''When the Earth Trembled'' (1913) is an American silent

disaster film A disaster film or disaster movie is a film genre that has an impending or ongoing disaster as its subject and primary plot device. Such disasters may include natural disasters, accidents, military/ terrorist attacks or global catastrophes su ...

starring

Ethel Clayton Ethel Clayton (November 8, 1882 – June 6, 1966) was an American actress of the silent film era. Early years Born in Champaign, Illinois, Clayton attended St. Elizabeth's school in Chicago. Career Clayton debuted on stage as a professional ...

and

Harry Myers Harry C. Myers (September 5, 1882 – December 25, 1938) was an American film actor and director, sometimes credited as Henry Myers. He performed in many short comedy films with his wife Rosemary Theby. Myers appeared in 330 films between 1908 ...

. The film, a short feature, may be the first fiction film to depict the

1906 San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity s ...

. ''

Motion Picture Story Magazine ''Motion Picture'' was an American monthly fan magazine about film, published from 1911 to 1977.Fuller, Kathryn H. “Motion Picture Story Magazine and the Gendered Construction of the Movie Fan.” ''At the Picture Show: Small-Town Audiences ...

'' (September 1913) published a story version of the screenplay by Henry Albert Phillips.

Plot

Paul Girard Sr. is horrified to learn that his son, Paul Jr. has fallen in love with Dora Sims, the daughter of his business partner. Upon learning that his son and Dora have married Paul cuts his son off and breaks his business dealings with Sims. Paul Jr. goes to work with his father-in-law, but unbeknownst to him his father buys shares in the company intending to ruin the company at an opportune moment. Years later after learning that his father is about to sell the shares, Paul Jr. acquiesces to his wishes and temporarily departs from his wife and two children. Paul's boat is shipwrecked and he is presumed dead. A grief-stricken Paul Sr. puts off selling the shares. However, an earthquake hits the city killing Sims and destroying his business. Dora sets to work providing for her family but her daughter falls ill. Coming across a picture of his grandchildren, Paul Sr. is moved and asks his friend Pearce to hunt down the children and tell their mother he is willing to take care of them. Hearing the offer Dora is appalled and refuses, only to relent when she realizes how sick her daughter is. The children are taken to their grandfathers where they are spoiled with all the toys and clothes they could want. Overwhelmed Paul Sr. asks Pearce to recommend a governess for him. Pearce advises Dora to disguise herself, which she does, and she goes to work as a governess for her children where she is very well received. Meanwhile, Paul, who managed to survive the wreck of his ship, learns that no one has heard of his wife and children and they are presumed dead. Returning home he goes to see Pearce who brings him to his father. Seeing that her husband has returned Dora reveals her true identity and is welcomed into the family by Paul Sr. who has now had the opportunity to see what a wonderful mother she is.

Cast

as Paul Girard Jr. *

as Dora Sims * Richard Morris as Richard *Mrs. George W. Walters as Coffee Mary *Bartley McCullum as Paul Girard Sr. *Mary Powers as Dora's Little Girl *Layton Meisle as Dora's Little Boy *Peter Lang as John Pearce

Production

*Director O'Neil's insistence on being as realistic as possible nearly cost Clayton her life. The actress almost died in an accident in the earthquake scene, where a chandelier fell on her. *Four months, a then-unprecedented length of time, were required to recreate the disaster. *Lubin Studio reused some of its own 1906

newsreel A newsreel is a form of short documentary film, containing news stories and items of topical interest, that was prevalent between the 1910s and the mid 1970s. Typically presented in a cinema, newsreels were a source of current affairs, inform ...

footage of the quake aftermath. Most of the Lubin newsreel footage was destroyed in a later film vault fire.

Preservation status

This film was long thought to be a

lost film A lost film is a feature or short film that no longer exists in any studio archive, private collection, public archive or the U.S. Library of Congress. Conditions During most of the 20th century, U.S. copyright law required at least one copy ...

, with no prints known to exist. In 2015, the film was restored by

EYE Film Institute Netherlands Eye Filmmuseum is a film archive, museum, and cinema in Amsterdam that preserves and presents both Dutch and foreign films screened in the Netherlands. Location and history Eye Filmmuseum is located in the Overhoeks neighborhood of Amsterdam in ...

from three incomplete prints from the EYE Film Institute, the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

, and the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, ...

. The restored print was premiered on 28 March 2015 at EyeMuseum. On 29 May 2015, the

San Francisco Silent Film Festival The San Francisco Silent Film Festival is a film festival first held in 1996 and presented annually at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco, California, United States. It is the largest silent film festival in the United States, although the lar ...

presented the film at the

Castro Theatre The Castro Theatre is a historic movie palace in San Francisco that became San Francisco Historic Landmark #100 in September 1976. Located at 429 Castro Street in the Castro District, it was built in 1922 with a California Churrigueresque faç ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

.SF Silent Film Festival website
/ref>

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0003540
''When the Earth Trembled'' at BFI Database''When the Earth Trembles'' at Presidio Officers ClubEuropean lobby poster
court. EYE Filmmuseum, Desmet Collection) 1913 films Silent American drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Lubin Manufacturing Company films Films about the 1906 San Francisco earthquake Films set in San Francisco 1913 drama films 1910s rediscovered films American disaster films Rediscovered American films Films directed by Barry O'Neil 1910s American films 1910s English-language films