Movieland Monday

When it comes to wax museums, people typically love 'em or hate 'em. I’m in the former camp, as I believe they are (if done properly) an art form. Creating a life-like representation of someone in wax is not easily done, and includes not only the face, but body, hands, clothing, and setting. Overall, the now defunct Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park did a damn good job. This batch of November 1976 images show you some of their finer work. Here is their depiction of W.C. Fields as he looked in the movie “Poppy.”



Good job on the face!



Look at the detail on the bottle which also includes a poppy:



Even the clapboard is accurate in the information that it provides:



The Marilyn Monroe figure isn’t too bad; definitely successful with the hair, costume, and the body:



The face is just a bit off though; I can’t quite put my finger on it but her face looks a little manly to me.



“The Beverly Hillbillies” tableau is a complete winner:



Granny (Irene Ryan) was captured to perfection!



Last but not least is the Shirley Temple area of the museum. The scenery provides a whimsical background for the most popular child star ever with a nod to her hit song “On the Good Ship Lollipop.” Maybe someone should have told the set designers that the ship was referring to an airplane.



As far as Shirley herself goes, they truly did an outstanding job with the face, body, hair (and that’s not an easy hairdo to successfully recreate!), and clothes:



See more vintage Movieland Wax Museum photos at my main website.

When Two Worlds Collide: Wax and the Mouse

I don’t know the story behind this image, but that’s the Movieland Wax Museum’s Rolls-Royce parked in the Disneyland Parking lot, circa October 1964. Check out the decal on the side:



Here’s a previously posted shot of the vehicle parked where it belongs:



The new defunct museum once housed a collection of lifelike (and not so lifelike) wax statues and tableaus featuring scenes from classic movies. Did Shirley Temple ever pose on an ark loaded with stuff animals and candy? Hellz no.



See more Movieland Wax Museum photos at my main website.

Movieland Wax Museum July 1963

I know nothing about the back story to this July 1963 image, but for some reason this golden vehicle is parked outside of the Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park.



A detailed view of the decal on the side, complete with movie camera:



Both places are long gone, but the sign for Movieland still remains:



More vintage Movieland Wax Museum photos at my main website.

Disneyland Hotel, Circa 1964

Welcome to the Disneyland Hotel, circa 1964. The signage says "Hotel Disneyland," only because it was an afterthought and the letters fit better that way.

This was back in the day when guests could be trusted enough to use a balcony without being a danger to themselves.



A closeup of the pool area, which considering the recent high temperatures here in San Diego looks real good.



Now that you've checked in, let's take the tram over to the park.



What? Signage advertising a competitor for tourist dollars? Say it isn't so. This MUST be a vintage image.



For all you signage geeks out there, a closeup of the plethora of signs in this October 1964 photo.



The grand finale is a beautiful night shot of all the neon and lit signage. Almost like being in Vegas!



Pay a photographic visit to the Disneyland Hotel at my main website and see more photos of the Monorail at Disneyland.

The Rise and Fall of the California Theatre

Today's post shows a very sad before and after view of the once grand California Theatre. Located on 4th Avenue in downtown San Diego, the first image shows how it looked circa June 14, 1963. Today, it is a boarded up dilapidated mess.



The movie showing in 1963 was "PT-109," starring Cliff Robertson. Here's a vintage 1960's shot of a diorama from the Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park that recreated a scene from the movie on the California Theatre's marquee:



Robertson also starred in the 1960's classic TV series "Batman" as the villainous cowboy Shame; his real life wife Dina Merrill portrayed Calamity Jan.



I had the pleasure of meeting Robertson back in 2002 at an event at the San Diego Historical Museum honoring San Diego in film. Robertson was born in the nearby community of La Jolla.



The building does still retain some of its vintage details:









At what point does a building actually need to be recreated vs. restored, and at that point, should the effort be expended? There is also a very cool faded vintage advertising mural on the side of the building:





I think I hear Joni Mitchell: "You don't know what you've got till it's gone…"



FEBRUARY 2020 UPDATE: 
Save Our Heritage Organisation and developers reached an agreement with the theater. Apparently it is going to be torn down and rebuilt using much of the original ornamentation and preserving as much as possible. The building has too much deterioration and carcinogenic asbestos to be saved as is.

See more Daveland San Diego photos at my main website.

Comments and more Wax

A little over a week ago, all of the "old" comments on my blog disappeared and only those on Google+ could leave one of their own. I started getting private emails about the situation and immediately looked into it. After about a week of internet searching, I learned what buttons needed to be clicked through blogger to restore the old comments. What a pain in the #$%. It was through this issue that I learned google/blogger sucks when it comes to finding a place to email or call with questions. Back to my regularly scheduled programming, and apologies for the frustration any of you might have experienced. Trust me…I felt your pain!

Back at the Movieland Wax Museum, we join the "Gone with the Wind" diorama. Clark Gable as Rhett Butler is front and center, with Mammy (Hattie McDaniel) in the background.



The Vivien Leigh statue is somewhat of a miss for me; for some reason, she really seems to be a difficult likeness to capture.



Even though she wanted to be alone, Greta Garbo was paired up at the museum with frequent costar and paramour, John Gilbert:



It took two photos for our January 1972 photographer to capture the entire "Wizard of Oz" diorama:



Bert Lahr as the Cowardly Lion is all alone.



OK readers; let's leave those comments and show that my hard work was not in vain!

See more Daveland Movieland Wax Museum photos at my main website.

The Movieland Wax Museum: The Classics

Today's January 1972 Movieland Wax Museum photos feature some of the classic stars of old Hollywood, starting off with John Wayne. I'd say thumbs up for this one.

Lucille Ball gets a "meh" from me; this statue just doesn't quite capture the comedienne's trademark zaniness.



So-so for both Fred & Ginger.



This "Sunset Boulevard" diorama must have been a favorite of the photographer, as he captured two shots of it.



Must have been a Gloria Swanson fan.



The Shirley Temple statue is spot-on.



Still more to share…

See more Daveland Movieland Wax Museum photos at my main website.

The Movieland Wax Museum: Silent Screen Legends!

Before the silver screen spoke, it flickered, in glorious black and white. Douglas Fairbanks was one of the movie's most famous swashbucklers, raking in the dinero as "Robin Hood" and "The Thief of Bagdad." He and wife Mary Pickford ruled over Hollywood during their 16 year marriage.

Rudolph Valentino died before he got a chance to talk on screen; we'll never know whether his smoldering eyes could have carried him into the talkies successfully or not.



Comparing the 1972 shot with this 1960's image, it would appear that the statue for Rudolph might have been changed…for the better!



Lon Chaney as "Phantom of the Opera" scared the crap out of audiences back in 1925.



This screaming female statue was also part of the "Phantom of the Opera" diorama.



Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy were funny with or without dialogue, sustaining a very long film career that spanned from 1926-1951.



See more vintage Movieland Wax Museum photos at my main website.