Kathryn Beaumont facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kathryn Beaumont
Beaumont in 1951, dressed as Alice from Alice in Wonderland
Born	(1938-06-27) 27 June 1938 (age 86) London, England
Education	University of Southern California
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1944–2005 2010 2023–present
Known for	Alice in Wonderland Peter Pan Alice's Wonderland Bakery
Spouse(s)	Allan Levine ​ (m. 1985)​
Awards	Disney Legend (1998)

Kathryn Beaumont is a British actress famous for bringing two beloved Disney characters to life. She is best known as the voice of Alice in the 1951 movie Alice in Wonderland. She also voiced Wendy Darling in the 1953 film Peter Pan. For her amazing work, she was named a Disney Legend in 1998. Kathryn Beaumont was born on June 27, 1938.

Early Life and First Steps in Acting

Kathryn Beaumont was born in London, England, on June 27, 1938. Her mother, Evelyn, was a professional dancer, and her father, Kenneth, was a singer.

Childhood During Wartime

Kathryn was a baby when World War II started. Because of the war, her mother and Kathryn moved to a safer area in Bangor, Wales. After the war ended in 1945, the family moved back to London.

Discovering a Talent for Acting

Kathryn's first acting experience was at school. She performed in a school play. Her teacher noticed her talent and told her mother about it. This was the start of Kathryn's acting journey.

A Career in Disney Magic

Kathryn Beaumont's first movie role was in It Happened One Sunday (1944). This led to interest from a big movie studio called Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Becoming Alice

Later, when Kathryn moved to Los Angeles, Walt Disney Pictures was looking for a young British actress. They wanted someone to play Alice in their new animated movie, Alice in Wonderland (1951). Kathryn auditioned three times and got the part!

While making the movie, Kathryn's mother and a tutor were with her on set. She worked four hours a day and studied for three hours. After the movie was finished, she went on a tour to promote it. She even appeared on screen with Walt Disney himself.

Flying as Wendy Darling

Walt Disney was so impressed with Kathryn that he chose her for another big role. She became the voice of Wendy Darling in the movie Peter Pan (1953).

Besides lending her voice, Kathryn also acted out the scenes for both Alice and Wendy. This helped the animators draw the characters more realistically. When she acted as Wendy, she was even lifted into the air to show how Wendy would fly! Kathryn admitted she had a fear of heights, but she bravely did it for the movie.

Later Roles and Honors

Kathryn Beaumont returned to voice Alice in the TV series House of Mouse (2001–2003). She also voiced both Alice and Wendy in the 2002 video game Kingdom Hearts.

In 1998, Kathryn received a special honor. She was given the Disney Legend award for her amazing voice work in Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan.

Kathryn retired from acting in 2005. However, she made a short return in 2010. She voiced Kairi's grandmother in the video game Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep. In 2023, she returned again as the original Alice in Alice's Wonderland Bakery.

Life After Disney

After finishing Peter Pan, Kathryn went to high school. She then attended the University of Southern California. She earned a degree in education.

After college, Kathryn became an elementary school teacher in Los Angeles. She taught for 36 years!

Kathryn has been married to Allan Levine since 1985. They do not have children.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video Games

Theme Parks

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Kathryn Beaumont para niños