Cinderella Video

When Cinderella's cruel stepmother prevents her from attending the Royal Ball, she gets some unexpected help from the lovable mice Gus and Jaq, and from her Fairy Godmother.

Cinderella Photos

Cinderella

Once upon a time, a wealthy widower has a daughter named Cinderella. Feeling that she needs a mother figure in his life, he remarries to a woman who has two daughters of her own, whose names are Anastasia and Drizella. Unfortunately, Cinderella's father dies, and the orphaned girl starts to see another side of her stepmother and stepsisters, who are jealous of her beautiful looks and personality. She is turned into the château's scullery maid, and is forced by her stepmother and stepsisters to keep her late father's residence from falling into disrepair. Meanwhile, Anastasia and Drizella are pampered to the extreme.

Yet Cinderella has hope that she may one day find greater glory, revealing it as she awakens one morning to her mice and bird friends through song ("A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes"). After she gets ready, she discovers a mouse on the stairs, and like she has done to all the other mice in the château, she gives him clothes and a name - Gus. Gus is befriended by another mouse Jaques, who shows him around the strange place. As Cinderella readies the breakfasts for her stepmother and stepsisters, Gus encounters the stepmother's detestable cat Lucifer, whom he narrowly escapes from.

Meanwhile, the grandchild-craving King decides that he and the Grand Duke should throw a ball for all the eligible ladies in the kingdom so as to find Prince Charming a wife. As the stepsisters are having a singing lesson and Cinderella is singing (albeit far better) as she is cleaning the floor ("Sing Sweet Nightingale"), a messenger hands an invitation to the royal ball. Cinderella realises that she can go, and the stepmother says that she can if she gets all her work done and can find something suitable to wear. There is much emphasis on the "if" though, and a work-ridden Cinderella doesn't even have a chance to start smartening up her mother's wedding dress into a nice ball gown. The mice and the birds, however realise that they can get the dress ready for her ("The Work Song"), and Jaques and Gus help find some extra-trimming. However, this extra-trimming comes from some of Anastasia and Drizella's old clothes that were found lying about, and when Cinderella presents herself ready, the evil stepmother in a subtle yet powerful manner points this out to her daughters, who in anger, rip the trimming of Cinderella's new gown, leaving it in tatters.

Completely upset, Cinderella runs into the garden and cries upon a bench, feeling all hope is lost. Yet at that moment, Cinderella's fairy godmother appears, and with the wave of a magic wand, helps prepare Cinderella for the ball ("Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo"). A pumpkin becomes a coach, four of the mice become horses, an old horse becomes the coachman and the old dog Bruno becomes a footman. Last but not least, Cinderella's rags turn into a beautiful gown, complete with magical glass slippers. The fairy does warn Cinderella, however, that this magic will end at the stroke of midnight, so she must leave the ball before then. Cinderella doesn't care, though, and sets off for the palace.

Prince Charming is having trouble finding the right maiden, much to the King's annoyance. Yet when Cinderella arrives, he becomes interested, and the two start to dance. The stepmother, believing that she recognises the mysterious princess from somewhere, tries to spy on them, yet is quickly thwarted by the Grand Duke. Cinderella and the prince spend the whole time together, and fall in love ("So This is Love") All of a sudden, the clock starts to chime that it is midnight, and Cinderella hastily runs away, dropping a glass slipper as she does so. Cinderella escapes, with nothing from the night left, except from the other glass slipper, which had not changed back.

Prince Charming orders his love to be found by means of the odd shoe, and the Grand Duke is sent around the land getting every girl in the land to try on the glass slipper to see if it fits. Eventually the Grand Duke reaches the residence of Cinderella, but she is nowhere to be seen; the stepmother, eventually realising that it was her stepdaughter who was the mysterious princess at the ball, locks Cinderella in her room. As Anastasia and Drizella frantically try to get the glass slipper to fit so as to wed into royalty, Gus and Jaques steal the key from the stepmother and get it to Cinderella's door. But Lucifer pins poor Gus, who has the key, under his bowl, and hope seems lost again. The other mice and birds battle Lucifer, yet it is Cinderella's idea for the birds to get Bruno the dog, who hates Lucifer. Bruno barks at Lucifer, who in fright jumps out of the window to his doom. Now Cinderella can get the key and escape her room.

The Grand Duke is about to leave as Cinderella finally appears. He orders the messenger to bring forth the glass slipper, yet the stepmother in a last minute attempt to prevent her stepdaughter from better things, causes the messenger to trip, thus breaking the fragile shoe into pieces. Yet the arrogant woman hadn't betted on Cinderella producing the other glass slipper, which fits onto Cinderella's foot perfectly. Very soon, wedding bells ring, and Cinderella marries her prince, and they live happily ever after.

Sleeping Beauty (video)

Sleeping Beauty Photos

Sleeping Beauty

A king and queen had no children, although they wanted one very much. Then one day while the queen was sitting in her bath, a crab crept out of the water onto the ground and said, "Your wish will soon be fulfilled, and you will bring a daughter into the world." And that is what happened.

The king was so happy about the birth of the princess that he held a great celebration. He also invited the fairies who lived in his kingdom, but because he had only twelve golden plates, one had to be left out, for there were thirteen of them.

The fairies came to the celebration, and as it was ending they presented the child with gifts. The one promised her virtue, the second one gave beauty, and so on, each one offering something desirable and magnificent. The eleventh fairy had just presented her gift when the thirteenth fairy walked in. She was very angry that she had not been invited and cried out, "Because you did not invite me, I tell you that in her fifteenth year, your daughter will prick herself with a spindle and fall over dead."

The parents were horrified, but the twelfth fairy, who had not yet offered her wish, said, "It shall not be her death. She will only fall into a hundred-year sleep." The king, hoping to rescue his dear child, issued an order that all spindles in the entire kingdom should be destroyed.

The princess grew and became a miracle of beauty. One day, when she had just reached her fifteenth year, the king and queen went away, leaving her all alone in the castle. She walked from room to room, following her heart's desire. Finally she came to an old tower. A narrow stairway led up to it. Being curious, she climbed up until she came to a small door. There was a small yellow key in the door. She turned it, and the door sprang open. She found herself in a small room where an old woman sat spinning flax. She was attracted to the old woman, and joked with her, and said that she too would like to try her hand at spinning. She picked up the spindle, but no sooner did she touch it, than she pricked herself with it and then fell down into a deep sleep.

At that same moment the king and his attendants returned, and everyone began to fall asleep: the horses in the stalls, the pigeons on the roof, the dogs in the courtyard, the flies on the walls. Even the fire on the hearth flickered, stopped moving, and fell asleep. The roast stopped sizzling. The cook let go of the kitchen boy, whose hair he was about to pull. The maid dropped the chicken that she was plucking. They all slept. And a thorn hedge grew up around the entire castle, growing higher and higher, until nothing at all could be seen of it.

Princes, who had heard about the beautiful Brier-Rose, came and tried to free her, but they could not penetrate the hedge. It was as if the thorns were firmly attached to hands. The princes became stuck in them, and they died miserably. And thus it continued for many long years.

Then one day a prince was traveling through the land. An old man told him about the belief that there was a castle behind the thorn hedge, with a wonderfully beautiful princess asleep inside with all of her attendants. His grandfather had told him that many princes had tried to penetrate the hedge, but that they had gotten stuck in the thorns and had been pricked to death.

"I'm not afraid of that," said the prince. "I shall penetrate the hedge and free the beautiful Brier-Rose."

He went forth, but when he came to the thorn hedge, it turned into flowers. They separated, and he walked through, but after he passed, they turned back into thorns. He went into the castle. Horses and colorful hunting dogs were asleep in the courtyard. Pigeons, with their little heads stuck under they wings, were sitting on the roof. As he walked inside, the flies on the wall, the fire in the kitchen, the cook and the maid were all asleep. He walked further. All the attendants were asleep; and still further, the king and the queen. It was so quiet that he could hear his own breath.

Finally he came to the old tower where Brier-Rose was lying asleep. The prince was so amazed at her beauty that he bent over and kissed her. At that moment she awoke, and with her the king and the queen, and all the attendants, and the horses and the dogs, and the pigeons on the roof, and the flies on the walls. The fire stood up and flickered, and then finished cooking the food. The roast sizzled away. The cook boxed the kitchen boy's ears. And the maid finished plucking the chicken. Then the prince and Brier-Rose got married, and they lived long and happily until they died.

The Wise Little Hen (video)

The very first cartoon with Donald Duck! 

The Wise Little Hen is a Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies cartoon, based on the fairy tale The Little Red Hen. This cartoon marked the debut of Donald Duck. Donald and his friend Peter Pig try to avoid work until Mrs. Hen teaches them the value of labor. This cartoon was released on June 9, 1934. 

The Little Red Hen

One day as the Little Red Hen was scratching in a field, she found a grain of wheat.

"This wheat should be planted," she said. "Who will plant this grain of wheat?"

"Not I," said the Duck.

"Not I," said the Cat.

"Not I," said the Dog.

"Then I will," said the Little Red Hen. And she did.

Soon the wheat grew to be tall and yellow.

"The wheat is ripe," said the Little Red Hen. "Who will cut the wheat?"

"Not I," said the Duck.

"Not I," said the Cat.

"Not I," said the Dog.

"Then I will," said the Little Red Hen. And she did.

When the wheat was cut, the Little Red Hen said, "Who will thresh the wheat?"

"Not I," said the Duck.

"Not I," said the Cat.

"Not I," said the Dog.

"Then I will," said the Little Red Hen. And she did.

When the wheat was threshed, the Little Red Hen said, "Who will take this wheat to the mill?"

"Not I," said the Duck.

"Not I," said the Cat.

"Not I," said the Dog.

"Then I will," said the Little Red Hen. And she did.

She took the wheat to the mill and had it ground into flour. Then she said, "Who will make this flour into bread?"

"Not I," said the Duck.

"Not I," said the Cat.

"Not I," said the Dog.

"Then I will," said the Little Red Hen. And she did.

She made and baked the bread. Then she said, "Who will eat this bread?"

"Oh! I will," said the Duck.

"And I will," said the Cat.

"And I will," said the Dog.

"No, No!" said the Little Red Hen. "I will do that." And she did.

Rapunzel (video)