Monday, December 1, 2008
Circus Queen and Tinker Bell
Did you know the first person to play the role of Tinker Bell in live performances at Disneyland was a 70-year-old Hungarian Jewish immigrant burlesque dancer?
Dangling from a harness attached to a wire at the top of the 146-foot Matterhorn, the 4-foot-10-inch woman slid 784 feet to Sleeping Beauty’s castle, where she initiated the park’s nightly fireworks display.
This remarkably agile woman was Tiny Kline, and her life story provides a fascinating window into U.S. popular culture during the 20th century,…
