‘Cinderella’ added to the National Film Registry

Disney’s “Cinderella” was chosen by the Library of Congress as one of America’s most influential motion pictures and will join over 700 films as part of the National Film Registry.

For the past 30 years, the Library of Congress has been adding 25 films a year to the registry because of their cultural, historic and aesthetic importance to the nation’s film heritage.

Cinderella is the 16th Disney film to be added to the list.

“The National Film Registry turns 30 this year and for those three decades, we have been recognizing, celebrating and preserving this distinctive medium,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said. “These cinematic treasures must be protected because they document our history, culture, hopes and dreams.”

Among this year’s selections are Alfred Hitchcock’s 1940 thriller “Rebecca”; film noir classics “Leave Her to Heaven” (1945) and “The Lady From Shanghai” (1947), which was directed by Orson Welles;  “Days of Wine and Roses,” Blake Edwards’ uncompromising commentary about alcoholism (1962); James L. Brooks’ 1987 treatise on the tumultuous world of television news, “Broadcast News” and Steven Spielberg’s groundbreaking 1993 tale about the rebirth of dinosaurs, “Jurassic Park.”

These films range from Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” and Paul Newman’s unforgettable “Hud” to the opulent musical “My Fair Lady” and the rocking sounds of “Monterey Pop.” Selection to the registry will help ensure that these films will be preserved for all time.

Though often told and repeated across all types of media, Disney’s 1950 “Cinderella” has become the definitive version of this classic story about a girl, a prince and a single glass slipper. Breathtaking animation fills every scene, including what was reportedly Walt Disney’s favorite of all Disney animation sequences: the fairy godmother transforming Cinderella’s “rags” into an exquisite gown and glass slippers

Here is the complete list of Disney films on the list and a brief description by the National Film Registry. They are ordered by year of release:

Steamboat Willie (1928) – Generally thought of as the film that introduced the world to Mickey Mouse, “Steamboat Willie” proved a huge success and established Walt Disney as a key player in the animation industry, setting a standard that would influence all other animation pioneers. Mickey’s character in the film is a nod to Buster Keaton’s recent film “Steamboat Bill, Jr.” 

The Three Little Pigs (1933) – Voted among the best cartoons of all time in a 1990s animators’ poll, “The Three Little Pigs” was one of a series of Silly Symphony shorts on which Walt Disney practiced and refined his art on the way to his first Technicolor masterpiece: “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” Wildly popular, this film pushed the envelope in “personality animation”— each of the three pigs had a different personality—and the title tune “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf” became a Depression-era anthem.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1933) – A virtual watercolor painting come to life, the details in the Disney animation never fail to amaze. The kind and beautiful Snow White charms every creature in the kingdom except one – her jealous stepmother, the Queen. When the Magic Mirror proclaims Snow White the fairest one of all, she must flee into the forest, where she befriends the lovable seven dwarfs. When the Queen tricks Snow White with an magic apple, only a kiss from her true love can save her.

The Old Mill (1937) – This cartoon, produced by the Walt Disney Company as one of its Silly Symphony entries, depicts a community of animals—mice, doves, bats, bluebirds and an expressive owl—battling a severe thunderstorm that nearly destroys their home in an abandoned windmill. Directed by Wilfred Jackson, the film acted as a testing ground for audience interest in longer form animation as well as for advanced technologies, including the first use of the multiplane camera, which added three-dimensional depth. It also featured more complex lighting and realistic depictions of animal behavior that would be perfected in “Snow White,” “Fantasia” and “Bambi.” The dazzling imagery was complemented by Leigh Harline’s compelling orchestral scoring inspired by a Strauss operetta. In “The 50 Greatest Cartoons Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals,” edited by historian Jerry Beck, Disney animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston recalled, “Our eyes popped when we saw all of The Old Mill’s magnificent innovations—things we had not even dreamed of and did not understand.” The film won an Academy Award for best animated short in 1937, and the studio won an Oscar for its revolutionary camera.

Pinocchio (1940) – Based on stories by 19th century Italian author Carlo Collodi, this animated Disney classic tells the tale of gentle woodcarver Geppetto (Christian Rub) who builds a marionette to be his substitute son. The puppet Pinocchio (Dick Jones) must earn the right to be made human by proving that he is brave, truthful, and unselfish. On his journey to becoming a real boy, Pinocchio encounters Jiminy (Cliff Edwards), a cricket assigned to be Pinocchio’s conscience, eventually mastering his lying and truancy, and selflessly risking his life to save Geppetto, proving himself worthy of becoming human. One of the film’s most lasting contributions is Edwards’ singing of Leigh Harline and Ned Washington’s “When You Wish Upon a Star,” a tune that would become the Disney anthem.

Fantasia (1940) – Disney studios’ most ambitious animated feature, “Fantasia” integrates famous works of classical music with imagery that ranges from dancing hippos to abstract geometrics as it endeavors to combine high art with mass culture. Among the combinations of sight and sound – some kitschy, others more elegant – are an abstract representation of J.S. Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D Minor”; a performance of Tchaikovsky’s “Nutcracker Suite” danced by flowers and fairies; and an irreverent treatment of Beethoven’s “Pastoral Symphony.” The film’s most famous segment, Paul Dukas’s “Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” stars Mickey Mouse (the last time Walt would voice his creation) as a goldbricking assistant undone by a magic hat. A commercial failure initially, the film’s popularity has grown steadily over the decades with subsequent re-releases and video sales.

Dumbo (1941) – Disney’s charming, trademark animation finds a perfect subject in this timeless tale of a little elephant with oversize ears who lacks a certain confidence until he learns — with the help of a friendly mouse — that his giant lobes enable him to fly. Disney’s fourth feature film gained immediate classic status thanks to its lovely drawing, original score (which would go on to win the Oscar that year) and enduring message of always believing in yourself.

Bambi (1942) – One of Walt Disney’s timeless classics (and his own personal favorite), this animated coming-of-age tale of a wide-eyed fawn’s life in the forest has enchanted generations since its debut nearly 70 years ago. Filled with iconic characters and moments, the film features beautiful images that were the result of extensive nature studies by Disney’s animators. Its realistic characters capture human and animal qualities in the time-honored tradition of folklore and fable, which enhance the movie’s resonating, emotional power. Treasured as one of film’s most heart-rending stories of parental love, “Bambi” also has come to be recognized for its eloquent message of nature conservation.

The Story of Menstruation (1946) – Sponsored by Kimberly-Clark, the makers of Kotex, this title was produced by the Walt Disney Company through its Educational and Industrial Film Division. Distributed free to schools and girls’ clubs with an accompanying pamphlet titled “Very Personally Yours,” the film used friendly Disney-style characters and gentle narration to “encourage a healthy, normal attitude” toward menstruation. Although a few such educational filmstrips were available before World War II, this version was seen as more progressive than previous offerings and, according to advertisements in “The Educational Screen,” it replaced superstitions with “scientific facts” and dispelled “embarrassment.” Some contemporary scholars, however, take issue with the approach. Sean Griffin of Southern Methodist University’s Division of Film and Media Arts and author of “Tinker Belles and Evil Queens: The Walt Disney Company from the Inside Out” suggests that Disney’s abstract representation of the body “‘bleaches’ the more ‘unsavory’ parts of the lesson, such as making the menstrual flow white instead of red.” According to Joan Jacobs Brumberg, author of “The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls,” approximately 93 million American women, mostly teenagers, viewed this film between 1946 through the late 1960s.

Cinderella (1950) – It would take the enchanted magic of Walt Disney and his extraordinary team to revitalize a story as old as Cinderella. Yet, in 1950, Disney and his animators did just that with this version of the classic tale. Sparkling songs, high-production value and bright voice performances have made this film a classic from its premiere. Though often told and repeated across all types of media, Disney’s lovely take has become the definitive version of this classic story about a girl, a prince and a single glass slipper. Breathtaking animation fills every scene, including what was reportedly Walt Disney’s favorite of all Disney animation sequences: the fairy godmother transforming Cinderella’s “rags” into an exquisite gown and glass slippers.

The Living Desert (1953) – The first feature-length entry in Disney’s “True Life Adventure” series, “The Living Desert” opens with a close-up glance of percolating desert geysers seemingly dancing to the appropriate musical accompaniment. Among the wildlife specimens depicted are the roadrunner, the chuckwalla, the skunk, the scorpion and the kangaroo-rat. The narration, by co-writer Winston Hibler, is often undercut by weak attempts at humor, but when Disney plays it straight, such as in the battle between a rattlesnake and a tarantula, the film is at its strongest. Much of the footage was photographed by N. Paul Kenworthy Jr. as part of his UCLA doctoral thesis. The film was originally released to theatres in a package that included the live-action short “Stormy” and the animated featurette “Ben and Me.”

Mary Poppins (1964) – Alleged to be Walt Disney’s personal favorite from all of his many classic films, “Mary Poppins” is based upon a book by P.L. Travers. With Travers’ original tale as a framework, screenwriters Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi, with the aid of songwriters the Sherman Brothers (Richard M. and Robert B.), fashioned an original movie musical about a most unusual nanny. Weaving together a witty script, an inventive visual style and a slate of classic songs (including “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Chim Chim Cher-ee”), “Mary Poppins” is a film that has enchanted generations. Equal parts innocent fun and savvy sophistication, the artistic and commercial success of the film solidified Disney’s knack for big-screen, non-cartoon storytelling and invention. With its seamless integration of animation and live action, the film prefigured thousands of later digital and CGI-aided effects. The cast, headed by Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, also includes Jane Darwell, Glynis Johns and Ed Wynn, “Mary Poppins” has remained a “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” achievement.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) – Described by Roger Ebert as “not only great entertainment but a breakthrough in craftsmanship,” “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” introduced a new sense of realism into the interactions between cartoons and live-action characters on screen. In this film noir comedy, set in a 1940s Hollywood where cartoon characters are real, private investigator Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) is hired to prove the innocence of the accused murderer and uncontrollably crazy ‘toon’ Roger Rabbit (voiced by Charles Fleischer), with memorable appearances by Roger’s voluptuous wife, Jessica Rabbit (voiced by Kathleen Turner) and the chillingly evil Judge Doom (Christopher Lloyd). The film evokes a love for the golden age of animation, represented through the construction of Roger Rabbit himself, who embodies Disney’s high-quality animation, Warner Bros.’ character design and Tex Avery’s sense of humor. Executive producer Steven Spielberg worked tirelessly to negotiate the use of over 140 beloved cartoon characters in the film, making this the first time Warner Bros. and Disney characters shared the screen and the last time Mel Blanc voiced Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck before his death in 1989.

Beauty and the Beast (1991) – Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” is an animated, musical retelling of the fairy tale by Jeanne-Marie Leprince du Beaumont. The film follows Belle (voiced by Paige O’Hara), an intelligent and rebellious young French woman, who is forced to live with a hideous monster, the Beast (voiced by Robby Benson), after offering to take her father’s place as the Beast’s prisoner. Unaware that the Beast is actually an enchanted prince, Belle falls in love with him. “Beauty and the Beast” was the first animated film nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Picture category. Alan Menken won an Oscar for his original score, and he and lyricist Howard Ashman (posthumously) earned Oscars for the film’s theme song “Beauty and the Beast.”

The Lion King (1994) – Disney Studios further solidified its position as the producer of modern-day animated masterpieces with this lyrical 1994 offering. The story of a young lion cub destined to become King of the Jungle, but first exiled by his evil uncle, “The Lion King” was a triumph from the moment of its release and has charmed new generations of viewers. Like Disney’s beloved “Bambi,” “The Lion King” seamlessly blends innovative animation with excellent voice-actors (Jonathan Taylor Thomas, James Earl Jones, Moira Kelly, Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick and Whoopi Goldberg) and catchy, now-classic songs by Sir Elton John and Tim Rice. It is the film’s storytelling that resonates—funny, innovative, suspenseful—for both children and adults. Since its release, the film has spawned an animated TV series, two made-for-video sequels and a highly imaginative Broadway show.

Toy Story (1995) – This film changed animation’s face and delivery system as the first full-length animated feature to be created entirely by artists using hi-tech tools known today simply as CGI, for computer-generated imagery. Young Andy’s current toys – including his longtime favorite, the loveable cowboy Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) – have to learn to live with his new and improved playmate, galactic superhero Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Tim Allen). Director John Lasseter opens up the magical and hilarious secret world of toys in Pixar Studios’ first feature, which would go on to give birth to several theatrical and home video spinoffs.