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!

 

Places I've Never Been - Raging Waters Waterpark (1984) ****Updated 2024****

This is the second in my series of "Places I've Never Been" posts.

Raging Waters waterpark opened on June 18, 1983 in San Dimas, California, and is still operating today on a seasonal basis. This is a current map of the park:

Even though I have never been to Raging Waters, some of my family members visited the park back in 1984. Here are some pics from that visit.

Looking at that small octagonal building to the left of the slides, and checking the current map of the park, these first two pics look like they are of "Drop Out."

These next three photos show the "Rampage Sled Slides," which have since been removed from the park.  They were located approximately where "The Vortex" sits today.

The following two pics show the "Screamer" and "Raging Rocket" slides, which are both still in use at the park, and are now called the "Speed Slides."

I wonder if this little man-made beach still exists today?

This pic was taken from a road above the park (Puddingstone Drive). The large roundish building in the middle of the photo is the main building, located just inside the park entrance on the current map. There is a beach just to the left of the building and on the far right, the "Screamer" and "Raging Rocket" ("Speed Slides") can be seen. I'm sure this view has changed drastically in the last three and a half decades!

We'll end today, with an advertisement and an article from a 1983 Los Angeles Times advertising supplement. Both of these predate Raging Waters' grand opening by one week.

I hope everyone enjoyed this little visit back in time, to Raging Waters' early years!

**POST UPDATE** - The following video is from the Nickelodeon show, "Wild & Crazy Kids." This particular episode was filmed at Raging Waters, circa 1990, and has some really good footage of all three slides/attractions pictured above ("Drop Out," the "Rampage Sled Slides" and the "Screamer" Speed Slide). Special thanks to Eric, from the blog, "...But It Wasn't Always That Way!" for sharing the link to this video!

***POST UPDATE - January 2021***

I found a vintage brochure for Raging Waters, which looks like it could be from the early to mid-eighties.  Both the map and the large "panoramic" photo of the park, answer some of the questions I originally had when writing this post.

*****POST UPDATE (April 2024)*****

I just found two more Los Angeles Times advertisements and accompanying articles, which discuss the park's new attractions for 1984 and 1985:

1984:

1984:

1985:

1985: