Many have noted how off-model and scary looking the original Disneyland costumes were for the animated characters. Shot #1 shows where they came from: The Ice Capades. For opening day, these were the costumes seen in the park and on TV sets all across the country. Yes...somewhat unsettling!





This undated shot shows some progress (the slats above the mouth are gone), but Minnie still looks extremely freakish!



By 1960, even more improvement is visible, despite the fact that Minnie appears to have had an overly agressive eye-brow lift!



This February 1962 shot of Mickey is really odd; looks like the California heat may have melted the poor guy’s face:



Minnie looks more like she stepped out of Munchkinland in this 1962 photo:



Fast forward to today, with the characters being able to blink (well, in Florida at least) and you can see just how far they have come.



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

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We leave the environs of the Disneyland Hotel and finally enter the park today, starting with a shot of Mickey & Minnnie posing with a guest in Town Square. This series of photos was taken 2 months before my very first visit to Disneyland, and can you believe Minnie had the nerve to wear the same dress in her photo with me? Today, it is rare that one could have a photo taken in the park with both Mickey and Minnie; typically they pose separately. Meanwhile, over in Tomorrowland, guests have a field day shooting all of the characters, starting off with the Three Little Pigs.



Even Goofy gets a little lovin’ from the ladies (note the vintage cameras; Kodak Instamatics perhaps?). Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox can be seen on the left.



Diggin’ the mod stylings of the “new” Tomorrowland on the façade of the America the Beautiful building.



Goofy eventually makes his way over to the Carousel of Progress, with Rolly Crump’s mod ticket booth in the background.



Goofy and Pluto on stage; anybody care to guess who the entertainment is in the background?



See more vintage & current Tomorrowland photos at my regular website. “Nightmare Before Christmas” fans—this Tim Burton classic is now available on Blu-ray, and also features a way cool tour of the Haunted Mansion (NBC version). Available at Amazon.com.

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It was definitely the end of an era last Saturday with the passing of Hawaiian Legend Don Ho. When I went to Hawaii over a year ago, seeing the Don Ho show in Waikiki was on the top of the list of things to do. Although he looked frail, once he started singing, the years rolled back and the legend was young again. So, in honor of Don, today’s post is “Hawaiian” Themed (please note the use of quotes). First up are pictures from Disney World, Summer 1978, showing the Polynesian Village Resort, as well as the Luau at Luau Cove (showing Minnie shaking her grass skirt).

For more Tiki pictures, visit my regular website.

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I had a request from a reader to show the development of some of the costumed characters. Although some of these are repeats, I thought I’d post them anyway as it is interesting to see how their look changed over the years. The first two shots are Minnie from 1960 (Town Square & Tomorrowland). She looks a little scary with her out-of-proportion large head, beady eyes, and painted on eyebrows. And besides that, turquoise just doesn’t seem to be her color.



Jump forward to my 1970 photo of me with Mickey & Minnie and you’ll notice that she has been softened somewhat; “real” lashes, rounder eyes, a more proportional body, and an entire dress that covers her figure, not just a skirt.

By 1977 she is wearing a hat and a snazzy pollka-dot dress, but the mask itself is about the same.



Flash forward to today and Minnie’s eyelashes have been plasticized again and her widow’s peak has been raised. On top of that, she’s a hot little dancer now!



And in case you haven’t noticed, Spring has arrived at Disneyland, and it looks mighty purty.





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

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For me, the Disneyland Holy Grail was finding the negatives for my first trip to Disneyland on December 27, 1970. Although I couldn’t believe we only took 5 pictures that day, it was still cool to see the shots. The first one is from the entrance area, I was able to pose with Mickey & Minnie. How often does that happen anymore without waiting an hour or more?!? Picture two is me with my cousins near “Small World” with one of the Three Little Pigs.

I still remember riding the Mark Twain and seeing the Burning Cabin; this shot is with my brother.



My grandmother & cousins sitting by the castle.




Anybody who had an early Polaroid camera remembers having to find a trashcan to time the developing of the pictures, tear off the paper, throw it away, and then eventually “sealing” the photo with the protective coating stick. What a pain. Here are my brothers doing just that near the Castle. I am hoping they can find the pictures they took!


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

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