What are Hidden Mickeys?

I’ve long had a fascination with Hidden Mickeys. I learned about them in the mid 1990’s, probably from a Disney cast member in the parks. Here’s the definition of an official Hidden Mickey: a partial or complete impression of Mickey Mouse placed by the Imagineers and artists to blend into the designs of Disney attractions, hotels, restaurants, and other areas.

The Disney official history goes like this: Hidden Mickeys started in the late 1980’s in Epcot as an inside joke among the Imagineers. Hiding Mickey around WDW was just plain fun! However, Jim Hill (jimhillmedia.com) believes in this "unofficial history": Hidden Mickeys were born as the Imagineers were designing Epcot in the late 1970's and early 1980's. At that time, Disney management felt that the characters belonged in the Magic Kingdom only. The Imagineers disagreed and began slipping Mickeys into Epcot! I suspect that Mickey Mouse designs that were previously in place in WDW (and Disneyland) also became known as Hidden Mickeys. Because of the popularity of HM’s, Imagineers are encouraged to place them in new construction.

A Hidden Mickey can take different forms. The most common image is the tri-circle Mickey frontal silhouette: three circles that form Mickey’s round head and adjoining round ears. Other images include a side or oblique (usually three-quarter) profile of Mickey’s face and head, a side profile of his entire body, a full-body frontal silhouette, a detailed picture of his face or body, or a three-dimensional Mickey. Sometimes, just his gloves, handprints, shoes or ears appear. Even his name or initials in unusual places may qualify as Hidden Mickeys. And don’t forget other characters: Hidden Minnies, Donald Ducks, Goofys, etc.

Most debate about HM’s involves the classic three-circle forms. My definition of a “true” three-circle HM is rather strict: the circles must touch and be in the right position and proportions. However, there are distorted three-circle Mickeys that are not positioned or proportioned correctly but are so accepted among cast members and the public that I include them as HM’s; for example, the HM gear wheels on the ground to the right near the end of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad track in the Magic Kingdom and the various lock HM’s, such as the lock on the jail cell door near the end of the Pirates of the Caribbean boat ride. Neither of the above HM’s is proportioned quite right.

HM’s are added during some rehabs (like when the high-tech living room and kitchen were added, along with some HM’s, to the Carousel of Progress attraction in the Magic Kingdom). HM’s are also lost during rehabs; for instance, three HM’s disappeared from Old Port Royale in the Caribbean Beach Resort when the food court area was remodeled. (I mourn lost HM’s the same way some folks mourn discontinued attractions.)

Two of the early HM’s I recall marveling over (pointed out to me by cast members): the one in the mural above the entrance to Body Wars in the Wonders of Life Pavilion at Epcot and the one in the hanging vine above the giraffes in the Africa room of the It’s a Small World ride in the Magic Kingdom.

 

Some "Wishful Thinking" Hidden Mickeys

The LED lights on the Epcot Tip Board in Innoventions Plaza are all the same size.  Even though they're in groups of three, they don't qualify as Hidden Mickeys.
Figment is holding a balloon to his left. The balloon that Figment is holding in Journey Into Imagination appears to be heart-shaped, not Mickey-shaped. So I didn't include it as a Hidden Mickey.