Little Orphant Annie (1918 film)

:Little Orphant Annie’s come to our house to stay, :An’ wash the cups an’ saucers up, an’ brush the crumbs away, :An’ shoo the chickens off the porch, an’ dust the hearth, an’ sweep, :An’ make the fire, an’ bake the bread, an’ earn her board-an’-keep; :An’ all us other children, when the supper things is done, :We set around the kitchen fire an’ has the mostest fun :A-list’nin to the witch-tales ‘at Annie tells about, :An the Gobble-uns ‘at gits you ::Ef you :::Don’t ::::Watch :::::Out! ==Plot==

Annie, left orphaned after the death of her mother, goes to live in an orphanage where she tells her fellow orphans stories of ghosts and goblins. The matron of the orphanage finds Annie's closest relative, the abusive Uncle Thomp. Her uncle puts her to hard work doing hard labor on his farm, belittling her all the while. Big Dave, a neighbor and tough cow-poke, sees this and comes to her aid. Dave becomes her protector. Eventually Annie goes to live with Squire Goode and his large family. There, she entertains the children of the household with her stories, but sees her abusive aunt and uncle as her chief tormentors. She tells stories of how the goblins will take away the children if they are not good. Each story she tells is illustrated. War breaks out and Dave, who Annie adores, enlists. Uncle Thomp, hearing that Dave has been killed in action, takes pleasure in telling Annie the news. Broken-hearted, Annie falls ill and dies in bed, surrounded by family. ==Cast==

• Colleen Moore as Annie • Tom Santschi as Dave Johnson • Harry Lonsdale as Annie's Uncle • Eugenie Besserer as Mrs. Goode • Doris Baker as Orphan • Baby Lillian Wade as Orphan (as Lillian Wade) • Ben Alexander as Orphan • Paul Jacobs as Orphan (as Billy Jacobs) • George Hupp as Orphan • James Whitcomb Riley as Himself (archive footage) • Mae Gaston as Annie's Mother • Lillian Hayward as Aunt Elizabeth • Lafe McKee as The Good Squire • Jean Stone as Little Annie as a Child ==Production notes==

. The first draft of Little Orphant Annie was written by Gilson Willets and was a more straightforward adaptation of James Whitcomb Riley poem, also containing elements of another Riley poem, "Where Is Mary Alice Smith". The script was apparently extensively re-written several times and became more of a loose adaptation of Riley's poem. Some outlines have Annie dying in the end and being reunited in heaven ("The Good World") with her mother, where she is wedded to Dave. The surviving version of the film has Annie fall ill, only to recover and learn Thomp's news was only a bad dream. Only two of the stories Annie tells (from the original poem) are illustrated. The story is framed with footage of James Whitcomb Riley acting as a narrator of sorts. The footage of Riley was most likely taken in early 1916, before Riley's death in July 1916. Principal photography began in early December 1917 in the San Francisco Bay Area and lasted through mid-1918. Little Orphant Annie was one of the last films produced by Selig Polyscope Company. By the end of 1918, shortly before the film's December release, the company became insolvent and was absorbed by Fox Film Corporation. The film was initially distributed by Pioneer Film Corporation on a state's right basis. In March 1919, distribution rights were sold to World Film Company. ==Availability==

A 16mm print of Little Orphant Annie survives and was released to home media; it was initially released on VHS by Facets, and on DVD by Grapevine Video. The film remains one of the few early performances of Colleen Moore that survives and is available to the public. ==References==