Inside dirt regarding Tinkerbell

[PrincessAurora]

I know at Disneyland for the LONGEST time not only was Tink a woman but a senior citizen. Had been doing it for ages. At that distance, who can see the wrinkles?

 

[kathyg]

I guess I should have been more specific about what the CM told me. Tink is a "woman" and she lands on a bunch of matresses. Also got some inside dirt on what goes on behind the scenes. It was a riot......Good thing my kids are older. Don't want any images spoiled. As a matter of fact, they were discussing this "dirt" over breakfast one morning and I had to hush them because there were little ones sitting at the table next to us. I, myself, prefer to believe in the magic!

 

[PoohFanKC]

kathyg

Do tell!

 

[kathyg]

Wouldn't want to spoil anyone's magic

 

[Jasminesmommy]

I am new to the Disney info. I never knew there was a flying tinkerbell with the fireworks. Where is the best place to sit to see this flying lighting bug????

 

[tink2dw]

on the right in front of the carnation restaurant between main street and tomorrowland as soon as you hear the notes of music look up over head to see the flight of Tinkerbell!!

 

[TreeOfLife]

R O F L M A O

Oh gawd, this has to be the most neurotic thread ever

...Poor Tink

 

[dbond]

We were told on our Keys tour that the WDW Tinks are all female. The Tinker "Bill" thing is from way back. When they first started doing this in DL many, many years ago, women were not considered capable of such a feat so they had small stunt men from the business in LA doing the stunt. Women have come a long way, go girl!, and it is not necessary to substitute a man for the role these days. There are plenty of capable, willing, strong, gymnasticly skilled women to fulfill the job.

 

[erikthewise]

Let me clear up the confusion about Tink being male. This is a common misconception. In truth, it is *Clarabelle* who is male. Tinkerbelle is his kid sister.

If you have to ask who Clarabelle is, well....

 

[DoeWDW]

We took the Keys to the Kingdom tour on July 9th. Our tour guide, Rae, stated emphatically that all the WDW Tinks are female.

 

[Safari Steve]

This is the third time I have heard someone giving out this "inside dirt" in the last week. The first two times this week I was in MK when a guest (both times a woman) loudly announced "Tinkerbell is a Man!"...
I understand that when you feel you are "in the know" you sometimes get the urge to share your "information", but please remember where you are and who might hear you. Not only is it none of your business to "share some dirt" in that manner, it is rude and mean and just plain wrong. Don't do it, and don't have an argument with a CM if they explain the true story.

Tinkerbell is a fairy.
When the first baby laughed the first laugh the laugh broke into a million pieces and they all went skipping about. That is where fairies come from.

*Edit* Just so you know, both offenders made their faux pas in the middle of the day with no apparent provocation (other than, apparently, Tourrettes...)

 

[loriandmatt]

OK, Steve - your edit just made me fall off my chair laughing.

looking forward to seeing you (and Tink, the ultimate fairy) in August.

- lori

 

[CarolA]

I don't care what sex Tink is, I would want A LOT more than $245 to do that for a living!

 

[angey77]

hmm, five minutes of work, five nights a week...it adds up to an annual salary of $63,700 at $245 per flight with FREE park admission? $71,500 with a $275 flight????
Where do I sign up?

 

[eclipseSD]

Let's spill the beans about the DL version first (from Hidden Mickey) The information is a little conflicting, but what the heck:

Disney has arielists, both male and female, playing Tinkerbell. Tinkerbell slides down the wire from the Matterhorn to behind the Village Haus restaurant. Tinkerbell is caught at the end of her zip line by two guys with mattresses. Cast Members enjoy watching Tinkerbell crash into an old bed mattress in the landing area, an elevated platform behind the Village Haus restaurant. Guests can also see this if they stand in the elevated exit area of the Casey Jr. attraction.

The wire that Tinkerbell slides down is a lightning rod ground to prevent the Matterhorn form being struck by lightning.

Tinkerbell flies across the park at dusk, lit by spotlights, suspended on a wire running between two buildings. The woman gymnast playing Tinkerbell is large (6'+), so the visitors can easily see her from the ground. The wire is sloped and the gymnast wears a harness attached to a wheel that rides the wire. She adopts her pose, pushes off onto the wire, and when she clears the building the follow spots come on, effectively blinding her as she soars across the park. The trouble is stopping her flight at the other end: the water tower is hollow and has a hinged door that opens, and inside are two people holding up bed mattresses. The spotlights go out just before she gets to the tower, and crouched down inside are two guys (my friend was one of them) holding up large soft mattresses... and in flies a very heavy, large gymnast with no night vision. The ensuing collision is massive, usually throwing all three of them to the floor in a heap.

A cast-member friend of mine and I were talking about Tinkerbell's flight during the Fantasy in the Sky show. Appearantly, if the CM playing Tinkerbell gets cold-feet about his/her flight (yes, guys have been cast as Tinkerbell during this flight) that CM is PUSHED out of the window. Obviously, he/she is already hooked to the cable at the time--the show must go on, I guess.

There are a few people that have reported that men and women have played the Tinker Bell role during the beginning of the firework ceremony...this is UNTRUE! Tinker Bell has always been played by a woman, and in fact, the same family! They were a family of acrobats, and the women are small in stature, and obviously big in impact as they slide down the wire! The role has been passed from mother to daughter since the park's inception. I don't think that it is likely to change! Also, starting this past summer, Tink got a new outfit that is illuminated not only by sequins, but also has twinkling lights on the dress and wings...!!

During the BELIEVE fireworks display at 9:30 - two Tinkerbells "fly" over the castle on wires. The first is a light up device made out of stripped plastic cups and lights, and is "flown" on a wire which is pulled around to keep "tink" from flying straight. The second Tinkerbell is a real person. This one is actually a 6 foot+ man with size 14 shoes! He wears a wig and plenty of makeup, and has to shave his body. I didn't believe it, until my fiancee and i stood under the wire on the backside of the castle between Peter Pan and Snow White. Then we laughed our heads off. Also, it's true that a mattress is propped up against the "landing pad".


I was at Disneyland in mid July. It has always been my dream to be the Tinkerbell in the fireworks show. I asked a cast member which lucky person the job went to. It was NOT a man. In fact, it was originally an older woman who passed it to her daughter, and then the daughter down to her own daughter. A man has never been Tinkerbell and it has always been the same family. Additionally, the cast member informed me that she gets 600$ a night to fly. This has since then been confirmed by a few of my friends who work there.


Watch Believe from the Carnation Garden Plaza. After Tinkerbell flies by she hits a matress on the water tower and climbs down. Sometimes she will exit the area new the Carnation Garden Plaza stage. She is wearing a brown turban and robe to cover her wig. She can also be seen near the giant parade gate at Toon Town. I think the location changes every few months.

The wig that Tinkerbell wears as she flew from the Matterhorn during the old fireworks show was actually a helmet. This helped protect him/her from the impact of the large padded wall (located behind the Village Haus in Fantasyland) that she would hit (hard) at the end of her "flight."

During a recent trip to Disneyland, my friends and I were talking to a Cast Member about the flying of Tinkerbell over the park at night. She informed us that Tinkerbell's costume is not actually green. The costume itself is blue. They shine a yellow spotlight on her to make it appear green.

Now WDW:

There is a long strand of cable extending from one of the top windows in Cinderella Castle to a restaurant over near the entrance of Tomorowland. In the summer months, this is the cable that Tinkerbell "flies" on to start the Fantasy in the Sky fireworks.

 

[jlambrig]

The other important truth to point out is that her name is Tinker Bell. Two words, not one.

My daughter is very correct about her favorite Disney character.

 

[tkme4ard]

eclipseSD I'm laughing my butt off! That was worse than any hoax email I have ever recieved! I wonder if snopes as the "real" story LOLOLOL

 

[cmwilson523]

Pick up the books "Mouse Tales: A Behind-the-Ears Look at Disneyland" and "More Mouse Tales" by Dave Koenig. Talk about LOL! The stories that are told both by and about CMs at Disneyland are absolutely hysterical.

And I think one of the books *does* have a story about Tinker Bell.

But all stories aside, Safari Steve is right: Tinker Bell is a fairy. Next thing, you will all try to convince me that there is some person walking around Walt Disney World inside a Mickey suit, even though I know that it is the real Mickey that I see when I visit him at his house.

 

[kathyg]

Amen to that!!!!!

 

[SoraHikari]

0_o whoa poor tink. ive actually been told for years its like a 75yr old woman and the only one that has ever done it. wow what a way to spoil the magic. cant we all just pretend its really her?!? ;_: