Julia roberts played tinkerbell in the movie 'hook', she never played peter pan.. I was wrong, Peter pan was played by a female before, but never julia roberts.
A classic tale
By MOLLY GLENTZER
Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle
The boy who refused to grow up turns 100 this year. Author J.M. Barrie introduced Peter Pan in his 1902 book, The Little White Bird. Although Peter didn't show up until Chapter 14, he obviously made an impression.
Associated Press
Jerome Robbins, left, and Mary Martin, fly through the air during a rehearsal for a television program in 1955.
Barrie quickly expanded the familiar tale in which Wendy, Michael and John accompany Peter to a Neverland teeming with American Indians, pirates, fairies and mermaids before coming home to grow up.
The full story first appeared as a play in 1904. It made Barrie so rich, he donated his Peter Pan rights to London's Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children.
Every generation since has followed Peter's adventures, which also point out the divide between childhood freedoms and parental responsibility.
Peter Pan has flown through books. (Barrie published the story as a novella rich with magic realism and satire in 1911.) He's sung in plays and full-scale musical comedies. He's been a silent film star and an animated cartoon figure.
Of the dozens of stage versions, one of the best was the 1954 Broadway production directed by Jerome Robbins (who also created West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof, and many other hits). The actors in other Peter Pan versions had belted out a few songs here and there, but this was the first full-scale musical, loaded with memorable tunes such as I'm Flying, I Won't Grow Up and I Gotta Crow.
Walt Disney Company
Walt Disney brought an animated Peter Pan to audiences in 1953.
Native Texan Mary Martin won a Tony Award for her portrayal of Peter. (Other actresses over the years also made it their signature, from Maude Adams in 1905 to Cathy Rigby in the 1990s.) Jean Arthur flew first, in a 1950 Broadway production. But by 1954, the young Englishman who had created Arthur's flying equipment -- Peter Foy -- had a new system that enabled thrilling aerial choreography and made Martin a star.
Walt Disney relied on technology to make Peter fly in his classic 1953 animated film. He also brought Tinkerbell and the canine nurse Nana to life. And his Peter was a boy -- not an actress dressed like one.
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This is the Peter Pan most people know today -- including not only baby boomers, but their children and grandchildren. It was re-released last month on a Special Edition VHS and DVD that also contain other goodies. The DVD has more, including the 1952 featurette The Peter Pan Story, an interactive game, interviews with Walt Disney, a photo gallery and a singalong element.
A Disney sequel, Return to Never Land, was also released in February in theaters. This time, it's Wendy's daughter Jane who makes the trip.
