Gardens of The World...Topiaries of the Kingdom.

Our Walt Disney World vacations of the 70's and 80's had a very different "feel" than they do nowadays. Not necessarily better or worse, just different.

In the early days our family would head down for an 8 to 10 day trip to a Walt Disney World that consisted of ONE park and just TWO resorts.

By today's standards, there wasn't much to do, but at the time we were always entertained and were just as saddened by the last day of our vacation as we are now.

One of the up sides to the "One Park World" was that we had plenty of time to slow down and check out all that they had to offer. One thing that is often overlooked today, by the hoards to visitors who rush from attraction to attraction, is the landscaping and gardens.

Today's article will focus on one of my very favorite landscape attractions at Walt Disney World...the topiaries.

There are still a few topiaries to be found on a regular basis at The World.

The Sea Serpent of the Magic Kingdom is still patroling the lawns around the Hub in front of Cinderella's Castle.

There are also a few to be found around EPCOT, especially during The Flower and Garden Festival, when they all but take over the park.

But back in the day, if you wanted to see a fantastic collection of topiaries you would have traveled to the area between the Transportation and Ticket Center and the Contemporary Resort. There you could find a wonderous collection of these fantastic "beasts" and even get up close and personal for a few photographs.

In these photos, taken around 1979, you can see my brothers and I, along with our Mom, standing with the Elephant Parade Topiaries.

These sculpures were along side the road, and I remember seeing people posing with them nearly every time we drove past.

Here is another photo from that very same "Photo Shoot" of my brothers and I posing with the stork and "obelisk" topiaries near the Transportation and Ticket Center. (Note the matching Mickey Shirts, complimented by the vintage Mickey Socks...I'd still wear those, if only I could find them!!!)

This photo, from the 1992 book, The Gardens of the Walt Disney World Resort, shows what appears to be those same elephant topiaries some years later, in a different location. Now surrounded by flower gardens, you could no longer walk up to them to pose for a photo op.

Here is another Elephant sculpture. (apparently, elephants are a hot property in the topiary world). As you can see in the photo, this handsome fella lives at the TTC as well.

There were also many other topiaries which lived right beside The Transportation and Ticket Center as well as any other number of floral creations which were scattered about the area.

I suppose my special memories of these topiaries are not so much about the plants themselves, but more about a time in The World's history where there was less offered but perhaps more to be discovered, simply because you had the time to do so.

Here are a few more vintage topiary photos which were sent in by our good friend Ryan Wilson of The Main Street Gazette.

Here we see Ryan's parents posing, very stylishly might I add, in front of a few of the topiaries which were found at the Transportation and ticket Center, circa 1980.

A special thank you to Ryan for allowing us to see these rare gems from his family collection.

~Tony

The Diamond Horseshoe: A Rootin' Tootin' Good Time!!!

Stepping back in time, once again, we find ourselves at a Magic Kingdom Show that was always a family favorite back in the day, The Diamond Horseshoe Revue.

Situated on your left hand side, as you rush from Liberty Square toward Frontierland's gate-buster attractions, Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain, the Diamond Horseshoe Saloon now sits quietly, often empty, with most Magic Kingdom visitors not even noticing it is there.

That was not always the case, when I was a kid, I can remember Dad rushing ahead to the building on Main Street USA, where The Art of Disney is now situated, to be sure that he was able to get a reservation for the family to attend the show. While tickets were complimentary, popularity demanded that you reserve them early so as not to miss this extravaganza.

The original show was called The Diamond Horseshoe Revue, and while the name (as well as the performers) changed a few times over it's 22 year run, the show was esentially the same. A wild west saloon show, with comedians, Can-can girls and musical performances.

When the Magic Kingdom, in Florida, first opened, Wally Boag, "The Clown Prince of Disneyland", was brought in and performed for the first three years of the show's run. Wally was the star of Disneyland's Golden Horseshoe Revue and while I do not personally remember his performances, his portrayal of Pecos Bill was always once of my parents' favorites.

My family always looked forward to the Revue, as a kid I can remember my youngest brother Jimmy, being brought on the stage be part of the show.

The look on his face as the drummer's rim shot signaled the opening of a trap door beneath his feet (which was just a joke) will be etched in my mind forever. He did, however, get some nice (and highly coveted by his two brothers) parting gifts for being part of the performance. A certificate stating his participation as well as a huge, Mickey head, topped pencil.

This wild west style show, in one or another of it's various forms, ran through February of 2003.

I will always remember it fondly and think about it each and everytime I walk through Frontierland, it was a huge part of my Magic Kingdom experiences as a kid and will be missed.

MISSING: Classic Disney Characters

Who doesn't love to meet and greet Disney Characters???

While, these days, most character meetings take place at either a character meal or a formal meet and greet location, that wasn't always the case at Walt Disney World.

There was a time when you could bump into a character just about anywhere. Walking through Fantasyland you may come across any of the Seven Dwarfs...

or while passing through Cinderella's Castle you may stumble upon Robin Hood and his Merry Men...

how about walking past your resort pool and stopping by to have a chat was Pinocchio himself?

Those were the days!!! While I can, half-heartedly, force myself into understanding the fact that the parks and resorts are far busier than they were in those days, I do so miss the "spur of the moment" meet with the characters we all know and love.

One thing that I do miss, even more than where we met the characters, is just who we met. Most of today's character interactions are with the Fab Five, of course the princesses, and a few of the more popular, recently introduced characters.

Once again , I can most certainly understand the laws of supply and demand, but I will always miss the surprise of not knowing just who will be waiting for you outside the tunnel to Main Street USA...

or who could be wandering around Adventureland...

or perhaps, even a chance meeting down at The Lake Buena Vista Village (now I know, I am REALLY dating myself with this one!!!)
But I think you guys get my point!!!

With such a rich history of fantastical character creations...I would love to see a greater variety of walk around characters, I long for the days when you could meet just about any character from Disney's long list of Classic Films...just about anywhere!!!

Maybe even playing back up The BIG CHEESE himself...

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I am always looking for New, OLD photo's of the "LOST" Characters of Walt Disney World.

If you are ever digging through your own secret stash of Vintage WDW photo's, and would not mind sharing, please shoot me an email...I am sure there are plenty of others here on The WED Page, who would love to see what kind of MAGIC you have to share!!!

Until next week....

~Tony

Frontierland:The Rulers of Days Gone By!!!

While "digging through the crates" last week, I stumbled across a little something that took me back...way back.

I was sending my buddy Ryan, Editor-in-Chief at The Main Street Gazette, a collection of Disney World songs, some rare and some out of date, that I had found online. As I was going through this collection, I came across one song in particular, that caused me to stop dead in my tracks. It was the Finale from The Country Bear Jamboree.

Back before the days of Splash Mountain and even Big Thunder Mountain for that matter, there was an attraction that absolutely captured the imagination of three little boys from the Bronx...THE "E-Ticket" attraction of Frontierland, back in the day, was without question The Country Bear Jamboree.This weeks article is less about the show, which we all know and love, and more about a little boy (or three) who were obsessed with it.

We had always loved the show while we were on our family vacations to Walt Disney World, but thanks to a very special gift from Santa Claus on Christmas morning 1976, our obsession was taken to a whole new level...

Many people credit albums from their childhood or teen years for having a profound impression on them, an album that changed their lives. For some it was The Beatles, other had Jimi Hendrix or The Doors.For me...it was this album... (Please Note: LAUGHING WILL NOT BE TOLLERATED!!!)
THE COUNTRY BEAR JAMBOREE!!!

Now, at the tender age 6, I had amassed quite a collection of vinyl. That Christmas morning I added this album to that collection. Sandwiched on a shelf between a Jackson Five album and something by the Carpenters, this was now my prized possession.

I can not say with accuracy, just how many times we played that album...it was certainly enough to know every song, word of word...and also enough to bring a grown man to tears (not sure if Dad looks back on those day as fondly as I do) but what I do know with certainty, in our room, it was on maximum rotation!!!

To this day, I quietly sing every song, every word for that matter, right along with the Bears. If my brother Frankie is there with me...we just may sing it out loud!!!
Our love of the Bears didn't end there. Back in those days there was "Bear's Swag a Plenty" to be found in the Magic Kingdom.

We loved all of the critters in that show, but there was no one quite like Big Al...he was an absolute stud back in those days, a Magic Kingdom SUPERSTAR!

There were Big Al plushes, Big Al books, Big Al buttons...and we had them all. He was the undisputed King of Frontierland and he ruled with an iron fist...er, paw!

Sadly, those days are behind us now. While you may come across the odd collectible or two, the "hey-day" of The Country Bears has long gone by. Not to mention the fact that The Country Bears has since departed from Disneyland. I certainly hope that same fate does not await them at Walt Disney World.

One really neat little treasure that has been lost from WDW's Frontierland, used to be just next door in the Mile Long Bar. While I was thrilled with it's replacement (after all, who doesn't LOVE Pecos Bill's) I do miss seeing the boys, Melvin, Buff and Buck, singing their hearts out for the crowds as they exited the show.

There wasn't much to it really, but to see Audio-animatronics, outside of an attraction, was very cool to me. I can remember walking out the exit of Grizzly Hall, looking forward to seeing them "belting out a little ditty" for the crowd.

As I had mentioned, I know the album word for word, but of all the songs in the show, I still get the most excited for the Grand Finale. I assume that if you are reading this Blog, you are well aquainted with these songs. The first song in the Finale is The Ballad of Davy Crockett, a classic by anyone's standards. The second song from the finale, is certainly the lesser known of the two. As a kid we always called it Bear Tracks. I had always assumed that it was written just for the show.

Some of you may already know this, but during my research earlier this week, I discovered that, after almost 38 years of being The Country Bears biggest fan, that this song is actually titled Ole Slew Foot and is a Blue Grass Classic.

I think that I have gone on about The Bears enough for one week.

Whether you are a huge fan of The Bears, who checks out the show each and every trip or a rare patron of Grizzly Hall, I urge you to stop by and take in the show next time you find yourself in Frontierland.

I hope you can see the MAGIC that captured three little boys back in the early 70's and possesses them, now grown men with their own little ones, to this very day.

~ Tony

PS. Here is just a little something to enjoy before you head off...a few videos to send some pixie dust your way.

The first selection is The Country Bears Finale, taken for 1971 Demo Footage of the show.The second is a vintage video of a performance of Ole Slew Foot by Jim & Jesse, back in 1976.

'Til next week...Enjoy!!!