Margaret Kerry led a very full life. When she passed away last week at the age of 97, she left behind a host of friends. Many of them came to her late in life, through her fleeting association with a mischievous, ageless pixie named Tinker Bell. While I number myself among those friends, I can also say I knew her before she was Margaret “Tinker Bell” Kerry.
In fact, my first encounter with this delightful person was in October of 1998. She was announced as a late addition to the Hollywood Collectors Show, a regularly scheduled autograph fan-fest held at the Beverly Garland Hotel in Toluca Lake, California. The listing stated that “Margaret Kerry-Willcox” was making her first appearance, and that she was the “voice of Disney’s Tinker Bell.”
I had been to the Hollywood Show several times (here is the Beverly Garland, with an inset photo of a meeting with Albert Hague, who wrote the songs for How the Grinch Stole Christmas). Disney performers were particularly attractive to me. And I was definitely intrigued to meet someone claiming to be the “voice” of Tinker Bell.
In her book, Tinker Bell Talks, Margaret describes the encounter pretty much as I recall it. What I did not know at the time was that she had been encouraged to call Ray Courts, the owner of the show, just the day before. Further, she was doubtful that anyone would remember or be particularly interested in the six months, on and off, she had worked for Walt Disney Productions some forty years earlier. But she was offered a table, advised to arrive early, and to bring along photos to sign.
That Saturday morning, I made a beeline for her table. Seated behind a single stack of photos (a reproduction of a full page from Look magazine) was a pleasant-looking middle-aged woman. I warily approached and asked, “You are Margaret Kerry-Willcox, the voice of Tinker Bell?” Her eyes twinkled, and she laughed. “No. I was the model. Tinker Bell didn’t talk!”
That broke the ice, and I discovered something that so many others had learned (and would learn) about Margaret through the years. She was interested in everybody and everything. She asked questions about what to expect that day. She asked about what kind of photos people might like. She asked about me and my life. I asked her if she would come and meet some more Disney fans at a club I attended in Orange County.
Here she is, a few months later, charming that group of fans in the clubhouse at the Del Prado Mobile Home Park in Garden Grove. She read excerpts from the original Peter Pan, talked about working with Disney director Gerry Geronimi, as well as animator Mark Davis, and how grateful she was to Walt Disney for giving her the job.
Not long after that, I persuaded her to make an appearance at Walt Disney’s Carolwood Barn in Griffith Park. Margaret had begun getting more calls and making more appearances, now as Margaret “Tinker Bell” Kerry-Wilcox. It was a new and interesting adventure, and unknown to her at the time, something that would become a full-time career late in her life.
You see, Margaret had been working since she was four years old, in 1933. At first glance, her life was anything but pixie-dusted. It would be many years before she would learn that she had been adopted after her mother died in childbirth. The parents who raised her and put her to work as an actress did not tell her she had four brothers. Her first marriage ended in divorce after thirty years. Her career as an actress and dancer had many bright spots, but just as many low points. In her middle age, she took office work at USC, discovered the rest of her missing family, and found love and marriage with husband number two, Jack Willcox. Then, in 1992, she began hosting a radio interview show on KKLA. While trying to commit actor Chuck McCann to an appearance in 1998, he told her to make a call to the Hollywood Collectors Show.
At a time in life when most professionals are settling into retirement, Margaret embarked on a new adventure. Since it revolved around Disney fans in Southern California (for the most part), we saw each other often. And she always reminded me of that first meeting on that first day she met the fans of Tinker Bell.
Margaret surprised me one day when she asked if I would escort her to a film premiere. I assumed we would simply see a film together. What I did not know was that she would be walking the red carpet for the Disney release of Return to Neverland. It was a pleasure to see her in her professional role, giving interviews and sharing her now well-polished stories of her work at the Disney Studio in 1952.
She also met up with voice actors Blayne Weaver (Peter Pan) and Corey Burton (Captain Hook). This was Blayne’s first performance as Peter Pan, and he has remained the official voice ever since. Corey Burton, of course, is well known for supplying many iconic Disney voices, not least the “Ghost Host” in all new Haunted Mansion projects.
Margaret also caught up with some of her former co-stars from the film. It was fun watching her interact with Peter Pan, Captain Hook, and Mr. Smee.
Most of my encounters during these years were at Walt’s barn in Griffith Park. As it was open to the public one Sunday a month in the afternoon, she became a frequent visitor. Eventually, she joined the official team of volunteers.
Here she is with author Steven M. Silverman, wearing her Carolwood volunteer shirt and badge. Among her tasks, she was an unofficial greeter, bringing a sprinkle of Disney magic to many visitors to Walt’s barn over the years. In turn. Margaret met a number of celebrities, Disney and otherwise, herself.
Disney Legend, Imagineer Bob Gurr.
Author and popular culture historian Charles Phoenix.
Disney Legend, producer Don Hahn.
Disney fan favorite Terri Hardin.
Susan Olsen, who played Cindy Brady on The Brady Bunch.
Actor David Frankham, who played Sergeant Tibbs in 101 Dalmatians.
Margaret enjoyed keeping alive the memory of Walt Disney by sharing her experiences at the studio he founded, in one of his classic animated films.
In no time at all, it seemed, Margaret was in her 70s and busier than ever with appearances and signings. A good friend, Linda Swisher, stepped in to help keep her organized and as available as she wanted to be. When her second husband, Jack, passed away, she dried her tears and, a few years later, confided to friends that she was still “Looking for a honey.”
The most surprising and, dare I say, pixie-dusted encounter I had with Margaret was when my fiancée Jamie made the move to California. She was eager to meet my many Disney friends, and shortly after she arrived, I introduced her to Margaret. They were both inclined to instant networking, and in no time at all, they were deep in conversation. In the course of it, Jamie mentioned her father, James Barrett. Margaret remarked that her husband, Jack, had been in the Army with Jimmy Barrett. Jamie immediately recalled that every New Year’s Eve when she was growing up, her dad would call his old army buddy Jack Willcox, with the whole family joining in. And after several years, Jack’s new wife would chime in in the background. Could it be…?
It was. It turns out Margaret and Jamie had known each other for years, and Margaret was an old family friend. Granted, she was a once-a-year, voice-on-the-phone family friend, but that was good enough for them.
Because she had lived such an eventful life, Margaret was persuaded to write a memoir. This became the book Tinker Bell Talks (which was also the name of a podcast and website— Margaret kept up with the times). The production of the books became something of a saga in itself. Several of us are the proud possessors of a signed, numbered, limited edition “printer’s proof,” complete with typos and misplaced photos.
After the corrected book was published, there was to be a signing and appearance at Walt’s barn. Due to scheduling conflicts, the books had to be ordered and signed in advance. Here is Margaret inside the barn, most of the way through that mass signing.
Perhaps my most unexpected encounter with Margaret was when she was approaching her ninetieth year, as she announced her “retirement.” We were informed she would be cutting back on appearances and taking life easy, living with her son. But… man proposes, and God disposes (as the saying goes). One Sunday, Margaret showed up at the barn with a photo of her new fiancé, Robert Boeke. They had met 65 years earlier, and then gone on to lead their separate lives. His friends often teased him about his claims that he had once dated “Tinker Bell.” After his wife died, one of them found that Margaret was making an appearance on the East Coast, and challenged Robert to go and meet her.
It turned out that Margaret remembered Bob, and he definitely remembered her. At the ages of 90 and 94, respectively, they got engaged. Not long after, Margaret brought her “honey” to a “final” visit to Walt’s barn, before moving to the East Coast and marriage.
Bob and Margaret had a great day. They caught up with Disney Legends Bob Gurr and Floyd Norman, took a train ride, and posed with all the volunteers who had gathered that day to see her off. At the end of the day, as we walked out to the parking lot, Margaret asked if I would take one last photo for her. I pointed out that I had taken so many pictures with her, at which she laughed and said, “No, silly! I want you to take a photo of me and my car. I am really going to miss it!”
She explained that it had been her first new car in many years, and it had taken her on many adventures. So, of course, I took the photo.
Someone was also kind enough to take a photo of Margaret and me. And the car.
Of course, that would not be the last encounter. After a couple of years as newlyweds, Bob and Margaret made return visits to the West Coast. One of their stops was Walt’s barn on Easter Sunday in 2022.
Margaret greeted visitors, and Bob, a veteran of the Infantry, participated in the Flag Retreat Ceremony that closes each public day at the barn.
In the summer of 2025, there was a final visit, with a private birthday celebration the Saturday before public day. There were two cakes, one decorated in an army theme for Bob, and (of course) a Tinker Bell cake for Margaret.
While this is the last photo of my last encounter with Margaret Kerry (at Walt’s barn on Sunday, June 25, 2025), it is not the last photo from that day. Margaret was there just as a visitor, but, as always, she was interested in meeting everyone. No matter how young, no matter how small, Margaret Kerry had a little pixie dust to share.
In recalling my encounters with this pixie, there is one that will always make me smile. It was at an event tied to Disneyland’s 50th birthday, in 2005. There was a mass book signing, and Margaret was at the end of the table.
After greeting a series of legendary Disney figures (including Sam McKim, Bob Gurr, and Rolly Crump), guests could spend a moment with Margaret, who signed, as usual, “Tinker Bell, Margaret Kerry.” Then, as she finished up the conversation, she would add some dots and label them “Pixie Dust.” As she was finishing up mine, she let out a little cry, “Oh no!”
“What?” I asked.
“Look what I did!” After signing so many signatures that day, she had written “Tinker Dust, Margaret Kerry.” It was as she was beginning to add the Pixie Dust that she spotted her error.
“No problem,” I said. “Just add the label ‘Pixie Bell,’ and it will be our little secret. And besides, I will have the most unique signature anyone has ever gotten from you!”
Thank you, Margaret Kerry, for all the “Tinker Dusted” encounters over the years. I will always have fond memories of “Pixie Bell,” Tinker Bell, and you.
