1956 Tomorrowland Panorama

Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, I was able to combine two consecutive shots of Disneyland's Tomorrowland from October 16, 1956 into ONE amazing panoramic view!

On the left, we can see the entrance to Circarama, which is where Buzz Lightyear's Astroblasters is currently located.



On the right is the Monsanto Hall of Chemistry, the present home of Star Tours:



See more vintage (and contemporary) Disneyland Tomorrowland photos at my main website.

More Mardi Gras World and Disney

Thanks to faithful Daveland reader Bryan, I realized that there is yet another statue at the Disneyland Resort whose origins are most likely Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World in New Orleans. Check out the statue I photographed there a few weeks ago and the one below from Downtown Disney:



Throughout the warehouse I noticed a number of other more obvious Disney characters.



Zooming in you can see the Three Caballeros (next to Salvador Dali, no less!):



Look closely at this random group of sculpts…



and you'll see Mowgli from "The Jungle Book," front and center:



The Rescuers, from the 1977 animated film:



This one I almost missed:



A painting of the Partners Statue:



Rock your world with a little more Mardi Gras Parade Float Madness at my main website.

The French (Quarter) Connection

Mardi Gras World was the brainchild of Blaine Kern, a sign painter who fortuitously created a mural that caught the eye of the captain of a Mardi Gras krewe. One float led to another and over time, he became the city's leading parade creator, working with Rex, Zulu, and all the other legendary krewes. For those not "in the know," a "krewe" is an organization that puts on a parade or ball for the Mardi Gras Carnival season. Mardi Gras World had moved to a different location since my last visit to New Orleans before Katrina, but it was just as impressive.



Although I was busy snapping photos while our gracious tour guide lead us through the gigantic warehouse, that didn't keep me from noticing a familiar looking head.



To most, this probably looks like a huge Pez dispenser head; to Disneyland geeks, it is much more.



This is the same sculpt as one of the props you see as the Disneyland trains whiz you into the Frontierland/New Orleans Square station.



After I got back from New Orleans and was processing my photos, I was shocked to find something I had actually missed.



A painted queen…



AND king's head. Both of the props from New Orleans Square in Anaheim!



It really shouldn't be TOO shocking that I visually missed these two figures while at Mardi Gras World. I was still in a sugar-coma from the traditional King's Cake that our tour guide had dished up for us!



This is why it pays to snap the photo and ask questions later!

Float over to my main website for more Mardi Gras World photos.

Main Street's Horse-Drawn Streetcar

Follow me back to August 1955, when these photos of the Horse-Drawn Streetcar were snapped as it journeyed down Disneyland's Main Street, U.S.A.

Peeking into the Crystal Arcade, it looks fairly empty!



In Town Square, the Streetcar is ready to start another trip up to the Castle.



Closeup number one shows two conductors kibitzing in between rides.



And closeup number two shows the cleanup of…number 2.



More Main Street, U.S.A. photos are over at my main website.

Vintage Union Station

A few vintage shots of Los Angeles' Union Station, which opened back in 1939. It was so impressive that it caused fender-benders, as seen in this 1951 image.

Things appear to be much calmer in this November 1961 shot:



I was hoping to find something exciting when I zoomed in, but alas…it wasn't to be.



This architectural beauty is still around, looking just as spectacular as it did back in 1939.



Next time you are in town, make sure you check out the interiors; they are even more jaw-dropping!



Hop on aboard to my main website and see more photos of Los Angeles Union Station.

Disneyland Pre-Selfie

Back in the day before you saw people connected to their phones, selfless and selfie-sticks were not even a blip on the radar. "Fun" had to be low-tech. These painted cutouts in Central Plaza were about as low-tech as you could get…but the guests loved 'em! First up from this batch of 1950's black and white images are one of a little boy who wants to be Captain Nemo from 20k Leagues Under the Sea.

Davy Crockett (this one spells the Davy with an "e"; somebody forgot to proof this one!) was another popular Disney "character" at the time:



My very favorite Disney character: Dopey!



Last shot for today is a stray one from this batch of an unidentified beach.



See more Disneyland cutout fun at my main website.

Alleged Activity at The Cemetery

St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 opened in 1789 and is the oldest cemetery in New Orleans. I was anxious to return and photograph it digitally for the very first time. I was very disappointed to find out that the only way to enter was with a paid tour guide, courtesy of a new ordinance that went into effect a few weeks before I arrived. If your Granny is buried in St. Louis, you will need to pay to see her. The official reason for this rule is the vandalism…I'll leave it at that.



One of the most famous monuments is also the tallest, The Italian Mutual Benevolent Society tomb, visible above in a vintage 1950's shot. Here's how it looked during my 2002 visit:



The tomb gained notoriety for its appearance in the 1969 film "Easy Rider."



The other side of the statue has not held up so well, ALLEGEDLY because of Dennis Hopper. According to our tour guide, this statue, known as 'Charity,' was vandalized by Hopper who ALLEGEDLY tore the head off the statue. Hopper is dead, but the head has yet to surface.



The most famous "resident" of St. Louis #1 is probably Voodoo Queen Marie Laveau, whose resting place is ALLEGEDLY in a family tomb marked with the name Glapion.



Even the plaque is noncommittal about whether or not Laveau is actually within. Some say it is her daughter, also known as Marie Laveau.



At least it looks a lot cleaner than it did back in 2002:



People leave crosses on her grave, because supposedly this will make her spirit grant a wish.

Besides "Easy Rider," St. Louis #1 has another Hollywood connection: actor Nicolas Cage.



Rob Florence, author and Tour Operator for Historic New Orleans Tours said Cage bought the tomb pictured above around the same time two of his famous local homes (The LaLaurie Mansion and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Chapel) were foreclosed. “There’s a theory that they can’t foreclose on a tomb,” Florence said.

Many other theories surround Cage’s tomb which reads, “Omni Ab Uno” (Latin for “Everything From One”). "I’ve also heard he did it to shelter money inside the tomb, too. I’m sure you could fit 3 full-size caskets in here,” Florence said. Nicolas Cage has yet to state why he bought the pyramid-shaped tomb. “He’s a strange guy. I don’t know if we really need a reason or explanation,” Florence said. Amen to that.

Dying to see more? Trip on over to my main website.

Cox Pilot Tribute

Many of you have been reading my blog for years are probably familiar with a frequent contributor and commentator, Cox Pilot. I knew him as Lee Heinly, the kind gentleman who worked at Disneyland during its early years and generously shared his memories and photos with me. I was greatly saddened when his daughter informed me recently that he had passed away. I never got to meet him, but it was still a blow to me, as he was my go-to guy when it came to first-hand knowledge of the park. And to boot, he was the nicest guy you could ever hope to correspond with. Today's post is dedicated to him.

As fortune would have it, Lee's Flight Circle friend and coworker George Molitor happened to email me wanting to know how to get in touch with Lee. George was saddened by the news, but still graciously offered to assist in today's tribute. The first photo for today is a July 1959 shot of the Tomorrowland Flight Circle. George supplied the caption:



Keith Palmer is sitting outside with the ladies, Don Hatcher is on the left, and Bix Dunlavey is standing. I am leaning over the counter with back to camera. Looks like this was taken from the Skyway.



George was also kind enough to share these great memories about his time with Lee at the Flight Circle:

I have enjoyed this site for a few years now and want to thank my friend Lee for his recollections and Dave for putting them on the web. I recently contacted Dave and requested something from the site and he informed me that we lost Lee but asked if I would contribute something to the site. Lee has done a remarkable job of covering most of the history of the “Flight Circle” thanks to his job with Cox for so many years and also because he was there and his BFF was Keith Palmer. One thing I can see he was missing was the first few weeks so, I’ll try to fill in some gaps!

Early Spring, 1958, I was finishing sophomore year, working for the Piper dealer at Fullerton Airport and taking flying lessons, and the President of Fullerton Model Club, sponsored by Leonard Oswald, owner of Fullerton Models. Mr. Oswald handed me a paper with the following information “Bill Selser, L. M. Cox" and a Santa Ana phone number. I made the call and was given an appointment for an interview. There were three others at the interview, Steve Loyal and two others I don’t remember. It consisted of a short conversation and then flying several of the Cox products. Steve and I got the jobs! We were to fill the “crew” at the Flight Circle at Disneyland and would earn $1.00 hour. I think the only words I heard was “in Disneyland."

My first day was a “down day’ for the park (Mon. or Tues.) and I met the Wen-Mac guys that came over to Cox. Don Hatcher was the lead man and did most of the early announcing. Travis Odom was a real cool guy from Arkansas and agreed to work the first Summer but wanted to go back home to his family. Bob Carlson was an engineering student at Cal-Poly and Cox agreed to keep him working through school. He offered Bob a job with Cox but Bob went into the construction industry. I actually ran into him on a couple of projects in the 70’s. And of course Keith Palmer.

Our first few shows were, of course, a learning experience but we all seemed to click pretty well and adjusted the sequences until we found one that seemed to flow well and pretty much stuck to that for the rest of my 4 years there. Of course the “Grand Finale” was Keith flying three at once. He used the new P-40 for this and it was certainly a show stopper. I got to thinking that I could do that and was encouraged by Don, Keith, and Mr. Selser to try. The factory made me a mouth handle and I did succeed in mastering three at the same time. This gave our scheduling a great break for now we could perform the same show seven days with Keith & I overlapping one day.

I left Cox in October 1962 to enter the Ironworkers Apprentice program and spent 37 years putting up big buildings with a short time out (two years) for a stint in the Army including a tour in SE Asia 66-67. I also completed my flight training and earned a Private, Commercial, Multi-Engine Rating, Instrument rating and became a Flight Instructor in my spare time.

My memories of the Flight Circle days are very pleasant and one thing has stood out all of my life. Both the Disneyland people and the L M Cox people were more like family than employers. Mr. Disney, as Lee mentioned, came through the park frequently and used first names with his folks. LeRoy Cox did the very same. It is easy to see why Lee, Bart, Keith, and all the other Cox folks stayed for so long.

Dave, thank you for allowing me to bring up these fond memories of friends and events of my youth. I hope you can use some of it on your site. I also hope that maybe some of the others that worked there contact you and bring up there memories.
George Molitor


The last photo for today of an empty Flight Circle is a recently acquired image that seems eerily appropriate.



Lee, you are greatly missed.



More Disneyland Flight Circle photos on my main website.

1950s Sunset Boulevard

1950's Hollywood is the setting for this vintage shot taken as the driver was cruising down Sunset Boulevard.

On the right is the Crossroads of the World Shopping Center:



…which still exists today, functioning mainly as office space.



Take a spin down Sunset Boulevard on my main website.