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| “ | When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman and a ride home. | „ |
| ~ Ponyboy Curtis. |
Ponyboy Michael Curtis is the main protagonist of S.E. Hinton's epic 1967 book The Outsiders, its 1983 film adaptation and its 1990 TV series, as well as being a supporting character in the book That Was Then, This Is Now.
He was portrayed by C. Thomas Howell in the film and played Jim Halsey in the 1986 action film The Hitcher. Jay R. Ferguson played him in the TV series.
Biography[]
Ponyboy is a fourteen-year old Greaser who lives with his two older brothers, Sodapop and Darry on the lower-class east side of Tulsa, Oklahoma. His parents were killed in an automobile accident just eight months before The Outsiders story takes place. Ponyboy, like Sodapop, is under Darry's legal custody and must stay out of trouble in order to remain with him.
After leaving the movies, Ponyboy is jumped by a group of Socs (the rich kids) who try to kill him before driving off.
Ponyboy also makes an appearance in S.E. Hinton's other novel, That Was Then, This Is Now. When Tim and Curly Shepard's sister, Angela breaks up with Bryon and falls in love with Ponyboy, Bryon starts disliking him. However, Ponyboy ignores Angela, which leads to her recruiting a kid to attack him in revenge. However, Bryon's friend, Mark ends up taking a blow via being smashed on the head with a bottle. Ponyboy informs Bryon about the incident and they take Mark to a hospital. This leads to Bryon letting go of his hatred towards Ponyboy and realizing that he is a good kid.
Appearance[]
Ponyboy is the youngest of the Greaser gang. In the novel, Ponyboy has light-brown hair and greenish-gray eyes. He has a good build for his size and is a fast runner. At the beginning of the novel, Ponyboy's hair is long and squared in the back, but after his haircut in Windrixville, his hair is short and bleached blond. He is described as good-looking and resemblant of Sodapop by several characters, though he disagrees. In the film, Ponyboy's appearance is fairly similar to his novel appearance, with the exception of his hair, which is much darker than in the book.
Personality[]
Darry characterizes Ponyboy as lacking common sense, which Ponyboy agrees with. He is smart at school, but sometimes he just doesn't think properly. These occasions get Ponyboy into trouble that he could avoid. This aspect of his character evolves throughout the story into maturity.
He is fairly quiet, and only opens up to a few people. He spends a lot of time alone. Cherry Valance describes Ponyboy as sweet and dreamy. He often lives in his own world of books, movies, and sunsets. He is more compassionate than some of the other greasers, pitting the socs several times in the novel and questioning the purpose of fighting between the two social classes. He is also willing to help others, as shown when he runs into the burning church to save the schoolchildren, or when he picks up broken glass bottle pieces off the ground so that a car doesn't get a flat tire.