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"!

 

Vintage Disneyland Ads & "Loose Ends" From Previous Posts - Part 1

While looking through my old newspaper advertisements last month, searching for ads for Thumper's Easter Egg Hunt at Disneyland, I came across some other ads that I had forgotten all about.  Many of them related to other subjects, which I have already posted about in the past.  I've decided to scan those ads and include them all here, but I have also added them to those earlier posts.  I will include the links to those posts, just in case anyone wants to go back and revisit them, or perhaps read them for the very first time.

First up, is this colorful Toontown advertisement from a 1993 edition of The Los Angeles Times.  It has now been added to my "Disneyland's Toontown - 30th Anniversary" post, from last year.  Notice all of the costumed Disney characters, standing around in this publicity shot.  I count nine!

In September of 1981, Disneyland was hosting a "Country Weekend."  The previous September, they were calling it, "Cowboy Weekend."  I remember Jerry Reed.  He was in all three of the "Smokey and the Bandit" movies, although I never saw even one of them.  He also sang and co-wrote the theme song for the first of those films, "Eastbound and Down," which was a number two song on the Billboard Country Chart.  I had to look up Don King, since I was pretty sure that Don King "the boxing promoter" wasn't appearing at Disneyland.  It turns out there is another Don King, and he received the 1981 Academy of Country Music award for "Top New Male Vocalist."

Just five months later, in February of 1982, Disneyland was hosting another "Country Weekend."  I never knew that Mel Tillis and Reba McEntire ever performed at Disneyland!  It wasn't the Christmas season, but I wonder if Elmo 'N Patsy sang their signature song, "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer"?

This advertisement for the original "Tron" film is from the July 4, 1982 issue of The Los Angeles Times.  It has now been added to Part 2 of my "ElecTRONica Is Here!" posts, from 2010.  I have a full-sized color poster very similar to this ad, which I purchased in Tomorrowland's Character Shop at Disneyland, back in 1982.

Next we have an advertisement from the December 16, 1984 issue of The Los Angeles Times, for the 1984 re-release of "Walt Disney's Pinocchio."  This has now been added to my "Walt Disney's Pinocchio - Mega Post!" post.  Note the special logo at the bottom of the ad, for Disneyland's 30th anniversary.  The following month, the park's year-long 30th anniversary festivities would be kicking off.

I found this ad after writing my recent Japanese Village & Deer Park post.  Enchanted Village replaced Japanese Village in 1976, but it was only open for about a year and a half, before shutting down forever.

This advertisement has now been added to my "Raging Waters Waterpark" post, from 2018.  The ad was from a seasonal supplement to The Los Angeles Times, and dated June 8, 1984:

An article about the park and it's new attractions for the summer, appeared in the same newspaper supplement:

One year later (June 14, 1985), this advertisement was included in the summer entertainment supplement of The Los Angeles Times:

And there was another article, about the park's new attractions for 1985:

Getting back to the Disney-related ads, this one was from September of 1983, and claimed that Disneyland's summer season was "still going strong."  However, if you look at the hours listed at the very bottom of the ad, the park was going to start closing at 6 p.m. on weekdays, beginning September 12th.  The following weekend, Disneyland was hosting, "Viva Mexico" days.  The "Flights of Fantasy" parade (which had debuted that summer), was still being presented on weekends, but it would soon be ending it's performances in time for the holiday season, and would never return.  I've added this article to both my "Viva Mexico/Cinco de Mayo" post, and my "Flights of Fantasy" post.

This Los Angeles Times ad from July 1, 1984, ran just four days prior to the debut of "American Journeys" in Tomorrowland's Circle-Vision Theater.  However, the name of the attraction had now been changed to "World Premiere Circle-Vision 360."  And shortly after the grand reopening of the attraction, the EPCOT Center film, "The Wonders of China," was included in the theater's line up.  This advertisement has now been added to my "American Journeys & Wonders of China" post, from 2016.

I hope everyone enjoyed these "loose ends."  I may be posting more vintage ads, in the not too distant future.

Post Update!  I have done a "Part 2" to this post, with more vintage Disney advertisements, as well as other theme park ads, newsletters, and miscellaneous items.  You can see that post by clicking here!

 

Fantasy On Parade & Christmas at Disneyland - 1981

Today, I have ten photos from Disneyland's 1981 Christmas parade, "Fantasy On Parade."  These are all from the same year that I was in the parade.  I have to thank Sue B. of "Lou and Sue" fame, for giving me the heads up about these photos being listed on ebay.  She knew that I was a "Christmas Tree" in the parade, so she was initially letting me know about the listing for the photo of the "trees."  But I was pleasantly surprised when I found out that the ebay seller also had nine more shots from the parade!

These first four photos are of the parade's Cinderella unit.  I have posted similar pics of this unit in the past, but I think the quality on all of these is very nice.  Plus, I feel like I could never have enough photos from the actual parade that I was a part of.

The "Knights On Horseback" led the parade.

 They were followed by the "Fanfare Musicians."

The "Court Dancers" followed Cinderella's pumpkin coach (not pictured in this post).

And last up in the Cinderella unit was, the "Castle" float.

"Geppetto's Workbench" was just one of the many floats from the Pinocchio unit.

Here are the main characters from The Jungle Book unit.  Notice Mowgli, who's pretty much hidden by Baloo's shadow.

This "Fireman Clown" from the Dumbo unit, was played by Richard Ferrin.  He also designed the parade's cast T-shirt that year, and for many summer seasons, was the calliope-playing "King Lion" in the Main Street Electrical Parade.

Prince John's coach from the Robin Hood unit, was led by four "Royal Elephants."

The Toy Soldiers from the film, Babes in Toyland, have been a staple of Disneyland's Christmas parades for many decades now.

And last up, we have the photo which Sue originally contacted me about, asking if this was the same year that I was in the parade.  Unfortunately, I was always a green Christmas tree, so I know that I am not inside one of these gold trees.  However, I am VERY glad to have the photo, either way.....and all of the other photos, as well!  Thanks again, Sue!

To see more photos from this parade, as well as some cast member paraphernalia, you can click below for some of my past "Fantasy On Parade" posts:

I Was A Teenage Christmas Tree

Fantasy On Parade 1981 - Part 1 (The Disney Classics Units) 

Fantasy On Parade 1981 - Part 2 (The Christmas Finale Units)

I want to wish all of my readers out there, a very happy holiday season! 

*****BONUS ITEMS!*****

I've decided to include three Disneyland cast member publications, from December of 1981.  I picked these up at various backstage locations, and have held onto them all these years.

This first one is the Disneyland Line, which is still in publication today (now called the Disneyland Resort Line), and will be celebrating it's 55th year, in 2024.  The image on the cover of this issue, is a reproduction of the very first Walt Disney Studios Christmas card.

Does the park still hold blood drives?  I'll give blood, but please send me to the bloodmobile at Tokyo Disneyland!  Although at that point in time, Tokyo Disneyland would have still been just a construction site, since that park did not open for another 16 months.

I wonder if the Disneyland Custodial Department still produces a "Yearbook"?

 

Wow....only $180 for half of the rent on a condo, just one mile from the park!

Next, we have somewhat of a rarity.  It's the very first issue of CastleView magazine.  Charles Boyer, the famed Disney artist, painted the image on the magazine's cover.

Dick Nunis wrote an introduction for this premier issue of the magazine.  What I don't know is, how long this magazine lasted.  I have never seen another issue of it anywhere out there.  It was stated in this first issue, that it would be published eight times annually by "Cast Communications, the Disneyland University, Disneyland."

This three-page article about getting the park ready for Christmastime, begins with a photo of the "Fanfare Musicians" from the Cinderella unit of Fantasy On Parade.

This is back in the day, when a real tree was acquired for the park.  I used to drive by the park's backstage area everyday on my way to work, and I would watch the progress being made on the tree during those weeks of prepping and decorating.

I'm guessing that all of the preparation that went into the tree (painting it?), before they even started decorating it, might be the reason why they switched to an artificial tree?  Of course it could have been because they wanted to stop killing real trees.  Nah, it was probably just to save some money by using the same tree every year.  The article also mentions the two white trees, which used to be placed in the Castle's moat every year.

There is much more to this magazine, including articles on the construction progress of EPCOT Center and Tokyo Disneyland.  Other articles include a history of Fantasyland, and the replacement of some original 25+ year-old structures at Disneyland, such as the stockade at the entrance to Frontierland, and the miniature buildings within Storybook Land.  The original elm trees along Main Street were also being replaced at this time, because they had "grown out of scale for Main Street," according to the article.  I will try to get the rest of the magazine scanned and posted in the future.

And here is something that I believe just might be as much of a rarity as that issue of CastleView magazine, if not more so.  This is a December 1981 issue of the Rainbow Ridge Clarion, which was published monthly, by and for cast members who worked on the "west side" of the park.  Again, I'm not sure how long this publication was around, but the very first issue was published in September of 1981.  As stated in that first issue, it's name was taken from the fictional newspaper office, formerly located in the little mining town of Rainbow Ridge, overlooking the loading area for the Nature's Wonderland Mine Train.

The first page begins with cast members' "wish lists" for Santa, and they continue on to page three.

The article on the next two pages, covers the history of the Christmas season at Disneyland, including such things as the park's original "Christmas Bowl" and the annual Candlelight Procession.  The Matterhorn's "Christmas star" also gets a mention.

Next, we have the listing of cast member birthdays (west side only), for the month of December.

"The Center," which is mentioned below as the place to buy tickets for various cast member activities, was located backstage, between Main Street and Space Mountain.  The mobile home-type of structure is still standing, but I don't know if it has been given a different name and/or usage for today.

A rehab schedule was included for "west side" shops, restaurants, and attractions:

And cast members shared some of their personal recipes: