Today is a one-shot batch; no long, drawn out week long series...just one group and it's over! The C.K. Holliday is the star of this photo; I always get excited when I am entering the park in the morning and see a train at the station. It's such a great feeling to think I might be able to take the first Grand Circle Tour of the day!

Zooming in, you can see that the souvenir books at the newstand were a mere 50¢!



In this somewhat-dark image, I'm not quite sure what the photographer was attempting to capture, other than an assortment of tables at The Plaza Inn. Note the beautiful ruby glass hurricane lamps. Can you imagine how long those would last on a table today?



Here's a better look at one of those Plaza Inn lamps; of course, it would be difficult to ignore the lady in the background wearing the hot pink jacket.



Notice how she matches the pink in this ornate bench perfectly? Yes, she looks more at home here in Fantasyland at Merlin's Magic Shop than at the Plaza Inn.



Naturally I have to zoom into that shop window for you! See anything you'd like to buy?



Today, this store is The Heraldry Shop. I think I like the merchandise from the 1960's much better!





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The color in this batch isn't the greatest, but they still capture some fun vintage flavor. Obviously, being the anal-retentive person that I am, I have to start your journey at the beginning. The entrance looks fairly empty; something you rarely see today. I don't even think I've ever attempted a shot like this, since it would most likely be littered with people and strollers.

Once on the other side of the tunnel, business seems to be picking up! I love looking at the details in this one; the combine (which has recently been restored), the fanciful ticket booth, the guests looking at their park map (trying to figure out what to see first—always such an exciting time!), and the White Wing on the left, making sure that the park is sparkling clean.



Over at the Main Street Cinema, Blanche Sweet is entertaining the audiences:



For those of you who've never heard of this Silent Screen Queen, here's a photo of Miss Sweet:



Which one will become the centerpiece for dinner tonight?



I don't know which to comment on first; the hats or the expressions.



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5 years. Hardly seems possible. What an amazing journey it has been. Lots of surprises and fun in today's post, beginning with this first image which is what I would call a Holy Grail shot. Previous to me recently acquiring it, there was only one known photo of Steve Martin working at Disneyland. This 1957 photo of him posing with two young ladies serendipitously fell into my lap, just like the 1965 Knott's Berry Farm shots (look it up, folks; serendipity is more than just a tasty restaurant!).



Just like Steve Martin, George “Moe” Collins began his career at Disneyland as a guidebook salesman back in the park’s early years, riding his bike to the park down Katella Avenue, which was only a 2 lane street at the time. He would return to Disney some 20 years later, working as a staff writer at WED Imagineering, hired by and working for Marty Sklar. Here are Moe's comments on this photo:

The lyrics from 'Bookends" by Simon and Garfunkel, come drifting back. "Long ago, I have a photograph…preserve our memories…"

In the summer of 1956, I had the good fortune to become a guidebook salesman at a place where most kids in America would have loved to work. Still star struck in the wonder of Davy Crockett, and The Mickey Mouse Club, it was like stepping back in time and onto a stage. I didn't know anything about sales, or money matters for that manner, but I jumped at the chance to do anything that Disneyland would offer. I would have scooped up the expended horse fuel behind the trolley if there had been an opening.

I was so excited about getting the job that I could hardly wait to ride my bike home and tell my family and friends, who lived on Dewey Drive in Garden Grove. One of those Dewey Drive friends was a boy who seemed to be even more excited about my "triumph" and shyly asked if I could possibly help him get a job doing the same thing. Bingo. A Star Was Born. Not only did he become a top guidebook salesman, he eventually became a Disney Legend and one of America's greatest entertainment treasures......Steve Martin.

On the weekends and during summer vacation and holidays, we would ride our bikes to the park down Katella Avenue…a two lane street then…and go to wardrobe where they dressed us in 1890's garb, replete with candy striped shirts and a top hat. We looked and felt the part,.and we appreciated that humble beginning. We still do to this very day, sharing memories and pictures of those halcyon days.

Many years later, I would become a staff writer at Disney's Imagineering division....the master planners of Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and every Disney theme park throughout the world. Although I stayed only 6 years, I am still brushing pixie dust off my shoulders. Steve still does things from time to time for Disney and he, too, never forgets. He remembered my small role in helping him get his first job, and on December 2, 2007, I was thrilled, and deeply moved, to be his guest at The Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, honoring Steve for his exemplary lifetime achievements in the performing arts. Nice going, Steve, and thanks for the memories.


Before snagging this great shot, I had one "close call" with this photo:



Zooming in, you can see the guidebook salesman…



Moe shared Steve's comments:

“Well, this to me is an amazing photo. It’s not me, but only one of two photos I’ve seen of the guidebook salesboys, and the ONLY one I’ve seen of a kid in operation inside the gate. I was beginning to doubt our existence! This kid is standing on the exact spot that I used to work, right in front of the west newsstand, taken from the other view that was in the Robbins Barstow film that I accidentally appeared in at the Main Gate. This boy is older than I would have been and I don’t recognize him. He looks about 14-15; I left by the time I was 13, maybe 12 to go work as a trick roper in Frontierland. And how shocking that his sleeves are rolled up!

He is wearing a straw hat. I wore a felt top hat (because I loved magic) until they made us wear a straw hat, but I loved the straw hat too. The outfit he is wearing is perfect. I may have even worn that vest. It’s so familiar I can smell it. His left pocket is bulging because it’s full of coins from guide book sales. We never wore pins because we worked for a leasee.

When I first started, we worked outside the main gate and worked the crowd as they approached the ticket booth, then we were moved inside because, I was told, it was too tacky to have the first thing the guests see was boys hawking things.”

Martin's next Disneyland gig was selling souvenir spinning lassos in Frontierland, followed by demonstrating and selling packaged magic tricks and joke novelties at the old Merlin's Magic Shop in Fantasyland, where he became an accomplished magician. He learned to juggle from Disneyland Court Jester, Christopher Fair, and modeled his trademark, "Well, excuuuuuse me," phrase on the exasperated outbursts of a woman he worked with.

Moe also graciously shared this image from his personal collection, circa 1956, of a Golden Horseshoe show in progress:



From Moe:

I took this photo inside the Golden Horseshoe with an old Brownie Hawkeye camera!   Not exactly digital quality, lol! This was sometime late 1956, when Steve and I were selling guidebooks. Notice the kid in foreground balcony with his legs through the slats, and the Proscenium sign of "Sue" aying homage to Slew Foot Sue, one of Wally Boag's skit characters.

From Holy Grail to Prizes! That's right! I am awarding prizes today in honor of my 5 Year Anniversary. First place winner receives a set of 6 50th Anniversary Disneyland plates, still in their original boxes with COA's. Sorry, only continental USA for the 1st prize.

















2nd & 3rd place winners will receive an 8x10 photo of ANY photo on my website that I personally shot, from 2004 to present day. That's right! A high quality lab print suitable for framing!

Here's what you need to do, dear readers (after 5 years, you are definitely dear to me!): leave a comment on this post between now and Monday, June 6, 2011, noon (PST), and I will do a random drawing for the top 3 prizes. Okay all you blog lurkers (I know you're out there!), time to start leaving some comments!

Thanks for following me for 5 years and all of the great interactions I've had as a result of this blog. Stay tuned for more!

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Time to hop aboard the magical Disneyland Hotel Tram and take a trip back in time to September 1959. You won’t see dad in any of these photos; he's busy snapping away these colorful Technicolor slides for your enjoyment in 2010. Can you believe that peeling paint? That would surely stir up some controversy over on the MiceAge chat boards...and under Walt's watch, too!

Look at those frowns! We shouldn't judge though; how happy would you be if you were steps away from entering the Happiest Place on Earth and you had to stop to pose for some lousy pictures?



Check out those virgin ticket books in the little tykes' hands...if only I could grab a few of those.



The family finally made it through the turnstiles, but dad isn’t ready to let his boys have any fun yet...just one more picture, kids! They can't wait to feel like cattle by riding the cattle cars of the Disneyland Railroad.



How about another virgin ticket-book closeup?



See more current and vintage Disneyland photos at my regular website.

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Recently, I purchased a small batch of photos from July 1961; naturally, not too long after that, the negatives also went up for grabs. And, naturally, I went for those too. Some of you might wonder why I would bother buying the negs after I’d already gotten the photos themselves. Hopefully this post will show why and also give you a little glimpse of what goes into creating each blog entry. First up is the photo itself. What about this photo made me interested enough to collect it in the first place? Mainly the Mickey Figure; it’s an early incarnation of Mickey before he became the slick character that he is today. The early figures that walked around the park were often a little more on the scary/crazy side and not quite as accurate as the ones guests see today. The location of the photo is the second reason; just dig that Art of Animation attraction poster on the Monorail pylon! Third reason: the RETLAW Combine Car in the background. Currently in the process of being restored, photos of the Combine are somewhat rare. As you’ll note, the quality of this photo isn’t too bad...but at Daveland, I believe there’s always room for improvement!

Here’s an unretouched view of the negative scan for the same photo; scratched, somewhat faded/color shifted...not real pretty!



With a little help from Photoshop (and some knowledge gleaned from years of experience) this negative gleams like new! Having the negative also gives more image area as well; typically photo prints will cut out about 5% of the image area that was actually shot.



Because of the clarity that I can pick up from a negative, closeup detail shots are now possible, showing little things that you might not notice from just scanning a regular vintage photo print. F’rinstance...the ticket book in the little girl’s hand:



The banner hung above the underpass as well as the writing on the combine and the ticketbooth at right:



Hope you’ve enjoyed this sneak-peak of what goes on behind-the-scenes before these photos reach your home! See more vintage and current entrance photos at my website.

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These shots are from October 1955, exactly 53 years ago from now. It was either a crisp Autumn day or our lead gal in the photos liked to dress in layers. Here she is at the front entrance. The huge box of Toilet Paper is a nice "welcome mat" to our journey into the Kingdom, don't you think? Back in the day, the park actually was closed on Mondays. In detail shot #2, you can see 2 of the bored conductors carrying on a conversation. Where is everybody?!?





It’s about 3pm, and only a handful of guests are at the park. The conductors are still chatting it up in this photo:



Our photographer has crossed under the Main Street Train Station and entered Town Square. It appears that there might be more cast members on this day than there are guests.



See more vintage & current entrance photos at my regular website.

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October 1969, and Downtown Disney/DCA is not even a glimmer in anyone’s mind. A vast asphalt paradise awaits Disneyand guests on the Disneyland Tram as they leave the comfort of their classic car for a day in the park. Once at the entrance, guests are greeted by the yellow Monorail as well as some fun attraction posters.



Inside the park, guests can lose their cares at the INA Carefree Corner on Main Street with Song of the South’s Brer Bear:



This shot shows the majestic Matterhorn with a glimpse of the "new" Tomorrowland...and what appears to be a dress of the future on that young blonde walking our way!



The Rocket Jets & PeopleMover are humming along, adding movement and fun to Tomorrowland...exactly in the location they belong.



HUUUGE shout out to all the comments from readers yesterday who helped identify the souvenir Jungle Cruise boat (especially Matterhorn!). I really appreciate the commentary on here, as it makes me feel that my efforts here are not lost. Many thanks! See more vintage & current Disneyland photos at my regular website.

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This March 1964 shot of the Disneyland Hotel Tram also shows a 2-story structure that is also in this 2nd slide (April 1966). When I first saw this shot, I wrote it off as some other non-Disneyland building.



For more vintage & current Disneyland Indian Village photos, visit my regular website.

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Here are two shots from a family’s trip to Disneyland on June 15, 1959. Love the caption on the first one: “We were all fresh as daisies here.” This especially applies to the little girl in the crisp white dress, standing in front of an attraction poster for Alice (most likely her favorite character) that is located (I believe) in Tomorrowland.



For more vintage & current Disneyland photos, visit my regular website.

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