# Tami Erin
**Tami Erin** (born Tami Erin Klicman, 1974) is an American actress and former child model best known for playing the title role in *The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking* (1988), a role she won at age 11 from a search that drew nearly 8,000 girls.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-21-ca-10482-story.html) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tami-erin)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name / birth | Tami Erin Klicman, born 1974 in Wheaton, Illinois[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tami-erin) |
| Signature role | Pippi Longstocking in *The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking* (Columbia Pictures, released 29 July 1988)[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography) |
| Casting | Chosen from nearly 8,000 girls from the United States, London, and Toronto after a six-month search; she was an 11-year-old sixth-grader from Pembroke Pines, Florida, with no professional training[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-21-ca-10482-story.html) • [4](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/02/25/Pippi-is-a-pip/3803509691600/) |
| UNICEF | Named a spokesperson for the United Nations Children's Fund in connection with the film[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography) |
| Critical reception | The film holds 17% among critics and 68% among audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, her only listed film credit there[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tami-erin) |
| Later life | 2013 arrests and the release of *Tami Erin The SEX Tape*; now lives in Grand Lake, Oklahoma, and appears at fan conventions[5](https://as.com/tikitakas/famosos/la-nueva-vida-de-tami-erin-de-interpretar-a-pippi-calzaslargas-a-actriz-de-cine-para-adultos-n/) |
## The Pippi casting
Producer Gary Mehlman had obtained the rights to make the first United States production of [Pippi Longstocking](https://www.edgepedia.org/pippi-longstocking) from the Swedish author [Astrid Lindgren](https://www.edgepedia.org/astrid-lindgren) and Svensk Filmindustri, and pre-production on the film was announced in October 1985 with a worldwide search for the girl to play Pippi.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography) Mehlman and fellow producer Walter Moshay, assisted by writer-director Ken Annakin and casting director Garrison True, spent six months on the search.[4](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/02/25/Pippi-is-a-pip/3803509691600/)
In February 1986 the choice was announced: Tami Erin Klicman, an 11-year-old sixth-grader from [Pembroke Pines, Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/pembroke-pines-florida), picked from among nearly 8,000 girls from the United States, London, and Toronto.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-21-ca-10482-story.html) She had red hair, green eyes, and freckles, and had performed in school plays and commercials but had no professional training.[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-21-ca-10482-story.html) Annakin described her in terms that became the standard account of the casting: "I've never seen anyone who radiates sunshine like she does. Her eyes sparkle, and when she smiles, everybody feels happy."[1](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-21-ca-10482-story.html) A United Press International report added that she was 4-foot-9, weighed 79 pounds, and, in the reporter's view, looked a great deal like the illustrations of Pippi in Lindgren's books.[4](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/02/25/Pippi-is-a-pip/3803509691600/)
[The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter)'s item of 20 February 1986 also reported that the newly cast Pippi would serve as a spokesperson for UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography)
## The film and its reception
*The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking* was shot in northern Florida, principally in Jacksonville and in Fernandina Beach on [Amelia Island](https://www.edgepedia.org/amelia-island), and was released by [Columbia Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/columbia-pictures) on 29 July 1988 with a G rating and a running time of 100 minutes.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography) Annakin wrote and directed; the adult cast included [Eileen Brennan](https://www.edgepedia.org/eileen-brennan), Dennis Dugan, John Schuck, and Dick Van Patten.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography) The film adapts the character from Lindgren's books, an Americanized treatment of the Swedish stories.[6](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/summer-of-88-the-new-adventures-of-pipi-longstocking/)
Reception was mixed to negative. The film's Rotten Tomatoes scores have settled at 17% among critics against 68% among audiences.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tami-erin) Contemporary and later reviewers criticized the screenplay and staging while often singling out Brennan's performance for praise; one retrospective critic wrote that Erin "seems to embody the relentless good nature, physical agility and spunk necessary for the role" while questioning the film's plot and soundtrack.[7](https://cinequiz.com.br/en/movies/the-new-adventures-of-pippi-longstocking-fantasy-1988) A 1988 review in The Herald judged that Erin's subsequent movie career was not extensive.[8](https://eightiesmovies.wordpress.com/tag/tami-erin/) The film took in roughly $200,000 per day in its first days of wide release on a thousand prints, but advertising support was withdrawn within a week, and in 1992 the film's executive producer filed a $5 million lawsuit claiming the release had been sabotaged.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography)
## Other work
Before acting, Erin had been one of Elite Chicago's top child models, booking national and international campaigns.[9](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0259433/) In 1988 she appeared in the television series *Aaron's Way* as the 11-year-old daughter of Aaron Miller, played by [Merlin Olsen](https://www.edgepedia.org/merlin-olsen), in a story about a [Pennsylvania Dutch](https://www.edgepedia.org/pennsylvania-dutch) farm family that moves to California.[10](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-07-10-hl-9170-story.html) Her later screen credits are sparse; IMDb lists a role in the 2010 film *Disconnect* and appearances in smaller productions, along with credits as a casting director and producer.[9](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0259433/)
## Later life
Erin returned to public attention in 2013 under difficult circumstances. That year she was arrested after an altercation with a roommate and separately detained for driving under the influence, in which she attempted to flee and crashed into three cars.[5](https://as.com/tikitakas/famosos/la-nueva-vida-de-tami-erin-de-interpretar-a-pippi-calzaslargas-a-actriz-de-cine-para-adultos-n/) Also in 2013, an intimate video involving her leaked; unable to stop its spread, she edited it and sold it to an adult film company under the title *Tami Erin The SEX Tape*, in order to prevent an ex-partner from profiting from it.[5](https://as.com/tikitakas/famosos/la-nueva-vida-de-tami-erin-de-interpretar-a-pippi-calzaslargas-a-actriz-de-cine-para-adultos-n/)
In recent years she has lived in Grand Lake, Oklahoma, and works the fan-convention circuit, appearing at comic conventions and collectibles shows where she meets audiences who remember the 1988 film.[5](https://as.com/tikitakas/famosos/la-nueva-vida-de-tami-erin-de-interpretar-a-pippi-calzaslargas-a-actriz-de-cine-para-adultos-n/) • [11](https://linktr.ee/TamiErin) Her own promotional materials describe her as a movie actress, producer, and UN ambassador, and she sells official merchandise tied to the Pippi film.[11](https://linktr.ee/TamiErin)
## References
1. [NEW PIPPI FOUND IN FLORIDA, Los Angeles Times (Associated Press), 21 February 1986](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-02-21-ca-10482-story.html)
2. [Tami Erin, Rotten Tomatoes celebrity page](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tami-erin)
3. [The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking (1988), AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/58982?cxt=filmography)
4. ['Pippi' is a pip, UPI Archives, 25 February 1986](https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/02/25/Pippi-is-a-pip/3803509691600/)
5. [La nueva vida de Tami Erin: de interpretar a Pippi Calzaslargas a actriz de cine para adultos, Diario AS (Tikitakas), 6 December 2024](https://as.com/tikitakas/famosos/la-nueva-vida-de-tami-erin-de-interpretar-a-pippi-calzaslargas-a-actriz-de-cine-para-adultos-n/)
6. [Summer of '88: The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking, Slant Magazine](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/summer-of-88-the-new-adventures-of-pipi-longstocking/)
7. [The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking (1988): cast, plot and reviews, Cinequiz](https://cinequiz.com.br/en/movies/the-new-adventures-of-pippi-longstocking-fantasy-1988)
8. [Tami Erin tag, What a Feeling! (The Herald review of 2 August 1988, republished)](https://eightiesmovies.wordpress.com/tag/tami-erin/)
9. [Tami Erin, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0259433/)
10. [Good Grief! That Girl Sounds Like Charlie Brown, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 1988](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-07-10-hl-9170-story.html)
11. [Tami Erin Official Linktree](https://linktr.ee/TamiErin)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Film people and crafts › Film actors and performers › Child and young film performers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license