The School Teacher and the Waif is a 1912 American silent drama film directed by D. W. Griffith. The film was produced by the Biograph Company and distributed by the General Film Company. Starring Mary Pickford as the waif and Edwin August as the schoolteacher, the film was released by Biograph on June 27, 1912.
The story centers on Nora's struggles with loneliness, the hardships she faces at home, and the challenges she encounters at school, including bullying and feelings of humiliation. When a street vendor attempts to take advantage of her vulnerable situation, her teacher intervenes to help.
This film marked the second appearance of a -year-old stage actress named Ella Hall in a Biograph film. She played one of the young schoolgirls. Her part was uncredited.
Plot This movie revolves around a young country girl named Nora, played by Mary Pickford. Nora is an unassuming girl who lives on a dilapidated farm. One day, she observes two boys teasing her pet sheep and chases them away. Shortly after, she hears her father calling her inside, where he shows her a letter from the "School Commissioners" ordering her to start attending school. Despite her objections, Nora agrees to start the next day.
On her first day at school, Nora arrives to find other children playing outside. However, they stop playing when they see her, making fun of her appearance and behavior. Then the teacher says it is time to start class, prompting everyone to head indoors.
When the first lesson ends, recess begins, and once again, the children taunt Nora. Feeling disheartened, she walks to a nearby stream and begins to cry. The teacher, sensing her distress, comes over to comfort her. Nora tells him that the other kids do not understand her. He says a few kind words, gently pats her on the head, and she happily skips down the road.
As the evening sets in, a spelling bee takes place with parents and school officials watching closely while the teacher quizzes various students. When it is Nora's turn, she has a hard time spelling any words correctly. Consequently, the teacher tells her that because of her failure, she must wear a dunce cap. Nora begs the teacher not to make her wear the cap, but the teacher must follow the Spelling Bee rules. Nora gets angry, throws the cap on the ground, and storms out of the classroom in tears as she makes her way home.
Saturday arrives with Nora's father returning home in confusion before collapsing onto his bed. Moments later, he hears someone knocking at the door—it is Nora returning from school. Nora keeps knocking, but her dad ignores her and falls back asleep. Unable to wake him up, Nora wraps herself in an old gunny sack and leans against the door. As she falls asleep, it starts to rain.
On Sunday morning, realizing that his daughter had spent the night outside, he let her in so she could warm up and dry off.
After feeling humiliated in front of the class, Nora decides to skip school. She walks to the crossroads and sits by a fence post, pondering her future. Hearing some commotion nearby prompts her to take a brief stroll into the village.
Nora sees a medicine wagon and a snake-oil salesman hawking "Dr. Joe's Painkiller." The salesman has helpers: a banjo player and a pretty woman who were trying to lure people closer so that the drummer could sell his elixir. The huckster sees Nora and approaches her. Nora looks away at first, but then starts listening intently to what the faker is offering. He quickly realized how naïve she is and how easily she can be persuaded. He proposes marriage as part of his pitch to the young girl and asks her to think it over. She walks back to her favorite fencepost to consider the offer.
The next day, Nora returns to the fencepost located at the crossroads. The huckster sees her and walks over to see if Nora has thought about his proposal. He tells her again about his false promises of love and companionship. While they talked, the teacher passed by on his way to school. He pauses momentarily, then continues without intervening.
Later, Nora decides to accept his proposal. She heads home to pack her meager belongings and returns to the medicine wagon. Meanwhile, the teacher notices she was absent from the classroom and recalls the conversation he overheard at the fencepost. Concerned that Nora is naïve enough to believe the shyster, the teacher leaves the schoolchildren to their own devices and begins searching for Nora.
Back at the medicine wagon, the troupe is getting ready to leave. The teacher arrives just as Nora is about to board the wagon. He tells the peddler that he knows about his marriage proposal to Nora and would like to help. The teacher stated that he brought a minister who could perform the wedding immediately. Nora looked happy, but the salesman looked terrified. Suddenly, he makes a wild excuse, runs to his wagon, and quickly leaves the village. Nora stands in the middle of the road, feeling lost and deserted as the wagon disappears.
The teacher walks over to Nora and comforts her. They walk back to school together. They enter the classroom, and Nora takes her seat. After the lesson, the teacher dismissed everyone except Nora. He gently stroked and kissed her hair. They both smiled, happy to be together. When she leaves the school, Nora feels content.
The story ends with the teacher happily leaving the classroom.
Cast The cast for this one-reel production is substantial, with 18 known actors. This number was not unusual for a Griffith-directed picture - see article section Director. The 17 actors in this film have a collective filmography exceeding 2,000 movies. {| ! style="text-align: left; width: 200px;"| Actor ! style="text-align: left; width: 200px;"| Role |- style="text-align: left;"width: 400px;"| |Edwin August ||The School Teacher ||rowspan="9"| .
|Mary Pickford ||Nora - the Waif |- |Charles Hill Mailes || Nora's Father |- |Bert Hendler||A Street Faker |- |Claire McDowell || The Street Faker's Sweetheart |- |William A. Carroll || The Street Faker's Assistant |- |Robert Harron || The young schoolboy in the classroom |- |Ella Hall || Schoolgirl
|colspan="3" |Other actors in this picture included: Jack Pickford , Kate Bruce , Josephine Crowell , Grace Henderson , Mae Marsh , Frank Opperman , Alfred Paget , Edna Foster , Lillian Hamilton and Antrim Short .
Griffith consistently sought a diverse ensemble for his acting company, and this troupe exemplifies that commitment with its blend of ages and experience. The characters played by Bobby Heron and Ella Hall are listed as unconfirmed. However, their presence in this film was verified by observation.
Production The Biograph Company, also known as the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, was a leading studio during the silent era. Biograph was instrumental in the careers of both Griffith and Pickford, providing a platform for their early works
Pre production Casting These brief casting backgrounds only display prominent players in this production. Edwin August ( Edwin August Phillip von der Butz) Eddie, Montague Lawrence (November 10, 1883 – March 4, 1964) was an American actor from St. Louis, Missouri. August was years old when Griffith offered him the lead role of August began his career in local Repertory theatre companies, performing around the St. Louis area. He later relocated to New York City and started performing on Broadway.Mr. and Mrs. Daventry at Internet Broadway Database Having enjoyed success on legitimate stage, he joined the early film industry. August started acting in films with the Edison Company in 1908. Following his success with the Biograph Company, he continued taking leading roles until 1918. Later in his career, he accepted supporting roles, then became a movie extra until 1947. Between 1909 and 1947, he appeared in 150 films. Mary Pickford ( Gladys Louise Smith) America's Sweetheart (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979) was a Canadian American film actress. Pickford was when she became the lead actress in this production playing the role of
Pickford began her film career in 1909 with the Edison Company, later becoming Hollywood's first millionaire by 1916 1912 would be her last year with Biograph before she left for movie superstardom elsewhere. She would become a significant figure in the development of film acting and is credited with defining the type in cinema. Pickford would become one of the most popular actresses of the silent film era and earn the Sobriquet of "America's Sweetheart". Her Hollywood career spanned five decades, Charles Hill Mailes (Charlees Mailes, Charles H. Mailles) (May 25, 1870 – February 17, 1937) was a Canadian actor from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The actor was when he accepted the role as Nora's neglectful father. He was active in films from 1909 to 1935. His wife was silent-screen actress Claire McDowell. They were married from 1906 until his death in 1937.
The pair worked together in this movie and continued collaborating in other films."Fairbanks Picks Special Cast in Hope of Presenting His Most Unusual Film." Exhibitors Herald. November 27, 1920, pg. 85. In Hollywood, California, McDowell died on October 23, 1966. Bert Hendler ( Herschel Henlere) Herschel Henler (December 14, 1890 – January 13, 1968) was a Canadian vaudevillian from Galt, Ontario Canada. Hendler was years-old when he acted as the Snake oil salesman in this production. His character is the one who offers to marry Mary Pickford's character, - the waif. As Bert Handler, he only appeared in three Biograph Griffin films in 1912. In addition to this film, he also appeared in A Temporary Truce and , a 1912 American short film starring Mary Pickford. While appearing on the vaudeville stage, he billed himself as - the poet of the piano. Claire McDowell ( MacDowell) (Claire MacDowell, Clare McDowell, Doris Carlton)Claire McDowell American Film Institute Retrieved April 21, 2023] (November 2, 1877 – October 23, 1966) was an American actress from New York City. The actress was when she accepted the role of the Street Faker's Sweetheart. At the time of this filming, McDowell was a regular at Biograph, favoring the group work of Biograph's actors while shunning top billing. She was one of the most adaptable of Griffith's actors at the time. Her film career started at 30 in 1908, a late start for that era. At 35, she was at the peak of her career at Biograph Films. She stayed at Biograph until 1916, then moved to Universal, and later joined MGM in the mid-1920s. She was active in the movie industry and appeared in 350 films between 1908 and 1945. Most of Claire McDowell's film career was spent as a supporting actress.
Her husband was a silent-screen actor Charles Hill Mailes, and they were married from 1906 until he died in 1937. The pair worked together in this movie and continued collaborating in other films. In Hollywood, California, McDowell died on October 23, 1966. William A. Carroll Bill Carroll (January 9, 1875 – January 26, 1928) was an American actor from Manhattan, New York City. Carroll was years-old when he acted as the Street Faker's Assistant. In the film, his Blackface act attracts prospective clients to the medicine wagon with banjo music and dance. Once he has them engaged, the Snake oil Salesman, Bert Hendler, can peddle his magical elixir.
Carroll enters the motion picture industry via the Selig and Vitagraph film companies. Carroll appeared in 140 films between 1911 and 1927. Robert Harron ( Robert Emmett Harron) Bobby Herron (April 12, 1893 – September 5, 1920) was an American actor from New York City. Herron was years-old when Griffith offered him the uncredited role of older boy in the classroom of the school teacher