Disneyland: Happy New Year! Tomorrowland, Then and Now, Plaza Gardens and 1985 Cast Members

Salutations and best wishes for a healthy, happy, safe and productive new year to all four of you loyal readers! It is kinda silly to have a site meter to track my mom and three other people, but what the heck, it was a free application.

Since we tend to look back here at Jungle, there's no better way to start the new year than to compare 1980s Tomorrowland with its present counterpart.

The photograph below shows the east side of Tomorrowland viewed from the upper bullpen area of Space Mountain in 1985. Bright primary colors catch the eye, from the Monorail, to the Skyway, to the America Sings building and even the Tomorrowland Terrace umbrellas. Palm trees also rose gracefully to the sky, perhaps evoking a positive, upwardly moving future.
This same area today (a touch more crowded) seems a little "off." You can really see how Innoventions was kinda slapped together over the old America Sings building. Hey! They got rid of the flag poles and replaced them with---a triangle thingy! Now there's also a big wet ball in the middle of the walkway. Not sure why. Further, they've added a green tower to the skyline (over at the Autopia) and replaced a nice shady spot near the old America Sings building with one that's a little less shady. Stainless steel handrails have become brass or rust-colored, too.
And what exactly has taken over the old Rocket Jets platform to the upper left of the photo? DirecTV? Dish Network?
Enough of that.

Next, I share with you a 1985 view of Carnation Plaza Gardens and a link to an old post about this location. This photograph was taken by a guest during Park operating hours in early 1985. Imagine, open, empty space within Disneyland! Trust me, it can happen.

Finally, let's close with a fun shot of several 1985 cast members perched above the moat at the entrance to Sleeping Beauty's Castle. See? Cast members have fun at Disneyland, too.
That, I can assuredly and thankfully tell you, is one thing about the Park that has not changed over time!

Here's to 2010! May each of your lives continue to grow and add new things! May there continue to be imagination left in the world!

---Mike