Ella Cinders (1926)

Be sure to check out our other films. New films posted every Monday and Friday! With October beginning next Monday, we'll be starting Horror History Month with two horror films every week.

Hello and welcome to the Public Domain Theater. We continue Silent September with todays film, Ella Cinders. While not exactly the most well known silent film, it is kind of important for being the first feature-length film based on a comic. The Ella Cinders comic strip began in 1925 and lasted until 1961, following the adventures of a young woman trying to survive living with her stepmother and stepsisters. Essentially it's a adaptation of Cinderella set in contemporary 1920s America.

Now when most people think of comic-based films they usually think of superhero films and serials like Batman or Captain Marvel. However before comic books rose to popularity in the 1930s, it was the comic strip that dominated the comic business. Though you may have noticed that I said it was the first "Feature-Length" comic adaptation. I had to specify that because it wasn't exactly the first comic movie. In 1911 Windsor McCay released an animated short based on his popular comic strip, Little Nemo. The short itself only takes up four minutes of the film's eleven minute running time.

Directed By Alfred E. Green
Written By Frank Griffin, Mervyn LeRoy & George Marion, Jr.

Cast:
Colleen Moore - Ella Cinders
Lloyd Hughes - Waite Lifter
Vera Lewis - Ma Cinders
Doris Baker - Lotta Pill
Emily Gerdes - Prissy Pill
Mike Donlin - Film Studio Gateman
Jed Prouty - Mayor
Jack Duffy - Fire Chief
Harry Allen - Photographer
Alfred E. Green - Director
D'Arcy Corrigan - Editor
E.H. Calvert - Studio Actor (uncredited)
Russell Hopton - Studio Actor (uncredited)
Harry Langdon - Harry Langdon (uncredited)
Chief Yowlachie - Indian (uncredited)