My Ideal Disneyland Part 7

Okay FINALLY on to Fantasyland. Personally, I think Fantasyland has the best atmosphere out of all the lands (well, maybe tied with New Orleans but that's later). So Fantasyland opened in 1955 with the lowering of the drawbridge and a bunch little kids running in a stampede shown here. Most of the original rides are still there (although some have changed or been moved over the years): The Canal Boats, Casey Jr. Circus Train, Dumbo, King Arthur Carrousel, Mad Tea Party, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Peter Pan's Flight, and Snow White's Adventures. Although it contained many of the same rides it does today, the Fantasyland of 1955 looked very different from today's. Firstly, due to budget issues, the original facade plans had to be abandoned and a cheaper Renaissance Faire sort of feel with striped tents and colorful flags was done. In my opinion, it was cheap and well-it looked like it. It sort of just looked like a traveling circus or carnival had come to town. Bleck. Plus, it was crowded like crazy with King Arthur's Carrousel stuck right in front of the castle (or right behind depending on your perspective).

In 1983, Fantasyland was closed for a MAJOR revamp. Many of the rides were rearranged to help with traffic problems and the facades were redone to look more like a European village in the 1500s or a bit after. It looks like a storybook and the faux stone is beautifully done. The ground was paved so that it is like you are walking through a village instead of a concrete slab like the old one. The pirate ship restaurant was demolished and a new version of Dumbo was put in it's place. The Teacups were moved to a fitting place near Alice and Wonderland and the carrousel was moved back and put in the space previously occupied by the teacups, leaving a larger courtyard and more room for foot traffic. Also, the original darkrides Snow White, Mr. Toad, and Peter Pan were completely gutted and redone. Here are some great pics of the process. It's kind of sad though, especially to see those old murals go, since they were worked on by some of Disney's original

nine old men. I think I read that Marc Davis had helped with these ride murals but I could be wrong. So I can't believe they just tore down the ride murals unceremoniously. They should've auctioned them off in pieces or preserved them or something! It's kinda the Mary Blair mural situation. Under-appreciation! Anyways, the rides were gutted, got new facades and loading platforms, and got more track added to them. So there's some background info for you on Fantasyland. More specifics in later posts.

My Ideal Disneyland Part 6

Before I move to Fanstasyland I wanna say a couple of things about Tommorrowland I overlooked. Firstly, I don't think I mentioned the Starcade, which is a two story arcade next to Space Mountain. I've never been inside because to me it's like why would anyone go to Disneyland to play at an arcade? You can find arcades anywhere. You can't find the rides at Disneyland anywhere though. Also, the second floor has been blocked off for a few years I think. I don't know why...the escalators from when Space Mountain was built (I think) are still there but aren't on. It's strange and also a huge waste of space. With the empty second story plus the empty helipad area up by the queue of Space Mountain, you have a heck of a lot of wasted space. This person seems to agree with me. They should do something with that space. However, maybe they have plans for it as they did just repave the flooring a month or so ago. Also, since my last posts on Tland, they have restored and updated Captain EO in the wake of Michael Jackson's death. I think it's nice but they need to get something new and more permanent in there. There some pics of the EO revamp and the work on the Starcade over at Micechat.

Another thing I thought I should mention is the Skyway. Many people who remember it miss it. According to Wikipedia, it was opened in 1956 and closed in 1994 due to stress cracks on supports. The supports were taken down quickly and the holes through the Matterhorn were filled in. The Skyway was a gondola tram ride that took guests from Tommorrowland to Fantasyland or vice versa. It was yet another sight-seeing Tland ride, along with the People Mover and the Monorail. I never went on the Skyway ride. Probably the earliest I ever went to Dland was when I was about 4, which was in 1994 so it was either in its last days or already gone by the time I came along. I probably wouldn't ride it anyways because that thing looked sketch. Daveland's got tons of pics here. (Man I wish I had my own vintage pics to post. But I don't, so I just write my thoughts and link to other people's awesome pics.) So, in my ideal Dland, the Skyway wouldn't be there. Some people probably liked it and were sad to see it go but from pictures I've seen, the supports were distracting and I think the Disneyland skyline was too polluted with it. You have the castle, which should be the focal point, then you have the guide wires for tink to fly over the castle, and then cables with cars on top of that! Too busy! Plus, I think that futuristic wires and buckets going over Fantasyland would have killed the atmosphere. So that's that. One thing I will say though is that I'm obviously interested in Dland's past and one thing I LOVE about dland and it's past is being able to still find remnants of it around the park. It's like digging up something lost from the past or something. I LOVE

it. There are many examples which I'll get to later but this particular example is the old Fantasyland Skyway station. The Tland Skyway station was demolished but many people don't know that the Fland one is still there. You just have to know where to look. It's hidden by trees and empty but it's still there on a hill next to Casey Junior. There's a little cement stairway th

at's chained off that goes up to it. If you step over the chain covertly and walk up a bit, you can see it, with it's little Swiss-style decorations still painted there fading. Oh, nostalgia. There are "Skyway remnant photos" you can look at at that Daveland link above. It's great to compare how much the area has changed and how much the trees and plants have grown to hide it.

Disney Silkscreen Update

Okay, so quite a while ago (I haven't blogged in ages), I mentioned an idea I had to silkscreen my own retro Disney attraction poster shirts. Well, now I find out that Disney has somehow heard my wish and they came out with exactly that! AMAZING. I don't have to get my hands dirty after all. (Although I do have to spend some dinero.)

They are doing it for the park's 55th anniversary and have a bunch of other retro merchandise. Since it's the 55th and dland opened in 1955, I guess it's fitting. Right now, all they have is the Matterhorn and the Flying Saucers but more are expected to come. So excited! I'm trying to plan a trip to dland this summer and hopefully there are more choices by that time. I really want a Peter Pan's Flight one. :) Info and another pic here.