The Still Alarm
Encyclopedia
The Still Alarm is a melodramatic play by Joseph Arthur that debuted in New York in 1887 and enjoyed great success, and was adapted to silent films in 1911, 1918, and 1926. Though never a favorite of critics, it achieved widespread popularity. It is best known for its climactic scene where fire wagons are pulled by horses to a blazing fire.
in New York City
on August 30, 1887.Brown, Thomas Allston. A history of the New York stage, p. 495-96 (1887 original production), p. 498 (March 1888 return) Harry Lacy played the lead role of Jack Manley.
Though it ran only a few weeks in its initial engagement, the play returned in March 1888 and ran for over 100 more performances. Its popularity was then well-secured. In September 1889, it re-appeared at the Grand Opera House
. It ran again at the Fourteenth for two weeks in 1891, and returned to the Grand Opera House in 1892.
The play was also successful in England, and ran for 100 nights at the Princess's Theatre
in London in 1888.
Critics noted its success with guarded bemusement. An August 1888 note on its London success reported that "the critics have come down rather severely on "The Still Alarm", but as this was not unexpected, the management does not worry. Meanwhile, Bucephalus
and Pegasus
, the two horses, have made a tremendous hit, and are drawing crowded houses. Next to them in order of merit, according to the critics, comes the dog."
The Still Alarm was Joseph Arthur's first successful creation, but he enjoyed similar success with more melodramatic fare including Blue Jeans
(1890) and The Cherry Pickers (1896).
A 1911 film version was directed by Francis Boggs
and starred Robert Z. Leonard
, Herbert Rawlinson
, and Al Ernest Garcia
. William Selig produced the film, which has been preserved by the Museum of Modern Art Department of Film.
Selig produced a wholly new film version in 1918. This version starred Tom Santschi
, Fritzi Brunette
, and Bessie Eyton
, directed by Colin Campbell
, and distributed by Pioneer Film Corporation.(14 December 1918). Famous "Still Alarm" at Loew's Columbia, Washington Times
The final silent film version of the film, from Universal
, was released in 1926. It stars Helene Chadwick
, William Russell, and Richard Travers
, and was directed by Edward Laemmle
. Film archivist William K. Everson
reviewed the film positively in 1956, noting that though it has "no reputation and is little known", it is "one of the very best" of the "fire-fighting thrillers" popular in the 1920s.
A 1930 Vitaphone
short of the same title is a comedy skit by George S. Kaufman
, where Fred Allen
and Harold Moffet debate what to wear before exiting a burning hotel, later joined by similarly blase firemen. The sketch comes from The Little Show
, a revue that opened on Broadway in 1929.
about the phasing out of the use of horses for fire fighting still highlighted the The Still Alarm as the quintessential firefighting example. But Everson's observation in 1956 that it has "no reputation and is little known" (though he was only referring to the 1926 film version) fairly characterizes its lack of long-term staying power.
Background
The play debuted at the Fourteenth Street TheatreFourteenth Street Theatre
The Fourteenth Street Theatre was a New York City theatre located on 14th Street just west of Sixth Avenue.The venue opened in 1866 as the Theatre Francais. It was renamed the Lyceum in 1871. By the time J.H...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on August 30, 1887.Brown, Thomas Allston. A history of the New York stage, p. 495-96 (1887 original production), p. 498 (March 1888 return) Harry Lacy played the lead role of Jack Manley.
Though it ran only a few weeks in its initial engagement, the play returned in March 1888 and ran for over 100 more performances. Its popularity was then well-secured. In September 1889, it re-appeared at the Grand Opera House
Pike's Opera House
Pike's Opera House, later renamed the Grand Opera House, was a theatre in New York City on the northwest corner of 8th Avenue and 23rd Street, in Chelsea, Manhattan.His other Pike's Opera House, in Cincinnati, burned in the Great Fire of Cincinnati, in 1866. Rebuilt after the fire, and the first...
. It ran again at the Fourteenth for two weeks in 1891, and returned to the Grand Opera House in 1892.
The play was also successful in England, and ran for 100 nights at the Princess's Theatre
Princess's Theatre, London
The Princess's Theatre or Princess Theatre was a theatre in Oxford Street, London. The building opened in 1828 as the "Queen's Bazaar" and housed a diorama by Clarkson Stanfield and David Roberts. It was converted into a theatre and opened in 1836 as the Princess's Theatre, named for then Princess...
in London in 1888.
Critics noted its success with guarded bemusement. An August 1888 note on its London success reported that "the critics have come down rather severely on "The Still Alarm", but as this was not unexpected, the management does not worry. Meanwhile, Bucephalus
Bucephalus
Bucephalus or Bucephalas was Alexander the Great's horse and one of the most famous actual horses of antiquity. Ancient accounts state that Bucephalus died after the Battle of the Hydaspes in 326 BC, in what is now modern Pakistan, and is buried in Jalalpur Sharif outside of Jhelum, Pakistan...
and Pegasus
Pegasus
Pegasus is one of the best known fantastical as well as mythological creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine horse, usually white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as horse-god, and foaled by the Gorgon Medusa. He was the brother of Chrysaor, born at a single birthing...
, the two horses, have made a tremendous hit, and are drawing crowded houses. Next to them in order of merit, according to the critics, comes the dog."
The Still Alarm was Joseph Arthur's first successful creation, but he enjoyed similar success with more melodramatic fare including Blue Jeans
Blue Jeans (play)
Blue Jeans is a melodramatic play by Joseph Arthur that opened in New York City in 1890 to great popularity. The sensation of the play is a scene where the unconscious hero is placed on a board approaching a huge buzz saw in a sawmill, which became one of the most dramatic imitated scenes...
(1890) and The Cherry Pickers (1896).
Film adaptations
The Still Alarm has been adapted to silent film three times, in 1911, 1918, and 1926.A 1911 film version was directed by Francis Boggs
Francis Boggs
Francis W. Boggs was a stage actor and pioneer silent film director. He was one of the first to direct a film in Hollywood.-Biography:...
and starred Robert Z. Leonard
Robert Z. Leonard
Robert Zigler Leonard was an American film director, actor, producer and screenwriter.He was born in Chicago, Illinois...
, Herbert Rawlinson
Herbert Rawlinson
Herbert Rawlinson was an English stage, film, radio, and television actor. A leading man during Hollywood's silent film era, Rawlinson transitioned to character roles after the advent of sound films. Rawlinson died of lung cancer in 1953...
, and Al Ernest Garcia
Al Ernest Garcia
Al Ernest Garcia was an American silent film actor. He starred with Charlie Chaplin in films such as The Circus.-Filmography:...
. William Selig produced the film, which has been preserved by the Museum of Modern Art Department of Film.
Selig produced a wholly new film version in 1918. This version starred Tom Santschi
Tom Santschi
Tom Santschi was an American leading man and character actor of the silent film era.-Career:...
, Fritzi Brunette
Fritzi Brunette
Fritzi Brunette was an actress from Savannah, Georgia who acted in motion pictures for thirty years.-Southern beauty in silent movies:...
, and Bessie Eyton
Bessie Eyton
Bessie Eyton was an American actress of the silent era. She appeared in some 200 films between 1911 and 1925...
, directed by Colin Campbell
Colin Campbell (director)
Colin Campbell was a Scottish-born film director and screenwriter. He directed 177 films between 1911 and 1924. He also wrote for 60 films between 1911 and 1922...
, and distributed by Pioneer Film Corporation.(14 December 1918). Famous "Still Alarm" at Loew's Columbia, Washington Times
The final silent film version of the film, from Universal
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
, was released in 1926. It stars Helene Chadwick
Helene Chadwick
Helene Chadwick was an American actress in silent motion pictures and in early sound films.-Early life and career:Chadwick was born in the small town of Chadwicks, New York, which was named for her grandfather...
, William Russell, and Richard Travers
Richard Travers
Richard Travers was a Canadian film actor of the silent era. He appeared in 143 films between 1912 and 1930.-Selected filmography:* The Ambition of the Baron * The Romance of an American Duchess...
, and was directed by Edward Laemmle
Edward Laemmle
Edward Laemmle was an American film director of the silent era. He directed 62 films between 1920 and 1935....
. Film archivist William K. Everson
William K. Everson
William Keith "Bill" Everson was an English-American archivist, author, critic, educator, collector and film historian. He often discovered lost films.-Early life and career:...
reviewed the film positively in 1956, noting that though it has "no reputation and is little known", it is "one of the very best" of the "fire-fighting thrillers" popular in the 1920s.
Unrelated "Still Alarm" titles
A 1903 Edison short called The Still Alarm consists of footage of moving New York fire equipment and is not a film adaptation of the play.A 1930 Vitaphone
Vitaphone
Vitaphone was a sound film process used on feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects produced by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National from 1926 to 1930. Vitaphone was the last, but most successful, of the sound-on-disc processes...
short of the same title is a comedy skit by George S. Kaufman
George S. Kaufman
George Simon Kaufman was an American playwright, theatre director and producer, humorist, and drama critic. In addition to comedies and political satire, he wrote several musicals, notably for the Marx Brothers...
, where Fred Allen
Fred Allen
Fred Allen was an American comedian whose absurdist, topically pointed radio show made him one of the most popular and forward-looking humorists in the so-called classic era of American radio.His best-remembered gag was his long-running mock feud with friend and fellow comedian Jack Benny, but it...
and Harold Moffet debate what to wear before exiting a burning hotel, later joined by similarly blase firemen. The sketch comes from The Little Show
The Little Show
The Little Show is a musical revue with lyrics by Howard Dietz and music by Arthur Schwartz. This was the first of 11 musicals that featured the songs of Dietz and Schwartz. The revue opened on Broadway in 1929.-History:...
, a revue that opened on Broadway in 1929.
Legacy
Despite its roaring success as a play in New York, London and elsewhere, including repeated revivals and local productions mounted for many years, the sensationalistic fame of The Still Alarm eventually had to ebb. In 1920, a feature in the New York TribuneNew York Tribune
The New York Tribune was an American newspaper, first established by Horace Greeley in 1841, which was long considered one of the leading newspapers in the United States...
about the phasing out of the use of horses for fire fighting still highlighted the The Still Alarm as the quintessential firefighting example. But Everson's observation in 1956 that it has "no reputation and is little known" (though he was only referring to the 1926 film version) fairly characterizes its lack of long-term staying power.