Disneyland, October 1972, Pt. 3

After you recover from the jiggle of the first photo (the guest must have had the shakes after sitting through small world), you might need another aspirin for the teacups.



Something about this grown woman in her Fantasyland costume that seems a little unsettling; almost looks like she lost her way to the set of a bad 70s porno.



Climb aboard your Skyway bucket and let's soar over the park, shall we?



I am going to toot my own horn on this one, as I believe this is one of the best Skull Rock photos I have in my collection. It's almost like you could reach out of the Skyway bucket and touch it!



I think I actually hear the water cascading over the rocks!



Something about the cool blue color of the Monorail that I really love (note how nicely it coordinates with the blue PeopleMover?).



To ride in the bubble must have been a thrill—I say bring it back! You can never have enough bubbles.



The Submarine Voyage attraction is undergoing a little maintenance, as the lagoon is drained and all of the coral is exposed for guests to see. You can catch a glimpse of the PeopleMover in the upper right-hand corner of the photo.



See more vintage and contemporary Disneyland Fantasyland photos on my Fantasyland web page.

Disneyland, October 1972, Pt. 2

Today's portion of this program takes us on a journey through Frontierland, circa October 1972. Polyester-clad guests gawk at the Mark Twain Riverboat (they didn't know that something that big could be made of anything other than synthetic materials). It must have been a busy day as both the Twain and the Columbia appear to be working at the same time.



The Burning Cabin is also working quite well, and the dead settler is...well, dead.



Must not look...must not look...



Meanwhile, on the other side of the bank, the Indian Chief is waving to the old drunk, bidding him adieu.



For you Disneyland newbies, this isn't the Matterhorn; it's Cascade Peak! Yes...Disneyland once had another majestic mountain peak with a thunderous waterfall.



See more vintage and contemporary Disneyland Frontierland photos on my Frontierland web page.

Disneyland October 1972, Pt. 1

How about starting Labor Day off with a tribute to the decade of Leisure Suits; that's right readers, the 1970's! A variety of polyester fashion awaits you at the Main Street Train Station, and best of all...the C.K. Holliday is right there to whisk you off to your destination of choice. I always get an extra ping of excitement when I see a train at the station as I enter the gates.



The Disneyland Band is entertaining guests in Town Square:



In the background, you can see that Global Van Lines still has a presence in Town Square, before the Emporium pushed them out:



The Omnibus is passing by the Penny Arcade, packed with sight-seeing guests:




I thought I'd zoom in so that you can get up close and personal with these guests:



Time to wrap this one up; I think I'll stop by the Plaza Inn for a piece of their Caramel Apple Pie. I can taste that lip-smacking gooey-goodness now.



See more vintage and contemporary Disneyland Railroad photos at my Disneyland Railroad web page.

Sundays in Paris: Pt. Quatre, Alice in Wonderland

Jenny has submitted another DLP Column, "The Making of Disney’s Alice in Wonderland: Follow Alice’s Footsteps at Disneyland Paris"



Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland (2010) is one of the most intriguing Disney films in recent times and uses many state-of-the-art special effects. Experience the weird and wacky world of Alice in Wonderland for yourself at Disneyland Paris as you join Alice in some action-packed adventures.



Many different techniques were used by Burton throughout the film - it was constantly evolving as it was the director’s first experience shooting a 3D film. 90% of the scenes were shot in just 40 days, with actors performing in front of a green screen.



The movie was shot using conventional cameras and then the footage was converted into 3D during post-production. A Panavision Genesis Digital Camera System was primarily used, shooting 1 to 50 frames per second, but in order to film close ups of the actors and scenes that involved objects being blown up; a Dalsa Origin 4k Camera was required.



The whole of Wonderland in the film is actually a CGI creation, with CGI animation being used for the characters and their movements. The Tweedles (played by Matt Lucas) wore special suits to track their movements so their bodies could be animated, while their faces were both his own. Other digital effects were used to distort the physical appearance of the actors, such as the size of the Red Queen’s head and the height of Alice.


Alice in Wonderland float at Disneyland Paris, photo by Kate

For those who love all things Alice and want to take the 3D experience one step further, head to Eurodisney Paris. Here, you can weave your way through Alice’s maze and discover Alice’s Curious Labyrinth for all sorts of sights and surprises.


Alice's Curious Labyrinth Disneyland Paris, photo by Cea

You’ll also be invited to ride the Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups to experience more twists and turns than a rabbit hole.


Mad Hatter at Disneyland Paris, photo by Kate

Kids will even get the chance to meet Alice or watch her with friends in the wonderful Disney parade at various times throughout the day.

See more Disneyland Paris photos on my Disneyland Paris web page.

Screen Gem Saturdays: St. Elmo's Fire

When it comes to the 80's, "St. Elmo's Fire" is the quintessential movie for me. Released in 1985, right about the time I was graduating from college, it seemed as if Joel Schumacher & Carl Kurlander's script was speaking directly to me.

After 4 years of blissful life in college, still surrounded by the distant but still very protective bubble of my parents, I found myself adrift on my own not knowing what the heck to do with my life. A number of botched job interviews for jobs that didn't match my passions chipped away at my self esteem and instead of leading a glamorous life in California as an account exec for an Advertising Agency, I found myself doing paste-up (anyone remember what that is?) for a grocery chain in Indianapolis.

Every chance I got, I popped "St. Elmo's" into the VCR (remember those?) and thanks to Rob Lowe, realized it was ok to flounder for awhile.



The fact that I also played the saxophone made the movie that much more real for me!



There are times when the movie creeks a bit with age, but thanks to the cast (especially Lowe, Demi Moore, and Mare Winningham), it still holds up overall and paints a great portrait of the confident youth of the 80's who found that life after college could be a challenge as the party stops and the bills start piling up.

To see more Classic Hollywood movie photos, visit my regular Hollywood movie web page.

Haunted Mansion: Original Marc Davis Art

Two years ago in August 2009, Disneyland's Haunted Mansion celebrated its 40th Anniversary. To commemorate the event, there was a special 40th Anniversary Event that included a panel of speakers such as Disney Legends Alice Davis & X Atencio. Alice let it be known 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. Moderator Tim O’Day attempted damage control by saying that Marc's 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.

This recent acquisition shows what the Alexander Nitrokoff portrait looked like on December 7, 1969, just a few months after the Mansion first opened. It's pretty fantastic that the photographer put the cool little quotes on the back of the photo; this attraction must have made quite an impression on him!









You can clearly see the difference between the portraits of some 40+ years ago with the ones of today. Davis' have his signature humor mixed in with just enough of a sinister quality to let the guest know that there is more to this elevator than one might think.



Sure, the gag is the same, but the realistic style minus the humor doesn't make the gag quite as effective. Davis knew what he was doing.



Here you can also compare the original Davis version of The Widow Patecleaver alongside the contemporary one.



Same thing...the creepy yet humorous nature of the portraits is virtually nonexistent.



See more vintage & current Disneyland Haunted Mansion photos at my Haunted Mansion web page.

Traveling Thursdays: Laguna Beach

The first time I visited Laguna Beach was back in 2000; I was working for a dot-bomb company and we were doing an article on Wyland for a magazine that never got published. It was still a fun experience! Laguna is a beautiful (sometimes) sleepy little artist community just south of Anaheim (to put it into perspective for all the D-Land fans out there).

Imagine your backyard view being the Pacific Ocean. Apparently, Wyland and his franchise-style art concept isn't doing too bad.



Laguna is widely known for its annual Pageant of the Masters Festival, where art is re-created on a stage. It's a little wacky, but actually pretty cool to see.





There were some expert sand sculptors at work during my visit last weekend:



This reminds me of Skull Rock (I wonder what kind of a Rorshach test that vision of mine indicates?):





Heisler Park in Laguna is the perfect place for a picnic:



I couldn't even begin to explain what this is supposed to be, but I am surprised these two haven't been arrested.



See more Laguna Beach photos at my Laguna Beach webpage.