Category archives: Playing Pluto
An Actor's Life for Me, Part 2
Posted by Trevor on April 15, 2009
It's a steaming hot morning in Anaheim, and I've only just been told that the city's name does not mean "asshole" in German, as my buddy Harry swore to me it did. A lederhosen-clad blonde exchange student working on the Matterhorn corrected me on that one. She had asked me who had mislead me into believing such a horrible thing, just as Donald Duck walked by, laughing like a cement mixer under his big bill.
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An Actor's Life for Me, Part 1
Posted by Trevor on April 7, 2009
So...once upon a time there was a little wooden boy with a long wooden nose, who had a problem with lying, who dreamed of living the life of an actor, but instead he turned into a jackass and eventually got his wish and became a real boy.
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The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up
Part 5
Posted by Trevor on February 5, 2009
Being Pluto in the A unit was cool. I was one of the Fab Five. An instantly recognizable celebrity. It meant a steady, if monotonous, schedule each day on Main Street. The mice were both played by very short women. Long gone were the days of the old "Mr. Mickey" who'd been hired by Walt himself. This Mouse was played by Polly, a veteran and mother of three who was the sweetest Mouse the park had ever seen. Minnie was played by Cate, a twenty-something tomboy with close-cropped red hair who always wore flannel, even on the hot days. Fred was our Goofy. A real character in and out of costume. He was about as flaming as it was possible to be, without actually swishing in costume. A cross-dresser of long standing and well-deserved reputation. He affected an elongated drawl when he talked that made Truman Capote sound butch. He had been around the park since they had changed over from the old costumes. Back when they were allowed to talk. On occasion you could still hear him "H'yucking" for the guests. With Harry as our Donald, the five of us were one big family. Eight sets a day, everyday, rain or shine. In the same place. Doing the same things, over and over again.
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The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up
Part 4
Posted by Trevor on January 7, 2009
Main Street, USA. My first set. I stopped for a second to get my bearings. There was the Emporium, and the Gazebo, and the Train Station. Across the street on the other side of the square was the Fire Station and City Hall. And up there was Walt's old apartment looking down on it all. It wasn't very crowded, so I did a little walking and waving. Just then the train pulled up and about three hundred families got off, all with kids. And they're pouring down the steps toward me going "PLUTO! PLUTO! PLUTO!" There's a lot of 'em, and it was like they'd never seen a six-foot yellow dog before. I bolted back the way I came, with the kids in hot pursuit.
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The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up
Part 3
Posted by Trevor on December 18, 2008
Looking around Egg House Break Area at the crowd of cartoon characters in front of me, I asked the nearest person, without a head, "Are you Harry?" The gray half-man, half-donkey guy wearing a blue handkerchief skullcap gave me a look like I'd just asked him if he kicked puppies for fun.
"Why?"
"He's my buddy."
"Wrong jackass," he laughed, and then he dove forward into the costume and flipped his huge head up. "You can call me Josh," a muffled voice from somewhere under the fur echoed.
"Oh, hi. I'm Alan. I'm new."
"Couldn't tell." He spun around and called out, "Zip up!"
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The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up
Part 2
Posted by Trevor on December 18, 2008
Now during high school I had spent three summers as a Character at Great America in Silicon Valley, and I thought I could cut it in the big time. So in my senior year I made the trip down south to audition for the Entertainment and Parades Department cattle call. But, I didn't make the cut. Partly because I had two left feet. No, really. When my big moment came, after they taught us the basic dance routine that we were supposed to do in partial costume, the paws I was given were not only too big, but also both left feet. I did my best and I tried to explain as I tripped over the big fluffy things, but the dance captain was not amused. Still, I got a lot of laughs. So they told me to come back for the Atmosphere Characters auditions in a couple of weeks. They were all nonunion, minimum wage, the usual. But I didn't care. I was floating on air. I was one step closer to my dream.
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The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up
Part 1
Posted by Trevor on December 18, 2008
"Hello, this is Casual Seasonal Pageant Helper, Alan, I'm five foot five and a half, and I'm fully available!"
It's 5:30 in the morning and I'm calling in my availability for today, like I do everyday. You see, I grew up in the shadow of the Matterhorn, not the one in the Alps, the other one, in Anaheim. I climbed to the top of the Swiss Family Treehouse, all by myself, before I could ever climb a real tree. Pirate ships and castles and cartoon characters that came to life were all part of my childhood. Because, for a few days every year, I lived at the Happiest Place on Earth. In the late '80s when I graduated from high school at the age of 17 I did the next best thing I could think of to running away and joining the circus. I got a job at the Magic Kingdom in the Entertainment and Atmosphere Department Number 384 as a Casual Seasonal Pageant Helper. Yes, I was a Character. Not the Mouse himself, but many others, and for a little while my dream of never having to grow up seemed like an attainable goal.
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