Long Live the Pumpkin Queen: Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas

Sally, the ragdoll girl from The Nightmare Before Christmas, describes her courtship and wedding ceremony with Jack Skellington, King of Halloween Town. When Jack tried to take over Christmas, Sally—foreseeing the disastrous outcome—first tried to stop him, then rescued him and Santa Claus and saved Christmas. She succeeded and won Jack’s love. She concludes: “I am now Sally Skellington. The Pumpkin Queen. And I’m certain I will never again be as happy as I am right now” (8-9).

Chapter 1 opens as Sally and Jack prepare to leave on their honeymoon. Although overjoyed to have finally married her true love, Jack, Sally is uneasy about her future role as Queen of Halloween Town. She feels as though she has awakened from a daydream to find herself the heroine of her own story, yet she is nothing like a fairy tale princess. She is just a ragdoll girl stitched together and stuffed with dead leaves by Doctor Finkelstein.

Jack asks her if she is ready to go. Sally wishes she’d had time to collect herbs from Doctor Finkelstein’s garden in case she needs to brew a potion while they’re away, but Jack assures her that people don’t need poison or sleeping potions in the other worlds.