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Disney recently invited me to Los Angeles as part of the #HanSoloEvent, #ABCTVEvent and #PeterPanBluray press event. Travel, accommodations, and a review copy of Peter Pan blu-ray were provided, but all thoughts and opinions are my own. Amazon affiliate links are used in this post.
Don’t miss the free printable activity sheets (including recipes, games, coloring pages and more) at the bottom of this post!
Can you believe that Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up, is celebrating its 65th anniversary? “Peter Pan” is the seventh title to join the Walt Disney Signature Collection, which includes “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Pinocchio,” “Bambi,” “The Lion King” and “Lady and the Tramp.”
Peter Pan Signature Collection is available NOW on Digital and Movies Anywhere, and will be available on DVD/Blu-ray as of June 5! I am so excited to own this Disney classic and I’ve already watched it with my kids (yes, I had it on VHS, so I’m thrilled to add it to my DVD/Blu-ray collection).
The Walt Disney Signature Collection edition of “Peter Pan” invites adventures of all ages to believe in magic once again and experience a timeless treasure from Disney’s golden age of animation that has stirred the hearts and imaginations of moviegoers worldwide since its original 1953 release. The Signature Collection edition offers over two hours of classic bonus features plus never-before-seen extras (see details below). I got lost in the bonus features and enjoyed them as much as I enjoyed watching the film.
In “Peter Pan,” fantastic adventures await the Darling children—Wendy, John and Michael—when Peter Pan, the hero of their stories, whisks them away to the magical world of Never Land. After flying with Peter and the delightfully impish Tinker Bell past the “second star to the right and straight on till morning,” they explore the enchanted island and Peter’s secret hideout with the Lost Boys, and leap into high-flying battles with swashbuckling pirates and the infamous villain Captain Hook.
These fun facts about Peter Pan are copyright Disney. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Peter Pan – Origins
• J. M. Barrie – created Peter Pan in stories that he told to the young sons of his friend Sylvia Llewelyn-Davies
• The character’s name comes from two sources: ‘Peter’ from the name of the youngest of the Llewelyn-Davies boys, Peter, and ‘Pan’ from the mischievous Greek god of the woodlands.
• Peter Pan first appeared in print in 1902 in a book called ‘The Little White Bird,’ a fictionalized version of J. M. Barrie’s relationship with the Llewelyn-Davies children.
• The book was used in a very successful play ‘Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up.’ This play premiered at the Duke of York Theatre in London on December 27, 1904.
• In 1906, ‘Peter Pan’ was published into a book entitled, ‘Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens.’
• In 1911, Barrie adapted the play into the novel ‘Peter and Wendy’ – which is most often published simply as ‘Peter Pan.’
• ‘Peter Pan’ was released in 1924 as a silent movie, directed by Herbert Brennon, starring Betty Bronson as Peter and Ernest Torrence as Hook.
Walt Disney’s History with Peter Pan
• Walt Disney and his brother Roy robbed their own piggy banks to get enough money to go to see a visiting road production of ‘Peter Pan’ starring Maude Adams. As Walt recalled, “I took many memories away from the theater with me, but the most thrilling of all was the vision of Peter flying through the air.”
• Walt later had the privilege of portraying the part of ‘Peter Pan’ in his school play – “No actor ever identified himself with the part he was playing more than I. I actually flew through the air! Roy was using a block and tackle to hoist me. It gave way, and I flew right into the faces of the surprised audience.”
Walt Disney’s Production of PETER PAN
• Walt’s words on why he made the film: ‘Here is a story, it seemed to me, which had never been quite fulfilled, despite its wonderful career on the living stage. A story which deserved the added dimension of animation on the screen.”
• Walt’s words on his version of PETER PAN: ‘I believe our treatment has enabled us to get more of the playwright’s original intent of robust fun and adventurous excitement in the Never Land exploits. Our version is a little more boisterous; not so timid as some stage presentations tended to become in trying for that definitive charm. I believe we have the adult a little more in mind too, along with the younger members of the family.”
• Working with the Great Ormond Street Hospital, Walt Disney was able to obtain story rights between late 1938 and early 1939.
Animation & Production
• This was the last Disney animated feature film in which all nine of Walt’s “Nine Old Men” worked together as directing animators.
• Women constituted nearly half of the studio talent AND were working within virtually every aspect of production on PETER PAN. From animation to art direction, special effects and Ink & Paint.
• A full week’s worth of steady output by a top-notch animator may only take up five seconds on screen.
• Over a million drawings were completed during the production of this film with over 250,000 separate drawings utilized in the final film.
• At the time of production in 1953, a record number of backgrounds were created and used in the film. Backgrounds totaled 934, compared to 773 for Cinderella (1950) and 736 for Alice in Wonderland (1951)
• The reason behind the volume of backgrounds for PETER PAN, stems from the fact that the principal characters are ‘human,’ and humans have a tendency to move around more than animals. This determined the various camera angles needed to give the production the scope that Walt wanted for his telling of Barrie’s classic story.
• In the time required to design and paint one animated background for PETER PAN a live-action studio could plan and construct an actual movie set.
• The production of PETER PAN represented the highest concentration of talent with the studio’s history to that point.
KATHRYN BEAUMONT (Voice of and Live-Action Reference Model for Wendy) was 12 years old when she was chosen by Walt Disney to be the voice of Wendy. She said, on working with Walt Disney,
“I found Walt to be such an easy person to be around. I felt so comfortable with him. Having come from another studio, my experience was feeling that it was just a workplace, and I expected that would be the atmosphere at every studio. Until I came to Disney, and I realized, my goodness, this is very, very different. There’s a whole different atmosphere here. Walt himself was visible, where the head of the studio at MGM was not. At Disney, his presence was felt. You’d see him walking down the hall. He’d join the line in the cafeteria at lunchtime. He would pick up a tray, get his lunch and find a place to sit down with someone and just chitchat. I think the whole idea was that we were all team members. It was everyone sharing responsibility and sharing creativity.”
New Signature Collection Bonus
Music and More
*Bonus features may vary by retailer
Enjoy this printable packet full of coloring pages, games, and recipes. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD. Enjoy!
Want more? Click HERE to see all of my Han Solo Event/Peter Pan Bluray coverage.
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