Alice in Waterland: disturbing vintage postcard from mermaid park

Ape Lad sez, "Weeki Wachee Springs (Florida's mermaid themed attraction) presents Alice in Wonderland, featuring a sexy re-imagining of Alice and a very disturbing Mad Hatter."

Weeki Wachee Presents 'Alice in Waterland', What Makes The Pie Shops Tick's Flickr stream (Thanks, Ape Lad!)

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Theme-park mermaids in danger! - Boing Boing

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VagabondAstronomer

Weeki Wachee… holy crap. Spent a week there one day back in April 1978 (spring break), when my family was having our “Hey, Let’s Spring Hop” vacation (also spent a day at Silver Springs). If they were still running this, I didn’t see it; I fell asleep during the show. I was such a jaded 15 year old…
yasth

Keep in mind they had to swim in those costumes so some skimpiness is understandable. This isn’t Alice in Drowningland.

Also for a mermaid show this is hardly skimpy at all (or so I hear).
Nollie

Wow – I went to Weeki Wachee as a kid and saw the mermaid show (in the late 80s). I would have LOVED to see an Alice in Wonderland version!!!
Anonymous

I think this might be my favorite interpretation of alice in wonderland. certainly better than tim burton’s :P
Yamara

When Sid & Marty Krofft hired Edvard Munch for character design on Lidsville, little did they realize…
Halloween Jack

I’m reminded of the hardcore porn version of Alice in Wonderland that came out in the seventies or early eighties. (Yes, you read that right.)
peytonfarquhar

What’s so disturbing about the Mad Hatter? He is *supposed* to be disturbing. The whole point of making the character “mad” was to underscore the dangerous dyes used in hat manufacturing from the time the story was written.
- Anonymous
  
  The Mad Hatter isn’t intended as a public service announcement on the dangers of mercury poisoning for hatmakers, he’s meant to underscore the mad nonsensical nature of Wonderland. I think you’ve got the source and target of the allusion switched.
Lissamphibia

Not only that — it’s also a musical! You’re thinking of Bill Osco’s Alice in Wonderland (1976). There’s a long, strange tradition of showing it at my college, and it was once even academically required viewing for a class on “Avatars of Alice.”

Here’s the Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_in_Wonderland_%281976_film%29

And here’s the trailer (not graphic): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8fDfZPN-6Y
dm10003

it’s just a bad version of the original crazy book illustrations.
Mazoola

Actually, in addition to the 1976 film, available in both R- and X-rated versions, there have been a number of hardcore variations on either “Alice” or “Through the Looking-Glass.” (Hmmm… Looks like 3 were shot last year alone.) I know we had an article discussing 5 or 6 on Spectator’s editorial calendar back in 2002, but I can’t remember if it ever ran. (The only featured title I remember from it was Michael Raven’s “White Rabbit,” starring Sunset Thomas.)

Osco’s “Alice” starred Kristine DeBell — which a few years ago caused me moderate to severe cognitive dissonance the first few times I saw a reference to Kristen Bell.
Adam Stanhope

Is that a bacon towel?
randalll

Are you sure this isn’t the Darling Mermaid Darlings?
nanuq

All that’s missing is the Cheshire Cat grinning (leering?).
monocle

There was also a tie-in record album available. You can see the LP cover and hear the theme song here:

http://vintagedisneyalice.blogspot.com/2009/01/alice-in-waterland-weeki-watchee-record.html