Vacationland Cover Comparison

Looking back at last Sunday's post, a couple of readers commented that the cover looked familiar yet something was different. Here's the cover from Sunday's post from the Spring 1974 issue of Walt Disney World's Vacationland.




Looking at that cover got me thinking about the cover to the Fall-Winter 1981/82 of Disneyland's Vacationland. While not the same artist, the idea is pretty much the same - "Where's Waldo?"!




Download the entire issue here:

Vacationland Fall/Winter 1981-82 – 68.5mb



“Adventures in Peter Pan Country” Better catch those adventures while you can, this whole area, ship, skull and all, would be gone in less than a year (link).

Disney World Opens - Life Magazine October 1971

**** This is a Magazine Monday "Best of" Re-broadcast in honor of Walt Disney World's up coming 40th Birthday ****


Disney World Opens from Life Magazine - October 15, 1971.




Be sure to check out the two page aerial photo. It’s taken from an odd angle and with a super wide fish-eye type lens. This place is disorienting enough for me, but the aerial photos give me weird dreams.










Now for some vintage ads: Oh boy, lets buy a Pinto? “It was alleged that the car's design allowed its fuel tank to be easily damaged in the event of a rear-end collision which sometimes resulted in deadly fires and explosions.” In reality the number of fire related deaths from those early Pintos (over 2 million built) was 27, about the same as any other car of the period. Actually, it’s kind of cute.




Now this is more my size. I once owned a 73 Lincoln Mark IV (similar underneath to this T-Bird) it had those early anti-lock brakes (Sure-Track) and they worked rather well.




Can’t ignore the GM folks, this is the last year before the ugly bumper laws made the front ends look awful!




Moving away from the ads for a moment and for the sports fans, here is a great vintage article about George Allen joining the Redskins after being with the Rams. The “RamSkins” Interesting that his Redskins would loose to Florida (that seasons' undefeated Miami Dolphins) in Superbowl VII (1973) 14 to 7.





Back for two more ads. How about a couple of vices?

Let’s start with some alcohol. Ah yes Seagram's 7 Crown, what a lively looking bunch of folks, look how neat and organized everything is. When my friends and I hang around all day and drink whisky on the rocks in tall glasses, we aren’t quite as well behaved…




***Disclaimer – Cigarettes are gross and they will kill you, don’t do it!*** That said, “The Lady has Taste” Eve cigarettes will always have and odd and disjointed place in my mind, as a 6 year old, these ads really had an profound impact on my little brain. “Smoke Pretty”, Well “Lady”, you’ll look “pretty” in that open casket!

You can read this ENTIRE issue of this Life Magazine here (link) - the link is not my scan, but very cool - I would give proper credit, but I can't read Japanese...

Check out a couple of my other vintage Walt Disney World magazine posts:

Take a LOOK at Disneyworld - April 4, 1971

Boys Life – July 1973

Bonus Sunday - Walt Disney World Vacationland Spring 1974

Welcome to Bonus Sunday. Continuing with the celebration of Walt Disney Worlds upcoming 40th aniversary, here is a super issue of Vacationland, Walt Disney World Edition, Spring 1974







Download the entire 40 page issue here: WDW Vacationland Spring 1974 - 155mb



Some highlights from this awesome issue.












See a matching Ringling Bros. Circus World ticket from an old post here (link).

An East Coast version of Knott's Berry Farm?






Only in Florida (Actually Georgia) would a "Swamp" theme park be possible.

A Complete Edition About Walt Disney World “The Vacation Kingdom of the World” - 1969

A repeat post from 2008, but well worth a second look and if you missed it the first time, be sure and check it out!

From 1969: A Complete Edition About Walt Disney World “The Vacation Kingdom of the World”. This booklet is an extensive look at how the Disney company thought Walt Disney World would become. While a lot of these details did end up in the final version(s), several of the ideas died somewhere between this booklet and reality.




Fascinating stuff on these pages, the Western River Expedition would have been amazing from what I have read, same for Thunder Mesa.




Wow, these hotels would have been neat, that big dome at the Persian would have been something to see.

This Hotel turned out nicely.

This is the last page of the text. Check out where some of the needed cash would come from “regular cash flow accruing to the corporation from its operations during the next three years”. Counting chickens before they hatch can be dangerous…. Was this the cash that would have paid for Western River Expedition & Thunder Mesa or the Hotels that never were?




The front and back covers are actually one big picture. It’s this great late 60’s style artist concept of the entire “phase one” of the new resort. Hey, is the Monorail going THRU Tomorrowland like it’s supposed to?




Here is entire booklet of A Complete Edition About Walt Disney World “The Vacation Kingdom of the World”.

A Complete Edition About Walt Disney World - 40mb

Walt Disney World - Grad Nite '74

When I think of “Grad Nite” Disneyland usually comes to mind but of course the East Coast Park had its “Grad Nites” also. The cover to the Grad Nite ’74 souvenir program sure is interesting, in fact it kind of gives me the creeps, I think the “mannequin” faced couple is primarily responsible for that.








Canned Heat and The Stylistics, presumably not playing together, but then again, its 1974 so who knows… Maybe this is when they formed the “Betcha by Golly, Wow – On the Road Again” tour.

Walt Disney World Transportation Tickets

Our sister park in Florida has a Fortieth Birthday coming up in a couple of weeks so let’s help celebrate with some Walt Disney World posts! Sometimes when I post Walt Disney World stuff I get mixed reactions, there’s a couple readers that have told me they just skip right over my WDW posts – no worries, there’s always plenty of Disneyland stuff to post, but for the next couple weeks expect to see a few Walt Disney World posts.

Let’s take a look at a some WDW Transportation Tickets. Yes you park about 20 miles from the actual theme park in Florida so walking is not an option, OK its not that far, but unless you can swim, you'll need one of these tickets. Usually a Transportation Ticket was included in the ticket book as seen here in my September 2010 post (link). These tickets appear to have been sold separately, I guess in case you wanted to only ride the Monorail and not enter the park, sounds fun to me!




Use this Transportation Ticket and you assume all risk. “They bought their tickets, they knew what they were getting into, I say, let 'em crash”.




The Child ticket was $1 cheaper than the Adult Ticket and pink?




I don’t have a standalone Junior Transportation Ticket in my collection, so here’s one attached to a ticket book along with a Main Gate Admission ticket.





This book only had one ticket left, but boy are there a lot of good choices on this “D” ticket from February 1977. Mickey Mouse Revue for me!




Those elegant curly-cues let you know this is the upscale “East Coast” park.




For a few years they didn’t put the attraction list on the inside back cover, just a note about the “free” attractions.




Of course Florida had to be different with the back cover and go with a “Portrait” orientation.





From a Bonus Sunday post back in July 2008 here’s the complete “Your Complete Guide to Walt Disney World” 1977. July 2008 was back from when I made my first (and only) trip to Walt Disney World, check out my Trip Reports here (part 1) and (part 2).


Walt Disney World Guide 1977 - 39mb




Here’s a rundown of the “lands” of Walt Disney World circa 1977.