"Be silly, loose, clumsy and loveable......"(WARNING : CONTAINS INFORMATION WHICH MAY SHATTER CHILDHOOD ILLUSIONS)

No, Virginia, it has nothing to do with Santa Claus. But who is this guy?:

Traits: Frequently uncoordinated, klutzy, ever cheerful, optimistic, heart-of-gold, jolly, likes nearly everybody, bumbling,awkward, devoted, sincere, honest, a dreamer.


He may strike the passer-by as a typical village half-wit, but in truth he is a kindly, eager soul, a little on the silly side but always harmless.  ...strives to be a gentleman......has none of the physical attributes usually associated with a "star". His back is bowed, and his shoulders are narrow, sloping down to seemingly heavy arms and a protruding stomach. As he walks, his head, stomach and knees seem to take the lead. This, however, has not stopped him from becoming a foremost authority on any kind of sport or occupation you can name

Have you worked it out yet?

The above is just a snippet from the briefing notes given to Disney employees before they dress in a Goofy costume and wander around the Magic Kingdom to meet and greet people. Which is what author James B Stewart got to do while researching the   (so far) excellent Disney War: The Battle for the Magic Kingdom.

There is more; the instructions go on to explain how Goofy laughs, how he should pose in photographs, what his autograph should look like (if the f isn't backwards you've got yourself a fake), the sorts of activities he should engage in.  There are several paragraphs just on how to walk. "Be silly, loose, clumsy and loveable", is the over-riding message.  I love the amount of detail and the attention to character. 

For a long time journalists weren't allowed to write about the costumed Disney characters who wander the theme parks; at leat not in a way which implied they were anything other than real.  Mentioning costumes or the people inside them was strictly forbidden - all part of the company's commitment to creating and maintaining illusions.   Then several years ago, during a run of bad publicity for the company, The Wall Street Journal ran an article which disclosed (among other things) that dressing in character is a standard part of the induction for top level Disney executives.