland wasn't believable, the entire movie would flop. He had her scrubbed clean and given a makeover that more closely resembled the real Judy. With a Tinman, Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, and Witch, it was essential that Dorothy be a real live person, otherwise the audience would have nobody to identify with. Here you can see the results of Cukor's advice:



Fifteen years later, Judy scored another triumph with "A Star Is Born." She and her husband Sid Luft put everything they owned on the line to make sure that the film was a top-notch musical. Here you can see what Judy looked like in the opening scene (with Tommy Noonan), showing off the famous Garland legs.



Recalling what happened to her during her early MGM days, there is a scene in the movie where the studio makeup team does their initial assessment of her. Talking right in front of her, they discuss each flaw of her face and hair, and bemoan the "miracle" they'll have to perform to make her presentable. Somehow, Judy was able to make a joke out of the pain of her childhood; knowing what happened to her as a child makes this scene somewhat uncomfortable to watch.



Norman Maine (played by James Mason) comes to pick up Esther (Judy) after the makeover, and initially doesn't even recognize her. Once he does, he begins to laugh out loud at the unnatural look that the "beauty" experts have slathered onto her.





Taking her into his private dressing room, Norman examines the situation.



Tapping around her face, he attempts to find out what is real and what is not.





Norman begins to peel away the artifice and restores the natural beauty that Judy Garland was able to exude without the assistance of a team of makeup artists. It is definitely one of the most touching scenes in the movie.



See more Judy Garland photos on my Judy Garland web page.

Screen Gem Saturdays: Restoration of "A Star Is Born" (1954)

I was extremely excited to hear that Warner Brothers was going to release the 1954 Judy Garland movie "A Star Is Born” on Blu-ray; I held out hope that the remaining few minutes of footage that had yet to surface might have been found. Unless Warner Brothers is going to surprise us though, it looks like the version being released will still be minus a few bits and pieces. On the bright side, the Blu-ray special edition is chock full of extras and the movie has undergone yet another extensive restoration. Should be a beauty! If you’re not familiar with how this film was butchered shortly after its release (so that theaters could show it more times per day), then you should read Ron Haver's fantastic book documenting the exhaustive search for the deleted footage.

One of the sequences originally cut showed Judy's character, Esther Blodgett, attempting to make ends meet as a carhop serving burgers.



This still is from another deleted sequence (for which the footage is still missing) where Norman Maine (James Mason) finally finds Esther (Judy), washing her hair on the rooftop of her apartment:



According to the Judy Garland fansite The Judy Room, a complete print DOES exist. It’s an interesting tale of studio vs. individual, where the lines are somewhat blurred as to who is holding up the release of this rare footage:

thejudyroom.com/

For some excellent reading about where this film was shot, check out one of my favorite blogs:

dearoldhollywood.blogspot.com/

See more Judy Garland photos at main website.