Hey, kids, welcome back to the Phile on a Monday from Walt Disney World. How are you? No matter how bad your day seems, just remember that someone out there has to clean the restrooms at Disney World. What's your favorite ride at Disney? My favorite ride at Disney is the emotional rollercoaster. So, you guys know the story about Peter Pan, right? If so, think about this... Peter Pan was an angel that held kid's hands when on their way to heaven... Neverland. That's why they never grow up. All those kids were dead. Boom. Okay, let's talk about some stuff that's happening in the real world for bit.
Last Monday August 20th, President Trump complimented a Hispanic man, but of course he found a way to make it racist. At a White House event billed as "Salute to the Heroes of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection," President Donald Trump called to the stage a Latino Border Patrol agent named Adrian Anzaldua. "Adrian, come here. I want to ask you a question," Trump said. "So how did you... come here. Come here. You're not nervous, are you?" Addressing the audience, Trump then added, "speaks perfect English." The remark spoke volumes about how Trump sees Hispanic people. He had to make a point that Anzaldua spoke good English, as if it was something unexpected. Research shows that 68% of Hispanic-Americans speak English fluently. Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has a history of criticizing Trump on Twitter and had no problem calling him out for his racist remark. She took the opportunity to judge him on his English skills.
Quite the diss coming from a master of the English language. Aside from being funny, Rowling does have a good point. The president’s tweets have terrible grammar and syntax and he’s known for constant misspellings and creating new words such as "bigly" and "covfefe." Definitely not "perfect English."
Fashion designer and part-time Spice Girl, Victoria Beckham, took some heat on social media for a new shirt she’s designed. Her new $150 black-and-white t-shirt displays the phrase, “It’s a dark but happy place” and some people believe it makes light of depression. Here it is...
“Depression is dark but not a happy place!” one commenter said on her Facebook page. “I’m a bit confused as to why this is on clothing, especially when there is a massive mental health campaign right now,” commented another user. Another enraged commenter didn’t like the shirt’s sentiment or design. “Sounds like a piss take of depression. And looks like a piss take in awful font and school jumper style design. Pretty sure (chain store) Tesco would knock something more uplifting with their personalisation process… Terrible ad!” While others don't see it as a problem. “LOVE THE SHIRT!!!!!!!!,” a commenter named Kimberly empahtically wrote. “People need to quit guessing and judging by what something/someone says. It is absurd of what the world has come to with all the judging. I love the saying. Don't think for a second that she is mocking anyone or anything. Geez LOL” According to an Instagram post by Beckham, this shirt references the fact she is often criticized for not smiling in photos. “When you’re smiling on the inside. As the sweatshirt says!! Let your sweatshirt do the talking,” she captioned her photo. Beckham has a long history of keeping a straight face in photos. Since she first adopted her Post Spice persona in the ‘90s, she’s always wore a grumpy, smug expression. She addressed the issue once on "The Late Late Show with James Corden." “The questions I get asked all the time is why don’t I smile… People think I’m so miserable! Fashion stole my smile,” she said.
On Tuesday, Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen plead guilty to eight criminal charges in a Manhattan Federal court. His crimes include tax evasion, two counts of illegal campaign contributions connected to the 2016 presidential election, and giving false information to a financial institution. Given his current scarlet letter, he doesn't exactly seem in a position to throw stones from his glass house of crimes. However, as with most guilty parties, Cohen did not plan on getting caught. So, back in 2015, wrote some strong words about then presidential candidate Hillary Clinton going to jail.
The tweet is now deleted, but not before people were able to resurface it for a good old-fashioned dragging session. Now, Cohen can get a taste for the same free room and board he so gleefully offered Clinton. In fact, some pointed out that Cohen's circumstance is ending far worse than his condemnation of Clinton. I can only imagine what a steaming cup of schadenfreude Clinton is sipping on right now. Cohen's official sentencing will take place on December 12th, he could serve a maximum of 65 years in prison for his crimes.
Twitter is a fantastic place to make jokes, engage in illuminating discussions, and yes, drag people you disagree with. Unfortunately, the very same passion and rapid pace that can make Twitter wonderful can also encourage rash and destructive behavior. A seemingly absurd example of this rash behavior took place last Monday, when a newly accepted NASA intern ruined her own opportunity by telling Homer Hickam to "suck my dick and balls." In now deleted tweets, the Twitter user Naomi H (who has since locked her account due to trolls), expressed excitement for her internship at NASA.
The author and former NASA engineer who trained the first Japanese astronauts, Homer Hickam, chimed in to suggest she watch her language. However, she didn't seem to know who he was. Let's just say her colorful response didn't go the way it could have.
The interaction quickly went viral, and resulted in Naomi losing her internship. Contrary to initial assumptions, it was not Hickam who encouraged the firing, but other NASA higher-ups who saw the exchange online. The moment of passion quickly became a cautionary tale. Hickam even wrote a blog post clarifying his initial comment on Naomi's Twitter feed. Ironically, he wasn't personally offended by her use of the F-bomb, and only commented to warn her that NASA may not appreciate the language. "I'm a Vietnam vet and not at all offended by the F-word. However, when I saw NASA and the word used together, it occurred to me that this young person might get in trouble if NASA saw it so I tweeted to her one word: 'Language' and intended to leave it at that. Soon, her friends took umbrage and said a lot of unkind things but long after I was gone as I immediately deleted my comments and blocked all concerned." When he found out she was fired from the internship, he actually went to bat for her. Also, she did apologize in private when she realized her huge misstep. "Later, I learned she had lost her offer for an internship with NASA. This I had nothing to do with nor could I since I do not hire and fire at the agency or have any say on employment whatsoever. As it turned out, it was due to the NASA hashtag her friends used that called the agency's attention to it long after my comments were gone," he wrote. Even after he posted his blog post and she apologized, people continued to troll him and claimed that Naomi was in the right. At the time of writing this, it's unclear whether NASA is considering giving Naomi back her internship. Regardless of how it all pans out, hopefully this will help prevent some of us other fiery-tongued Twitter folk from suffering foot-in-mouth in the future.
The dating scene is so rough these days, one woman is turning to a ghost for her emotional and physical needs. A spiritual guidance counselor who guys by the name Amethyst Realm stopped by ITV's "This Morning" to detail her long-term relationship with a ghost. Just six months ago, Amethyst was a single woman whose solo lifestyle was quickly interrupted by a ghost she met in Australia. "I refer to it as him, because that's easier. He's very ancient, very wise, very kind. I would say he has been on the planet a long time." Amethyst went on to clarify that while this isn't her first run-in with a ghost, it's definitely her first time falling this deep in love. "It's difficult to explain in terms of normal, earthbound relationships. It's a bit deeper than that, we don't have a need for conversation." During the interview, Amethyst revealed that her ghost lover followed her home from Australia and the two joined the Mile High club (I have endless questions about this). She even went on to share that she considers him "the one" and plans to start a family. When asked how she would carry a ghost's baby to term, she quickly laid it out. "I've been looking into phantom pregnancies, and I believe that a phantom pregnancy is actually a real pregnancy but you have a phantom inside you rather than a human baby. The reason we don't ever manage to carry these to full term is that people don't understand. But I'm hoping through understanding what's going on with my body, I'll be able to." Anyone familiar with the actual meaning of the term "phantom pregnancy" knows that it refers to a woman experiencing typical pregnancy symptoms... nausea, swelling, etc, who isn't actually pregnant. So I suppose, in that sense, if Amethyst WERE to get pregnant with her ghost-lover's child, it would be a phantom pregnancy since there'd also be no child. People on the Internet had a wide range of emotional responses to Amethyst's interview. Some people were immediately obsessed with the weirdness of it all. While others brought up the very real point that her mental health confusion shouldn't be used for ratings. In all seriousness, it is highly likely that Amethyst does need to seek mental help. Although, if she was already working as a spiritual adviser the overlap between her mental health and her spiritual beliefs may be indistinguishable, and I'm in no position to make a judgment. Regardless, I'll be interested to hear if the ghost pregnancy comes to fruition.
So, yesterday I showed you a scary pic of Phineas and Ferb that was kinda scary. Here's another pic of them that's not as scary...
So, are you a "Game of Thrones" fan? Nest season Disney is taking over...
I have no idea who that is. With yesterday's pic I thought it was Anna but a lot of you told me it was Elsa. Who is this? Billy Dee Williams, who once was on the Phile, is gonna be in the new Star Wars movie, but I have this nasty feeling...
Damn, Disney. Hahahahaha. So, if they made Peter Pan today this is what Tinker Bell would probably look like to keep up with the times...
Hahaha. So, ever pause a Disney movie on Blu-ray or DVD? You should... it's fun. Look...
Haha. Some people sure strayed from God's light...
I don't remember that scene in the books. Did you see the live action Beauty and the Beast? I only saw the trailer but I wasn't impressed...
Now, kids, from the home office in Port Jefferson, New York, here is...
Top Phive Signs You Grew Up On Disney Movies
5. You held up a living creature above your head.
4. You wish woodland creatures were as advertised.
3. You try to "Bippidy Boppity Boo" things.
2. You know that girl with braces from "Finding Nemo" uncle's address
And the number one sign you grew up on Disney movies is...
1. You at least know one phrase in Swahili.
Ha! If you spot the Mindphuck let me know.
Hahaha. So, yesterday on the Phile Animatronic Donald Trump left the Hall of Presidents to be here and char for a bit about what's been going on. Well, he has left the Hall again and wants to be here on the Phile again. So, here again, please welcome...
Me: Hello, Animatronic Donald Trump. How are you today?
Animatronic Donald Trump: Okay. I want to tell everyone please don't say that I am a cross between Hillary Clinton and the actor Jon Voight. That could be unsettling to the President and the rest of his crime family.
Me: Sure, but you do look like them.
Animatronic Donald Trump: Well, the truth is they made an animatronic for Hillary, went “oh fuck” and stretched a hastily-made Donald Trump skin over Hillary’s facial structure.
Me: Really? I knew it.
Animatronic Donald Trump: But I speak clearly and is never overwhelmed by a case of the thirsties.
Me: Well, that's good.
Animatronic Donald Trump: In a time with so many heavy items, thank you to Disney for the laugh. They did so much so well with me. Little hands, check. Absurdly long tie, check. Horrifying face, checkmate. When Trump is impeached, can they move me to the Haunted Mansion?
Me: Awe. I don't know if you'd like it there.
Animatronic Donald Trump: Well, I have to get back to the Hall. Thanks for having me on the Phile. It was YUGE.
Me: Animatronic Donald Trump, everyone. That was really dull, right? Now for some more Disney...
Phact 1. There is an abandoned island at Disney World Florida called Discovery Island. Three guys swam to it and found preserved snakes in coke bottles and many more eerie stuff.
Phact 2. "Mary Poppins," author P.L. Travers hated the film Adaption of her book so much that she spent most of the premiere crying and refused to let Disney touch the rest of the series.
Phact 3. Walt Disney World is the largest consumer of fireworks in the United States. The park also launches its fireworks with compressed air instead of gunpowder to reduce fumes and gain better height and timing.
Phact 4. Three of the five biggest money losing movies, Mars Needs Moms, The Lone Ranger and John Carter in history were produced by Disney for a total loss of $366 million.
Phact 5. Walt Disney hired 11 dwarfs for the premiere of Pinocchio to dress up like the puppet and greet children. They were left with a day’s worth of food and wine. By mid-afternoon there were 11 naked dwarfs running around screaming obscenities at the crowd.
Today's guest is an American actress and radio host, best known for her 1953 work as the model for Tinker Bell in the Walt Disney Pictures animated feature, Peter Pan. Her autobiography Tinker Bell Talks: Tales of a Pixie Dusted Life is the 85th book to be pheatured in the Phile's Book Club. Please welcome to the Phile... Margaret Kerry.
Me: Hello, Margaret, welcome to the Phile. How are you?
Margaret: I'm good, I'm ready. Ask me the questions.
Me: Your book Tinker Bell Talks: Tales of a Pixie Dusted Life is also the 85th book to be pheatured in the Phile's Book Club. It's such a good book, was it fun to write?
Margaret: Yeah, it was fun, and I have 35 stories left over. I'm in my 90th year so somethings better have happened to me in 90 years.
Me: Before you were the model for Tinker Bell were you a fan of Disney movies?
Margaret: Oh, absolutely! Everybody was. I don't know of a person who wouldn't say "they're my favorite." Even the young boys. There was a cartoon going on, of course that's what we called them... cartoons. Not the feature lengths of course. The feature length came in... what was the first one? Snow White I think. I was 10-years-old. The idea of a movie going to be all cartoony, that's what we would call it, was so exciting. Then we were scared from the witch. But all came out well and we just all sort of knew with Disney we could trust like we could trust Perry Mason. We'll watch his show and he's in court every week defending somebody and we knew he was going to win. It was the same way with Disney shorts, and the films.
Me: Before you met Walt himself what were your thoughts on him?
Margaret: Well, if I may open a very interesting side bar of what went on during that time. Now today if you wanted to know about Walt Disney you'll pull out your little phone and say to somebody on the Phone "get me a biography of Walt Disney" and away it would go. Jason, we didn't have anything like that. We had no idea who anybody was or who we were working for. Not a clue. Now Walt Disney, I was brought up to believe by the time I was 4-years-old that the head of the studio was GOD. They could never make a mistake, we would probably never see them in our lifetime, but they were the ones that moved every day, and we could only get to see them once they might discover us. Who were these heads, we didn't even know, unless their name appeared. We had no idea of Paramount, we had no idea of RKO, I mean we had idea of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, those were peoples names. We knew Warner Bros., but Columbia? We had no idea. We could of been having a Slurpee with one of them right next to us. It was really off balancing. So, what I knew of Walt Disney was only his films.
Me: What was it like when you met him?
Margaret: All I could think of was he's a head of a studio. I have never, ever, met the head of a studio before in my entire life. My, isn't he handsome. For two times that I met him, the third time it suddenly dawned on me and he's Walt Disney. Holy smoke. I stood there just on the sidelines, they were very sweet to include me to meet him, that is Marc Davis and Gerry Geronimi, and unfortunately I cannot remember the cameraman's name. They were very sweet, they would call me over each time. One time I spoke up, I never called him by his name, because Mr. Davis and Mr. Disney sounded too awful. Uncle Walt, no, I didn't even know people called him Uncle Walt. I had no idea, none of us did. None of the mother's did either of the children. If we got really nosey about it we might get thrown off the set. It was very, very different, we were playing it by ear and in the dark. That's about all I knew of Walt Disney. He had the loviest smile, he was much trimmer than I thought. He was much thinner than a couple of photos that I've seen of him. He was absolutely charming.
Me: What kind of stuff did they have you do at the studios?
Margaret: We were on Stage 1 and they cut the stage in half and the lights could bounce of the syke that I was acting in front of, and I didn't have any words the movie until I was cast as the red headed mermaid, then I got to do voice-over work which was great. Anyway, at this time we did not have to have a playback, so we kept the huge door open that trucks could come in and out of the soundstage. So, there we were on soundstage 1 and I looked up and the sun was coming down through the opening and about ten men walked in and they cast shadows, they were all in silhouette, I knew one of them and that was Buddy Epsen. He walks funny and he did and he was ahead of them and they went over and worked at the same time that we were working. They were figuring out the risers and they had grips put up on the wall of the soundstage, and Buddy Epsen was standing in front of it and worked at it, and they would talk, and he would work at it, and i turned out they were working on the thing that turned out to be animagraphics. I learned this about four years ago. I didn't know, they didn't tell me anything. The question is why did Walt Disney, the head of the studio, didn't get the soundstage all by himself? The reason is that time at the Disney studio they only had one soundstage. It was already booked for Tinker Bell. Who would think back at that time that Disney did all of that work would only have one soundstage. It takes you back to another time. Time where there was no Internet. A time when we just went blindly ahead.
Me: Did you know who Marc Davis was? What was it like working with him?
Margaret: I had no idea. This man was a genius. He showed me pictures of what he wanted to sketch of Tinker Bell, because all they had were line drawings. When I say all they had, that sounds pretty condescending. But it wasn't true. I had to take what they had there, and gave her let's just say the third dimension. One time he said to me we want her to be very grumpy, or upset. I think that was the word he used. They wanted her arms folded and very upset. I said, "How upset do you want her?" He took one of those pieces of paper and I swear to you it took 30 seconds and he had drawn Tinker Bell's face. I thought I wonder of I could get that. No, I better not ask. I thought to myself this man is a genius. He was so adorable, he was just the dearest of gentleman that you could ever meet. He never pushed himself forward, he was the one always in the back down when they took pictures of the 9 Old Men. When Disney allowed me to get photos, which I put in my book, I said I need a good picture of Marc Davis. The only one they had of Marc Davis was him sitting at his desk and there was a flash camera photographer and he flashed it and it reflected in the glass window right next to him. You will see that picture of Marc Davis sitting as a young man at his desk, its cut off right at his back. They didn't have any other pictures. I think he drove his wife nuts, after he passed away she was his champion, which was great. Of course she's so brilliant in artwork and other things and costuming, that have someone like Alice as your champion.
Me: How did you get to be the model for Tinker Bell in the first place, Margaret?
Margaret: I was working for Fox at the time, assistant desk director, and I got a call from my agent who asked if I can get off tomorrow and they are interviewing for a 3 and a half inch sprite who doesn't talk, she's a fairy. I said I don't know, I think I probably could. It's a Disney. It's a Disney?! I will, even if they get upset, every film, everybody felt that way. EVERYbody. It was just amazing, it was throughout Hollywood. The next day I went over and the night before I set up a little pantomime to music of a little 10-year-old boy fixing his breakfast. He drops the eggs he was trying to juggle, I took my little 45 player over. I did one little dip for Mr. Davis, because we called them mister. That's how long ago it was. He called to his office Gerry Geronimi, who was the uber director, one of the overall directors of the movie. They couldn't find a plug to plug the player in. Two guys got down on their hands and knees and found a plug. I did the pantomime, they seemed to be very, very pleased. They said what they want me to do, they want Tinker Bell do the scene. They pointed to the large animation papers that were all over the walls of different poses of Tinker Bell. I got to stand there and look at all these and come up with an idea. I knew I wanted to play her as she was a 9-year-old little girl because of course in the J.M. Barrie book he introduces her as a 9-year-old little girl. Even though she has curves and her figure is shown to best advantage as it says in the book. I thought she's never seen herself in the mirror before. That's the way I played it.
Me: Did they take all your ideas for her?
Margaret: Some of them they turned down but not many. Thirty-three years later Marc Davis and Alice Davis and I were having lunch at Club 33 and I said something really ridiculous. Marc leaned over and said, "Margaret, you are still Tinker Bell." I said, "Marc, that's the nicest thing you ever said to me. Except 'would it be convenient to come to work next Tuesday?'"
Me: So, once you got the job modeling for Tinker Bell what happened then?
Margaret: They brought the storyboards down to the stage and he showed me what he wanted Tinker Bell to do and where to hit her marks. What two poles were supposed to be other side of the pathway, that kind of thing. I would be surprised at the many times I was there of a prop, I never knew what they were asking for, but he just seemed pleased as punch because I would give an idea and he'd say he loved it, let's do it. I said to him one time, "Marc, if I was smart I would have messed up a few times, I still could've been working there." He said, "Not you, you're ready for the next one."
Me: I saw pics of you with giant scissors and a giant keyhole. Were they fun to use?
Margaret: The fun keyhole was the first one I used when I got used to props. It was just a little keyhole where her face was looking through, well, that was easy. The next time I went here was this prop which they made just a little too tall for me. I was on my tippy toes. Every time they wound me into it, I could not get in and out by myself. It was 3 dimensional. We would try this and we would try that. It was fun! I hadn't had that much in movies in a long time. It was like playing with toys, and yet at the same time I was very aware of how Tink should feel or to do. When I fell over backwards they had this little thin mattress... remember when she falls off the block? When she was laughing so hard you can hear me all over the soundstage. We always did two takes so I asked if they could get something a little bit thicker and they didn't. So I gave all my all for Tinker Bell. The one with the scissors was a little more difficult because it was made out of balsa wood, or at least it felt like it. I'm 5 foot 2, I was supposed to be pulling on them and there was a crew member who was pulling against me. Can you imagine pulling against balsa wood? I'm trying to dig my heels in pretending, I knew that Marc Davis was such a genius, that he took what I did although it was 3 dimensional, but in film was 2 dimensional. That man who is a genius almost made it a 3 dimensional film. He was just AMAZING! We were going to try it again to get some traction on it and the crew member changed where the rope was around his waist, and I didn't know this. I pulled and back I went and I took him with me and we ended up in a pile and Gerry came over to help and he flipped, and we are down there laughing away. Nobody was hurt, it was just so funny. Of course we asked the cameraman if we could have that clip but no, we were outside the camera.
Me: You said you were one of the mermaids and had a speaking role... how did that happen?
Margaret: Marc called and said he was going to cast me, and how would I like to be one of the mermaids. I said of course I'd love to and he said we'd want you to do her voice too. I said whoop-de-doo.
Me: Okay, so, did Peter Pan or any of the other characters have a live model as well?
Margaret: Well, I took two calls from Marc Davis earlier on and he asked me who could be the life action model for Peter Pan. As good as an actor that Bobby Driscoll was, he really can't do the fight scenes and things like that. I said do I know who it is... because I just finished working with him at Fox, one of the greatest dancers thats ever been and that's Roland Dupree. I got them in touch with each other, they were so pleased. I got another call from Marc Davis who said Hans Conried has another contract that he has to go to, do I know anybody who could do Captain Hook. I said yes, I absolutely do. I worked with Henry Brandon on a movie I did called Canon City. They got him and he was just wonderful. So, I'm feeling pretty good. Two for two. Then he called me up to do the red headed mermaid. We did the recording and June Foray and Connie Hilton were there,
Me: Cool. June Foray is a legend. Okay, what was your thought the first time you saw the completed Peter Pan movie?
Margaret: Well, you know what, it was in 1953, I saw it and I can't remember where I saw it. The big thing that moved me was the animation. I'm always amazed, I don't care if I see it myself or I see it with people, it is such a comedy. People forget that, and I understand from the powers that be, that Frank and Ollie animated Smee and Captain Hook together and coming up with these gags. It was a frightening story. Captain Hook had his hand bitten off!
Me: What did you think when you first saw Tinker Bell animated?
Margaret: It was up in the third floor in the projection room and it was crowded. Now I haven't been on the lot, I wasn't contacted to the lot, I was contracted a daily contract when they needed me. It turned out I was doing the lead in the first network show, a family show called "The Ruggles." The first one that ABC ever did. So, I'm the first for ABC who now of course is... Disney. I was doing that, I was also doing my own show, for channel 13 and I was doing radio stuff. So they would call me in when it was convenient for all of us to get together. I'm sitting there and I'm hearing people whispering behind me. I was ready to fight! You can't say this about Marc Davis. I'm siting there and there are people leaning up against the wall and I hear a door open and close because I'm listening to all this, I hear this voice say behind me, "Oh, hey, Walt, take my chair." You couldn't miss his voice and he said, "No, I'm fine, you were here first." I'm thinking the head of the studio?! The other studios I did they would have ribbons on chairs all set aside. The rest of the row we couldn't get into. Suddenly up on the screen, the lights went down and there she was. It was a pencil test, where if you looked at her, you could see she was in the hat of Peter Pan, he has caught her in the nursery and he was going to take the pixie dust that she had and sprinkle all the children so that they could fly. She is upset, she is grumpy, and that was the picture that he drew for me by the way. I cried and kept thinking that's me up there. He caught me on everything I did with her. It was a tiny little scene but it was the first one, and I could hear murmurings. I went and got a Kleenex out of my purse and my mascara was all over it. I waved to Marc as he was surrounded by people and I went out the door to clean up the mascara. I went home and thought she is so adorable.
Me: Where were you when you heard the news Walt Disney had passed away?
Margaret: I don't remember. I think so little of people passing away. I am the personality, I loved what Forest Gump said... "mama always said that death is part of life. I wish it wasn't." Again I was doing fourteen other things, they had gone way past Peter Pan, and all the other things I had done. Of course my heart was there, I never really got connected to Disneyland. I was much more connected to the studio, they would call me over when they were planning this, I would pose for them and do acting and tell them what I thought about this, that or the other.
Me: What do you think of the other Tinker Bell movies?
Margaret: They explained to me what they were doing. Did you know they were making two movies at the same time? That was amazing to me. I didn't like the first one every much because they took all of her curves away because it was a prequel. She looked more like a mermaid almost. The next one they did just fine. They told me the story, they were not satisfied with the story. They called me in and they told me this wonderful story about a tree in Neverland. I thought it was delightful. I was not involved, then they called me and said they wanted me to see what they've done with the clips and hear the voice of Tinker Bell. I'm listening to it and I'm thinking no, no, no, no, no. This is an older woman's voice. I really don't remember who it was. The voice itself was not right. I thought they would have to rerecord. She sounded like queen of the fairies. Everyone of those seven movies teaches a lesson. It's very, very subtle, but terrific. I never thought about Tinker Bell in a room, I never thought about her going to work 9 to 5, and I never thought about her having a supervisor. But you know what? Why not? Maybe that's where she came from.
Me: Do you have a favorite one?
Margaret: Yes, the one where she finds her sister. The reason for that is I was adopted, I found my family after 50 years, so that really touched me. I thought they were very well done.
Me: So, what made you write a book about being Tinker Bell?
Margaret: Well, I'm quirky, and I've been blessed with a story. I wrote it to entertain, believe it or not.
Me: So, I always thought that Marilyn Monroe was the inspiration for Tinker Bell. What do you think of that? That must get on your nerves when people bring it up.
Margaret: It makes sense because she did so many movies later on. She was fabulous. She was under contract from Fox at the time they were just getting used to the idea they had a new sensational star. They were not going to loan her out to Disney every once in a while to do live action.
Me: Did you ever meet Marilyn?
Margaret: I worked with Marilyn, we've got pictures snapshots of each other with my little brownie camera. I just thought she was the most beautiful thing that I've ever seen next to Elizabeth Taylor. They were as different as night and day but beautiful and so sweet and adorable.
Me: Margaret, thanks so much for being on the Phile. I wish you lots of luck and hope you'll come back soon.
Margaret: You're such a dear. Thanks for plugging my book. I'm so glad that you love Disney and I'm extra glad that you love Tinker Bell. That's important because she is an icon. Blessings all over you and your readers.
That about does it for this entry of the Phile. Thanks to Margaret Kerry for a great interview and thanks to everyone at Disney. The Phile will be next Sunday with musician Tom Griesgraber. Spread the word, not the turd. Don't let snakes and alligators bite you. Bye, love you, bye.
Not if it pleases me. No, you can't stop me, not if it pleases me. - Graham Parker
