Nicholas "Nico"Llewelyn Davies (24 November 1903 – 14 October 1980) was the youngest of theLlewelyn Davies boys, who were the inspiration forJ. M. Barrie'sPeter Pan and theLost Boys. He was only a year old whenPeter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up hit the stage in 1904, and as such was not a primary inspiration for the characters of Peter and the Lost Boys. However he was eight years old when the novel adaptationPeter and Wendy was published, and in later editions of the play, the characterMichael Darling's middle name was changed to "Nicholas". He was the first cousin of the English writerDaphne du Maurier.
Nicholas Llewelyn Davies | |
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![]() Davies in 1922 | |
Born | (1903-11-24)24 November 1903 London, England |
Died | 14 October 1980(1980-10-14) (aged 76) Eythorne, Kent, England |
Occupation | Publisher |
Known for | Foster son ofJ. M. Barrie |
Spouse | Mary James |
Children | 1 |
Parents |
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Early life
editWhen Davies was born, Barrie was already a friend of his brothers and motherSylvia. Following the deaths of the boys' fatherArthur (1907) and mother (1910), Barrie became their guardian (along with their unclesGuy du Maurier and Crompton Llewelyn Davies, and their grandmother Emma du Maurier). Two of Davies's brothers died before he was an adult:George was killed in combat inWorld War I in 1915,Michael drowned with a close friend in 1921. Davies attendedEton College, and started atOxford University in 1922, but continued to spend holidays with Barrie.
Adult life
editIn 1926 he married Mary James, daughter ofWalter John James, 3rd Baron Northbourne,[1] and they had a daughter Laura, born in 1928. Barrie became godfather to Laura. In 1935 he joined his brother's publishing firm, Peter Davies Ltd. His brotherJack died in 1959, andPeter committed suicide in 1960. As the last surviving subject of the 1978BBCmini-seriesThe Lost Boys, he was a consultant to writerAndrew Birkin. He died on 14 October 1980 at his home inEythorne, Kent.
Portrayals
editInThe Lost Boys, he was portrayed at various ages byStephen Mathews,Jason Fathers,Matthew Ryan, andDavid Parfitt (later award-winning producer).
He was not included in the 2004 filmFinding Neverland based on the story of Barrie's relationship with the family and the writing of the play. It took the dramatic licence of placing the dates of Davies's father's death and his mother's illness much earlier relative to the writing of the play, leaving no practical place in its timeline for his birth.
References
edit- ^"Milestones: Feb. 22, 1926".Time. 22 February 1926.
- Birkin, Andrew:J. M. Barrie & the Lost Boys (Constable, 1979; revised edition, Yale University Press, 2003)
- Web site about the Davies family