The Grimm brothers Wilhelm and Jacob, known for their literary works in the nineteenth century, have their lives dramatized. Wilhelm fights to write something entertaining amongst the sea of dry, non-fiction books they write and he sets about collecting oral-tradition fairy tales to put into print. Their life story is countered with reenactments of three of their stories including "The Dancing Princess," "The Cobbler and the Elves" and "The Singing Bone."
Laurence Harvey
Wilhelm Grimm / Cobbler (segment "The Cobbler and the Elves")
Karlheinz Böhm
Jacob Grimm
Claire Bloom
Dorothea Grimm
Walter Slezak
Stossel
Barbara Eden
Greta Heinrich
Oskar Homolka
The Duke ('The Dream')
Arnold Stang
Rumpelstiltskin
Martita Hunt
Anna Richter
Betty Garde
Miss Bettenhausen
Bryan Russell
Friedrich Grimm
Ian Wolfe
Gruber
Tammy Marihugh
Pauline Grimm
Cheerio Meredith
Mrs. Von Dittersdorf
Walter Rilla
Priest
Yvette Mimieux
The Princess (segment "The Dancing Princess")
Russ Tamblyn
The Woodsman (segment "The Dancing Princess") / Tom Thumb
Jim Backus
The King (segment "The Dancing Princess")
Beulah Bondi
The Gypsy (segment "The Dancing Princess")
Clinton Sundberg
The Prime Minister / Hans (singing voice)
Walter Brooke
The Mayor (segment "The Cobbler and the Elves")
Sandra Bettin
The Ballerina (segment "The Cobbler and the Elves")
Robert Foulk
The Hunter (segment "The Cobbler and the Elves")
Terry-Thomas
Ludwig (segment "The Singing Bone")
Buddy Hackett
Hans (segment "The Singing Bone")
Otto Kruger
The King (segment "The Singing Bone")
Robert Crawford Jr.
The Shepherd (segment "The Singing Bone")
Sydney Smith
The Spokesman (segment "The Singing Bone")
Pamela Baird
Cinderella (uncredited)
Billy Barty
The Court Jester (segment "The Dancing Princess") (uncredited)