Mortmain is a five-part 1915 Vitagraph mystery drama film, directed bye Theodore Marston. [1] Reviewer Lynde Denig said it was a mystery drama with a scientific background that "comes pretty close to being a model of motion picture craftsmanship." The film was adapted from a story by Arthur Train. [2] [3] The New York Clipper called it remindful of the stories of Edgar Allan Poe. [4] It stars Robert Edeson. Marguerite Bertsch wrote the screenplay. The story involves the grafting of one man's hand to replace a man's who had his crushed. [5] The consequences are haunting. [2] The film is presumed lost. [6]
It was advertised as a "Medical Mystery". [7] An image used in advertising material features a creepy black and white hand with the word "MORT" but on it. [8] Censors blocked the film from being shown in Philadelphia and Chicago. [9]
Cast
- Robert Edeson as Mortmain
- Donald Hall as Gordon Russell
- Edward Elkas as Flaggs
- Joseph Weber as Flynt
- Muriel Ostriche as Bella Forsythe
- Karin Norman as Miss Fickles
- James Morrison as Tom Forsythe
- J. Herbert Frank as Doctor Pennison Crisp
- Gladden James as Scalscope
- Roland Osborne as Mortmain’s butler
- Helen Pillsbury as a society lady [6]
See also
References
- ^ "Mortmain". September 7, 1915 – via memory.loc.gov.
- ^ a b "Moving Picture World and View Photographer". World Photographic Publishing Company. September 7, 1915 – via Google Books.
- ^ https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37346/37346-h/37346-h.htm
- ^ Rhodes, Gary D. (2018). The Birth of the American Horror Film. ISBN 9781474430883. JSTOR 10.3366/j.ctvxcrw4d.
- ^ "Motion Picture Story Magazine". Macfadden-Bartell. September 7, 1915 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b "Silent Era : Progressive Silent Film List". www.silentera.com.
- ^ https://www.newspapers.com/article/2251859/mortmain_harrisburg_pennsylvania/
- ^ "MORTMAIN (1915) by Theodore Marston, Cinefania". www.cinefania.com.
- ^ "Mortmain (1915)" – via letterboxd.com.