A tale of two Disney Main Streets
Marceline welcome: Near a tidy residential neighborhood at the edge of Marceline, Mo., a city sign announces the population as just over 2,500.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland welcome: Amid the walkers, stroller, horse-drawn carriages and fire trucks that frequent Disneyland’s Main Street, USA, a double-decker bus offers transport to Fantasyland.
Marceline City Hall: On Marceline’s downtown commercial strip, the city offices stand shoulder to shoulder with struggling retailers.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland City Hall: Just beyond the entrance to Disneyland, this City Hall serves as a convenient meeting place for visitors.
Marceline depot: With train service diminished in recent years, the old Santa Fe depot in Marceline, Mo., was available for conversion into the Walt Disney Hometown Museum.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland depot: Standing on a hill near Main Street, USA, the Disneyland Railroad building claims an elevation of 138 feet and a population of 500,000,000.
Marceline signage: Like many public buildings in Missouri, Marceline’s City Hall posts a sign prohibiting firearms.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland signage: At Disneyland, the City Hall building includes the amusement park’s famous suggestion that “Lost parents inquire here for children.”
Marceline movies: After seven decades of scheduled showings -- including many Disney presentations -- Marceline’s Uptown Theatre is offering “no more shows until further notice.” But the adjacent four-room Uptown Theatre Bed & Breakfast endures.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland movies: Disneyland’s Main Street Cinema is still showing “Steamboat Willie,” which had its premiere in 1928.
Marceline red bricks: When Walt Disney was growing up, Marceline’s red-brick Zurcher building held a jewelry shop and may have had a Coca-Cola ad painted on its side.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland red bricks: Disneyland’s Coca-Cola Refreshment Corner, red bricks and all, has stood for five decades on a high-visibility corner along Main Street, USA.
Marceline odd couple: On a quiet afternoon, the ladies on these salt and pepper shakers add a perky note to Ma Vic’s Corner Cafe in Marceline.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland odd couple: On a busy Saturday night, as throngs rush along Disneyland’s Main Street, USA, two males pause for a breather on the steps of the Disneyland Casting Agency.
Marceline sidewalk: A clutch of youths gather at the corner of Ritchie and Main in downtown Marceline, Mo.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland sidewalk: With the evening fireworks over, visitors head up Main Street, USA, on their way out of Disneyland.
Marceline traffic: Main Street, in Marceline, Mo., on a slow day.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
Disneyland traffic: Main Street, USA, in Disneyland, on a busy day.