Tinkerbell
Encyclopedia
Tinker Bell is a fictional character
from J. M. Barrie
's 1904 play Peter Pan and its 1911 novelization Peter and Wendy
. She has appeared in multiple film and television adaptations of the Peter Pan stories, in particular the 1953 animated Walt Disney picture Peter Pan
. She also appears in the official sequel Peter Pan in Scarlet
by Geraldine McCaughrean and commissioned by Great Ormond St Hospital as well as the "Peter and the Starcatchers" book series by Ridley Pearson and Dave Barry. At first only a supporting character described by her creator as "a common fairy
", her animated incarnation was a hit and has since become a widely recognized unofficial mascot of The Walt Disney Company
, and the centerpiece of its Disney Fairies
media franchise
including the direct-to-DVD film series Tinker Bell
. In her animated form she leaves a trail of twinkling pixie dust.
. Her speech consists of the sounds of a tinkling bell, which is understandable only to those familiar with the language of the fairies. In the original stage productions, she was represented on stage by a darting light "created by a small mirror held in the hand off-stage and reflecting a little circle of light from a powerful lamp" and her voice was a "a collar of bells and two special ones that Barrie brought from Switzerland". However, a Miss 'Jane Wren' was listed among the cast on the programmes as playing Tinker Bell: this was a joke which also helped with the mystique of the fairy character, as well as fooled HM Inspector of Taxes who sent Jane Wren a tax demand.
Though sometimes ill-tempered, spoiled, and very jealous and vindictive (getting the Lost Boys to shoot arrows at Wendy
), at other times she is helpful and kind to Peter. The extremes in her personality are explained in-story by the fact that a fairy's size prevents her from holding more than one feeling at a time, so when she is angry she has no counterbalancing compassion. Fairies cannot fly in the rain but can enable others to fly by sprinkling them with fairy dust (sometimes called "pixie dust" by Disney, and presented as "starstuff" in Dave Barry
and Ridley Pearson
's novel series). At the end of the novel the suggestion is that Tinker Bell has died the year after Wendy and the Darlings leave Neverland, and Peter has no memory of her at all.
. When Wendy and the rest of the group reach Neverland and ask Peter where she is, he replies that he does not know anyone by the name Tinker Bell (explained by the fact that he does not remember her after she died). She is mentioned by Wendy and the rest of the Lost Boys to Fireflyer, a silly blue fairy, who when he reaches the top of Neverpeak, makes the wish to meet her. When they open Captain Hook's treasure chest, among other things, Tinker Bell is seen inside it to Fireflyer's joy. Initially, Tinker Bell does not like him, but eventually she comes to see that Fireflyer is not as bad as he seems to be. In the end, they get married and start selling dreams to pirates, while having many adventures.
and Ridley Pearson
's Peter and the Starcatchers
book series, Tinker Bell makes her first appearance at the end of the first novel. Originally, she was a green and yellow coloured bird who was put in a bag of starstuff, turning her into a fairy. Molly's father, the famous starcatcher Lord Leonard Aster, made her Peter's guardian and she follows him on all of his adventures. She doesn't like being called a fairy and would much rather be called "birdwoman" because of her origins. She is very protective of Peter, and hates his paying attention to any other female. She can be very impolite to others (only Peter is able to understand her perfectly, and most of the times does not reveal what she says about others, because it is mostly insults). She is also able to emit a very bright light, which she uses as an attack against other creatures, especially Lord Ombra, one of the main villains of the series.
musical version of the play
, which opened on Broadway in 1954 and was first televised in 1955, Tinker Bell was represented by a darting light, as on stage, accompanied by bell-like sounds. Her favorite insult was "You silly ass!", which the audience watching the production eventually learns to recognize because it is always represented by the same group of sounds - four bell-like notes (one for each syllable of the phrase, presumably), followed by a growl on the bassoon.
in Herbert Brenon's 1924 version
of Peter Pan, Julia Roberts
in 1991's Hook
, and by Ludivine Sagnier
in P.J. Hogan's 2003 adaptation
, which originally planned to use a computer-generated version of the character, but instead used Sagnier in combinations with digital models and effects to take advantage of the actress's expressions. Tinker Bell was voiced by Debi Derryberry
in the 1990 Fox animated program Peter Pan and the Pirates
, and by Sumi Shimamoto
in the 1989 anime
series Peter Pan no Boken
.
, the character was animated and had no dialogue. Tinker Bell has been one of Disney's most important branding icons for over half a century, and is generally known as "a symbol of 'the magic of Disney'." She has been featured in television commercials and program opening credits sprinkling pixie dust with a wand in order to shower a magical feeling over various other Disney personalities, though the 1953 animated version of Tinker Bell never actually used a wand. In the picture and the official Disney Character Archives, she is referred to as a pixie
. She is also featured in the opening of all Disney films flying over the Magic Castle (in a counter-clockwise direction, right to left).
There is an urban legend
that the original animated version of Tinker Bell was modelled after Marilyn Monroe
. However, Disney animator Marc Davis's reference was actress Margaret Kerry
. He illustrated Tinker Bell as a young, attractive, blonde haired, big blue eyed, white female, with an exaggerated hour-glass figure. She is clad in a short lime-green dress with a rigid trim, and green slippers with white puffs. She is trailed by small amounts of pixie dust when she moves, and this dust can help humans fly if they believe in happy thoughts. Some critics have complained that Disney's version of Tinker Bell is too sexually suggestive.
Since 1954, Tinker Bell has featured as a hostess for much of Disney's live-action television programming and in every Disney movie advertisements flying over Disneyland with her magic wand and her fairy dust, beginning with Disneyland (which first introduced the theme park to the public while it was still under construction), to Walt Disney Presents, Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color, and The Wonderful World of Disney. In 1988, the same year The Wonderful World of Disney moved from ABC to NBC as The Magical World of Disney. That year, she also appeared in the final shot of the ending scene of Disney's Who Framed Roger Rabbit
, along with Porky Pig
; sprinkling fairy dust on the screen after Porky's trademark farewell as it goes black prior to the closing credits. She also starred alongside other Disney characters, such as Chip 'n Dale
, in many Disney comics
, where she was also able to speak. Tinker Bell also appears as a summon in the Kingdom Hearts
series of video games.
At Disneyland, Tinker Bell is prominently featured in Peter Pan's Flight
, a suspended dark ride
based on the artwork from the animated film. Beginning in 1961, she was also featured as a live performer who flew through the sky at the climax of some of the nightly fireworks displays. She was originally played by 71-year-old former circus performer Tiny Kline
, up until her retirement three years later.
On the 2008 Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade
special on ABC
, Disney announced that a Tinker Bell float would be added to the classic Disney's Electrical Parade
at Disney's California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort
, the first new float to be added since even long before the parade ended its original run at Disneyland
in 1996.
Tinker Bell was part of the Disney Princess franchise, from which she was later extracted and converted into the central character of the new Disney Fairies
franchise in 2005. In addition to an extensive line of merchandise, 2008's Tinker Bell
film is the first of five direct-to-DVD features set in Pixie Hollow
. Tinker Bell is voiced by Mae Whitman
in these digitally animated DVD features. In addition, Disney announced in 2010 that Tinker Bell will have her own live-action comedy movie and actress Elizabeth Banks
is cast as Tinker Bell. The movie will explore Tinker Bell's nature, and Elizabeth Wright Shapiro and McG
are the screenwriters in this movie.
At Disneyland, a Pixie Hollow meet-and-greet area opened on October 28, 2008, near the Matterhorn
, where guests are able to interact with Tinker Bell and her companions. A similar area called "Tinker Bell's Magical Nook" is in Adventureland
at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom
in Florida.
In November 2009, Tinker Bell became the smallest waxwork ever to be made at Madame Tussauds
, measuring only five and a half inches.
On September 21, 2010, Tinker Bell was presented with the 2,418th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
, becoming the thirteenth fictional character and the sixth Disney character to receive this honor.
and Myrea Pettit
. She also appears in the edition of Peter Pan in Scarlet illustrated by David Wyatt. A bronze sculpture of Tinker Bell by London artist Diarmuid Byron O'Connor was commissioned by Great Ormond Street Hospital
, to whom Barrie bequeathed the copyright to the character, to be added to his original four-foot statue of Peter Pan, wresting a thimble from Peter's hand. The figure has a nine-and-a-half-inch wingspan and is seven inches tall, and was unveiled on September 29, 2005 by Sophie, Countess of Wessex.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from J. M. Barrie
J. M. Barrie
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
's 1904 play Peter Pan and its 1911 novelization Peter and Wendy
Peter and Wendy
Peter and Wendy, published in 1911, is the novelisation by J. M. Barrie of his most famous play Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up...
. She has appeared in multiple film and television adaptations of the Peter Pan stories, in particular the 1953 animated Walt Disney picture Peter Pan
Peter Pan (1953 film)
Peter Pan is a 1953 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up by J. M. Barrie. It is the fourteenth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and was originally released on February 5, 1953 by RKO Pictures...
. She also appears in the official sequel Peter Pan in Scarlet
Peter Pan in Scarlet
Peter Pan in Scarlet is a novel by Geraldine McCaughrean. It is an official sequel to J. M. Barrie's Peter and Wendy, authorised by Great Ormond Street Hospital, to whom Barrie granted all rights to the character and original writings in 1929...
by Geraldine McCaughrean and commissioned by Great Ormond St Hospital as well as the "Peter and the Starcatchers" book series by Ridley Pearson and Dave Barry. At first only a supporting character described by her creator as "a common fairy
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
", her animated incarnation was a hit and has since become a widely recognized unofficial mascot of The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
, and the centerpiece of its Disney Fairies
Disney Fairies
Disney Fairies is a Disney franchise built around the character of Tinker Bell, whom Disney adapted in their 1953 animated film Peter Pan and subsequently adopted as a mascot for the company. In addition to the fictional fairy character created by J. M...
media franchise
Media franchise
A media franchise is an intellectual property involving the characters, setting and trademarks of an original work of media , such as a film, a work of literature, a television program or a video game. Generally, a whole series is made in a particular medium, along with merchandising and endorsements...
including the direct-to-DVD film series Tinker Bell
Tinker Bell (film series)
Tinker Bell is a computer animated film series produced by DisneyToon Studios as part of the Disney Fairies franchise. Voices of Mae Whitman, Raven-Symoné, Lucy Liu, America Ferrera and Kristin Chenoweth are featured in the film...
. In her animated form she leaves a trail of twinkling pixie dust.
In original play and novel
Tinker Bell was described by Barrie as a fairy who mended pots and kettles, like an actual tinkerTinsmith
A tinsmith, or tinner or tinker or tinplate worker, is a person who makes and repairs things made of light-coloured metal, particularly tinware...
. Her speech consists of the sounds of a tinkling bell, which is understandable only to those familiar with the language of the fairies. In the original stage productions, she was represented on stage by a darting light "created by a small mirror held in the hand off-stage and reflecting a little circle of light from a powerful lamp" and her voice was a "a collar of bells and two special ones that Barrie brought from Switzerland". However, a Miss 'Jane Wren' was listed among the cast on the programmes as playing Tinker Bell: this was a joke which also helped with the mystique of the fairy character, as well as fooled HM Inspector of Taxes who sent Jane Wren a tax demand.
Though sometimes ill-tempered, spoiled, and very jealous and vindictive (getting the Lost Boys to shoot arrows at Wendy
Wendy Darling
Wendy Moira Angela Darling is a fictional character, the female protagonist of Peter and Wendy by J. M. Barrie, and in most adaptations in other media. Her exact age is not specified in the original play or novel by Barrie, though she is implied to be 12 or 13 years old or younger, as she is "just...
), at other times she is helpful and kind to Peter. The extremes in her personality are explained in-story by the fact that a fairy's size prevents her from holding more than one feeling at a time, so when she is angry she has no counterbalancing compassion. Fairies cannot fly in the rain but can enable others to fly by sprinkling them with fairy dust (sometimes called "pixie dust" by Disney, and presented as "starstuff" in Dave Barry
Dave Barry
David "Dave" Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American author and columnist, who wrote a nationally syndicated humor column for The Miami Herald from 1983 to 2005. He has also written numerous books of humor and parody, as well as comedic novels.-Biography:Barry was born in Armonk, New York,...
and Ridley Pearson
Ridley Pearson
Ridley Pearson, born on March 13, 1953 in Glen Cove, New York, is an American writer. Pearson has historically written suspense and thriller novels for an adult audience, but has also begun branching out by writing adventure books for children....
's novel series). At the end of the novel the suggestion is that Tinker Bell has died the year after Wendy and the Darlings leave Neverland, and Peter has no memory of her at all.
In Peter Pan in Scarlet
Tinker Bell makes a come back in the official sequel Peter Pan in ScarletPeter Pan in Scarlet
Peter Pan in Scarlet is a novel by Geraldine McCaughrean. It is an official sequel to J. M. Barrie's Peter and Wendy, authorised by Great Ormond Street Hospital, to whom Barrie granted all rights to the character and original writings in 1929...
. When Wendy and the rest of the group reach Neverland and ask Peter where she is, he replies that he does not know anyone by the name Tinker Bell (explained by the fact that he does not remember her after she died). She is mentioned by Wendy and the rest of the Lost Boys to Fireflyer, a silly blue fairy, who when he reaches the top of Neverpeak, makes the wish to meet her. When they open Captain Hook's treasure chest, among other things, Tinker Bell is seen inside it to Fireflyer's joy. Initially, Tinker Bell does not like him, but eventually she comes to see that Fireflyer is not as bad as he seems to be. In the end, they get married and start selling dreams to pirates, while having many adventures.
In Peter and the Starcatchers
In Dave BarryDave Barry
David "Dave" Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American author and columnist, who wrote a nationally syndicated humor column for The Miami Herald from 1983 to 2005. He has also written numerous books of humor and parody, as well as comedic novels.-Biography:Barry was born in Armonk, New York,...
and Ridley Pearson
Ridley Pearson
Ridley Pearson, born on March 13, 1953 in Glen Cove, New York, is an American writer. Pearson has historically written suspense and thriller novels for an adult audience, but has also begun branching out by writing adventure books for children....
's Peter and the Starcatchers
Peter and the Starcatchers
Peter and the Starcatchers is a best-selling children's novel that was published by Hyperion Books, a subsidiary of Disney, in 2004. Written by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, the book provides a backstory for the character Peter Pan, and serves as a prequel to J. M. Barrie's novel Peter and Wendy...
book series, Tinker Bell makes her first appearance at the end of the first novel. Originally, she was a green and yellow coloured bird who was put in a bag of starstuff, turning her into a fairy. Molly's father, the famous starcatcher Lord Leonard Aster, made her Peter's guardian and she follows him on all of his adventures. She doesn't like being called a fairy and would much rather be called "birdwoman" because of her origins. She is very protective of Peter, and hates his paying attention to any other female. She can be very impolite to others (only Peter is able to understand her perfectly, and most of the times does not reveal what she says about others, because it is mostly insults). She is also able to emit a very bright light, which she uses as an attack against other creatures, especially Lord Ombra, one of the main villains of the series.
On television
In the famous Mary MartinMary Martin
Mary Virginia Martin was an American actress and singer. She originated many roles over her career including Nellie Forbush in South Pacific and Maria in The Sound of Music. She was named a Kennedy Center Honoree in 1989...
musical version of the play
Peter Pan (1954 musical)
Peter Pan is a musical adaptation of J. M. Barrie's 1904 play Peter Pan and Barrie's own novelization of it, Peter and Wendy. The music is mostly by Mark "Moose" Charlap, with additional music by Jule Styne, and most of the lyrics were written by Carolyn Leigh, with additional lyrics by Betty...
, which opened on Broadway in 1954 and was first televised in 1955, Tinker Bell was represented by a darting light, as on stage, accompanied by bell-like sounds. Her favorite insult was "You silly ass!", which the audience watching the production eventually learns to recognize because it is always represented by the same group of sounds - four bell-like notes (one for each syllable of the phrase, presumably), followed by a growl on the bassoon.
In film
Film adaptations provided the first vocal effects for the character, whether through sound—such as musical expressions or the sound of a tinkling bell—or human speech. She was played by Virginia Browne FaireVirginia Browne Faire
Virginia Brown Faire was an American silent-film actress, appearing in mainly dramatic films and westerns....
in Herbert Brenon's 1924 version
Peter Pan (1924 film)
Peter Pan is a 1924 adventure silent film released by Paramount Pictures, the first film adaptation of the play by J. M. Barrie. It was directed by Herbert Brenon and starred Betty Bronson as Peter Pan, Ernest Torrence as Captain Hook, Mary Brian as Wendy, and Virginia Browne Faire as Tinker Bell...
of Peter Pan, Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...
in 1991's Hook
Hook (film)
Hook is a 1991 American fantasy film directed by Steven Spielberg. The film stars Robin Williams, Dustin Hoffman, Julia Roberts, Bob Hoskins, and features Maggie Smith, Caroline Goodall, Charlie Korsmo, Amber Scott, and Dante Basco. Hook acts as a sequel to Peter Pan's original adventures, focusing...
, and by Ludivine Sagnier
Ludivine Sagnier
Ludivine Sagnier is a French actress and model, who has appeared in 33 films since 1989. She was nominated for two César Awards for Best Supporting Actress in Swimming Pool and Un secret .-Early life:...
in P.J. Hogan's 2003 adaptation
Peter Pan (2003 film)
Peter Pan is a 2003 fantasy film released as a joint venture of Universal Studios, Columbia Pictures and Revolution Studios. P. J. Hogan directed a screenplay co-written with Michael Goldenberg which is based on the classic play and novel by J. M. Barrie. Jason Isaacs plays the roles of Captain...
, which originally planned to use a computer-generated version of the character, but instead used Sagnier in combinations with digital models and effects to take advantage of the actress's expressions. Tinker Bell was voiced by Debi Derryberry
Debi Derryberry
Debi Derryberry is an American voice actress, singer, composer and kids' entertainer who won an American Anime Award.-History:...
in the 1990 Fox animated program Peter Pan and the Pirates
Peter Pan and the Pirates
Peter Pan & the Pirates is an American animated television series based on J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan that originally aired on Fox Broadcasting Company from September 8, 1990 to September 10, 1991. Repeats continued to air until September 11, 1992. A repeat of the series' Christmas episode was aired...
, and by Sumi Shimamoto
Sumi Shimamoto
, real name , is a veteran Japanese voice actress born on December 8, 1954, in Kōchi, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. After graduating from the Toho Gakuen School of Music, she joined Gekidan Seinenza, a theatrical acting troupe...
in the 1989 anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series Peter Pan no Boken
Peter Pan no Boken
is an anime series by Nippon Animation, and directed by Takashi Nakamura and Yoshio Kuroda, which first aired in Japan on the Fuji TV network between January 8, 1989 and December 24, 1989...
.
Disney version
In her most widely known appearance in the 1953 animated Peter Pan filmPeter Pan (1953 film)
Peter Pan is a 1953 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up by J. M. Barrie. It is the fourteenth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and was originally released on February 5, 1953 by RKO Pictures...
, the character was animated and had no dialogue. Tinker Bell has been one of Disney's most important branding icons for over half a century, and is generally known as "a symbol of 'the magic of Disney'." She has been featured in television commercials and program opening credits sprinkling pixie dust with a wand in order to shower a magical feeling over various other Disney personalities, though the 1953 animated version of Tinker Bell never actually used a wand. In the picture and the official Disney Character Archives, she is referred to as a pixie
Pixie
Pixies are mythical creatures of folklore, considered to be particularly concentrated in the areas around Devon and Cornwall, suggesting some Celtic origin for the belief and name.They are usually depicted with pointed ears, and often wearing a green outfit and pointed...
. She is also featured in the opening of all Disney films flying over the Magic Castle (in a counter-clockwise direction, right to left).
There is an urban legend
Urban legend
An urban legend, urban myth, urban tale, or contemporary legend, is a form of modern folklore consisting of stories that may or may not have been believed by their tellers to be true...
that the original animated version of Tinker Bell was modelled after Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
. However, Disney animator Marc Davis's reference was actress Margaret Kerry
Margaret Kerry
Margaret Kerry is an American actress, motivational speaker and radio host best known for her 1953 work as the model for Tinker Bell in the Walt Disney Pictures animated feature, Peter Pan.-Career:...
. He illustrated Tinker Bell as a young, attractive, blonde haired, big blue eyed, white female, with an exaggerated hour-glass figure. She is clad in a short lime-green dress with a rigid trim, and green slippers with white puffs. She is trailed by small amounts of pixie dust when she moves, and this dust can help humans fly if they believe in happy thoughts. Some critics have complained that Disney's version of Tinker Bell is too sexually suggestive.
Since 1954, Tinker Bell has featured as a hostess for much of Disney's live-action television programming and in every Disney movie advertisements flying over Disneyland with her magic wand and her fairy dust, beginning with Disneyland (which first introduced the theme park to the public while it was still under construction), to Walt Disney Presents, Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color, and The Wonderful World of Disney. In 1988, the same year The Wonderful World of Disney moved from ABC to NBC as The Magical World of Disney. That year, she also appeared in the final shot of the ending scene of Disney's Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American fantasy-comedy-noir film directed by Robert Zemeckis and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film combines live action and animation, and is based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, which depicts a world in which cartoon characters...
, along with Porky Pig
Porky Pig
Porky Pig is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his star power, and the animators created many critically acclaimed shorts using the fat little pig...
; sprinkling fairy dust on the screen after Porky's trademark farewell as it goes black prior to the closing credits. She also starred alongside other Disney characters, such as Chip 'n Dale
Chip 'n Dale
Chip and Dale are two chipmunk cartoon characters created in 1943 at Walt Disney Productions. Their names are a pun based on the name "Chippendale"...
, in many Disney comics
Disney comics
Disney comics are comic books and comic strips featuring Walt Disney characters.The first Disney comics were newspaper strips appearing from 1930 on . In 1940, Western Publishing began producing Disney comic books in the United States...
, where she was also able to speak. Tinker Bell also appears as a summon in the Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts
is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square in 2002 for the PlayStation 2 video game console. The first game in the Kingdom Hearts series, it is the result of a collaboration between Square Enix and The Walt Disney Company. The game combines characters and settings from Disney...
series of video games.
At Disneyland, Tinker Bell is prominently featured in Peter Pan's Flight
Peter Pan's Flight
Peter Pan's Flight is a suspended dark ride at the Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park theme parks. Located in Fantasyland, it is one of the few remaining attractions that was operational on Disneyland's opening day in 1955...
, a suspended dark ride
Dark ride
A dark ride or ghost train is an indoor amusement ride where riders in guided vehicles travel through specially lit scenes that typically contain animation, sound, music, and special effects....
based on the artwork from the animated film. Beginning in 1961, she was also featured as a live performer who flew through the sky at the climax of some of the nightly fireworks displays. She was originally played by 71-year-old former circus performer Tiny Kline
Tiny Kline
Tiny Kline was an Hungarian-born circus performer. She performed for Barnum & Bailey and Disneyland.-Life and career:...
, up until her retirement three years later.
On the 2008 Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade
Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade
The Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade is an American television special that airs on Christmas Day on the ABC, taped primarily inside the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, approximately one month prior to Christmas Day...
special on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, Disney announced that a Tinker Bell float would be added to the classic Disney's Electrical Parade
Main Street Electrical Parade
The Main Street Electrical Parade is a regularly scheduled parade, created by Bob Jani and project director Ron Miziker, famous for its long run at Disneyland at the Disneyland Resort most summers between 1972–1974, 1977–1982, and 1985-1996...
at Disney's California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort
Disneyland Resort
The Disneyland Resort is a recreational resort in Anaheim, California. The resort is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks and Resorts division and is home to two theme parks, three hotels and a shopping, dining, and entertainment area known as Downtown Disney.The area now...
, the first new float to be added since even long before the parade ended its original run at Disneyland
Disneyland Park (Anaheim)
Disneyland Park is a theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of the Walt Disney Company. Known as Disneyland when it opened on July 18, 1955, and still almost universally referred to by that name, it is the only theme park to be...
in 1996.
Tinker Bell was part of the Disney Princess franchise, from which she was later extracted and converted into the central character of the new Disney Fairies
Disney Fairies
Disney Fairies is a Disney franchise built around the character of Tinker Bell, whom Disney adapted in their 1953 animated film Peter Pan and subsequently adopted as a mascot for the company. In addition to the fictional fairy character created by J. M...
franchise in 2005. In addition to an extensive line of merchandise, 2008's Tinker Bell
Tinker Bell (film)
Tinker Bell is a 2008 computer animated film based on the Disney Fairies franchise produced by DisneyToon Studios. It revolves around Tinker Bell, a fairy character created by J. M. Barrie in his play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up, and featured in the 1953 Disney animated film, Peter...
film is the first of five direct-to-DVD features set in Pixie Hollow
Pixie Hollow
Pixie Hollow is a character meet and greet attraction at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Hong Kong Disneyland offering guests the opportunity to dine with Tinker Bell from the Disney Fairies franchise.-Disneyland:...
. Tinker Bell is voiced by Mae Whitman
Mae Whitman
Mae Margaret Whitman is an American television, movie and voice actress. She is known for her role as Ann Veal in the TV series Arrested Development, her role as Amber on the TV series Parenthood, her role as Roxy Richter in Scott Pilgrim vs...
in these digitally animated DVD features. In addition, Disney announced in 2010 that Tinker Bell will have her own live-action comedy movie and actress Elizabeth Banks
Elizabeth Banks
Elizabeth Maresal Mitchell , known professionally as Elizabeth Banks, is an American actress. Banks had her film debut in the low-budget independent film Surrender Dorothy...
is cast as Tinker Bell. The movie will explore Tinker Bell's nature, and Elizabeth Wright Shapiro and McG
McG
Joseph McGinty Nichol , better known as McG, is an American director and producer of film and television, as well as a former record producer....
are the screenwriters in this movie.
At Disneyland, a Pixie Hollow meet-and-greet area opened on October 28, 2008, near the Matterhorn
Matterhorn Bobsleds
The Matterhorn Bobsleds or the Matterhorn is an attraction composed of two intertwining steel roller coasters, which opened in 1959 at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. It is modeled after the Matterhorn, a mountain in the Swiss Alps...
, where guests are able to interact with Tinker Bell and her companions. A similar area called "Tinker Bell's Magical Nook" is in Adventureland
Adventureland
Adventureland is one of the "themed lands" at the many Disneyland-style parks run by the Walt Disney Company around the world. It is themed to resemble the remote jungles in Africa, Asia, South America, and the South Pacific...
at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...
in Florida.
In November 2009, Tinker Bell became the smallest waxwork ever to be made at Madame Tussauds
Madame Tussauds
Madame Tussauds is a wax museum in London with branches in a number of major cities. It was founded by wax sculptor Marie Tussaud and was formerly known as "Madame Tussaud's", but the apostrophe is no longer used...
, measuring only five and a half inches.
On September 21, 2010, Tinker Bell was presented with the 2,418th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
, becoming the thirteenth fictional character and the sixth Disney character to receive this honor.
In art
In addition to the illustrations in the original editions of Peter Pan, Tinker Bell has also been depicted by fantasy artists such as Brian FroudBrian Froud
Brian Froud is an English fantasy illustrator. He lives and works in Devon with his wife, Wendy Froud, who is also a fantasy artist...
and Myrea Pettit
Myrea Pettit
Myrea Pettit is an English fantasy and fairy artist and illustrator born in Northampton. She studied with famed Swedish illustrator Ann Mari Sjogren painting flowers, butterflies and fairies like Tinkerbell from Peter Pan....
. She also appears in the edition of Peter Pan in Scarlet illustrated by David Wyatt. A bronze sculpture of Tinker Bell by London artist Diarmuid Byron O'Connor was commissioned by Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children is a children's hospital located in London, United Kingdom...
, to whom Barrie bequeathed the copyright to the character, to be added to his original four-foot statue of Peter Pan, wresting a thimble from Peter's hand. The figure has a nine-and-a-half-inch wingspan and is seven inches tall, and was unveiled on September 29, 2005 by Sophie, Countess of Wessex.
Tinker Bell in other languages
When translated into other languages, Tinker Bell's name is sometimes rendered more or less phonetically, but is often replaced by a name that evokes her character or one that refers to a bell or represents its sound.- ArabicArabic languageArabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
- تنة و رنة - Tanna we Ranna - BulgarianBulgarian languageBulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
- Зън-зън - Zŭn-Zŭn, or "Камбанка" - Kambanka - CatalanCatalan languageCatalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
- Campaneta - ChineseChinese languageThe Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
- 廷克贝尔 - Tíngkèbèiěr - CroatianCroatian languageCroatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
- Zvončica - CzechCzech languageCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
- Zvonilka - DanishDanish languageDanish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...
- Klokkeblomst - DutchDutch languageDutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
- Rinkelbel (in early translations), Tinkelbel (current) - FinnishFinnish languageFinnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
- Helinä-Keiju - FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
- Tinn Tamm (in early translations), La Fée Clochette (current) - GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
- Glöckchen, Glitzerklang, Naseweis, - GreekGreek languageGreek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
- Τίνκερ Μπελ - Tínker Bel - HebrewHebrew languageHebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
- טינקר בל - Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
- 小叮噹, 奇妙仙子 - HungarianHungarian languageHungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
- Giling Galang (in early translations), Csingiling (current) - ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
- Campanellino - JapaneseJapanese languageis a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
- ティンカー ベル - Tinkā Beru - KoreanKorean languageKorean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
- 팅커 벨 - Tingkeo Bel - MongolianMongolian languageThe Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
- Тэнүүлч хонх - NorwegianNorwegian languageNorwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
- Tingeling - PolishPolish languagePolish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
- Dzwoneczek - PortuguesePortuguese languagePortuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
- Sininho - RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
- Динь-Динь - Din'-Din' - RomanianRomanian languageRomanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
- Clopoţica - SerbianSerbian languageSerbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
- Звончица - SlovenianSlovenian languageSlovene or Slovenian is a South Slavic language spoken by approximately 2.5 million speakers worldwide, the majority of whom live in Slovenia. It is the first language of about 1.85 million people and is one of the 23 official and working languages of the European Union...
- Zvončica - SwedishSwedish languageSwedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
- Tingeling - SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
- Campanilla (Spain), Campanita (Latin America) - Taiwanese - 奇妙仙子-叮叮
- ThaiThai languageThai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...
- ทิงเกอร์เบลล์