The Crooked Man aka Stranger Danger

Dani and I went to Children's Fairyland this weekend (we can walk to it from our new house :) Built in 1950 it is the first American theme park. It's hard to believe that this strange little corner of Lake Merritt somehow spawned Disney. We met our friends David and Derrick and their son (who is almost 3 and was our ticket in.)

I loved it! All the attractions had a clear 1950's edge to them; before the world of childhood was turned sugary sweet and overly age appropriate. Check out this The Crooked Man:

Look at his creepy eye, exaggerated features, and cob webs (as if the spiders were adding their two cents to the story.) It reminds me of what I loved about my childhood-- Never again will I feel that same mixture of shear joy tinged with absolute terror.