Tinker Belles and Evil Queens: The Walt Disney Company from the Inside Out

The first book to address the interaction between the Walt Disney Company and the gay community

From its Magic Kingdom theme parks to its udderless cows, the Walt Disney Company has successfully maintained itself as the brand name of conservative American family values. But the Walt Disney Company has also had a long and complex relationship to the gay and lesbian community that is only now becoming visible.

In Tinker Belles and Evil Queens, Sean Griffin traces the evolution of this interaction between the company and gay communities, from the 1930s use of Mickey Mouse as a code phrase for gay to the 1990s "Gay Nights" at the Magic Kingdom. Armed with first-person accounts from Disney audiences, Griffin demonstrates how Disney animation, live-action films, television series, theme parks, and merchandise provide varied motifs and characteristics that readily lend themselves to use by gay culture. But Griffin delves further to explore the role of gays and lesbians within the company, through an examination of the background of early studio personnel, an account of sexual activism within the firm, and the story of the company's own concrete efforts to give recognition to gay voices and desires.

The first book to address the history of the gay community and Disney, Tinker Belles and Evil Queens broadly examines the ambiguous legacy of how modern consumerism and advertising have affected the ways lesbians and gay men have expressed their sexuality. Disney itself is shown as sensitive to gay and lesbian audiences, while exploiting those same audiences as a niche market with strong buying power. Finally, Griffin demonstrates how queer audiences have co-opted Disney products for themselves-and in turn how Disney's corporate strategies have influenced our very definitions of sexuality.

Author: Sean P. Griffin
Publisher: New York University Press
Published: 02/01/2000
Pages: 292
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.96lbs
Size: 8.95h x 6.01w x 0.89d
ISBN: 9780814731239


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 01/03/2000 pg. 67
Kirkus Reviews 01/01/2000 pg. 37
Reference and Research Bk News 08/01/2000 pg. 183

About the Author
Griffin, Sean P.: - Sean Griffin teaches film and media at the University of California at Santa Cruz. Previously, he produced television advertisements at New Wave Productions for Disney's theatrical features.