I first experienced the Internet in the early 1990s via an old text-based dial-up service called GEnie (operated by long-time Disney-sponsor General Electric). GEnie had opened up a portal to a few types of internet services, including things like Gopher (the pre-web search engine) and FTP (the pre-web file transfer). They also had something that let you view text pages on the internet. It wasn’t until July 1995 that I would learn that these text pages could also have pictures!
I had accepted a new job and moved to Iowa. On my desk was a SUN workstation running SunOS (Unix). It had a program called Netscape that let you see those same text pages, but with small pictures! It’s hard to believe there was a time when we didn’t know what the “world wide web” was.
One of the early web sites I visited was a personal home page for the Banks Family. They had gone to Walt Disney World and used something called an Apple QuickTake to take photos and then upload them to their website each night. Yes, Virginia. Apple basically invented the consumer digital camera in 1994.
Since my new job allowed me to get to Disneyland and Disney World often, I decided I would like to have one of these computer cameras* to document my trips also. There weren’t many options back then, so in 1996 I decided to buy an Epson PhotoPC for $500.
* During those early years, I had to call it a “computer camera”. No one knew what a “digital camera” was.
The PhotoPC had 1 megabyte of storage. It could take a dozen 320×240 images (or a few at 640×480) before you had to hook it up to a PC to download those images over a serial cable. This is the camera I used for all my Disney and other theme park trips from 1996 to 1999. (I did soon spend $300 to add a 4MB memory expansion which let me store up to 99 640×480 photos.)
Film cameras of the day could have as few as 12 pictures per roll (like the Kodak Disc camera), or maybe 24 or 36 pictures for a more standard camera. Getting over a dozen digital and not having to buy film was amazing! Even if the pictures looked like this…
EpsonPC photo taken on May 20, 1996.
That is a 320×240 image from the PhotoPC. Understand that, back then, a “large” PC screen might have only been 640×480 so the full size pictures the camera took where perfect for the technology of the day. And since the internet was a dial-up service and very slow, photos were scaled down even smaller else they would take “forever” to load. While today that image looks like a thumbnail, back then, it filled 1/4th of the screen.
If I had known how important the world wide web would become, or that we’d one day have high speed internet and 4K monitors (I’m sure this will seem retro and quaint in a decade), I would have upgraded my camera sooner to the a model that took larger photos. But, at the time, this camera took images larger than I could use on the web.
With that in mind, I’ll leave you with a few more images:
Epson PhotoPC photo taken on May 20, 1996.
This was the walkway that led to the parking lots. You can even see cars parked to the left and right of it. Unfortunately, the resolution is so low, I can’t tell if I was facing towards Disneyland (are those the ticket booths at the end?) or away from it towards where Disney California Adventure is today.
And just to compare, here is what a full size 640×480 image looked like:
Epson PhotoPC photo taken on August 16, 1996.
That was the old Disneyland Hotel “lake.”
I look forward to walking you through some of these old photos in future postings. Hopefully this post will give you an idea of what I have in mind for future articles.
Welcome to one of the oldest Disney fan sites on the internet (though not at this domain). This site is part of my DisneyFans.com project which originated as a free home page way back in 1995. I decided to finally start using this domain for new articles like those I used to post to my old site back in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
For those unfamiliar with my background, from around 1995 to 1999 I was travelling for work and found myself in Orlando, Florida and Irvine, California several times each year. I ended up with annual passes to both Disneyland (when it was just one park) and Walt Disney World (when it only had three parks) for those years. I acquired a digital camera in 1996 and began documenting all my trips, and sharing those photos online (initially through an FTP server I ran at nights over a dialup connection on a Windows 3 laptop). What a long, strange trip it’s been since!
After that job ended, I switched to only visiting Disney for vacations, and then mostly to Disneyland (my favorite of all the U.S. parks). I tried to make two or three trips each year. This ended in 2009 when I finally ran out of income. After that, I went vacationless for nine years and unplugged from the Disney fan community.
In 2017 I had a unique opportunity to join a Disney friend of mine at his timeshare in southern California. Having someone else provide lodging and transportation made it an opportunity I just couldn’t turn down. This return to Disney got me motivated to revisit my website and start reorganizing and updating it.
My first major project was to update the layout of the old site so it could be viewed on modern devices like phones and tablets. Initial work has been started, but much is still to be done. My second major project was to go through all my photo archives and re-sort everything. I’ve done that with the Disneyland Resort photos so far, though I’m sure there is still much more work to be done.
I plan to use this site to comment on interesting videos and photos I have in my extensive collection. It seems my high-tech digital camcorder I took to the parks in 1999 now contains footage that is twenty years old. It will be fun looking back. My digital camera photos began in 1996, so we will get to explore a bit further back with those.
Adventureland has announced a new spinning coaster called Phoenix. It is from Maurer Rides in Germany, and will reside in the location formerly home to The Inverter. They are targeting a June 2019 opening.
From photos posted in the Facebook group (most recently by Dee/Anna), it looks like Bernie’s Barnyard is either open, or will be opening soon. Here’s a look at the rules for the area:
Bernie’s Barnyard Rules
Adults must be accompanied by a child 60″ or less in this area
Children 12 years of age and younger should never be left unattended by a parent or guardian. Unattended children will be taken to Guest Information.
Photography and videography should be limited to your immediate group only. No general photography or videography is allowed in this area without the express consent of Adventureland Resort.
Shirt, shorts or pants and proper footware are required in this area at all times.
Please observe all posted signs and attendance instructions at all times.
At some point, I will want to contact the park’s media department and try to get some press photos to use for this new area in my wiki. Until then, parents, be sure to share your thoughts and opinions on the new area with me (and others) in the Facebook group, or drop my a note in e-mail. I’d love to share your reviews.
UPDATE:
Someone much smarter than myself looked at the rules and said “oh, so if you have a tall child that is 12 or younger, neither child or parent can go in.” I took another look, and indeed, that is what it says:
Adult must have a child 60″ or less.
Children 12 and under cannot be unattended.
If “unattended” means a parent/guardian must be in the area with the child, then, yes, if you had a 12 year old that was over 5′ tall, you couldn’t go in with that child, and the child couldn’t go in with you.
But really, it just means the child must be under 60″ tall and age 12 and under. If you are too old, or too tall, it’s not an area for you 🙂
The American Puppet Theater has asked for your vote in a poll conducted by Des Moines Parent website. (I have contributed content for them in the past, relating to local Halloween haunted house activities.) They would love it if you’d vote for them in the category of “Best Children’s Theater” or “Best Outdoor Entertainment”:
in the last week, two new shops have opened on Main Street. Airbrush Worx replaces the former Airbrush Avenue, and next door, The Gift Galleryreplaces Pine Valley Signs. I haven’t been to the park to check them out, and no details have been shared by Adventureland yet, so I don’t have much more to add.
The AdventureWiki has been updated with placeholder pages for these new retail locations:
Here are a few updates from a recent June 2, 2018 visit to the park…
Adventureland Cash Cards
If you are using Adventure Cards or are loading money on your Season Pass, you have to do that at the front ticket counter. There is one booth at the far right where they do this. If the ticket line is huge (as it was when I visited), you can go over to the Season Pass Processing area and use the booth at the far right there. If there is a long line there, and you see no one at that end booth, they let you walk right up to it, bypassing the line.
NOTE: There is a $5 bonus for each $50 you load on your pass up until you reach $300, but this offer ends on June 10th. Also, the “cash back” that the card earned last year is no longer being offered. My advice is to load up $300 to get the extra cash back, spend that, then go back to using whatever normal payment method you would use.
Since the Annual Pass article is the most-read article on this site, I’ll be doing a 2018 update for it in the near future.
In the far end Season Pass booth, where you go to load money on your Adventureland card, notice the small speaker in the corner. It plays a special informational message for season pass holders.
Puff the Broken Dragon
On this visit, Puff the Dragon was down for repair.
Puff the Dragon was down for repair.
Later in the week, a few other things went into maintenance mode, including the Scrambler. The Scrambler must not break often, as they were using a hand-written sign for it on the day it was down.
Airbrush(less) Avenue
The former Airbrush Avenue location is still closed, but someone from the park posted that it was going to be taken over by the Hollywood Caricature folks.
Still no obvious activity at the former Airbrush Avenue location.
Fire(less) Station
Across the way, the former Fire Station location has had it’s garage door removed and replaced with a wall. It will becoming the Mainstream Marketplace.
Former Fire Place. Future Marketplace.
A few days after this photo was taken, the new Marketplace sign appeared, replacing the Fire Station sign. This was one of the original locations when the park opened in 1974.
Side note: At The Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, they turned their fire station into a gift shop sometime in the late 90’s or early 2000’s. They also turned their Main Street Cinema into a shop, and did the same with a few other themed locations (including getting ride of a whole side street area). I guess this is what parks need to do when they don’t have enough retail space. (Meanwhile, Disneyland in California has continued to keep it’s cinema and fire station. So far.)
Keep On The Grass?
In the Facebook Group, Dee/Anna pointed out that the short fence around the Carousel was removed this year. I hadn’t noticed that, and sure enough, it’s all open to the grass now, right up the carousel’s own fence.
No more fencing around the courtyard.
Look Up!
The left side of Main Street is full of building facades that represent stables, hotels, etc. On the hotel, all the “windows” have just been black … until last week. Many now have writings on them. Disneyland in California (and the other Magic Kingdom parks around the world) have used their windows as tributes to Disney legends or Imagineers who worked on the parks. So the question is… do these names have connections with the park?
Let the research begin!
The hotel now has writing on the windows.
Let’s take a look.
Emery and Barney
Jack’s Place could be a reference to park founder Jack Krantz.
It’s a nice touch, though since this building is a hotel, those windows would seemingly be hotel rooms and not businesses upstairs. We’ll just says it’s a one-story hotel, with two stories of offices and businesses above it.
Welcome, Doc and Leone!
The new Doc and Leone’s Diner opened late afternoon on May 30, 2018. Two new benches are outside:
Doc and Leone’s Diner benches.
Inside, the place looks very nice. It’s a modern “50’s themed” restaurant, rather than a recreation of a 1950s eatery. The ceiling, for instances, has a color changing strips. Very cool.
Doc and Leone’s Diner
The left side is the restaurant. It has all-new 50’s style tables and chairs, and a few booths, as well as a long bar you can eat at.
The right side is the all-new Doc and Leone’s Bar, with some additional seating and bar seating.
Doc and Leone’s Bar
The bar side is operated by a different department, so you can’t order food there, nor can you order an adult beverage with your meal on the other side. Speaking of adult beverages, let’s take a look at the new menu…
Doc and Leone’s Bar menu.
There is a small selection of draft beer, and a large selection of bottles/cans. They also have liquor and can make a number of special cocktails. The centerpiece are the ice cream drinks, which gives you six different delicious alcohol desserts to try. They also have machines that squeeze fresh lemon or orange juice. You can buy a glass of the freshest juice around for $5, and then for $3 more, you can make it a cocktail and have a shot of liquor added. Ever have a freshly squeezed vodka lemonade? Now you can.
The food side maintains the famous fried chicken, but adds several new dishes, such as meatloaf and collard greens.
Meatloaf, collard greens and corn.
I won’t review the food here, because meatloaf can be made so many different ways. This meatloaf is more of the “ketchup tasting” type as opposed to the “very salty ground beef” type I’ve had at other places. The collard greens are also not the type of southern style greens you get at places like Famous Daves, Cracker Barrel or Fat Tuesday. The park’s publicity says the menu is based on recipes from the grandparents, so I assume these are some classic Iowa-style items as opposed to the Southern style I grew up with in Texas.
As you explore the restaurant, you will notice many family photos on the wall. Look for this one, that explains a bit about who Doc and Leone were:
Doc and Leone photos are all over the walls.
Let’s take a closer look:
About Doc and Leone.
You will also find some other surprises, like a framed Coca-Cola uniform from the era. (Coke is a sponsor of the park, so I assume it was something they provided the park. Else, the park spend some bucks to get this.)
There’s also this…
A retro-looking jukebox (it plays CDs) and an autographed jacket from The Fonz himself – Henry Winkler!
The jukebox is modern (it plays songs from CDs), but the jacket above is unique. It’s a leather jacket autographed by Henry Winkler. He was The Fonz on a 70s/80s TV show called Happy Days. Kids, ask your parents.
There are lots of surprises in here, including a “payphone” and a set of clocks…all set to 5 o’clock! (“It’s 5 o’clock somewhere!”)
And, a day or two after my visit, two more items appeared on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant: an old time gas pump and a parking meter. (Thanks to Dee/Ann for posting these photos.)
Photo by Dee/Anna.
There are so many nice details here. And, with this being the only air conditioned bar at the park, it’s sure to be huge hit with mom and dad on the hot summer days!
We’ll look at Doc and Leone’s more in a future article… And yes, there is a tribute to the former Iowa Cafe in the new location (and the tribute to the former-former Poppy’s Place remains next door at Fun Foods).
You Are Here
If you feel lost, the in-park maps now have stickers marking where you are.
You Are Here!
Baby, You Can Light My Fire!
Also, new special-effect flame bulbs are in use. I noticed them around the Saloon.
New flame bulbs.
It’s hard to tell from this photo, but these look like actual flames. I discovered these bulbs last year and ordered a few to play with. From a distance (at night), they can be quite convincing. The first time I saw them “in the wild” was at Knott’s Berry Farms a month ago. It looks like the theme park industry is embracing this new tech. (And, if you want one, you can find them for as low as $7 a bulb, or pay over $30 each. I’ve been testing different brands for some future Halloween projects I am working on.)
Flag Day
Each visit to the park (I’ve only been there two short times this year) I notice even more flags… There is a NASA flag at the Space Shot, navy flags at Infant Ocean, and an air force flag at the Red Baron. (The “tower” at the Baron has also been repainted red this year.)
Red Baron flags.
It looks like we need to create an Adventureland Flag Scavenger Hunt list.
Saloon Changes
Although not part of this visit, some changes have come to Sheriff Sam’s Saloon. Long-time park performer Ben Ulin has been doing a hypnosis show the past two years as part of Oktoberfest. He will begin doing a version of this show during the normal season, on weekends… And, 18 and older only!
Ben Ulin Hypnosis
When Ben first posted this to Facebook, some of us wondered if the saloon was going to become more saloon-like (with alcohol) for an 18+ show. During the second Oktoberfest, it was “Sherif Sam’s Whiskey Bar.” And, it seems something is happening. Just today, Jeremy B posted a photo in the Facebook group with the saloon sign replaced with a new one that reads Sam Adams Saloon. I guess I have to make another trip out to see what that’s all about.
Bernie’s Barnyard
This post is already too long, so we’ll end with another photo of the construction of Bernie’s Barnyard.
In our Facebook group, Dee/Anna broke the news that the new Doc and Leone’s Diner restaurant on Main Street opened yesterday, 5/30/2018, late afternoon. The location offers food, as well as a large selection of adult beverages (many beers, alcoholic ice cream drinks, and more).
Also, the park’s handout guide already lists what the Fire Station is becoming: The Main Street Marketplace. In the guide it is listed as offering “food allergy friendly offerings, grab and go drinks and salads.”
Dee/Anna has also shared a photo of the ride vehicle for the new children’s ride Shakin’ Bacon, coming soon to Bernie’s Barnyard.
I have been making updates to the Adventureland Wiki with these and other notes, so be sure to check it out.
