I searched through the archive and grabbed five classic Disneyland images, plus one from the opening of Walt Disney World. Let's start with Life's classic image from the opening of Disneyland in 1955, with children running through Sleeping Beauty's Castle.
Sure, it's a great shot, but it always bugged me 'cause it shows the kids... fleeing from Fantasyland back toward the park exit! Here's a more accurate picture, with the crowd following Disney characters through the castle. (Even if it is a worse photo, due to everyone having their backs to the camera.)
Here's picture of the Mad Tea Party, in its original location next to the castle, in Fantasyland.
And another of Frontierland's Mine Train through Nature's Wonderland.
This is my favorite shot from the archive, a stunning photo from the climbers' POV at the top of the Matterhorn. In the background, you see... hey, wait a minute, something's not right here....
Yep. The image is reversed. Here is the image flipped to the correct orientation. Over the climber's right shoulder, you can see Captain Hook’s Pirate Ship, Storybook Land, Midget Autopia, the old Fantasyland train station and the Matterhorn dispatch station.
Finally, here's the opening day cast photo that Life ran on its front cover celebrating Walt Disney World's opening in October 1971.
You can search the complete Life magazine photo archive on Google at http://images.google.com/hosted/life.
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Either way, these pictures are amazing.
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