第 55 课：On a Short Leash: He Had Firm Control Over-3
Miz Cleveland approved of the idea. After the prize was announced, people who lived in the area of the factory began to buy more of the company's candy.
Local newspapers wrote about the competition. Business improved.
Miz Cleveland made her secretary the company's first director of public relations.
The former secretary was very pleased. She said: "My old job had become Mickey Mouse . Now I have a much more creative one."
Mickey Mouse, of course, is Walt Disney's famous animal drawn for movies, television and comic picture books. But what does a mouse have to do with a job?
In modern speech, anything that is Mickey Mouse is unimportant.
Many word experts say the new meaning came from the United States Navy.
The Navy had a special school for new sailors who did not co-operate. It was called M-I-C, short for Military Indoctrination Center.
Sailors began to say that rules which did not seem important were MIC. Over time, MIC became Mickey Mouse -- something that lacks meaning.
