Rare Characters From 1983's Flights of Fantasy

In a recent post we watched the giant Fantasia brooms march by, and now we're taking a look at some more rarely-seen characters who grabbed the spotlight in Disneyland's 1983 Flights of Fantasy parade. We've got a dozen photos today, starting with the best armored oddballs ever:

 

The Trumpeter, Hippo Knight and Rhino Guards from Robin Hood show up! Check out the rhino on the far right menacing the crowd.

Heffalumps and Woozles. Hide the honey!

The scary trees from Snow White get their moment in the sun.

 The Great Stromboli.

Walt Disney World got a lot more Fantasia love during SpectroMagic's run. Here in Disneyland, the crowd loved this crew. I'm looking at the gator and wondering how on earth he didn't fall off that tiny ledge!

"Dance of the Hours" is my second-favorite part of Fantasia.

I wonder if some of these costumes came from the traveling Disney on Parade arena shows. I love that the ostriches aren't all identical.

Nothing rare here, but the Walrus doesn't get enough park time. Did you know J. Pat O'Malley did the voices of Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dum, the Walrus and the Carpenter? And, come to think of it, why has the poor Carpenter never appeared with the Walrus in the parks? How hard is it to stick a white paper hat on a Cast Member?

They're rare and meaner than they look -- The Dizzy Daffodils!

Rarely seen in a teapot.

A good attempt at a difficult concept.

One last shot -- and I apologize about the poor image quality. There's certainly nothing rare about Maleficent in either Fairy or Dragon form...

...but how many times do you see her escorted by one of her Goons? (For a slightly better look at the dragon, please see our recent post on Disney's Favorite Way To Bump Off a Villain).

I hope you enjoyed this trip back in time to Flights of Fantasy, Disneyland's celebration of the 1983 Fantasyland renovation. I remember enjoying the parade, but being a bit impatient for it to end; I just wanted to get back to Fantasyland to check out the improved Mr. Toad's Wild Ride several more times!