Tinkerbell made her debut on February 5th, 1953 as the sassy little pixie in Peter Pan. Since then Tinkerbell has become an icon for the Walt Disney Company making appearances in attractions like Peter Pan’s Flight or on nighttime spectaculars during the years.
In fact, did you know Peter Pan was a film that had all the “Nine Old Men” working on it along with Norm Ferguson? This group of talented people brought the story’s carefully crafted personalities to visual life giving us the timeless story that we love today.
Another fun fact is about how Tinkerbell came to be the sassy fairy we love today, in past stage and live-action adaptations of Peter Pan, Tinkerbell was represented just by light effects, but years later David Hall and Mary Blair explored possible designs for the pixie character. At the end, it was Marc Davis that brought Tink to life, a playful, petulant, mercurial and mischievous tiny member of the cast that ended up driving the movie’s plot and became at one the embodiment of Disney magic!
Almost two years later, Tink became the official “hostess” of the weekly Disney television program hosted by Walt Disney. This time, Les Clark was the one in charge of Tinkerbell drawing her with a slightly streamlined mid-century modern aura along with her pixie dust glow, she even got a magic wand to beckon the fireworks that would become a staple of the series opening titles for decades to follow.
Tink is an iconic character that has been depicted by many Disney artists in history, for example Eyvind Earle and John Hench painted storybook illustrations and Al Hubbard’s brush inked Tink enjoying unusual adventures alongside other Disney characters like Dumbo or Jiminy Cricket. In more recent years, Disney storytellers reimagined Tinkerbell life experiences and interpreted them across a wide array of mediums, from hand crafted watercolors to cutting edge computer generated imagery.
Tinkerbell newest artful incarnation can be found between Cinderella Castle and Liberty Square in Magic Kingdom in honor of the 50th anniversary celebration, as well as, on the newest nighttime spectacular Disney Enchantment.
Related – Disney Fab 50 Statues Now On Display In The Magic Kingdom!
If you would like to learn more about Tink’s history, you can check out the “Tinker Bell: An Evolution” book by Mindy Johnson (Disney Editions, 2013).
Credit: Disney Parks
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