When the "new" Fantasyland debuted in 1983, it was---and remains---a wonder.
The Old School Disney crew responsible for the redesign did an expected phenomenal job.
Of course, many mourned the loss of the old pirate ship and "Skull Cove," as well as the Fantasyland Theater.
But overall, the area's re-christening was welcomed.
The Dumbo calliope (or "band organ") music resounded through the main area of Fantasyland and provided the theme music for the background of my many shifts there as a sweeper.
Where else in the world do you get to set your work pace to the bouncy tunes of classic Disney standards?
I swear the old collection of songs from the calliope---in the order they played---still runs in my head.
You would stay in step with the Mickey Mouse Club March, You Can Fly from Peter Pan, An Actor's Life For Me!, Bibidi-Bobidi-Boo, Chim Chim Cher-ee, Jolly Holiday, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!, Zip-a-dee Doo Dah!, Some Day My Prince Will Come, etc.
Does anyone have the full list of songs in their original order???
I have written earlier on this blog of a day I when got to work on Tom Sawyer's Island. I came across this video (originally posted by IngrahamArchives on YouTube.com) of the Island in 1988, which shows you how it looked back then. It is a slice of nostalgia for you Park lovers, served up hot with a cup of bad coffee---as though we were on a break at the Inn Between! It contains footage from inside the now closed Fort Wilderness---*sigh.* Well, without further ado, here you go:
While we're on the subject, here is another clip from IngrahamArchives that gives us a glimpse of the Tomorrowland I knew and loved and (at the end) a view of the wonderful 100-acre Disneyland parking lot. You can see the Cast Member parking area (at 6:50 - 7:011-ish on the video), as well as the canopies of the General Motors display that was installed in front of the Park as part of its 30th anniversary celebration in 1985 (these appear for a flash at 7:12)---I had many a Main Gate sweeping shift and wound my way through the display with a pan and broom out there. Now you can see what it was like (from a distance!)
And for a closer view of the parking lot and main entrance area of the Park as it looked back in my day, here is a video from 1990---the areas depicted in the video are largely the same as they would have appeared 3-5 years earlier---you'll will note the extreme lack of Disney's California Adventure, for example! This was posted by Mr.Disneyfanman and I thank him for putting it on YouTube:
Hope you enjoyed today's brief trip back in time!
All the best, to each and every one you!
All four (4) of you, to be exact!
---Mike
