Monday Main Street Memories

Welcome to Main Street, U.S.A., circa 1956. You have entered the Magic Kingdom and arrived at Town Square, where you can choose between a newfangled Horseless Carriage or the Horse-Drawn Streetcar.

I dig those signage closeups! Just think; only 10¢ to get to the Castle!



Note the horse with not only a very special hat, but the “D” monograms on its blinkers.



Over at the Fire Department, one could surmise that Walt and family are sleeping in, judging by the closed blinds.



Another 10¢ option to take you to Central Plaza/The Castle:



Meanwhile on Main Street, Rudolph Valentino is entertaining the guests at the Main Street Cinema:



Note the Keystone Kop’s hat behind the placard:



And you all expected me to post a shot from Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. I sure fooled you!

See more Disneyland Main Street photos at my main website.

Margaritaville Makeover

Typically when I pull into Palm Springs, I enjoy seeing the Riviera Resort and Spa which dates back to 1958. The entrance had a 1960’s Rat Pack vibe that made you feel like you were stepping back in time and experiencing a bygone era of music, style, and attitude. Imagine my shock during my most recent visit when I drove by and saw this sign:



Margaritaville? In Palm Springs? Did I hit the gas pedal too hard and accidentally end up in Key West, circa 1990?!? Sadly, I was still in 2022 and the (now) cheap-looking structure I had driven by that was once the glorious Riviera Hotel had been revamped as the Margaritaville Resort. I parked the car and decided to poke around.



The Lobby area before:



After, a somewhat subtle change:



…other than the parrots. Just in case you forgot you were in Margaritaville.



Before #1, when the place had more of a Vegas/Rat Pack vibe:



Before #2 (a later remodel):



After:



The restaurant has also been re-themed to fit the Jimmy Buffet motif:



Fun little sayings have been sprinkled throughout the hallways:



Changes in more than just latitude:



I would hesitate to call this a resort without adding in the term “family.” The hotel was much more noisy, had more kids screaming, and definitely had more of a budget feel. I guess the positive is that the hotel, which has struggled financially through the years, is still around.

See more Riviera and Margaritaville Resort photos at my main website.

Union Station 1950: PST

This shot of Union Station in Los Angeles hails from May 19, 1950. I am assuming the couple waving goodbye knew the photographer that took this image that just happens to have one of the coolest vintage autos parked next to them!



As a courtesy to those travelers from other time zones, the clock tower made it clear that they should set their watches to Pacific Standard Time:



Today, with cell phones and everything being done for us automatically, that notification is now gone.



“You mean you had to actually set the time on your clock/watch, Grandpa?!? Wow, things were tough back in the day!”



Oh to have brains again…

See more Los Angeles Union Station photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Cinderella in Santa Monica

In the 1930’s, Shirley Temple merchandise was the rage, including dresses for little girls that were inspired by the costumes that the child star wore in her movies. Brothers Gustave, Fred, and Sidney Rosenau of Rosenau Brothers, Inc. in Philadelphia were responsible for these Shirley Temple “Cinderella Frocks” that sold approximately 15 million garments from the initial seven-year period of 1934-1941. They approached the Temple family about using Shirley to help promote a line of dresses when she was making her “Frolics of Youth” series in 1934. Mrs. Temple had approval of all the designs and images of Shirley wearing each design were photographed to inspire mothers to purchase them for their own budding starlet. This publicity shot of Shirley sporting a Cinderella Frock was especially interesting to me because it was shot at her (second) Santa Monica home on the patio. The back of the photo lists it as Style No. 4257 for sizes 3-6.5 and 4557 for 7-12.



A closeup of the matching vintage tile, for which I’m an avid fan of!



A vintage postcard of the exterior of the home:



This is what Shirley’s bathroom looked like. Even at the tender age of seven, Shirley was concerned about her figure!



A previously posted shot of Shirley posing with her beloved brothers inside the same home:



Final shot for today is what the home looks like today. Well, maybe not exactly this very day, but the last time I was in Santa Monica a few years back:



See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

Monday with Mansfield

With my latest Jayne Mansfield at Disneyland in 1957 acquisition, I can now put together a fairly comprehensive pictorial representation of her tour of Fantasyland. Here she is with her daughter in front of the Sleeping Beauty Castle; note that the crest is still not on the Castle at this point. Husband Mickey Hargitay is on the left side of the shot in a dark suit. I love the expressions of the other guests as they see this bonafide movie star strolling right by them.



Perhaps next she went to the Carrousel, which was directly on the other side of the Castle:



…followed by a spin on the teacups:



A flight over Fantasyland via Dumbo. Note the hinged ears:
 


Some “adult” time on the dark rides with husband Mickey, first at Peter Pan:



…followed by Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride:



Will there be more Mansfield in the future? Only time will tell!

See more celebrities at Disneyland photos at my main website.

The Return of (Forever) Marilyn

On a trip to Palm Springs in 2012, I was able to see the temporary outdoor installation of Forever Marilyn, by Seward Johnson. The 26' tall statue was based on a famous photo by Bernard of Hollywood taken when Marilyn was filming “The Seven Year Itch”:



The statue was taken down in 2014, and immediately the cry to have it return began. Sadly, this did not happen before Johnson’s passing in March 2020. According to the Forever Marilyn webpage:

She was officially welcomed back on June 20, 2021 at a special ceremony drawing hundreds of supporters and fans – and will now, at last, be a permanent feature of the Palm Springs landscape.





Yup…there’s a backside, too. This just doesn’t seem right. I would think that Johnson could have come up with a more tasteful rear view.



Ever wanted to see Marilyn’s feet up close? Looks like she already needs a pedicure.







I love how the sunshine illuminates her face; I was too lazy to wait until the Palm frond shadows completely disappeared.



And how Marilyn looks first thing in the morning; not bad!



Nearby on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars, Marilyn has her own block:



The new location is definitely more dramatic. Perched on Museum Way in front of the Palm Springs Art Museum, the walk leading up to Marilyn is lined by Palm trees. Every time that I walked by Marilyn was drawing a crowd of tourists attempting to get a selfie with the icon.

See more Palm Springs photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Tomato Red

When Melissa (aka “The Colonel”) met Shirley Temple Black during her book signing tour, one of the things she remembered the author/actress/diplomat telling her was that her favorite color for apparel was “tomato red.” These photos from the 6th Annual American Cinema Awards on January 6, 1989 certainly support that statement, and Shirley definitely looks like a million bucks! Let’s crop in tighter and remove creepy looking Milton Berle and Stewart Granger, shall we?



Shirley’s beloved husband, Charles Black, is seen in the background in these two photos from the same evening:





A sad side note about this event was Bette Davis’ collapse and later discovery that her cancer had returned. She died later that year on October 6th.

Shirley wore the same outfit for the publicity shots for the 1989 Tournament of Roses Parade, of which she was the Grand Marshal. In the photo with her are Rose Queen Charmaine Beth Shyrock and Commentator Keith Jackson:



When it was announced that she was the 1989 Grand Marshal, Shirley said: “It’s not often that one gets to repeat a highlight of one’s life,” followed by cannons that boomed out a shower of confetti while the band struck up “On the Good Ship Lollipop.” She would go on to repeat the honor again in 1999, making her the only person who has done so three times. She said her reign over the parade taught her how to wave “really well”: “First to the left, then to the right. Then to anybody who was out in the middle of the street.” Yup, she knew how to wave!



See more Shirley Temple Black photos at my main website.