June 7, 2025: The Disney Illusion

This memory still haunts me.

In high school, I traveled with a group that performed at Disney World. Ahead of the show, they led us behind-the-scenes, down an alley, toward a hidden door covered by leaves.

Just before it opened, our guide turned serious. “No cameras,” he warned. “If you’re caught, we take the film.”

My pulse jumped. I couldn’t wait to behold all the top-secret wonders.

We stepped into a place most guests never see. All the staff gathered there, relaxing, getting ready for their shifts.

And then I spotted Mickey Mouse. Well, half of him.

The person inside the suit strolled by in costume from the neck down, head off, casually puffing a cigarette.

And hello… it was a woman.

Who knew? Mickey is really a lady who smokes Marlboros. No wonder they banned photos.

Yes, the image lives rent-free in my brain, and I think about it every time Disney pops up in the news. Like today, when I read that Rivers of America, Tom Sawyer Island, and the Liberty Square Riverboat will soon close down.

These attractions date back to the 1950s, and they’re making room for Piston Peak National Park, a Cars-themed land inspired by the movies.

I guess change keeps coming, ready or not.

And sometimes, it wears fuzzy gloves in the form of a headless, gender-bending, cigarette-smoking mouse.

Ah, the Disney magic.