Star Tours 1987

Going into my own archives of photographs from a trip in 1987. The focus is on Star Tours, the motion simulator ride featuring the Star Wars universe and was drawing large crowds. Being of the right age, Star Wars was a great influence on me and a film series I watched and loved. Star Tours was a great fun ride with a story and set up that placed the guest into the universe. First up is the marquee sign from the long line.

Next up is a shot of C3PO working on a Star Cruiser. Unfortunately it was crowded and I managed to get a guest in the image...

Last image is of the fun droid working on the repair line. Originally one of the geese from America Sings that has been plucked and skinned.

Souvenir Friday- The Halloween Kid and the World of Rhode Montijo

Three years ago I purchased a fun kid's book at the San Diego Comic Con. The book is The Halloween Kid and the author and artist is Rhode Montijo. The book is a great story and take on Halloween with fantastic art. Rhode was selling the book and of course I had him sign the book for me.

This year at Comic Con, Rhode was selling fantastic water color sketches of various pumpkin head jack o'lanterns including this one of a magician performing card tricks. I now have this framed and hanging in my Halloween room.

If these items have intrigued you, head over to Rhode Montijo for more artwork from this fantastic artist.

Busch Gardens Van Nuys California 1968

In Van Nuys during the 1960s and 1970s was a fun theme park located next to a large brewery. The main draw for kids was a boat ride, monorail and lots of gorgeous tropical birds. The main draw for adults was free beer. Busch Gardens was owned and operated by the Anheuser-Busch company adjacent to the large Los Angeles brewery. In the late 1960s the main draw was a lovely Jungle Cruise style boat ride with the jungle filled with hundreds of tropical birds. In addition there was a neat monorail that toured the brewery. Although a strong tourist draw, images of the park are not that common. First up is a view of the winding river and scenic waterfalls of the cruise.

The second image shows the lovely tropical birds and flamingos which were one of the main draws.

Final image shows a close up of the birds. I can relate to the kid being both fascinated and scared about the birds.

In the mid 1970s more rides and attractions were added. Busch Gardens closed as a theme park in 1977, re-opening as a bird sanctuary and was closed in 1979 a victim of expansion of the brewery. The birds were sent to the LA Zoo and Busch Gardens in Florida and Virginia. Today one can see some of the monorail tracks at the brewery but nothing else of this once verdant and tropical garden theme park.

1975 Pirates and Autopia

The photographer did not pay attention to the warning of not to take photographs with their flash during this trip in 1975. First image is a you are there on the flat boat floating past the town. The scene of course is of everyone's favorite red head and take a wench for a bride.

The next image is much more clear and features my second favorite drunk pirate. This pirate is wallowing in the slop and mud with the pigs. My favorite drunk pirate is the one playing with the kitties.

Last image is of a nice yellow Autopia car. I believe this is the Fantasyland Autopia.

Scenic Knott Lake at Knott's Berry Farm

Once upon a time at Knott's Berry Farm, Walter Knott purchased an alkali field next to his farm. The field had become the Buena Park dump, so Walter bulldozed all the trash into a large pile and created a scenic lake. To further enhance the lake, scenic elements were added to the lake. The first view shows a scenic canoe, small structure and a walkway around the lake. In the background is a train car passing by.

The second image shows the water sluice put into place for the gold panning attraction. In the background is the walkway through the mine to get to the gold panning area.

Frank and Mom Visiting Knott's Berry Farm

Two nice black and white snapshots featuring an early Knott's Berry Farm. The page of the photo album was marked Frank and Mom Visit Knott's Berry Farm on Vacation. The first image is a great portrait of old engine 41 Red Cliff in all its glory.

The next image is of Whiskey Bill and Handsome Brady at the Gold Trail hotel. This is the classic Knott's Berry Farm visitor photo and mom appears enamored with Handsome Brady.

Souvenir Friday- The Devil In Popular Culture

Though not necessarily Halloween souvenirs, the devil does make it on to many items of popular culture. Some products and schools that feature a devil logo include Pluto Water, Red Devil paint, Deviled Ham, Duke University Arizona State University and more. Here are some souvenirs I have picked up that feature old Mr. Satan. First up is a pennant from Hell's Half Acre located in Wyoming featuring the rock formations and a full figured Mr. Beelzebub.

Next up are two license plates. The first is for a High School with a nice demon head for their mascot, the Springer Red Devil.

Next is a license plate from Northwestern State College located in Natchitoches, Louisiana featuring their logo for their athletics, the Demons.

Under the Sea- Submarine Voyage 1966

The Submarine Voyage was an E Ticket attraction and one of the marquee rides at Disneyland during the 1960s. Similar submarines were in the news due to the cold war and the game of chess between the United States and Russia. For many kids riding the submarines was real and the submarines actually dived deep under water. For Disneyland historians, images of the set design underwater are always interesting. Unfortunately these images are in black and white but they still show some of the great fish and coral seen during the attraction.

David and Douglas on the Flying Saucers Disneyland 1966

Two lucky boys at a birthday celebration at Disneyland went on the Flying Saucers attraction in 1966. David, the birthday boy, is waiting for the ride to start. Take a look at the anticipation on all the riders.

His friend Douglas is on the attraction leaning hard to move the saucer. The other riders are also really into the ride.

Retlaw On Main Street and Tomorrowland

Walt Disney loved trains all of his life. From a childhood spent in Marceline where he watched and listened to trains, to his young teens when he worked as a news butcher to middle age when he found a renewed passion and constructed a backyard steam railroad at his house. When building Disneyland, Walt kept ownership of the trains creating a holding company named Retlaw (that is Walter spelled backwards.) When the Monorail was built, Retlaw owned the Monorail as well since it was a train of the future. The first image is the Main Street Station in all it's glory. The station was owned and operated by Retlaw.

Next up is the Submarine Voyage with a great shot of the Submarine and also the Monorail track owned by Retlaw.

2 Views of Matterhorn in Black and White

Two nice views of the Matterhorn in black and white. Both images are from 1966 and feature some new changes to Disneyland and one features an attraction soon to be gone. The first image shows the Matterhorn from the hub. In the foreground is the Monsanto Home of the Future. 1966 would be the last year for this attraction. On the right hand side is the nice court of honor flags which was the entrance to Tomorrowland. I like the umbrella's in the hub to provide some shade.

The second image is of the Matterhorn from the Tomorrowland side. On the right hand side is the Monorail entrance and on the left hand side is the Yacht bar. Overhead is the Skyway with the new square buckets in place of the round buckets.

Souvenir Friday- Halloween Souvenirs

We are now in the haunting month of October so it is time to feature my favorite holiday- Halloween. Like many others, vintage Halloween items and graphics are a favorite of mine. The first item is a cloth trick or treat bag with some wild graphics. The ghost looks like it is a ghost giraffe, and the two humans are very scared with one literally jumping over the other person.

Next up is a paper decoration that is still in the original bag. The cat is a common paper decoration and appears in many sizes. This one is a smaller size and the header card has wonderful graphics.

King Louie and Aunt Jemima Oh My!

King Louie is one of the characters that comes out every once in a while. And when he is out, he is always a fun character to spot and to get your photo. This time it appears the King was by the Haunted Mansion and there is a crowd ready for their close up with the King.

The second image today is from the Aunt Jemima restaurant located in Frontierland. In the background is the Mark Twain and also Walt's Anniversary Present to Lilian, the large petrified tree. Some interesting guests are also in the background.

Costumed Characters at Two Parks

Two photographs from two different parks featuring costumed characters. The first image is from Disneyland where there are many costumed characters running around. These characters are two of my favorites, two-thirds of the three little pigs. It appears they are truly running around the park. I like the reaction of the blonde to seeing a walking pig.

The second image is of Frankenstein at Universal Studios. Frankie is a character that brings to mind Halloween and October. Once again another interesting reaction captured on film by a guest to a costumed characters.

Goofy and Souvenirs

Two images of cast members at Disneyland. The first image is a badly composed photograph with Goofy and children. The kids are shown, but poor Goofy has his head cut off. The guest in the upper right background is having lots of fun.

The second image makes up for the bad composition of the first, the second image is a cast member at one of the news stands poses with the kids. Of course my eyes are drawn to the shelves filled with the Marty Sklar Disneyland book, Pirates of the Caribbean guidebook, 1968 wall map, postcards, coloring books, and souvenir slides. Also the cast member is wearing one of the gray colored name tags at her throat.

Natives of Two Different Worlds at Disneyland

Two snapshots of natives as seen from two different attractions. First image shows the natives doing a war dance at their village on the Jungle River Cruise. I have heard several jokes about this, the most common being the natives are dancing the Hokey Pokey, the natives are singing Wimoweh (The Lion Sleep's Tonight) or that someone had locked the bathroom.

Next up is a picture of the natives found at the Submarine Voyage. Although a lovely shot of the coral, I believe the photographer was trying to capture a picture of the giant sea bass swimming by.

Souvenir Friday- you're on stage at Disneyland training name tag

In 1961, the University of Disneyland developed and delivered a training with the title you're on stage at Disneyland. The training reinforced the stage presence and show for which Disneyland is famous. For those who want to read the training, I posted it several years ago as SOP you're on stage at Disneyland. This is a name tag worn either by a participant or one of the trainers. The graphic is the same as for the training booklet.

Burning and Nature in Frontierland 1967

On August 3, 1967 (when Disneyland was open from 9 AM to 12 AM and the high was 82 degrees and the low was 66 degrees) the photographer spent some time in Frontierland. First up was a trip on the Mark Twain and a look at the burning settler's cabin with the dead settler. Now the cabin has been renovated and leased out to the river boat baron Mike Fink. Riverfront beach property is very expensive now.

Next up was a trip on a Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland. First up is a view of battling elk. Note the other elk are ignoring the two boys as they always wrestle each other at family gatherings.

Last image for today is of the painted pots and geyser seen in the living desert. As a kid, I was always amazed at how the train engineer could time the trip so each time the train passed the geyser, the geyser was shooting water. Now I know better.

African Veldt and Trapped Safari 1969

The Jungle River Cruise has fun vignettes featuring animals and sometimes humans interacting. The first image is of the African Veldt featuring a gathering of animals on the grasslands. Most guests now think of the Lion King when they see this vignette.

Next up is the trapped safari which just happens to be the next scene on the attraction. This vignette always makes me chuckle even though I have seen it hundreds of times.

Posing at Knott's Berry Farm

Two more snap shots of a young family posing at Knott's Berry Farm. First up is a shot taken by the cemetery of Mom and a son and daughter. I am trying to place the white house in the background and what was in the house...

The next image is posed on the rock work as part of the Calico Mine Train ride. I believe this is the entire family.