Peter Pan

Literary History

Peter Pan was first seen in 1902 in the novel written for adults called The Little White Bird. He would be much more famous after the play Peter Pan in 1904. There are many different versions of this iconic character from the Disney version to the most recent and much darker Zenescope Entertainment version. Later, in 1911 a novel called Peter Pan and Wendy would expand on his story.

Due to a complicated set of copyright laws the status of Peter Pan is different depending on the publication and county that is is being produced. Mainly the works are in the public domain, except in the United Kingdom, where they are owned in perpetuity by Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital.

Character History

When Peter was a week old he overheard his parents talking about the plans for his future and growing up. Peter disliked the thought of growing up, so he ran away, or flies to Kensington Gardens, a park in London and eventually to a place called Neverland. Peter is immortal, eternally young, and has the ability to fly. His best friend is a fairy named Tinkerbell and he is the leader a gang called "The Lost Boys", who are other children who were lost in the Kensington Gardens.

Disney

Disney would revitalize the character in 1953 in the animated film Peter Pan. The film version of the play was based on the play rather than the original novel. The film like most Disney films based the story on the original works but softened up greatly to appeal to families.

Recently there were two more Disney films that produced. One as a sequel Return to Neverland in 2002, and the other as a prequel Tinkerbell in 2008. Disney also produced many comics with their version of the character.

Zenescope Entertainment

In the Grimm Universe of Zenescope Entertainment, Pan is a human named Jacob Wiles who became the ruler of Neverland after striking a deal with the Dark One. See the main article for more details.