More Vintage Disneyland Ads & "Loose Ends" from Previous Posts (Knott's & Magic Mt., Too!) - Part 2

It's time for some more "loose ends"!  Loose ends are items relating to subjects, which I have already posted about in the past.

First up, is this "Pinocchio" record from my childhood.  I had originally thought about including this in my Walt Disney's Pinocchio "mega post" from last year.  However, I chose not to at the time, just because it wasn't "Disney's" version of Pinocchio.  I have since changed my mind, and it has now been added to that post.  The company that made this was "Cricket Records."  We had quite a few other children's records from this same company.  The record sleeve not only includes their logo/mascot in the upper left corner, but they were also able to incorporate him into the artwork, as "Jiminy Cricket."  I tried doing a search for the artist, Evon Hartmann, but nothing came up.

Next, we have this 1981 Disneyland ad, which was attempting to recruit people for jobs at the park.  "Immediate openings" were available.  This is the same year that I was hired for the park's Christmas parade.  The ad has now been added to my "I Was A Teenage Christmas Tree at Disneyland" post.

This 1979 ad was for the now defunct May Co. department stores.  A robot "inspired by" V.I.N.CENT from the Disney film, "The Black Hole," was going to be appearing at select May Co. locations.

I wish the text in the middle of the ad was a little more legible, but the dark background makes it difficult to read.  I'm going to attempt to transcribe the text:  "You could win this (one?) for your own.  V.I.N.CENT (Vital Information Necessary Central) is the star of the Walt Disney Productions science-fiction thriller "The Black Hole," opening December 21st at a theater (near you?) This limited edition V.I.N.CENT clone valued at $1,000, stands 3 feet high, not including the base.  He plays games, tells jokes, answers true, false, and multiple choice questions, and even plays cassette tapes.  And he could become a member of your family.  Just fill out the coupon in this ad, and bring it to the Children's Department of the May Company near you.  Then bring the kids to meet our V.I.N.CENT clone in person at the following stores."

I wonder who won this $1,000 "clone" of V.I.N.CENT, and if they still own it, today?  This ad has now been added to my Disney's "The Black Hole" (Mega Post!) post.

In November of 1984, some of the original Mouseketeers were appearing at Disneyland, as part of a month-long celebration for Mickey Mouse's birthday.  Pictured in the then-current publicity photo are, Bobby Burgess, Sherry Alberoni, Lonnie Burr, Sharon Baird, Cubby O'Brien, Tommy Cole, Don Grady, Darlene Gillespie, and Bonnie Lynn Fields.  I have now added this to my Mickey's Month at Disneyland post, where you can see the 1983 version of that free "Mouscercise" headband.  That year, the headbands were given to everyone entering the park.  One year later, they were apparently only given to children 12 and under.

I meant to include this Los Angeles Times review of Disneyland's Light Magic, in my "What Were They Thinking - Light Magic at Disneyland" post, from 2017.  When I originally read this unfavorable review, 27 years ago, I felt that my personal thoughts on the monstrosity that replaced the Main Street Electrical Parade, had been completely validated.  I didn't crop out the movie listings below the article, because I thought it might be interesting to see some of the films that were being released at that time.

This image of a Canon® shopping bag has now been added to my "Disney's Sam the Eagle & the 1984 Olympic Games" post.  The bag was given to me at the Consumers store, where I bought my very first 35 mm camera, back in 1985.  The Olympics were over, but the store was still using these themed merchandise bags for purchases of Canon products.

I posted this photo of the camera previously, along with the very first Disneyland photos I ever took with it.

And speaking of the Olympics....the 1984 Winter Games had been held in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia.  That summer, Six Flags Magic Mountain opened their new "Sarajevo Bobsled" ride.  This advertisement and the following article, appeared in a Los Angeles Times advertising supplement.

I rode the Sarajevo Bobsled the summer that it debuted.  I remember it being a fun ride, but I was surprised that it was gone by the next time I visited the park.  It only lasted two summer seasons, and was then dismantled and moved to Six Flags Over Texas, where it opened as "Avalanche Bobsled."  It is still standing today, but now operates under the name "La Vibora" (The Viper).

For a comparison of what Knott's was doing that same summer of '84, here''s an advertisement and article from the same Los Angeles Times summer supplement.  Knott's was beating Disney to the punch, by unveiling their new teenage nightclub, "Studio K," one full year before Disney opened "Videopolis."  And Lucy's line about how "People can meet us in person......" was referring to the fact that the Charlie Brown and Lucy "walk-around" characters were making their debut that summer of '84.  When Camp Snoopy opened the previous summer, Snoopy was the only costumed Peanuts character at Knott's.

And Knott's was introducing the 8th edition of their summer ice spectacular, "Snoopy's Quest For The Gold," starring Olympic Silver Medalist, Dianne de Leeuw.

This ad from the summer 1984 issue of Vacationland magazine, depicts Snoopy dressed in athletic wear and donning three "Olympic" medals.  However, the Olympic themed ice show is not mentioned.

I've recently come across additional issues of the Knott's Berry Farm employee newsletter, The Berry Vine, from 1983.  These are related to Camp Snoopy, but are all dated prior to the opening of the new area.  These have now been added to my "Camp Snoopy - 40th Anniversary (Mega Post!)",  from June of 2023.

This first one is dated February 18, 1983.  The cover article is about the official press release by Knott's, announcing the addition of Camp Snoopy to the park.  It mentions how Snoopy had already been at Knott's since May of 1982, but only on a trial basis.  Knott's was now entering into a long-term contract with Snoopy's creator, Charles M. Schulz.

This next issue is dated March 11, 1983 and is about the construction of Camp Snoopy's scale model.  The model was on display just inside the park entrance, during the construction of Camp Snoopy.  It was built by Rick Bastrup and Richard Ferrin, of R & R Creative Amusement Design Inc.  Richard Ferrin had previously worked for Disney, and we recently saw a photo of him performing as a clown, in the 1981 version of Disneyland's Fantasy On Parade.

This cover article from May 20, 1983, is about the new "Grizzly Creek Lodge" restaurant in Camp Snoopy, and it's menu items.

There was an article in that same issue, about the filming of the first Camp Snoopy television commercial.  I posted the commercial in my Camp Snoopy post from last year.  The plot revolves around a family of four.  The kids dream about going to Camp Snoopy before it ever opens.  They rudely awaken their parents, to tell them about the "trip" they took to Knott's and all the things they did.  The dad tells them that they are seriously mental, and that there is no way that they could have visited Camp Snoopy, since it hasn't even opened yet.  The mom is played by Lucy Lee Flippin, who played Eliza Jane Wilder, the school teacher on "Little House On The Prairie," from 1979-1982.

I pointed this out in my original Campy Snoopy post, and it's also mentioned in the article....the commercial was filmed before construction on Camp Snoopy was completed.  For the shot of the "Cordelia K." steamboat (pictured above), the boat was lifted by a crane, and placed on the pond next to Jungle Island.  Even though the boat was originally intended to be relocated from the Knott's Lagoon area to Camp Snoopy (along with a new boat, the "Walter K."), she never made the move.  I have always wondered what happened to that plan.

I hope everyone enjoyed these additional "loose ends"!

 

Disney's Sam the Eagle & the 1984 Olympics (**** Updated 2024****)

For this Fourth of July, let's go back to the summer of 1984, when the Olympic Games were being held in Los Angeles, California.

Actually, let's first go back four years earlier, to when the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee was deciding which local animation studio would get to design the Olympic mascot. Ultimately, the committee chose Disney. The following article appeared in the Winter '82/'83 issue of Disney News Magazine.

Disney artist, Bob Moore came up with the final design of Sam the Eagle. He had worked on such films as Fantasia, Dumbo and Bambi. He also created the Orange Bird mascot for the Florida Citrus Commission in 1971 and co-designed the postage stamp honoring Walt Disney in 1968.

Sam the Eagle made his public debut, the day after the closing ceremonies of the 1980 Olympics.

As the 1984 Olympics got closer, he began appearing on a wide variety of merchandise. Below is just a small sampling of items.

Postcards:

Picture frames:

Figurines:

Ceramic Mugs:

Collector's Plates:

Plush toys:

Magnets:

Note cards:

Stickers:

Key Chains:

Cloisonné Pins:

Sam even appeared on corporate promotional items such as McDonald's, "When The U.S. Wins, You Win" contest.

Sam also starred in his own animated Japanese TV show, "Sam The Olympic Eagle" (The Disney Studios were not involved in the production).

The series ran for one year with a total of 51 episodes being produced (two episodes, per half-hour show). Today, the show is super hard to find, but two of the episodes are available on YouTube. Both of those episodes can be viewed here:





Some people reportedly confused "Sam the Olympic Eagle," with Marc Davis' "Eagle Sam," the audio-animatronic host of Disneyland's "America Sings" attraction. Since both are anthropomorphic versions of bald eagles, who both wear red, white and blue top hats, have the same name and were both designed by the same studio, it's kind of easy to see how that mistake could have been made.

Los Angeles has been chosen to host the 2028 Summer Olympic Games. Unfortunately, Sam cannot be used again as the mascot, since the International Olympic Committee prohibits the use of any Olympic mascot, past the end of the calendar year in which the Olympic games were held. In fact, any promotional materials, costumes, unsold merchandise, etc., bearing the image of an Olympic mascot, are supposed to be destroyed at the end of the calendar year.

Does this mean that the Sam costume below does not still exist? It seems like it should have been placed into a museum somewhere. And that makes me ask the question, of why there isn't an Olympic museum in Los Angeles? After all, Los Angeles was the location of two Summer Olympic Games (1932 and 1984). Squaw Valley (in California) has a museum to commemorate their hosting of the the 1960 Winter Olympics, so why doesn't Los Angeles have something similar?

In anticipation of the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Disneyland hosted "Olympic Spirit Weekends." To read more about this event, you can click here for my post from last year: Olympic Spirit Weekends at Disneyland

Happy Fourth of July, everyone!


****Post Update (July 24, 2019)****

Some of the souvenirs for the 1984 Olympics used the "Star In Motion" logo on them, instead of "Sam the Olympic Eagle." And in some cases, both were used (like on the ceramic picture frame shown earlier in this post). The "Star in Motion" logo was created by graphic designer, Robert Miles Runyan.

This particular pinback button, was a very common Olympic souvenir that year. Not only is the "Star In Motion" logo included on it, but it also uses the color scheme used at the various Olympic venues. There were other versions of the button available, with "Welcome" printed in different languages. This one is the Spanish version which reads, "Bienvenidos."

Here is another pinback button. This one shows the Olympic torch (multiplied by three) and the dates of the events.

Each of these large-size postcards uses the image of an "athlete," competing in a different Olympic event.

This first one shows a man throwing a javelin, superimposed over the flags of many nations:

This one shows a man throwing a discus, superimposed over a nighttime view of Downtown Los Angeles:

And this last one shows a runner, superimposed over a view of Downtown Los Angeles at sunset.

I mentioned the color scheme that was used at the various Olympic venues. Deborah Sussman is the artist who came up with the designs and color choices. The photo below, shows the entrance to the Los Angeles Colosseum, which is where the Track and Field events were held (and also the Olympic's opening and closing ceremonies).

This was the entrance to the Archery events, which were held at El Dorado Park in Long Beach.

Archery was the only 1984 Olympic event that I attended. Here is the front and back of my ticket, dated August 11th.

I even saved the parking ticket/receipt.

The 1984 Olympics had many corporate sponsors, with each one getting to claim that their product was the official airlines, car, film, soft drink, etc., of the Olympics. I saved this M&M's wrapper, which included the proclamation that it was the "Official Snack Food of the 1984 Olympic Games."

The candy would have expired in May of 1985....if I hadn't eaten it!

There was an "Official Music of the XXIII Olympiad" record album, which included the traditional "Bugler's Dream" (composed by Leo Arnaud in 1958, and first used for the Olympics in 1964), as well as John Williams' "Olympic Fanfare and Theme," which incorporates "Bugler's Dream into it's opening.

As the sticker on the shrink wrap stated, other songs which were written specifically for the 1984 Olympics, were included on the album. The artists involved were, Giorgio Moroder, Christopher Cross, Loverboy, Quincy Jones, Herbie Hancock, Bill Conti, Foreigner, Philip Glass, Toto, and Bob James.

The album also had this nice embossed gold seal affixed to the cover.

The back cover featured a photo of a gymnast on the balance beam.

If you would like to hear the John Williams track, you can listen to it on YouTube, by copying and pasting the link, below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCqUESCoB1w

We will end this update with one more pic of Sam the Olympic Eagle. I really hope that at least one of these "Sam" costumes was saved!

****Post Update (July 24, 2019)****

I recently came across an issue of Los Angeles Magazine, from July of 2014. It was a "special edition," which covered "The '80s - The Decade That Changed L.A." There were a couple articles related to the 1984 Olympics, so I decided to add them to this post.

There are actually two articles here, and they are both continued on the next page. The article with the orange background is an interview with Deborah Sussman. As mentioned earlier in my post, she is the artist who came up with the designs and color choices for the 1984 Olympics.

****Post Update (March 9, 2021)****

I recently acquired a vintage issue of  Vacationland magazine, which had a more in-depth article on Bob Moore (creator of Sam the Olympic Eagle), so I'm adding it to this post!

 

 *****POST UPDATE***** (May 2024)

Here is one more "Sam the Olympic Eagle" item, which I recently came across.  This bag was given to me at the Consumers store, where I bought my very first 35 mm camera, back in 1985.  The Olympics were over by then, but the store was still using these themed merchandise bags, for purchases of Cannon products.  I have previously posted the very first Disneyland photos I ever took with that camera.