''Ella Cinders'' is a 1926 American silent

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by Alfred E. Green, starring Colleen Moore, produced by her husband John McCormick, and featuring Moore's recurring co-star (five films in three years), Lloyd Hughes. The film is based on the syndicated comic strip of the same name by

William M. Conselman William Marien Conselman (July 10, 1896 – May 25, 1940) was an American screenwriter who also wrote newspaper comic strips under his Bill Conselman byline and sometimes under the pseudonym Frank Smiley. Biography Born in Brooklyn, New York, ...

and Charles Plumb, which in turn was based upon the millennia-old folk tale of

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

. In 2013, ''Ella Cinders'' was selected for preservation in the United States

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception ...

by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The film has entered the

public domain in the United States Works are in the public domain if they are not covered by intellectual property rights (such as copyright) at all, or if the intellectual property rights to the works have expired. All works first published or released in the United States b ...

Plot

In the house of late father in the town of Roseville, Ella Cinders works for her shrewish stepmother Ma and two stepsisters, Prissy Pill and Lotta Pill, who are beloved in the town but abusive toward Ella. She finds support from the local iceman, Waite Lifter. The Gem Film Company has a contest in which the winner gets an all-expense-paid trip to Hollywood and a film role. Stealing an acting book from Lotta, she works on facial expressions. A photograph is needed to enter, so Ella spends three nights babysitting to raise $3 for the photo session. The photographer unwittingly takes a picture of her looking cross-eyed at a fly on her nose which turns out to be the photo entered in the contest. Entrants must go to a Town Hall ball, but Ella's stepmother and stepsisters won't allow her to go. Waite sees her crying on the front steps and tells her he will take her to the ball. She says she has nothing to wear, so he convinces her to use one of her stepsisters' dresses. At the judges' table, her stepsisters react violently when they see the dress. The embarrassed Ella flees the ball, losing one of her slippers. She heads for an employment agency hoping for a new start, only to be placed right back with Ma, who vows to punish her severely. Later, the judges come to the house and tell Ella that she is the winner because they were amused by the cross-eyed photo and were looking at someone capable of comedy (much to Ella's disappointment at first, and Ma's fury). Ella heads for Hollywood, where she is disappointed to discover the contest was a fraud. Fearing what would happen if she tried to return to Roseville, she decides to stay in Hollywood and break into the industry as an actress the hard way; after substantial rejection and failed attempts to literally break into a studio lot, she succeeds, landing a contract to play the lead role in a rags-to-riches story similar to her own life. Waite turns out to be football hero and wealthy heir George Waite, who runs to Hollywood, sweeps Ella off her feet on the set, and marries her. The two have a child and live happily ever after.

Cast

Production background

Portions of the film take place on the sets of a movie studio, and so many regulars at First National Studios appear in the film. The film's director, Alfred E. Green, appears in the film as the director of the film being shot as Ella runs through the studio.

Harry Langdon Harry Philmore Langdon (June 15, 1884 – December 22, 1944) was an American comedian who appeared in vaudeville, silent films (where he had his greatest fame), and talkies.Obituary ''Variety'', December 27, 1944, page 39. Life and career Bor ...

also makes a cameo in the film as a famous film comedian. The character of George Waite/Waite Lifter was a parody of real-life football star

Red Grange Harold Edward "Red" Grange (June 13, 1903 – January 28, 1991), nicknamed "the Galloping Ghost" and "the Wheaton Iceman", was an American football halfback for the University of Illinois, the Chicago Bears, and the short-lived New York Yankees ...

, who likewise played at the University of Illinois and worked as an iceman during the offseason. This was the last time that Moore and Hughes starred together in a film, having previously played the leads in '' The Huntress'' (1923), ''

Sally Sally may refer to: People *Sally (name), a list of notable people with the name Military * Sally (military), an attack by the defenders of a town or fortress under siege against a besieging force; see sally port *Sally, the Allied reporting na ...

'' (1925), '' The Desert Flower'' (1925) and ''

Irene Irene is a name derived from εἰρήνη (eirēnē), the Greek for "peace". Irene, and related names, may refer to: * Irene (given name) Places * Irene, Gauteng, South Africa * Irene, South Dakota, United States * Irene, Texas, United Stat ...

'' (1926).

Status and home media

Copies of ''Ella Cinders'' are preserved at the

UCLA Film and Television Archive The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the preservation, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Also a nonprofit exhibition venue, the ar ...

and the

. ''Ella Cinders'' is currently held in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired, ...

. It has since been released on DVD by Sunrise Silents, Reel Classic DVD, Reel Classic DVD, and Grapevine Video.''Ella Cinders'' DVD release info
at silentera.com

References

External links

* * * {{Cinderella 1926 films 1926 comedy-drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles Films based on Charles Perrault's Cinderella Films based on comic strips Films directed by Alfred E. Green First National Pictures films Films set in Los Angeles United States National Film Registry films Films about beauty pageants 1920s English-language films 1920s American films Silent American comedy-drama films English-language comedy-drama films