The Still Alarm

The Still Alarm is a melodramatic play by Joseph Arthur and A.C. Wheeler that debuted in New York in 1887 and enjoyed great success, and was adapted to silent films in 1911, 1918, and 1926.

[citation needed] On opening night of the play, Arthur announced for the first time that theatre critic Andrew Carpenter Wheeler, known as "Nym Crinkle," was his collaborator.

This version starred Tom Santschi, Fritzi Brunette, and Bessie Eyton, directed by Colin Campbell, and distributed by Pioneer Film Corporation.

[24] 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.

[25] 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, who play the violin.

[26] Despite its roaring success as a play in New York, London and elsewhere, including repeated revivals and local productions mounted for many years,[27] the sensationalistic fame of The Still Alarm eventually had to ebb.

Film poster for 1918 silent film version of The Still Alarm