Discover curious facts surrounding the creation of Tinker Bell by JM Barrie, and the character’s adaptation for Disney animations
Protagonist of Disney Fairies, Disney’s fairy franchise, Tinkerbell, also known as Tinker Bell, appeared in the animation “Peter Pan”, released in 1953, which adapts the play by JM Barrieand the novel that tells the story of the boy who never grows up.
The character was so successful that years later she would star in her own film franchise that has six titles:
- 2008: Tinker Bell: An Adventure in Fairyland
- 2009: Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure
- 2010: Tinker Bell and the Fairy Rescue
- 2012: Secrets of the Wings
- 2014: Tinker Bell: Fairies and Pirates
- 2015: Tinker Bell and the Never Monster
Furthermore, Tinkerbell’s image was associated with new stories on the pages and a guaranteed presence in theme parks and collectibles, being an important figure in the childhood of many children around the world for several generations.
Even though she is known worldwide, there are some details behind Tinkerbell’s story that many fans may not know. With that in mind, RECREIO put together a list of 5 interesting facts that you didn’t know about the character; check out!
1. Tinkerbell was a formless being
What’s Sininho like? It doesn’t take much effort to remember that the character is a blonde fairy with blue eyes, who gets angry easily and always wears her classic green dress.
The image, which has been known for over 70 years among animation lovers, Disneyin fact, is a creation of Walt Disneygiven that Berry describes Sininho as a spirit of light, shapeless and faceless, as explained by Veja magazine.
2. The character had two inspiring muses
To create Tinkerbell’s look, the studio was inspired by a real-life person: Ginni Mackartisan of Disney’s ‘Paint Lab’ at the time, as explained by the UOL portal.
As Disney fans celebrate the 70th anniversary of #Peter Pan‘s release this week, let’s remember Ginni Mack, an Ink & Paint artist for the @disneystudios for many years, who also served as one of the models for Tinker Bell. She passed away in 2017 at the age of 90. pic.twitter.com/NdzBr7Jin8
—Shawn (@spfarrelltweets) February 6, 2023
Furthermore, Tink’s movements took shape through the dancer and actress Margaret Kerrywhich brought the fairy scenes to life on huge sets in order to help animators recreate the same actions on the big screen.
3. Pixie dust wasn’t always used for flying
Tinkerbell’s pixie dust was not used to help Peter Pan and the Lost Boys fly in the first version published as part of a series of short stories of the story. According to Veja, the role was only assigned after reports of children getting hurt after trying to copy the same actions as the characters.
Screenrant further explains that, before the change, the plot explained that to fly, you only needed “happy thoughts”.
4. In the original story, Tinker Bell is the one looking for Captain Hook to deliver Peter Pan
In the animation, Tinkerbell reveals Peter Pan’s whereabouts to Captain Hook only after being imprisoned and blackmailed by the villain.
The moment, however, is very different originally, since, in this version, Tink is the one who goes after Hook to hand over Peter Pan after suffering several insults from the boy.
5. Tink is recognized on the Walk of Fame
Tink has already been honored with a star on the Walk of Fame! According to UOL, this happened on September 21, 2010.
Source: Recreio
