In the stage production, Pulitzer is a nearly cartoonish money-grubbing villain worthy of, well, a Disney production. In the climax, he is humiliated when Jack, with the help of Katherine and the sons of several other major newspaper publishers uses one of Pulitzer's own printing presses to mass produce and distribute a paper to rally the entire city's working class against him. After finally being forced to come to a deal with the Newsies, Pulitzer offers Jack a job at The World as a cartoonist. Why the change of heart? Aside from his own daughter's feelings for Jack, Pulitzer has had the chance to see Jack's artwork, and clearly feels that Jack is quite talented. What could be better for the bottom line than keeping such talent under his employ where he can profit from it?
Fridge Horror:
Jack and Davey are two of the oldest of the Newsies at only 17. World War I is only 15 years away. Most of these boys may end up fighting and dying in the conflict.
When Katherine asks Jack about the Refuge in the stage production, he seems rather uncomfortable talking about it. We aren't given a definite answer as to how long he was there, but it seems that it was long enough for him to be strongly affected by it.
A bit meta, but it's assumed that Crutchie is sent to the Refuge because he's an orphan who can't make it on his own. But the truth is that in 1899, a kid like Crutchie would likely have been placed in some kind of institution regardless of his family situation or disability level, just because he is disabled. And that institution would probably have also housed criminals and the extremely mentally ill, which would actually make it worse than the Refuge is portrayed.
