The state of Florida had an effect on me long before I was even born. In the early 60s my dad's aerospace career found him transferred from Long Island, NY to sunny Florida, when my brother was just a baby and I wasn't even a blip on their radar. However, they apparently couldn't stand living in Florida and left after about a year. I never really got the whole Florida story aside from the fact that a scorpion bit my brother; they left the state and didn't return for over 20 years. How did this affect me you might ask? After all I wasn't even born until 1968, when Florida was a distant bad memory for my folks and we were all blissfully entrenched in our lives in Queens.
Well, as most of you MousePlanet readers are aware, something major happened in the state of Florida just a few short years after my birth. To be more specific, the fall of 1971 saw the opening of Walt Disney World in central Florida. The Happiest Place on Earth had opened an even bigger and potentially happier outpost right here on the very same coast where I lived.
I was three and my brother was eleven; the perfect ages for a trip to Walt Disney World. From what I can deduce though, Florida was on my parent's no-fly list and I went through my childhood happily unaware of what was building and flourishing among the swamps and pine-barrens just aside Orlando. I didn't visit Walt Disney World until I had my own children and then it was my wife that made the suggestion. What a can of worms she opened up.
Was I slighted? Perhaps. Was I denied a bona fide American right of passage? Maybe. I can't really complain. I spent all of my childhood summers on the beach, and my winters skiing. We never wanted for anything, so I certainly didn't suffer. I am left to wonder though, “What exactly was Walt Disney World like in the very beginning?”
Luckily, as you may know, I'm quite the Disney collector so I've had the pleasure of coming across a plethora of books, magazines, brochures, postcards, and first hand accounts of just what it was like to be there in the early days of The Most Magical Place on Earth. One of those sources that I stumbled upon in an antique shop was a pristine copy of Life Magazine from October 15, 1971. As you can imagine from the cover story on Walt Disney World's opening, this little treasure caught my eye and practically jumped off the shelf at me and quickly became mine.
Life magazine was published weekly from 1883 until 1972. During its heyday, Life covered the world and presented it to the American public in an ongoing series of indelible photographs. Indeed some of the most memorable images of the 20th Century ran in Life Magazine. The opening of Walt Disney World—Walt's second resort and the center of much secrecy for so long—was a natural event for the cover.
Speaking of the cover, it featured 1500 cast members and some special guests in front of Cinderella Castle.
The October 15, 1971 cover of Life Magazine shows an impressive cast. Photo by Chris Barry.
The coverage inside is actually a little more minimal than you would expect given its full cover status. This page speaks to the differences between Disneyland and this newest version of Walt's Magic Kingdom.
The article starts off declaring that Mickey has moved east. Photo by Chris Barry.
A full two-page spread photo is the coolest piece of the article for me. The aerial view of the Magic Kingdom, Bay Lake, and the Seven Seas Lagoon from 1971 highlights the differences from the park as it exists today. Try and spot what's missing.
An early look at the Magic Kingdom reveals many empty spots that have since been filled. Photo by Chris Barry.
The following pages feature a nice selection of Disney characters from the park, and a shot of the long gone Mickey Mouse Musical Revue. A debate over the identity of Giuseppi Cat can be found in several spots on the Internet; the consensus is that he is one of the cats from Scat Cat's band in The Aristocats. Considering the film was a recent release at the time makes his presence out in the park logical. The big jealous moment here for me occurs in the photo of Br'er Bear on the right. You can see one of my all time favorite Disney characters, Br'er Rabbit, in the background there. Why he's not around for a photo-op in the parks anymore is beyond me. I'd wait on that line.
Some unique characters wander the streets of the newly opened park. Photo by Chris Barry.
Of course, the Mickey Mouse Musical Revue was there on opening day in the Fantasyland theater building that currently houses Mickey's PhilharMagic. As much as I adore PhilharMagic, it would have been very cool to actually see Mickey's Revue. It moved to Tokyo Disneyland and then closed in 2009. Since I've never been there, I missed that boat as well.
The Mickey Mouse Revue opened with the Magic Kingdom. Photo by Chris Barry.
The last page of the story features everybody's saddest old bear, Big Al from Frontierland's Country Bear Jamboree. He's definitely not that silly old bear who would eventually inhabit Fantasyland.
Big Al sings “There was blood on the saddle…” in the Country Bear Jamboree. Photo by Chris Barry.
This issue of Life certainly would have whet my appetite and made me want to hop a flight on Eastern Airlines—the official airline of Walt Disney World at the time—and book a room at The Contemporary Resort to see Disney's newest amazing creation. The magazine leaves a lot out, but perhaps that was the idea. It gave you a little taste, and if you wanted to see the rest, you had to make the journey to experience the magic in person.
Magazines like this one can give people great insight into what it was like in the earliest days of Walt Disney World. It also is fun to thumb through and read the stories to see what else was going on around the world. This issue has stories on the Shah of Iran, the best and worst Supreme Court Justices, and even a letter to the editor from Princess Grace of Monaco complaining about a previous article that she felt misrepresented her. Perhaps the most fun of all to see are the advertisements.
Here's an ad for Kal Kan, the official pet food of Walt Disney World in 1971.
The Kal Kan ad features a sweepstakes to win a trip to Walt Disney World, and encourages visitors to bring their pets. Photo by Chris Barry.
On the non-Disney front, here's a classic Ford Pinto ad.
The legendary Ford Pinto was also introduced to the world in 1971. Photo by Chris Barry.
Remember film? Of course you do. Remember Polaroids? Of course you do.
My parents had and I still have this Polaroid camera. Photo by Chris Barry.
Here's an ad featuring comedian and all around wacky guy, Buddy Hackett, shilling for the Aladdin Thermos Company.
There's no mention in this Aladdin ad of this actually being Buddy Hackett, but trust me, that's no construction worker. Photo by Chris Barry.
As fun as it was for me to thumb through this magazine, it was even more enjoyable sitting with my 16-year-old daughter and flipping through the pages. She was intrigued by the odd looking characters, especially Winnie the Pooh on the cover. She also had a good time looking for differences between the Magic Kingdom that we know and love today and the aforementioned aerial shot. She really got a kick out of the ads.
Obviously, I'm grateful that I discovered the wonder of Walt Disney World later on in life, but I'm curious how big a fan I would have been if someone in our house read this magazine in 1971 and decided to cave in and take us all on a trip. No regrets though. Mom and Dad, I forgive you for never taking me to Walt Disney World in the 1970s. You made up for it in many, many other wonderful ways throughout my life. Over the last dozen or so years, we've all been there together and I suppose I've definitely made up for lost Disney time, and then some.
Have you ever spent some time flipping through a magazine like this? Have you enjoyed it as much as I have? As always, I'd like to hear what you have to say. Click on the link below; let me hear your thoughts and I'll see you next time with more of that great Disney Stuff.
