Frito Kid Mysteries Continue

Last year we posted a look at the mysterious Frito Kid at Disneyland. Since then we have set out to answer a few questions about him– specifically “Where exactly was he located??” and “What still exists today?” Here's what we've found.

 
Location 1– 1955-1957

We knew his first location was next to Aunt Jemima's Pancake House (River Belle Terrace today) just inside the front door. But which door? We searched high and low for a photo showing the Frito Kid taken from a distance.

After no success I decided to adjust this old Casa de Fritos photo from Daveland. A simple curves adjustment in Photoshop and bam! There he is. Just inside the front left door.

Zoom in and compare.

UPDATED. Dave from Daveland has provided a lightened version of the original photo. Notice the detail!

Now to visit the location to see what remains.

Hmm. Door slightly ajar. Let’s open and have a peek. Sadly there is a wall right behind the door.

According to the cast member bussing tables, “there is nothing behind that door”. Also according to the cast member, “the Frito Kid was never anywhere near this building nor was Casa de Fritos”. That’s ok, they don’t teach this stuff in orientation. I was happy to hear that he had at least heard of the Frito Kid/Casa de Fritos. Kudos also to the girl at the River Belle cash register for knowing that the restaurant was once Aunt Jemima’s.

In 1957 this part of the building became home to Don DeFore's Silver Banjo Barbecue. So the odds are slim that anything from the Fritos setup still exists today. But maybe there's a utility box with a "Frito Kid" label on it? Or something? Someone let me know if this is the case.

Location 2– 1957-1967?

The Frito Kid and Casa de Fritos stayed in their first location just shy of two years. Though Casa de Fritos stayed in its second location for over 25 years (Rancho del Zocalo today), the Frito Kid was removed much sooner. I'm guessing his removal took place in the late 60s when Fritos corn chips stopped using Frito Kid as a mascot.

So where exactly was the Kid in this second location? This fantastic photo (thank you to whoever posted this online) shows where he stood. The architecture on the left still stands today. The wooden log structure around the figure no longer exists.

Now to determine more exactly where he stood. At first I believed be backed up right against the Frontierland Shooting Gallery (Frontierland Shooting Exposition today). Side note: The Shooting Gallery was not an Opening Day attraction like some official Disney history publications claim. The Miniature Horse Corral preceded it. Ok...

Looking at old photos and blueprints (blueprints that don’t happen to mention the Frito Kid) I noticed a hallway running behind the Frito Kid, between him and the Shooting Gallery. So he had to have been located a few feet away from the Gallery wall (with the mural), right about here:

So now we know. Now we know a little more about something extremely obscure and quite insignificant. But isn't that what makes it great? Now you can go to Disneyland with your friends and whip out this bit knowledge and be the nerdiest one in the group. If you read this blog, there's a good chance you are already the nerdiest. We see that as a good thing.

If you happen to have Frito Kid photos not currently on the internet, send 'em to us! I've never seen a video so send those too.

For some more Frito Kid history, visit Kevin Kidney. 

Related posts:

Frito Kid and Deeee-licious Fritos!
THEN AND NOW: Disneyland [Part 1]
Frontierland Shootin' Arcade Like You've Never Seen It
Diana Lai: An Original Enchanted Tiki Room VIP Hostess
The Wonders of Nature's Wonderland
Swiss Family Treehouse Model
Marc Davis and Disneyland's Rivers of America Rehab

THEN AND NOW: Disneyland [Part 1]

Tomorrowland

New Orleans Square

Frontierland

Main Street, U.S.A.

I do love Disneyland. The Disneyland of today and the Disneyland of "then". All of us here at the blog frequented Disneyland as children more than any other park. I really feel that pretty much everything built at Disneyland up through the end of the 80s was fantastic. Things like this and this weren't added until the early 90s. Tomorrowland '67 was more or less still in tact. And even when they tinkered with the greatest Tomorrowland ever, the changes (like Americas Sings) and the additions (like Space Mountain) were great. Though there have been oh so many changes, there still can be found so much old architecture and other elements of the early years.

Related post:

Decades in Review [Part 2]
The Wonders of Nature's Wonderland [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: Epcot World Showcase [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: Epcot Future World [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: Liberty Square [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: MK Fantasyland [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: MK Tomorrowland [Part 1]
THEN AND NOW: MK Adventureland [Part 1]
The Wonders of Nature's Wonderland [Part 1]

Frontierland Shootin' Arcade Like You've Never Seen It

Come on. You know the Frontierland Shootin' Arcade is the best 25¢  you'll ever spend at a Disney park. (Or is it a buck now?)

 

Once upon a time, a few of us were locked behind a big black curtain for days and days as we applied a fresh new coat of paint on this set work. I'd do it again. It was a joy to climb around the desert landscape and play with all the moving parts that don't always move like they should anymore. We even got unlimited use of the electronic rifles... thanks to Mr. Hoot!

One thing that is especially clever about the set is that thar walkway between the foreground with toombstones and the middle ground with the buildings. There's another walkway between the middle ground and the background. And it's all so seamless to the shooters standing by. Take that, Kilimanjaro Safaris. You weren't the first to hide trenches.

The backside of fake arboriculture:

Get a load of that cool covered wagon mechanism hiding behind the rock:

Here we see some "before" shots and sadly I have no "after" shots of these rocks. And boy I'd like some close-up video of that mine car flying in and out of that "Lucky #13" mine.

I really do hope they never take this thing out of either Disneyland or Magic Kingdom. It's a fun little B-ticket attraction. Aaaand.... it's INTERACTIVE.... all you Disney management who insists on ineractiv-izing things. This is already interrrrractivvve, so no need to touch it. Maybe add a Frito Kid machine off to the side. :)

Controls:

"Big Thunder Arcade"?? Can someone provide the history of the "Big Thunder Arcade"?

And I love these handwritten instructions on the light switch. They say, "Exhaust fan switch in attic leave on during operation". And then someone was nice enough to further clarify in red marker on the wall next to it, "Leave on operation".

Related posts:

Carousel of Progress Like You ve Never Seen It
The Haunted Mansion Like You've Never Seen It
Pirates of the Caribbean Like You've Never Seen It
Frito Kid and Deeee-licious Fritos!