254: Elaina was friends with Mickey

About this episode

Elaina shares her experiences working as a character at Disney World, including her time as Mickey Mouse.

Today’s episode is a little different. If you’re a regular listener to the show, you know that usually we hear a story from a regular person about something they’ve experienced that was extremely unusual. We have over 250 episodes like that – plane crashes, mass shootings, animal attacks, and lots more. And it’s not all trauma stories – we have some happy ones too. But sometimes we change it up, and I have a guest on who has a really unusual job. I’ve talked to Spence, who’s a lighthouse keeper, and Dan, who prepares people for their first time going to prison, and Jen – who works as a professional bridesmaid. You can scroll through all the back episodes and find those and a few more. So today I’m speaking with Elaina. As a young person, she was hired to work at the Magic Kingdom in Disney World – as Mickey Mouse. You know, when you’re at Disney World, and you’re walking around trying to decide if you go ride the Space Mountain roller coaster, or take a break in the air conditioning and watch the Country Bear Musical Jamboree, and all of a sudden you see standing right in front of you is – Mickey Mouse. Waving, signing autographs, and just making people happy. Yeah, that’s what…

People in this episode

Host: Scott Johnson

Guest: Elaina

Topics covered

• unusual jobs
• Disney
• personal stories
• entertainment
• costume characters

Keywords

• Disney
• Mickey Mouse
• Elaina
• costume
• character
• Magic Kingdom
• autographs
• celebrities

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Disney World

More episodes of What Was That Like - True Stories. Real People.

• 258: T saved her dog · June 12, 2026 · 54 min
• TQ65: What's the nicest thing a stranger has done for you? · June 9, 2026 · 43 min
• STAS 16: Dalia Dippolito · June 5, 2026 · 23 min
• 257: Mae's ex-husband went to prison · May 29, 2026 · 1h 15m
• TQ64: What's an animal you'd love as a pet - even if it's unrealistic? · May 26, 2026 · 40 min
• 256: Courtney was able to say goodbye · May 22, 2026 · 1h 27m