'Cinderella' Turns 59

Cinderella was Walt Disney's 12th animated feature. It featured Ilene Woods who beat out 309 other girls for the role of Cinderella.

The animated feature received three Oscar nominations for Best Sound, Best Score, and Best Original Song for "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo".

The movie was released on February 15, 1950 and was a smash hit. The Disney studio was in debt (due to World War II and poor box office returns) when they made the movie that had a nearly $3,000,000 budget. Had Cinderella not been a success, the studio would have shut down and not have had the money to move onto all of the animated features of the 1950s. Walt also got some of his money for Disneyland's early development from the release of Cinderella.

Today, we celebrate Cinderella's success, beautiful animation, and timeless story. Without all of these things, Disneyland, the Disney company, and all of the animated features following Cinderella would not exist today.

Happy 59th birthday, Cinderella!