Number 13 (film)
Encyclopedia
In 1922
Alfred Hitchcock
obtained his first shot at directing for Gainsborough Pictures
with the film Number 13 (or Mrs. Peabody).
The film was to star Clare Greet
and Ernest Thesiger
as husband and wife. Unfortunately, the film's budget fell apart, and it was pulled from production after only a handful of scenes
were shot.
was also lost. Although it is ultimately unclear what happened to the film, it is probable that Gainsborough melted it down for the small amount of silver nitrate
it contained.
However, some information about the film has survived. The story was about low-income residents of a building, financed by The Peabody Trust, founded by American banker-philanthropist George Foster Peabody
, to offer affordable housing to needy Londoners.
Number 13 was written by Anita Ross, a woman employed at the Islington
studio. She claimed to have a professional association with Charlie Chaplin
, according to Hitchcock, in his book-length interview with François Truffaut
, Hitchcock/Truffaut (Simon and Schuster, 1967).
1922 in film
-Events:* June 11 - United States première of Robert J. Flaherty's Nanook of the North, the first commercially successful feature length documentary film....
Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
obtained his first shot at directing for Gainsborough Pictures
Gainsborough Pictures
Gainsborough Pictures was a British film studio based on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, London. Gainsborough Studios were active between 1924 and 1951. Built as a power station for the Great Northern & City Railway it...
with the film Number 13 (or Mrs. Peabody).
The film was to star Clare Greet
Clare Greet
Clare Greet was an English film actress. She appeared in 26 films between 1921 and 1939, including six films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.She was born in England and died in London....
and Ernest Thesiger
Ernest Thesiger
Ernest Frederic Graham Thesiger CBE was an English stage and film actor. He is best known for his performance as Dr...
as husband and wife. Unfortunately, the film's budget fell apart, and it was pulled from production after only a handful of scenes
Scene (film)
In TV and movies, a scene is generally thought of as the action in a single location and continuous time. Due to the ability to edit recorded visual works, it is typically much shorter than a stage play scene....
were shot.
Production
After the film was pulled from production, the scriptScreenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
was also lost. Although it is ultimately unclear what happened to the film, it is probable that Gainsborough melted it down for the small amount of silver nitrate
Silver nitrate
Silver nitrate is an inorganic compound with chemical formula . This compound is a versatile precursor to many other silver compounds, such as those used in photography. It is far less sensitive to light than the halides...
it contained.
However, some information about the film has survived. The story was about low-income residents of a building, financed by The Peabody Trust, founded by American banker-philanthropist George Foster Peabody
George Foster Peabody
George Foster Peabody was a banker and philanthropist.-Early life:...
, to offer affordable housing to needy Londoners.
Number 13 was written by Anita Ross, a woman employed at the Islington
Islington
Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
studio. She claimed to have a professional association with Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
, according to Hitchcock, in his book-length interview with François Truffaut
François Truffaut
François Roland Truffaut was an influential film critic and filmmaker and one of the founders of the French New Wave. In a film career lasting over a quarter of a century, he remains an icon of the French film industry. He was also a screenwriter, producer, and actor working on over twenty-five...
, Hitchcock/Truffaut (Simon and Schuster, 1967).
Background and Production
- Hitchcock rarely or never spoke about his first directing project, until his biographer, Donald SpotoDonald SpotoDonald Spoto is an American celebrity biographer, Catholic theologian, and former monk. He is best known for his best-selling biographies of film and theatre celebrities such as Alfred Hitchcock, Laurence Olivier, Tennessee Williams, Ingrid Bergman, James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly,...
asked him about life in the early twenties, and his first films. - Hitchcock, on one occasion, spoke about the film, saying that it was a "somewhat chastening experience", no doubt referring to his directorial debut being shut down and running out of funds.
- Much like Hitchcock's later film, The Mountain EagleThe Mountain EagleThe Mountain Eagle is a British silent film, and Alfred Hitchcock's second as director following The Pleasure Garden.-Plot:The film is set in Kentucky. J. P. Pettigrew's wife died giving birth to his son Edward who was born a cripple. Pettigrew hates John Fulton who also loved Pettigrew's wife...
, any possibly existing footage of Number 13 has become widely sought after. Film historians and collectorsCollectingThe hobby of collecting includes seeking, locating, acquiring, organizing, cataloging, displaying, storing, and maintaining whatever items are of interest to the individual collector. Some collectors are generalists, accumulating merchandise, or stamps from all countries of the world...
have been looking for this film for decades and have no knowledge of what happened to it. - Clare GreetClare GreetClare Greet was an English film actress. She appeared in 26 films between 1921 and 1939, including six films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.She was born in England and died in London....
was obliged to help the production by financing it with her own money; before her, Alfred Hitchcock's uncle John Hitchcock had also provided funds. - Greet's generosity was something he never forgot, and she appeared in more Hitchcock films than any other performer (except for Leo G. CarrollLeo G. CarrollLeo Gratten Carroll was an English-born actor. He was best known for his roles in several Hitchcock films and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and Topper.-Early life:...
who also appeared in six Hitchcock films) -- The RingThe Ring (1927 film)The Ring is a British silent, black-and-white film directed and written by Alfred Hitchcock.-Production background:The story focused on a love triangle between two men and a woman, and is the only film in his career for which Hitchcock took or was given a full writing credit...
(1927), The ManxmanThe ManxmanThe Manxman is a silent film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Based on an 1896 romantic novel The Manxman by Hall Caine, the director began work on the film just two weeks after the birth of his daughter, Patricia Hitchcock...
(1929), Murder!Murder!Murder! is a 1930 British drama film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Herbert Marshall, Norah Baring and Edward Chapman. It is based on a novel and play called Enter Sir John by Clemence Dane and Helen Simpson...
(1930), The Man Who Knew Too MuchThe Man Who Knew Too Much (1934 film)The Man Who Knew Too Much is a British suspense film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, featuring Peter Lorre, and released by Gaumont British. It was one of the most successful and critically acclaimed films of Hitchcock's British period....
(1934), SabotageSabotage (film)Sabotage, also released as The Woman Alone, is a 1936 British thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It is based on Joseph Conrad's novel The Secret Agent...
(1936), and Jamaica InnJamaica Inn (film)Jamaica Inn is a 1939 film made by Alfred Hitchcock adapted from Daphne du Maurier's 1936 novel of the same name, the first of three of du Maurier's works that Hitchcock adapted ....
(1939).