''Cindy'' is a 1978
American musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
television movie
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...
, shot on
videotape
Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually Sound recording and reproduction, sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog signal, analog or Digital signal (signal processing), digital signal. V ...
and first broadcast on
the ABC television network, with an entirely
African-American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
cast. Directed by
William A. Graham, the film is an urbanized retelling of ''
Cinderella
"Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a Folklore, folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988. The protagonist is a you ...
''.
Plot
After
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
,
Cindy (Woodard) has moved from the
south
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
to live in
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...
with her newly
blended family. She finds herself constantly abused by her stepmother and stepsisters. Her father (Mitchell) provides some comfort but cannot prevent the abuse entirely. One night, she meets
Captain Joe Prince (Davis) and is swept off her feet. A romance soon ensues.
Cast
*
Charlayne Woodard
Charlaine "Charlayne" Woodard (born December 29, 1953) is an American playwright and actress. She is a two-time Obie Award winner as well as a Tony Award and Drama Desk nominee. She was a series regular on the hit FX TV series '' Pose''. She pl ...
as
Cindy
*
Cleavant Derricks as Michael Simpson
*
Mae Mercer as Sara Hayes
*
Nell Carter
Nell Carter (born Nell Ruth Hardy; September 13, 1948 – January 23, 2003) was an American actress and singer.
Carter began her career in 1970, singing in the theater, and later began work on television. She was best known for her role as Nell ...
as Olive
*
Alaina Reed Hall
Alaina Reed Hall (born Bernice Ruth Reed; November 10, 1946 – December 17, 2009) was an American actress and singer who portrayed Olivia Robinson, Gordon's younger sister, on the PBS children's television series ''Sesame Street'', and Rose Lee ...
as Venus
*
Scoey Mitchell as Cindy's Father
*
Clifton Davis
Clifton Duncan Davis (born October 4, 1945) is an American actor, singer, songwriter, minister, and author.
Davis wrote The Jackson 5's No. 2 hit "Never Can Say Goodbye" in 1971. He has numerous Broadway credits, including ''Hello, Dolly! (mus ...
as
Captain Joe Prince
*
W. Benson Terry as Miles Archer
Musical numbers
All songs are composed by
Stan Daniels, unless otherwise noted.
*"Jesus, Lover of My Soul" (
Charles Wesley
Charles Wesley (18 December 1707 – 29 March 1788) was an English Anglican cleric and a principal leader of the Methodist movement. Wesley was a prolific hymnwriter who wrote over 6,500 hymns during his lifetime. His works include "And Can It ...
)—Cindy and Cast
*"Sugar Hill Ball"—Olive, Venus, and Cindy
*"Your Feet's Too Big" (
Fred Fisher
Fred Fisher (born Alfred Breitenbach; September 30, 1875 – January 14, 1942) was a German-born American songwriter and Tin Pan Alley music publisher.
Biography
Fisher was born in Cologne, Germany. His parents were Max and Theodora Breitenbach ...
, Ada Benson)—
Fats Waller
Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star ...
*"Men's Room Attendant"—Cindy's Father and Male Chorus
*"When It Happens"—Joe, Cindy, Olive, Venus, and Sara
*"Love Is the Magic"—Cindy
Awards and nominations
See also
* ''
Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella'' (1997), ABC's remake of the
1957 musical version of the fairy tale starring
Brandy
Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured ...
and
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...
as Cinderella and her
fairy godmother respectively
* ''
The Wiz
''The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz"'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls (and others) and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' ...
'' (1978), a version of ''
The Wizard of Oz
''The Wizard of Oz'' is a 1939 American Musical film, musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Based on the 1900 novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' by L. Frank Baum, it was primarily directed by Victor Fleming, who left pro ...
'' with an
all-Black cast
External links
*
*
Films based on Charles Perrault's Cinderella
Films based on Cinderella
1978 television films
1978 films
American Broadcasting Company original films
Films directed by William Graham (director)
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