Easter 1972 - "A Vintage Disneyland Trip Report" or "Disneyland Through The Eyes Of A Child"

Today, we're going to be taking a little trip back in time.......back to Easter Vacation of 1972 to be exact (it wasn't called Spring Break back then.) In my previous "Vintage Trip Reports", I've been able to recall quite a bit of information from past trips to the park because I was in my teens or twenties, but since this is the furthest back I've ever gone with one of these, I won't be able to recall too many of the specifics from the trip. However, I do remember this visit to the park.....and here are some of the souvenirs I've saved from that special day, 39 years ago!

First up is the entertainment guide.



The Sound Castle was performing that week. I wonder if they sang Sugar Sugar? I'm assuming Kurt Russell wasn't performing with them. This would have been two years after they appeared on the "Disneyland Showtime" episode of the "Wonderful World of Color."



Here's a little extra information from 1972......Easter Sunday was on April 2nd that year. I'm not sure when during that week that we went to the park, but Country Bear Jamboree opened on March 4, 1972, so it had been open for only about a month. The Main St. Electrical Parade had not started yet...it's Disneyland premiere was just two months away (June 17, 1972).



This is the Guide Book from the visit. It's in mint condition....unlike the entertainment guide above.



Now we will take a look at the park through the eyes (and the lens) of a 10- year-old child. These photos were all taken by my older brother who had recently received his very first camera.

The obligatory Castle shot.......



Incidentally, the borders of these photos show that this roll of film was not developed until June of that year!







A bit of the Small World clock.....and a whole lot of sky!



Facing into the sun.......



The PeopleMover was only five years old here....bring it back, I say!



Enjoy this photo of the Monorail track (sans Monorail) over a Sub-less Submarine lagoon, because this is the clearest picture of the bunch.....but hey, my brother was 10 years old, so let's cut him some slack! I got my first camera when I was 10 and Disneyland was also one of my first photographic subjects. I will post those photos in the future.



Taken from the Swiss Family Treehouse.....



I believe this one was taken from the Hungry Bear Restaurant.



So, Country Bear Jamboree was brand-spanking new. I do remember seeing it for the very first time on that trip. I also remember that we did eat at the Hungry Bear Restaurant and that we went into Teddi Barra's Swingin' Arcade. The arcade used to have some unique games themed to Country Bear Jamboree and it's cast of characters. Among those machines in the arcade, there was one that dispensed postcards featuring Marc Davis' concept art for the show. The arcade at the exit to Pirates of the Caribbean had a similar machine with Marc Davis concept art for POTC, but it dispensed bundles of postcards and there were two sets total. The CBJ postcards were dispensed separately. Later, when I was in my teens, I was able to collect the whole set of postcards. I will post all of them in the future if anyone is interested. These are the two cards that my brother and I received from the machine that very day back in 1972.





Today, the old arcade space is occupied by the Pooh's Corner souvenir shop, but if you look up at the exterior of the building, you can still see a reminder of what used to be there.



And over at the Hungry Bear Restaurant, there is another reminder today of the gang that used to inhabit this corner of the park. If you ask me, I say EVICT POOH and bring back Country Bear Jamboree!





Last up for today, we have one final souvenir from that 1972 trip. It's a Disneyland Dial Guide. They sold these up until the 80's and I have several other versions of them, but this one is my favorite because it is the oldest one that I have AND because it includes my all-time favorite Disneyland attraction, the Carousel of Progress. (I also remember seeing that during this visit. We always went in the Carousel of Progress and Adventure Thru Inner Space since they were both super cool attractions and did not require a ticket for admission!)



The numbered dial that sticks out of the bottom of the map is cut off in these scans and once again, I have to blame my scanner for being too small! The directions are printed on the map, but basically you find an attraction on the back that you want to visit and turn the dial until that attraction's number is visible below the arrow at the bottom of the map. It will then show you where on the map that attraction is located as well as giving you a brief description of the attraction in the small window on the back. The Dial Guide measures approximately 9" x 11" and could be mailed.



Well, that's it for today. I hope everyone enjoyed this 1972 trip to Disneyland. Happy Easter!

Halloween, Popcorn & Westernland

Back in March, I did a post about Tokyo Disneyland's popcorn wagons and mentioned that a couple of them get decorated for Halloween. Let's take a look at those two locations and their seasonal decor.

First up, is this popcorn wagon in Westernland. Here we find Big Al from Country Bear Jamboree all decked out as the Wicked Witch. He even has a basket of apples on his arm!


Notice the wig and the small mole on his nose that help complete the costume.


Here's how he looks the rest of the year.


Next we have another Westernland popcorn wagon featuring Pecos Bill and his horse. Pecos Bill is wearing a Captain Hook hat and wig. His costume also includes a hook for his hand and a strap-on prosthetic chin.

His horse even gets to wear a coordinating Crocodile costume!

Here's how they look without their costumes.

Just in case I don't get another post up before Saturday, I want to wish everyone a very safe and happy Halloween!

Got Popcorn?

Popcorn is just as popular in Japan as it is here in the United States. The Tokyo Disney Resort however, has only a few popcorn stands that sell just plain popcorn. Most of the popcorn sold in their parks is flavored popcorn. Here is a partial list (from memory) of just some of the flavors: Cappuccino, Chocolate, Curry, Honey, Black Pepper, Strawberry, Sea Salt, and Soda (don't ask...I don't know what the Soda flavored one tastes like!) The next time I am there, I will have to make a complete list of the flavors, but this post isn't about the flavors, it's actually about the locations that sell the popcorn.

First up, is the Popping Pod, which kind of looks like it just "landed" in Tomorrowland.

Also in Tomorrowland is this moon rover-looking cart. I do wish the Disney Parks worldwide would stop sticking brown, beige, and copper colors in their Tomorrowlands. Am I the only one that feels that way? I actually don't hate these colors, I just don't like them in Tomorrowland!


This next cart is from Adventureland and has a Tiki bird (complete with chef's hat and scarf), turning the little crank mechanism.

These last two pics are both from Westernland. First we have Big Al turning the crank at one cart.....

....while at another cart, we have the politically incorrect version of Pecos Bill turning the crank with his foot, while smoking a cigarette! (Incidentally, upon it's video release, Disney digitally removed Pecos Bill's cigarette from all scenes in the film Melody Time.)

For Halloween, Tokyo Disneyland puts miniature costumes on Big Al, Pecos Bill and even his horse! I will include those pics in a future post.

*Post Update: I visited Tokyo just about a month after this post and the popcorn flavors that I had listed from memory was a complete list!

*Second Post Update: For the newer post showing the miniature figures wearing their Halloween costumes, click here: Halloween, Popcorn And Westernland.

Vintage Disneyland Matchbooks

Continuing today with a "giveaway" or "free" theme.....these matchbooks were free to Disneyland guests in the late 70's and early 80's. They were available at the various shops and restaurants, but were kept behind the counters and only given out upon request.



Each of today's photos show the front and back of a single matchbook. You can see in the two pics above, that Fantasyland and Tomorrowland had their own matchbooks, but notice below how Frontierland had to share a matchbook with Bear Country.

Adventureland and New Orleans Square were also combined into one......

.....but The Blue Bayou Restaurant had it's own.

I will have one more post after this one that covers matchbooks (no pun intended). I do plan to get back to posting about Tokyo Disneyland......I'm just taking a little break from it for a while.

Bunny, Bubbles and Beeeeulah!

Tokyo Disneyland's Country Bear Jamboree is located in Westernland. They have two separate theaters that are usually operating simultaneously, and Tokyo rotates ALL THREE versions of the show throughout the year. They will run the "Christmas Special/Jingle Bell Jamboree" for the holidays, then switch to the original version of the show after New Year's, and then switch again to "Vacation Hoedown" when summertime comes. I LOVE that they do this! Once Anaheim switched to the "Vacation Hoedown" version back in the mid 1980's, we never saw the original version again.....they would only switch back and forth between the Christmas and Vacation Hoedown versions and then ultimately, they gutted the building for a great big pile of Pooh. Sorry, pun intended.

"All the guys that turn me on, turn me down......"

"Jing-a'ling, Jing-a'ling, Jing-a'ling-a'ling......"

"The West Coast has the sunshine and the bears all get so tan....."

Okay, "Vacation Hoedown" was always my least favorite of the three shows. It just seemed to lack the heart of the other two, but it was still a hundred times better than Anaheim's Pooh ride. Shame on you Disney! Shame, shame, shame!