History of The Little Mermaid in Timeline

By Popular Timelines Editorial Team · Updated: March 27, 2025

Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid" tells the story of a young mermaid princess who longs for a human soul and life on land. She makes a deal with a sea witch, trading her voice for legs. The mermaid is warned that if she fails to win the prince's love, she will turn into sea foam. Despite her efforts and the prince's affection, he marries another woman. Heartbroken, the little mermaid refuses to kill the prince to save herself and instead sacrifices herself, dissolving into sea foam, but is given a chance to earn a soul through good deeds.

1909: Carl Jacobsen commissions the Little Mermaid statue

In 1909, Carl Jacobsen, son of the founder of Carlsberg, commissioned the Little Mermaid statue after being inspired by a ballet based on the fairy tale.

August 1913: Unveiling of The Little Mermaid statue

On August 23, 1913, the Little Mermaid statue, sculpted by Edward Eriksen, was unveiled in Copenhagen. His wife Eline Eriksen modeled for the body and Ellen Price modeled for the head and face.

January 1958: Premiere of Shirley Temple's Storybook on NBC

In January 1958, NBC premiered "Shirley Temple's Storybook", a children's anthology series hosted and narrated by Shirley Temple, featuring adaptations of fairy tales and family stories.

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December 1958: End of first season of Shirley Temple's Storybook

In December 1958, the first season of "Shirley Temple's Storybook", consisting of sixteen episodes, concluded its airing on NBC.

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January 1959: Shirley Temple's Storybook re-run on ABC

In January 1959, thirteen episodes from the first season of "Shirley Temple's Storybook" began re-airing on ABC.

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September 1960: Premiere of The Shirley Temple Show on NBC

In September 1960, the second season of the series began airing on NBC under the title "The Shirley Temple Show", maintaining a similar format to its original title.

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March 1961: The Little Mermaid adaptation airs on The Shirley Temple Show

On March 5, 1961, "The Little Mermaid" adaptation aired as episode 22 of "The Shirley Temple Show"'s second season, with Shirley Temple herself playing the mermaid in a modified version of the story.

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July 1961: End of The Shirley Temple Show

In July 1961, the second season of "The Shirley Temple Show" concluded its airing on NBC.

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1976: Release of the Russian feature film The Little Mermaid

In 1976, Vladimir Bychkov directed a Russian feature film adaptation of "The Little Mermaid", starring Viktoriya Novikova, set in the 13th century with a modified storyline where the mermaid's soul becomes eternal.

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1985: Ron Clements proposes The Little Mermaid adaptation to Disney

In 1985, Ron Clements, while working on "The Great Mouse Detective", proposed a film adaptation of "The Little Mermaid" to Disney CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg, who approved the idea for development.

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1986: Release of The Great Mouse Detective

In 1986, Ron Clements worked as a director on "The Great Mouse Detective", before proposing a film adaptation of "The Little Mermaid" to Disney CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg.

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1987: Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre airs The Little Mermaid

In 1987, Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre aired its adaptation of "The Little Mermaid", naming the character 'Pearl' and depicting her life with her father and sisters under the sea.

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1989: Release of Disney's The Little Mermaid

In 1989, Disney released the animated film The Little Mermaid.

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2000: Statue of The Little Mermaid created in Monaco

In 2000, Kristian Dahlgard created a statue of "The Little Mermaid" in Monaco, made with several layers of metal, in homage to the Danes living in Monaco and to mark the 50th year of Prince Rainier III's reign.

May 2010: The Little Mermaid statue moved to Shanghai

In May 2010, the Little Mermaid statue was moved from its Copenhagen harbor emplacement for the first time to Expo 2010 in Shanghai.

November 2010: The Little Mermaid statue returned to Copenhagen

In November 2010, specifically on November 20, the Little Mermaid statue was returned to its Copenhagen harbor emplacement after being displayed at Expo 2010 in Shanghai.