Guest Author - Beth Green

Kansas City’s Fairy Princess has become a holiday icon.

The Fairy Princess originated in 1935 at Kline’s Department Store in downtown Kansas City. When Kline’s began their toy department, Toyland, they wanted something unique that would draw parents and their children to the store. The idea of the Fairy Princess was born. Children could visit Santa Claus at any store, but they could only visit the Fairy Princess at Kline’s.

For 25 cents, a child could sit on the lap of the Fairy Princess and whisper to her their Christmas wants and desires. The Fairy Princess had a gift for each child who visited her. These gifts would appear by ‘magic’, sliding down a chute or appearing behind doors, or inside decorated trunks.

One of my favorite holiday memories is visiting the Fairy Princess with my mom during the mid to late 1960’s. We would have a girls’ day, Christmas shopping at various downtown stores. We usually had lunch at one of the stores, and then finished up our day at Kline’s, with a visit to the beautiful Fairy Princess. Later in the season, my mom would take my brother and I to visit Santa Claus at the shopping mall. I liked seeing Santa, but I always looked forward to the visits to the beautiful princess even more.

Kline’s Department Store closed in the 1970, and the 35 year reign of the Fairy Princess ended as well. That is, until 1987, when the Kansas City Museum brought the Fairy Princess back to life. She would appear for several weekends prior to Christmas at the museum, listening to children’s Christmas wishes, and again magically giving a gift to each child who sat on her lap.

In 2006, the Zona Rosa shopping district in North Kansas City worked out an arrangement with the Kansas City Museum to bring the Fairy Princess back to her Kansas City retail roots. Now, for part of each holiday season, the white-gowned Fairy Princess can be seen reigning over shoppers and making children smile from her throne at Zona Rosa on weekends. For the remainder of the holiday season, she appears at Corinthian Hall at the Kansas City Museum, again only on weekends.

Zona Rosa hosts a public casting call to look for new Princesses. The museum then holds a “Slipper Camp” to train the new Princesses on how they need to act, and how to magically produce the gifts for the children who visit. The museum also hosts reunion parties for all former Fairy Princesses.

A weekend visit to Kansas City during holiday season should include a visit to the Fairy Princess, particularly for young girls. It will be a memory that will last a lifetime.