Do you drive? Depending on how far north you are, airfare isn't exactly cheap, and if you were driving from, say Sacramento, the round trip in just gas is a bit under $200. And with your own car, you can drive directly to your hotel and not be at LAX or SNA and looking for an Uber/Lyft. I5, not 101!!!
It IS fun going alone. You eat whenever you want, get on whatever ride you want without consulting anyone, stay as late as you want until you run out of energy. Come back when you've reloaded on pep. And you can take advantage of the "Single Rider" line at the Incredicoaster, RADIATOR SPRINGS RACERS, Web Slingers, Smugglers Run (<go over and over!)
Check the app for Wait Times. If they are outrageous even in the mornings (9:00 am-ish), you might have to buy Genie+ just to get on something. But if the wait times are low, don't bother buying Genie+.
Maybe buy a Park Hopper for only one day? DCA first. You would probably be done by 1PM. Then park-hop to Disneyland. The second day, Disneyland only.
Disneyland/DCA at night is glorious. Family never stayed after dark during my childhood. By 4-5PM it was always "we're done. Let's go back to Grandpa's house". After I grew up and took solo trips, that was when I could see the night time parades and fireworks, short lines, and park closing.
Go on a weekday. Less crowded.
And anyone who's driving- Try to plan it so you clear the mountains and you're in Glendale by 2-3PM. You don't wanna deal with LA traffic!
This was back when park souvenirs had something to do with the parks. And not just selling generic unbranded pirate-y stuff that they buy in bulk from China and sell for inflated prices (same problem currently in Tokyo Disneyland- their pirate store is just unbranded stuff and isn't Disney or Park or ride oriented).
This was sold around 1974-1975. It was my family's practice to hand the kids 5 bucks for souvies and let the kids buy what they wanted, and 5 bucks went a long ways. This particular book was sold in one of the stores in New Orleans Square. It was one dollar. I don't regret buying this, and didn't know that these souvies would come and go, and there was no guarantee that it would still be there during next year's trip. (still have memories of the first Kiss comic book just sitting in stacks at the drugstore. How was I supposed to know those would become rare and valuable later?)
Ahem. Back to Pirates. It has behind-the-scenes photos of the time when the attraction was being built, a photo walkthrough of the ride, and a cute cartoon map version of the ride so you can follow it from start to end. And it's a reprint from a 1968 Disneyland Pirates book, so this 1974 version of the ride shown is the same as it was in the 60's!
But if you're unwilling to pay $$$ for it now, I highly recommend "Pirates of the Caribbean" by Jason Surrell (2005) which is even more comprehensive, and has some of the same photos (but smaller). This book is good in its own right, and 3/4 of if is dedicated to the ride, not the movie. It's not rare, and you can get it for 10-15 bucks on Amazon (used).
All of these books were pre-Jack Sparrow takeover, so if you enjoy ride photos without him, buy these books!
Well, I actually like the fight with the chain, even tho one must wonder what the hell Javert was expecting to do with a chain THAT long. Even if he did manage to handcuff Valjean with that thing, he would still be able to move his arms just as freely.
Hang on...
WHAT the HECK is going on here? Is this from the musical, and takes the place of the movie stick vs. sword fight? So in this version, is Javert coming into the fight with a long chain (w/ shackle at end) and swinging it around like a whip (and not using a sword at all)?
The idea of wrestling his prisoner into submission and shackling him with a long chain like that is hilarious!
Also, the fact that in this one we have a child playing Valjean makes the whole thing even more absurd, though usually it would be grown ups doing that coreography and demandings us to take them seriously.
To be fair, Javert going "NO! [Slams the chain in the floor to scare Valjean] 24601!" is so oddly satisfying.
I really was expecting baby-Valjean to whip out a bowl and ask, "Please Sir, can I have some more?"
This is soooo freakin' disturbing. I realize that the singers are playing a role, but the age/size/weight/strength differences between "Javert" and "baby-Valjean" are too much to accept.
Not only does it have Thenardier levels of physical child abuse, we're watching some grown-ass man pounce on a little kid with a chain and that's awful. Then the grown-ass man picks up the kid and tries to carry him off like a sack of potatoes. Brrrrrrrr.
I get it that youth theater has their own productions of Les Miz. Kiddo Javert vs. Kiddo Valjean is a-OK. But this production looks ridiculous. My first impulse is to yell, "Hey, a-hole, leave the kid alone!" and want to protect the boy from this huge dude who's menacing him.
I only buy food in the parks if it's in Tokyo or Shanghai or Hong Kong. In comparison to my closest US Disney park, the food in the Asia parks are exotic, delicious, and very reasonably priced. I won't forget that squid thingy at the stand near Pirates in Shanghai, or that purple-colored Ursula shrimp bun in Tokyo. Or that Food Republic in Disneytown (Shanghai) where you can get all kinds of different Asian cuisine, and OMG that Hainan Chicken over there- so good and so much cheaper than any Singaporean restaurant in my hometown.
The food in the US parks (except for the Food and Wine festivals) is way overpriced for what you get. Ten bucks gets you ONE corndog (w/chips). If you have a family, even this fast food can add up quickly.
Meanwhile, there's a 7-11 on Katella and South Harbor. Your $10 can buy you several hotdogs and pizza slices! So at Disneyland, I wait until I start running out of energy, leave the park, eat something, take a nap and change clothes for the evening return.
None of the movie versions are better than the book.
All of the movie versions delete subplots, or a lot of them mess up the ending and put the Count with the wrong girl. Or they do stupid sh** and make up stuff like Franz is killed in a robot battle and the Count dies.
Movies are limited in length, and the book is so plot-heavy that it cannot be made into a 2 hour movie. 6 hour miniseries, maybe, if it's done right. But you'd need to tolerate a miniseries in French. Or a B&W one in English with cheap sets and bad camerawork.
Even a children's version of the book from India (Madhubun Educational Books) runs circles around the movie versions.
Can you explain what exactly your homework assignment is? Were you supposed to watch every available movie/TV miniseries version and make notes about each one of them? What kind of data are you logging into a database? Plot points? Character arcs? How long do you have?
i have until april 18th and i have to collect data about whose version the people liked the most and if they think is better than the book and then make a database with at least 30 data entries
Hummmmm, interesting. You see, the problem is that there are only 4 versions in English (1934, 1964 (miniseries), 1975 (TV movie) and 2002). It's going to be difficult to find people who were willing to watch all of these to rate them. Silent movies and foreign-language films are for fanatics only.
There isn't a large demand for the 1934 one- too old-timey for modern audiences. And your average person today has gotten spoiled with good sets and cinematography and won't want to sit through the 5 hours of the 1964 BBC series.
That leaves us with 1975 (Richard Chamberlain) and 2002 (James Caviezel). Of these two, I think the 1975 one is "better" (but not better than the book) simply because it somewhat resembles the book and at least has characters like Valentine, Noirtier, the telegraph operator, Benedetto and Haydee.
But you will probably get more people voting for the 2002 movie, simply because more people saw it and it's more recent. It deserves praise for the sets, the costumes, the ships and the production values. But it gets zero points for faithfulness to the plot.
People voting for it like it because it looks great, it has humorous dialogue, it's easy to understand, it has a lot of fighting, and it's fun and exciting. They're not voting for it because it replicates the experience of the book.
I do confess, nothing makes me happier than to read children's versions of The Classics and see how well they re-tell the story in an age-appropriate manner. And how accurate they are. And if they sail way off the mark, how funny is it?
This book is now MINE! Walked in the wind and the rain and stopped by one of those "Little Free Libraries". Whenever I see "Les Miserables" in a slim volume, count me in! This book is meant for TODDLERS, and there's exactly 12 words in it. So parents would have to scramble for a means to tell the story. Cuz 12 words can't quite do that!
Fun writing challenge: Write Les Miserables in 12-15 paragraphs, in a way that a toddler can understand it, and make it reasonably accurate and don't make up fake happy BS if it's not in the original!
(I'll pay it forwards by leaving another book at that free library)
My first stab:
"POOR"
Poor Jean Valjean! It's the year 1815, and he was just released from prison. He has to walk from town to town. He's tired but the inns won't rent him a room or sell him a meal. He sleeps on a bench in the street and a nice old lady tells him to see the Bishop.
The Bishop of Digne is a Great Guy! He loves Valjean, and gives him food and a bed. But Valjean steals the Bishop's silver candlesticks. The Bishop forgives him and tells him to be a good man from now on.
"RICH"
Years later, Valjean becomes rich. He owns a factory in the town of M-sur-M and makes glass beads. A poor girl named Fantine works for him. She has a child, Cosette, and no husband, so she pays The Thenns to care for Cosette. But Fantine gets sick and dies, and Valjean promises to look after Cosette.
"SAD"
Cosette is very sad. The Thenns are mean people and they yell at her, make her work hard sweeping the floor and cleaning their inn and they beat her. Cosette has to go out at night with a huge bucket to get water. Valjean helps her get water and buys her a doll. He is the first person to be kind to her. He bribes the greedy Thenns with money, and they allow Cosette to leave with him.
"HAPPY"
Valjean takes Cosette to a new town, and she calls him "Father". He feeds her well and teaches her how to read and pray. She is happy for the first time in her young life.
"RUN"
But there is a policeman named Javert who is spying on them. Javert thinks Valjean is an escaped convict and wants to arrest him and put him back into prison. Valjean and Cosette run from Javert while a whole squad of police are searching for them.
"CLIMB"
Valjean and Cosette have to climb over a very high wall. It is a convent! They meet Father Fauvent, a man who Valjean saved years ago from being crushed by a broken cart. Father Fauvent speaks to Reverend Mother and gets permission for Valjean and Cosette to stay. Valjean works as a gardener at the convent, while Cosette goes to a real school there. They live happily in peace and safety for years.
"STROLL"
Cosette grows up, and when it is time to leave the convent, she and Valjean live near Lux Gardens. They stroll in the park every day and help feed the poor.
"LOVE"
A handsome young man, Marius Pontmercy, sees Cosette at Lux Gardens. But he is too shy to talk to her so he just watches her and follows her. Valjean doesn't like this and thinks Marius is rude. Valjean and Cosette move to a new house, but Marius finds out where they live and leaves a love letter to Cosette under a rock. She reads it, and Marius meets her and the two young people fall in love.
"FIRE"
The year is 1832, and the people are angry at the King and the Government. There are too many poor and starving people and the King does nothing. Marius and his friends the ABCs want to help, so they lead a revolt. The King sends soldiers against the rebels, so Marius threatens to blow everybody up by lighting a barrel of gunpowder on fire. The soldiers retreat.
"STOP"
But Marius and his ABC friends and the people lose the battle against the soldiers. There are too many soldiers and not enough rebels. Many people are shot. Marius is also shot, but he is still alive. Valjean wants to save him and takes him into the sewers to hide. Javert finds them and orders them to "Stop!"
"DARK"
Valjean makes a deal with Javert. If Javert will allow Marius go home and be cared for by a doctor, Valjean will let Javert arrest him and take him back to prison. Javert thinks about it and accepts, but has second thoughts and decides that Valjean is not a bad man. Javert disappears and Valjean is free!
"TOGETHER"
Marius and Cosette get married. But Valjean is ashamed that he was once a convict and tells Marius, but doesn't want Cosette to know. Marius thinks Valjean committed new crimes as a thief and a murderer and won't allow Cosette to see Father anymore. Valjean becomes sick and very lonely without Cosette.
Mr. Thenn visits Marius, looking for money and has evidence that Valjean is innocent of these new crimes. Marius is shocked and regrets his bad behavior towards Valjean. He and Cosette rush to see him. Valjean is overjoyed and blesses them before he dies and they are together as a family for the rest of Valjan's life!
"SICK"
Poor Fantine had to play with other people even when she didn't want, so they would give her the money she had to send for her daughter. One day, a very mean bully called Bamatamois showed up and wanted to play with her. Fantine said she wouldn't play with him, and Bamatabois got really mad, so he threw a snow ball on her, wich gave her a really bad cold.
That's the right spirit!
LOL. Fantine had to "play" with people for money. Even when she didn't want to.
"A really bad cold" that wouldn't go away and just got worse...
I LOVE IT!
Depending on how kids vs. grownups interpret "play with", this is also not technically wrong!
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What? Disney used to have gondolas? It makes sense with the ski lift kind of vibe to matterhorn, but I didn’t know that. When we’re they removed?
I took myself and my kids to Disney the first time in 2015 after being told we would go my entire childhood but never following through. Just wondering if I would have caught them as a kid.
It used to have a cool name "Skyway to Tomorrowland/Fantasyland" and we never knew the diff between those and ski lifts! They even went through holes in the Matterhorn!!! So back then, the Matterhorn hosted both the Bobsleds and a slow-moving Skyway going through it.
This was around the first time I ever went, as a 3 year old. I have photos of meeting Goofy and Pluto (who accidentally sat on me while play fighting, lol) and my folks did spring for the Viewmaster reels, too, which I loved.
I remember being terrified of Journey Through Inner Space (I seem to remember it was the eyeball…? God, that was a million years ago).
I do have to admit, I loved when Captain EO went in. As an 80s kid, I think that was peak coolness as far as a lot of us were concerned. This book predates that by a good few years, though. It seems like EO was the start of a lot of “modernization” of the park, so some of those older attractions were being phased out right around the time this book was being sold.
Thanks for sharing!
Yep. I have a few different souvenir books from Disneyland (the 1981 one is the oldest), As the books get more and more modern, we'll see pics of late 80's-90's-era attractions that are also heartbreakingly gone. Will post some of those books in a few days.
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