Disney World at 50: Meeting the first Mickey Mouse

[Disney4me]

The first person to be Mickey Mouse at Walt Disney World was a secret. But not to Doug Parks.

 

Doug Parks, center, one of the earliest Disney World cast members sits with Melanie and Lowrey Parks, Doug's brother, in 1971. The photo was originally printed with a Sentinel story about Central Florida newcomers. (File / Orlando Sentinel)

 

The identity of the first man to wear the Mickey Mouse costume at Walt Disney World was long a secret.

But not at first.  In July 1971, the Orlando Sentinel wrote a story about Doug Parks, a Winter Park resident, and his experiences of being the first and, at that point, the only character that was a WDW employee. The article ran on Page 8A as a sidebar to a story about hundreds of people auditioning to work as characters; Magic Kingdom was less than three months from its opening date.

Parks is described as 21 years old, a native of upstate New York, and 4 feet, 9 inches tall. His sister-in-law told him that Disney World was looking for short people, says the 1971 article, written by reporter Tom Fielder.

“It appealed to me right away. … I had sort of a natural ability for the job,” he said. “I had finally found a spot for small people that not only paid well but valued them highly.”

Mickey's 90th Birthday

This Orlando Sentinel archive photo shows Disney Co.'s Marty Sklar, the legendary former head of Disney Imagineering, waving as he takes the stage with Minnie and Mickey during the EPCOT 25th Anniversary ceremony, at Disney World, Monday, Oct. 1, 2007. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel) trax 00103095A (Joe Burbank / Orlando Sentinel)

 

 

In late October 1971, Parks appears in another Sentinel article, this time as part of a series of vignettes about Central Florida’s population explosion. It appeared in Florida Magazine, a Sunday supplement to the newspaper.

In this piece, we learn that Parks had an interest in automotive engineering, was a former track star, and that he had followed two older brothers to Central Florida. And he’s listed as 4-foot-7 at this point.

The job is described as secretive with “employer-erected barriers discouraging all but the most dedicated from chatting with him about his work.” Parks was hired in April 1971.

There were three Mickeys in the Disney World workforce by the second story, and Parks was “busily training substitute ‘mice’ who’ve also holed up here,” the story says.

The hush-hush nature of the Mickey Mouse club as well as other Disney characters continues. Current cast members are unlikely to reveal that’s their job, referring instead to being a “friend of Mickey,” sometimes with a wink-wink-nudge-nudge but frequently not.

In the first story, Parks said he enjoyed the job but that he sometimes considered leaving.

“But then I stop and realize what the Disney people have done for me, and what I mean to them — so I decide to stay,” he said.

He stayed 39 years.

After the 1971 articles, Parks drops off the Sentinel radar, appearing again only after his death in 2010. He was 60 years old.

Even then, his obituary skirts the issue. The Sentinel refers to him as “the man widely believed to be the first Mickey Mouse at Disney World.” And his family was “reluctant” to spoil that magic.

He worked other jobs during his Disney tenure, including in the mailroom, as a hotel “secret shopper” and for the reservation center, where he scheduled trips for important people, Ralph Parks, Doug’s brother, told the Sentinel. In the Mickey role, he traveled to South America and Canada.

He was known for making model cars, collecting Disney memorabilia and his sense of humor.

“Known to crack Disney-related jokes, his motto was ‘that’s all rat’ or ‘you will always be all rat’ or just plain ‘all rat,’” the 2010 story says.

After his death, the resort sent a letter to the family without using the MM word.

“For four decades, Walt Disney World was a better place, thanks to Doug and his contributions,” Meg Crofton, then president of Walt Disney World, wrote. “He was an important part of our business of making dreams come true.”

Mad Tea Party

The Mad Tea Party ride at Disney World's Magic Kingdom opened in 1971 without a roof. The covering was eventually added in 1973 (along with the central teapot) due to Florida's extreme weather conditions. (Jim Hicks / Orlando Sentinel)

 

 

Getting into characters

Fun facts from the July 11, 1971 story about Walt Disney World character auditions:

➤ Disney was looking to hire 90 people for 45 characters. Disney saw about 700 candidates in one day.

➤ The pay would be about $2.05 an hour.

➤ The auditions included skipping across the terrazzo floor at the Orlando Youth Center to demonstrate agility, a point of emphasis.

➤ Auditions were grouped according to height. Shorter folks were earmarked for Mickey and Minnie; those with more height were Goofy material.

➤ Reasons shared by applicants for wanting the Magic Kingdom gig: for gas money, to meet people and because it’s “something I want to try.”

 

 

Dewayne Bevil

Orlando Sentinel