Classic Disneyland Home Movies

Nothing is better than going through your parents’ or grandparents’ home movies and seeing real film footage of your family.  The places, the fashions, the friends long forgotten.  I got this chance when my grandfather asked me to go through some old home movies and cut a nice reel together.  When I came across this footage from Disneyland in the early 1970’s, I had to share!

No, that’s not an Instagram filter in the featured image for this post!  That is a still-frame from a file I made from a DVD that I copied from a VHS that was made from an 8 or 16mm film reel my grandpa had.  That’s a lot of generations, literally and digitally, to go through but the footage is still great looking!

I have narrowed this down to what I believe is the summer of ’73 because of the age of my uncle (who cannot remember the year exactly), the Main Street Electrical Parade, Prince John of Robin Hood in the parade, and the flag bunting garland on the light poles on Main Street.  I was unable to find out when Bank of America stopped sponsoring It’s a Small World but I thought that might also help narrow it down.

I added some Firehouse Five Plus Two as well as a little of the original Main Street U.S.A. music loop that, as far as I can tell, is time-appropriate for these clips.  Enjoy!

What do you think?  Is the summer of ’73 pretty close?

It Really is a Small World

Disneyland shows up in my daily life all the time.  While driving through Hollywood, I passed by Amoeba Music and noticed that they have a new display in the window.

Display Window at Amoeba Records

 

Look at that sun!  Does it look familiar?

One Golden Sun

 

Obviously the designer of this window display was influenced by Disneyland’s It’s a Small World.  The sun looks very similar to the giant clock on the attraction’s facade.  I love finding things like this.  It makes the real world seem a little more magical.

The Influence