The fairy tale Cinderella is sometimes known as The Little Glass Slipper.

The story may ultimately be based on the ancient Greek tale of Rhodopis, about a Greek slave girl who eventually marries the king of Egypt.

Since the original Greek version, around 1,500 notable adaptations of Cinderella have existed.

Interestingly, the iconic glass slipper didn’t appear until nearly the 18th century. Before that, her shoes were often made of fur or gold.

In the Brothers Grimm version, Cinderella takes a darker turn: her stepsisters lose their feet and even their eyes.

Before she became almost universally depicted as blonde, Cinderella was sometimes portrayed as a brunette or redhead.

The more classic version of the Cinderella story originates from 17th-century Italy, where she was known as Cenerentola.

When Walt Disney decided to adapt Cinderella into a feature film, it was partly an attempt to recover from financial losses. World War II and the loss of the European market had made films like Pinocchio, Bambi, and Fantasia box office disappointments.

Disney’s 1950 Cinderella movie wasn’t his first attempt at the story—he also created a Cinderella cartoon short in 1922.

Early versions of the script featured alternate names for the stepfamily. The stepmother was called Florimel de la Pochel, and the stepsisters were named Wanda and Javotte.

The Fairy Godmother, a now-iconic character, was actually invented by Disney. In earlier versions of the tale, it was often Cinderella’s deceased mother’s spirit who came to her aid.

Nearly 400 women auditioned for the role of Cinderella in the Disney film, with the part eventually going to Ilene Woods.

Cinderella became the second official Disney Princess, 13 years after Snow White.

To create the film, live performers often acted out scenes, which animators then used as references for the animation.

Lucille Bliss voiced Anastasia in Disney’s Cinderella and later became the voice of Smurfette in the Smurfs cartoon.

The scene where Cinderella’s ball gown appears was considered by Walt Disney to be one of his greatest achievements in animation.

Cinderella’s Castle is one of the most iconic landmarks at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. In contrast, the castle at Disneyland is modeled after Sleeping Beauty’s.

If glass slippers existed in real life, they would likely shatter quite easily.