Jason's Disneyland Almanac 1955-2010, a Book Review

• Jason's Disneyland Almanac by Jason Schultz and Kevin Yee. 2011. 320 pp.

Jason's Disneyland Almanac is one of the most amazing resources about Disneyland ever created.

And not just because Jason is a fellow librarian, either.

More or less, Jason started this project in 1995 with a timeline. As he continued to do research and discovered new sources, the timeline developed into an almanac that saw its beginnings at the impressive Disneyland Nomenclature blog (started in 2008). Kevin Yee, the prodigious author, former Disneyland cast member and Disney historian spent time helping Jason craft this monumental work.

So, what's an almanac?

An almanac is a listing of climatological data, planting dates, anniversaries, tide tables and other interesting facts.

So, a Disneyland Almanac?

I know that you won't be doing any planting at Disneyland, so why would anyone make a Disneyland almanac? In this case, Jason and Kevin have produced a massive volume that covers park hours, weather, openings, closings, events, dedications, debuts, endings and famous visitors. Pretty unbelievable and pretty geeky (and I mean that as the highest compliment).

One of these days is extremely important. Can you guess which one?

So, why would you want a Disneyland almanac? 

This is truly a source for the Disneyland fan that needs to know everything. It is a major research tool that will quickly and succinctly provide you with some of the basic information about a specific day at Disneyland. Of course, the geekiest details are included, as well. This book is designed as a handy reference to pinpoint anything special that might have happened on a given day (like an attraction or shop closing). There is an index that provides quick access to dates featuring attractions, celebrities and notable Disney employees

From the entry for 1987:

Star Tours was not just another major attraction, however; it was the first of its kind. This was the first motion picture simulator used in a theme park setting. It was so new, in fact, that the simulator had to be described to the public by analogy as a cross between a roller coaster and a movie. 

The park stayed open for a complete 60 hour stretch to herald the debut of Star Tours. Visitors could purchase a regular-priced ticket at any point during the extended party, and then return later as though it were one long weekend day. This was the second such 60-hour party, the first having come a year earlier to welcome Captain EO.

The entry from 1979 about Big Thunder Mountain Railroad:

Another roller coaster joined the Disneyland mountain range in 1979, in the form of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The new attraction replaced Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland, which had been a more gentle train ride through different landscapes and vignettes of animals. The atmosphere had been the main draw for the Mine Train, but this focus was not destined to last. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad provided not only atmosphere, but an entire "backstory" which explains the ride elements in a more cohesive narrative. Local Indians referred to the mountain as Big Thunder because of the frequent rumblings we would call earthquake, but which were attributed by the Indians to a haunting. True to form, our mine train hurtles out of control and unmanned around the mountain, culminating in an earthquake we experience directly. This switch away from mere atmosphere to a preference for story was no accident; around the same time, the ride designers who had worked with Walt were increasingly retiring, and a second generation of "Imagineers" were now charged with making their own creative decisions.

This is one of the more niche titles that I have reviewed at Imaginerding. Not only is the title very specific, but the audience is limited, as well. This isn't a bad thing, it is just a shame that a lot of people will not add this to their Disney library due to the scope. Granted, you won't pick up this book for leisure reading, but you will be using it to check dates, special events and to confirm details. If you are Disneyland historian, researcher or enthusiast, then you need to own this book.

By the way, did you figure out the inspiration for the cover design?

The author provided a copy of this title for review.

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Book Review: A Photographer's Life with Disneyland Under Construction by Carlene Thie

A Photographers Life with Disneyland Under Construction by Carlene Thie. 70 pages. 2002.

This book is a wonderful addition to any Disneyland enthusiast's collection. It is volume one of a three book series of photographs taken by Mell Kilpatrick. Mell was the chief photographer of the Santa Ana Register until his passing in 1962. His granddaughter, Carlene Thie, was given all of Mell's photos and negatives by her grandmother, Mell's widow. Carlene has published 5 books altogether and sells prints of the photos through the Ape Pen Publishing site.

Mell had the unique opportunity to be able to photograph Disneyland during the first year of construction.

Mell worked relentlessly to capture on film Walt Disney’s dream. He climbed atop scaffolding, crawled into tunnels, even hung out of a light plane 5,000 feet above Disneyland to snap the perfect shot. Like any momentous project, Disneyland under construction was sometimes chaotic and many of the features, such as a darkroom, were low priority. When Mell found out that Walt needed a local place to develop staff photos, he opened his darkroom to official Disney photographers. The park’s first images were developed in Mell’s Santa Ana darkroom.

Walt often called Mell to photograph special days during construction, as well as granting him unlimited access to Disneyland. Along with dozens of the nation’s photographers, Mell was invited to Disneyland’s press premiere on July 17, 1955, as well as Disneyland’s golden opening day, July 18, 1955. History buff that he was, Mell saved every piece of memorabilia from that day, including the official Disneyland Press Kit. --Ape Pen Publishing Website.

Disneyland Under Construction is a 70-page volume with more than 60 black and white photographs. Each photo is captioned with an accompanying date. The minimal text included shares facts and figures about opening day, July 17, 1955--like attractions (number of boats on the Jungle Cruise, number of pack mules), shops and restaurants.

The real star of the show is the fabulous photography:

The black and white photography is very clear and lends itself well to the time period. When you peruse the title, you do feel like you are viewing a family scrapbook--many of the shots are candid and lack a publicist's eye. The photographs are wonderful and you are presented with views that you don't often see: half-built attractions, footprints of buildings we've come to love and pictures from angles that will make you scratch your head. A majority of the photos are pre-opening. There are also several behind-the-scenes shots, as well. My favorites are the aerial shots and the familiar scenes under construction. One can only imagine what thoughts were going through Mell's head as he walked the unfinished park and snapped images most of us can only dream of seeing.

If you are a Disneyland fan, then you need to own this book.

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Book Review: Disneyland, The Nickel Tour

Disneyland the Nickel Tour: A Postcard Journey Through a Half Century of the Happiest Place on Earth Bruce Gordon, David Mumford, Roger Le Roque and Nick Farago.

Let me start this review with the following statement: This is the most prized book in my collection.

I'll try not to be too biased. It is also the most expensive and one of the hardest to come by. In the Afterwords section of Walt's Time, Bruce explains how The Nickel Tour came to be:

We talked to every publisher we could find, and heard the same story, word for word.
No Commercial Potential. No audience. No Market. No Deal.

They put the book together themselves: Scanned all of the cards, did the layout of every page and had it printed in Italy. They lugged the books to every convention and sold them through mail-order.

And guess what: we sold every book we printed.

--p. 241, Bruce Gordon, Walt's Time - From Before to Beyond

Disneyland, the Nickel Tour is a look at the first 45 years of Disneyland's history seen through the postcards of the park. In addition to Randy Bright's wonderful Disneyland the Inside Story, The Nickel Tour stands as one of the two most comprehensive books about Disneyland's history. Where it edges out Mr. Bright' work is that The Nickel Tour does cover the past 20 years. Unfortunately, Mr. Bright passed away in 1990 and a second edition is not forthcoming. Bruce Gordon, the primary writer of The Nickel Tour, was an Imagineer and started with the Company in 1980. Mr. Gordon co-authored many books about Disney and there are several that will be published posthumously later this year. Mr. Gordon passed away in November 2007. As it stands, the second edition of The Nickel Tour will probably be the last.

The Nickel Tour is an amazing work on so many different levels: the postcard images, the photographs of attractions that weren't released in postcard form, the historical information and the writing. They begin by sharing pre-opening cards and work their way through the history of Disneyland. One of Gordon and Mumford's strengths is that they write well and can take something as simple as post cards and turn it into an epic look at a theme park. The writing never gets technical and is always filled with reverence, love and a little remorse. Occasionally, they slip in some humor. It is always fitting and they obvious love word-play. The following paragraph could have been presented as just a litany of facts, but they went a different way with it.

On the left hand side of Main Street, we encounter the Sunkist Citrus House. Long before this view was taken, the Citrus House had actually been two separate stores, one housing "Sunny View Jams and Jellies" and the other housing the "Puffin Bake Shop." By October of 1958, Disneyland had canned the jam and jelly shop and opened a candy store in its place. It was a sweet deal until June of 1960, when the Puffin Bake Shop went stale. (It seems they just weren't making enough dough to stay in business.) And even worse, it wasn't long before everyone was beginning to sour on the candy shop next door. So the two shops were joined together, and in a dedication ceremony held with Walt on July 31, they finally became the home of the Sunkist Citrus Shop. Things were calm until 1990, when the time was ripe to spin around in a circle once more – only to find the Sunkist moving out and the Bakery moving back in! Well, that story certainly had a peel. Orange you glad we wasted all this time? Meanwhile, here's the scoop on the Carnation Ice Cream parlor: in 1997 they split from their original parlor and (having lost their Carnation along the way) floated into the home of the bakery. Then, with perfect Disneyland logic, the bakery moved into – the ice cream parlor! If that doesn't get a rise out of you, nothing will!
p. 121

The sense of history that you get from The Nickel Tour, through the postcards and photographs, has not been presented in any other form. Besides being a reference work for postcards, it is almost a wish book--one you can flip open to any page and see a favorite or long-gone attraction and dream about visiting or re-experiencing. The images are stellar and your appreciation of postcards as art and history will grow.

Bottom Line: This work was obviously a labor of love for Gordon and Mumford. It is hard to stress how important this work is in the Disney Literature. Beside being one of two major historical works about Disneyland, you get a feel for how Disneyland evolved, how Walt plussed the park and how the Disney Company moved forward after Walt. It is the most cherished book in my entire collection. If you are lucky enough to find a copy, get it. I know that many people will dismiss this book because it is about Disneyland, but without Disneyland, there would be no Walt Disney World. The history of Disneyland offers a lot of insight into the growth of Walt Disney World as well.

This book is simply amazing!