Thirty-One Days O’Horror: All Hail The (Evil) Queen!

“Mirror, Mirror On The Wall…”

In today’s Thirty-One Days O’Horror entry I decided to pay homage to the original bad girl, the first villain to ever grace the big screen in a feature-length Disney film: Snow White‘s Evil Queen. Scaring children and adults alike since 1937, the Evil Queen has appeared in multiple Disney productions, live and animated, over the years.

Originally voiced by Lucille La Verne, the character has since been voiced by at least six other women including June Foray (The Rocky And Bullwinkle Show) and Janet Waldo (Josie And The Pussycats). Live versions of the character have been portrayed by a number of actresses over the years including Jane Curtin (Coneheads) and Kathy Najimy (Hocus Pocus).

One of the more recent versions of the character was on Once Upon A Time, the ABC/Disney fantasy series that featured new twists on classic Disney versions of many of the company’s most popular characters and other fairy tale characters as well. Portrayed by Lana Parilla, this version of the character has come to be my favorite not only for Parilla’s wonderful acting skills, but also for her amazing beauty.

The original look and design of the character in 1937 is said to have been influenced by a number of women both real and from film. While there is no definite agreement on exactly which women truly influenced her, most agree that Helen Gahagan’s portrayal of Queen Ayesha from 1935’s She was the primary inspiration.

Since her first appearance in 1937, the Evil Queen has gone on to become one of Disney’s most feared and beloved villains. Rivaled only by Maleficent and Chernabog, the Evil Queen is one of the company’s most recognizable villains. She has appeared in stage plays, films, television, books, video games, board games, and more.

The Evil Queen has appeared in her queen and witch form as toys, on clothing, as statues, Funko Pops!, jewelry, and more. At the Disney theme parks, she appears in shows and is available for photographs as well. Have you ever met the queen at a park? Do you own any merchandise or collector’s items featuring the character? Is she your favorite Disney villain? Let me know in the comments!

Thank you for reading my post. Tomorrow I’ll be taking a look at an older Disney Channel film that caused a bit of controversy when it was initially released.