Melinda Goes To Disneyland, Pt. 4!

It’s the Grand Finale today for Melinda’s 1980 25th Anniversary Trip to Disneyland! Our first image shows the Skyway buckets, floating towards the Matterhorn on the Tomorrowland side. By this stage of the game, the buckets had already changed from the round shape to a square design. In case you wonder what the OTHER side of the Matterhorn looked like, here’s a December 1980 image from my collection: 



Zooming in for a detailed look…



…made me notice the trio of Farrah hairdos in bucket #49!



This detailed shot shows the Grand Hotel, which once stood at  7 West Freedman Way. Considered a first class, high-rise hotel just across the street from Disneyland, it contained  242 guest rooms. Each room had balconies and coffee makers. Now it’s a part of Anaheim history, having been torn down and replaced by the Pumbaa Parking Lot.



Melinda has these memories of where her family stayed during their trip:

My mom doesn’t remember where we stayed while in the area, it certainly wouldn't have been at the Disneyland Hotel as we didn't have a lot of money. I have a picture of us sitting outside a place with German timber and plaster styling and a barrel sign hanging from the roofline, but I can't make out what it says.



The next two images from Melinda show some wonderful views of Tomorrowland, including the Monorail and the Peoplemover. From Melinda:

The Monorail made a big impression on me, how smooth and quiet it was and I loved the view from up high of everything. I still love riding the monorail at Disney World — it’s not a trip to Disney without a ride on the Monorail! 



Melinda and her sister didn’t get to ride the Subs; they were still under refurbishment:



Three images from the Bill H. collection show the refurbishment:







Melinda also recalls Space Mountain:

I remember pretty vividly chickening out of riding Space Mountain. I literally turned around halfway through the line and walked back out to wait for my parents on a bench somewhere outside by myself. I had ridden other coasters with no problem, but the dark and spacey music and screams from riders were probably just too much at the end of the day. My sister would have been too small to ride it, but I don't remember if she was waiting outside somewhere and I sat with her or she was with my parents and they did some sort of kid exchange. If the latter had been the case, I imagine I would have stayed with them instead of leaving the line. My mom said my sister was trustworthy enough even at 5 to be told to sit on a bench and wait there. I know, it was definitely a different time back then than it is today! 

Here’s a vintage shot from Bill H. showing Space Mountain under construction in 1976:



The Main Street Electrical Parade is another favorite memory that I don't have any of my own photos of. We saw MSEP at Disney World too in 1985 and I would love to see it again now that it is back.

Here are two 1980 shots to go along with Melinda’s memories:





SOOOO many thanks to Melinda for sharing these photos AND her memories of this treasured family trip. 

See more Disneyland photos at my main website.

Palm Springs at Night

Shooting a city at night is one of my favorite things to do; everything looks different and often more magical. Palm Springs is not really known for its nightlife, but can still provide an interesting opportunity for wandering aimlessly with my camera. This little fountain outside of an apartment complex had me mesmerized. This particular sign for the Casa Cody hotel didn’t do much for me creatively…



But THIS neon sign definitely grabbed my attention!



More neon; I thought about checking this place out, but was feeling lazy. Isn’t that part of Palm Springs’ charm? Being lazy?



Lulu, a California Bistro. Go for the decor; leave because of the food. Not a Daveland favorite.



Not sure I quite captured what inspired me here, but I loved the way the shadow of the tree fell upon the stucco of this house.



Palm Springs shuts down early. Like I said…no night life, which is perfect for someone who likes to capture areas devoid of peeps.



Still closed…but the signs burn brightly!





See more Palm Springs photos at my main website.

Balboa Park: Back to the Future

This spring, imagine my amazement when I saw a group of DeLoreans parked in the lot near the Balboa Park Automotive museum. What’s a DeLorean you ask? It was a rear-engine two-passenger car manufactured by DMC (DeLorean Motor Company) from 1981-1983. It was known for looking cool but poor performance. The company went belly up. Why would anyone care about this car today? How about this shot from the blockbuster film “Back to the Future”? That might ring a bell for you. Yup…Doc Brown’s time machine used a DeLorean.



NOW maybe you can understand my amazement at seeing five DeLoreans at Balboa Park last March.



A frequent Daveland reader/commenter (who shall remain anonymous) identified the guy in the green shirt as Alexander Wolfgang Tietz:



He’s a local DeLorean owner; I think he’s also a cameraman for some news agency, a field guy that hefts around the big shoulder mounted rigs. I’ve met him at numerous car shows. He embraces “Back to the Future” but will never convert his DeLorean into a time machine. It doesn’t stop him from doing birthday parties dressed as Doc Brown, though.

Hey…a guy’s gotta’ make a buck, right? Based on his Instagram page, it looks like his car was part of a St. Patrick’s Parade in San Diego. Here’s one of the original DeLoreans used in the “Back to the Future” movie when I saw it back in 2004 parked at Universal Studios in Hollywood.



In a previous post, I also showed the Gamble House in Pasadena, which was used for the exteriors of Doc Brown’s house in the movie:



See more photos at my main website.

The Leader of the Band

This recently acquired April 1976 image may not seem like anything special to you, but for us OCD vintage Disneyland collectors, it sure is! The band leader shown is completely unfamiliar to me. Admittedly, once Vesey Walker left his post, I lost track of who was running the show!



From February 1971 comes this older gent conducting the band in Town Square:





Looks like he was still around in October 1972:





Also the same guy, but in Tomorrowland, circa October 1972:





Anyone know the identity of these two band leaders?

See more Disneyland Town Square photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: The 3 R’s

Today, for Temple Tuesday, the 3 Rs stand for “Reduse, Reuse, and Recycle.” In the 1941 MGM film, “Kathleen,” Shirley Temple performed in the standard dream sequence, decked out in an ornate feathered concoction complete with headdress, necklace, and fan.







Apparently, Shirley’s mother wrangled the same deal that existed at 20th Century-Fox, where Shirley was allowed to keep her wardrobe. Seven years later at a Hollywood costume party, Shirley wore the exact same outfit. From the vintage publicity blurb that accompanied the following photo of Shirley and her then husband, John Agar:

COLONIAL PAIR that would cop the beauty prize at any show are Shirley Temple and John Agar (right). Shirley looks very much the grande dame with a white wig covering her short hair, and John in his uniform—well, handsome is the word. After appearing together in RKO’s “Baltimore Escapade,” [NOTE: retitled “Adventure in Baltimore” for release] Selznick players went their separate ways (filmwise that is): Shirley to 20th for “Mr. Belvedere Goes to College” and John into John Ford-directed movie, “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.”





 You’ll note that except for the necklace (which MGM most likely did NOT allow her to take home!), everything is the same. The 1948 necklace came up for auction in 2016.



The photo below was accompanied by this blurb:

SHIRLEY TEMPLE dances in feathers while husband. John Agar appears in the uniform he wears in RKO’s forthcoming “Fort Apache” at a recent fancy dress party.



From the Akron Beacon Journal, Sunday November 14, 1948:

Cute Shirley Temple was just as perky in a powdered wig as with her own curly top. The handsome Yankee soldier is hubby John Agar.



Also shown in the Journal are Rock Hudson & Vera-Ellen, Don DeFore & wife, Marion, Loretta Young & Rosalind Russell (as twins!), George Jessel, Ava Gardner, and Terry Moore.

According to other coverage of the event, Shirley (dressed as Marie Antoinette) was “judged the prettiest gal there. The lensmen asked her to present a watch to General Grant (Jessel) in appreciation of swell job he did as M.C.”



Much was made about the public kiss between the married couple:



How the dress appeared when it came up for auction in 2016: 



From the catalog description:

The extraordinary multi-layered gown of soft rose features a satin-fitted bodice with elaborate center panel decorated with sequins, rhinestones and metallic braid, above a multi-layered skirt including three layers of richly gathered tulle with sequins on the top layer, rose sateen petticoat, and still more multi-layered cotton petticoats with layered skirt ruffles, all above a hooped frame with wide panniers that gives form to the skirts. Feathered corsages decorate the skirt all around, and match the feathered fan that she holds as well as her fan headdress. Included are dyed-to-match kid shoes by Capezio, decorated with faux jewels including large "rubies". The gown was worn by Shirley Temple in her role of Kathleen, in the 1941 MGM film of that name, during the fantasy scene, as Kathleen imagines she is a star on Broadway and performs a remarkable descending-the-staircase dance. Realized Price: $2,750

The headdress, fan, and shoes:



A closeup of the headdress from the 1948 costume party; it’s a match!





Many thanks to Melissa (aka “The Colonel”) for tracking down all the vintage articles for this post!

See more teen Shirley Temple photos at my main website.