Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Tell Us a Myth, Wendy-Lady! Introduction; Why Disney Studies? Why not?; A Land of Golden Dreams?; Nostalgia and Transcendence at Disneyland Chapter 2: The Pilgrimage to Psyche-Land In the Beginning...; How Did We Get Here?; A Campbellian Hermeneutic of Disneyland; The Soul's Hidden Mickey; Lost Parents? Children Inquire Within; The Animated Shaman; Welcome to Pixie Hollow; A Fairyland Filled With Dreams; A Pilgrimage to Heart Chapter 3: The Evolution of Disney's Temple to Entertainment California's Animated Axis Mundi; A Thrilling Ride on the Top of the World; Mythic Timelessness at Disneyland; Animating Disney's Temple to Entertainment; The Imitation of Life; Revealing the Animated Stage; The Illusion of Life; Animating the Backlot; The Living Room's Lens on Life; Television Builds the Park; Disneyland as Ultimate in Transformative Narcisissm Chapter 4: Disneyland as the Work of Worship Archetypal Liturgy Touch a Turnstile, Touch a Relic; With a Smile and a Song; The Animatronic Priesthood; Across the Small World and the Bayou; The Spoken Recitation; Collecting the Sacred Souvenir; Selfies, Snapshots, and Icons of Light; Holy Fluffiness; Mickey's Animal Totems; The Princess Bloc and The Wicked Cackle; Donning the Vestments; Tradable Icons; Identification Through Ears; Digesting Mickey; The Disney Attraction as Feast; Sitting There With a Churro in Your Hand Chapter 5: Spectacular Spectacle The Crafted Communitas of Disneyland; And Now, Disneyland is Proud to Present A New Kind of Spectacle; Parades; Exclamation Point / Disney's Point: Fantasmic!; On with the Show: World of Color Chapter 6: Renewing the Magic Re-animating Tradition; The Tenth Anniversary Special; Dancing with Heresy in Fantasyland; Mickey's 'Hood; When Tomorrowland Becomes Yesterdayland; The Disneyfication of the Golden State; Disney, You've Got a Friend in Pixar!; A Whole New (La La) Land: Renewing Walt's Los Angeles; Disneyland in the Digital Age Epilogue To the Diamond Celebration and Beyond: Disneyland at 60 Shining, Shimmering Merchandise; Blasts from the Past, Into the Future; Renewing Opulence; A Long Time Ago in A Disneyland Far Far Away

About the Author

Dori Koehler, PhD holds degrees in Mythological Studies with emphasis in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Her main area of research is American popular culture, particularly Disney studies. She presents periodically at the Popular Culture Association's National Conference and the Film and History conference through the University of Wisconsin at Osh Kosh. She also presented at the first Discussing Disney conference held in 2014 through the University of Hull. Her most recent article on Walt Disney as a manifestation of the trickster archetype grew out of that presentation and will be published in a forthcoming collection of essays. Dr. Koehler writes a blog fusing popular culture with archetypal theory at www.mythicbliss.wordpress.com

Reviews

[T]here is much to commend in Koehler's study. The Mouse and the Myth does exhibit a very deep understanding of Disneyland history as well as the park's myths and rituals. . . . Surely, her work should encourage others to examine myth construction and sacred-secular rituals in popular culture.
*H-Celebration*