Editing Uncle Tom's Cabin (section)

==Dramatic adaptations==

===Plays and Tom shows===
{{Main|Tom show}}
{{multiple image
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| image1    =Scene from stage production of "Uncle Tom's Cabin", 1901)- group of men, two holding whips, pointing at two men and a woman on snow-covered bridge LCCN2004681922.jpg
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| caption1  = Scene in [[William A. Brady]]'s 1901 revival of the play at the [[Academy of Music (New York City)|Academy of Music]], New York City
| image2    =Scene from stage production of "Uncle Tom's Cabin", 1901)- Little Eva's death scene LCCN2004681923.jpg
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| caption2  = Little Eva's death scene in Brady's 1901 revival at the Academy of Music
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Even though ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' was the best-selling novel of the 19th century, far more Americans of that time saw the story as a stage play or musical than read the book.<ref name="By storm">{{cite web |url= https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/foster/peopleevents/e_cabin.html |title= People & Events: Uncle Tom's Cabin Takes the Nation by Storm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170226113533/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/foster/peopleevents/e_cabin.html |archive-date=February 26, 2017 |work= Stephen Foster – The American Experience |publisher= PBS |access-date= April 19, 2007}}</ref> Historian [[Eric Lott]] estimated that "for every one of the three hundred thousand who bought the novel in its first year, many more eventually saw the play."{{sfn|Lott|2013|p=218}} In 1902, it was reported that a quarter million of these presentations had already been performed in the United States.{{sfn|Frick|2016|p=xiv}}

Given the lax copyright laws of the time, stage plays based on ''Uncle Tom's Cabin''—"Tom shows"—began to appear while the novel was still being serialized. Stowe refused to authorize dramatization of her work because of her distrust of drama, although she eventually saw [[George Aiken (playwright)|George L. Aiken]]'s version and, according to Francis Underwood, was "delighted" by Caroline Howard's portrayal of Topsy.{{sfn|Lott|2013|p=228}}  Aiken's stage production was the most popular play in the U.S. and Britain for 75 years.<ref name= Hollis/> Stowe's refusal to authorize a particular dramatic version left the field clear for any number of adaptations, some launched for (various) political reasons and others as simply commercial theatrical ventures.{{sfn|Griffiths|2016|p=76}}{{sfn|Buinicki|2006|p=77}}

No [[international copyright]] laws existed at the time. The book and plays were translated into several languages. Stowe received no money, which could have meant as much as "three-fourths of her just and legitimate wages".{{sfn|Reese|2007|p=143}}

All the Tom shows appear to have incorporated elements of [[melodrama]] and [[blackface]] [[minstrel show|minstrelsy]].{{sfn|Appiah|Gates|2005|p=544}} These plays varied tremendously in their politics—some faithfully reflected Stowe's sentimentalized antislavery politics, while others were more moderate, or even pro-slavery.{{sfn|Lott|2013|p=219}} Many of the productions featured demeaning racial caricatures of black people;{{sfn|Appiah|Gates|2005|p=544}} some productions also featured songs by [[Stephen Foster]], including "[[My Old Kentucky Home]]", "[[Old Folks at Home]]", and "Massa's in the Cold Ground".<ref name="By storm"/> The best-known Tom shows were those of George Aiken and H. J. Conway.{{sfn|Lott|2013|p=220}}

The many stage variants of ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' "dominated northern popular culture... for several years" during the 19th century,{{sfn|Lott|2013|p=222}} and the plays were still being performed in the early 20th century.<ref>{{cite magazine |first= Holly L. |last= Derr |url= https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/09/the-pervading-influence-of-em-uncle-toms-cabin-em-in-pop-culture/279281/ |title= The Pervading Influence of Uncle Tom's Cabin in Pop Culture |magazine= The Atlantic |date= September 4, 2013 |access-date= March 10, 2022}}</ref>

===Films===
{{Main|Film adaptations of Uncle Tom's Cabin}}

[[File:1903UncleTomFilm.jpg|thumb|A still from [[Edwin S. Porter]]'s 1903 version of ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'', which was one of the first full-length movies. The still shows Eliza telling Uncle Tom that he has been sold and that she is running away to save her child.]]
''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' has been adapted several times as a film. Most of these movies were created during the [[silent film]] era (''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' was the most-filmed book of that time period).<ref name="UTCFilm">{{cite web |url=http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/fihp.html |title= Uncle Tom's Cabin on Film |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080510153638/http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/fihp.html |archive-date=May 10, 2008 |work= Uncle Tom's Cabin and American Culture, a Multi-Media Archive |publisher= Department of English, University of Virginia |access-date= February 21, 2022}}</ref> Because of the continuing popularity of both the book and "Tom" shows, audiences were already familiar with the characters and the plot, making it easier for the film to be understood without spoken words.<ref name="UTCFilm"/>

The first film version of ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' was one of the earliest full-length movies, although full-length at that time meant between 10 and 14 minutes.<ref name="Porter">{{cite web |url=http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/mv03hp.html |title= The First Uncle Tom's Cabin Film: Edison-Porter's 'Slavery Days' (1903) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070313225042/http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/mv03hp.html |archive-date=March 13, 2007 |work= Uncle Tom's Cabin and American Culture, a Multi-Media Archive |publisher= Department of English, University of Virginia |access-date= February 21, 2022}}</ref> This 1903 film, directed by [[Edwin S. Porter]], used white actors in [[blackface]] in the major roles and black performers only as [[Extra (actor)|extras]]. This version was evidently similar to many of the "Tom Shows" of earlier decades and featured several stereotypes about blacks, such as having the slaves dance in almost any context, including at a slave auction.<ref name="Porter"/>

In 1910, a three-reel [[Vitagraph Studios|Vitagraph Company of America]] production was directed by [[J. Stuart Blackton]] and adapted by Eugene Mullin. According to ''The Dramatic Mirror'', this film was "a decided innovation" in motion pictures and "the first time an American company" released a dramatic film in three reels. Until then, full-length movies of the time were 15 minutes long and contained only one reel of film. The movie starred [[Florence Turner]], [[Mary Fuller]], Edwin R. Phillips, [[Flora Finch]], [[Genevieve Tobin]] and [[Carlyle Blackwell]], Sr.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/mv10hp1.html |title=The 3-Reel Vitagraph Production (1910)|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013221156/http://iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/mv10hp1.html |archive-date=October 13, 2007 |work= Uncle Tom's Cabin and American Culture, a Multi-Media Archive |publisher= Department of English, University of Virginia |access-date= February 21, 2022}}</ref>

At least four more movie adaptations were created in the next two decades. The last silent film version was released in 1927. Directed by [[Harry A. Pollard]], who played Uncle Tom in a 1913 release of ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'', this two-hour movie was more than a year in production and was the third most expensive picture of the silent era, at a cost of $1.8&nbsp;million. The black actor [[Charles Sidney Gilpin|Charles Gilpin]] was originally cast in the title role, but he was fired after the studio decided his "portrayal was too aggressive".<ref name="SuperJewel">{{cite web |url=http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/mv27hp.html |title=Universal Super Jewel Production (1927) |work=Uncle Tom's Cabin and American Culture, a Multi-Media Archive |publisher=Department of English, University of Virginia |access-date=February 21, 2022 |archive-date=April 11, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090411193822/http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/mv27hp.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

For several decades after the end of the silent film era, the subject matter of Stowe's novel was judged too sensitive for further film interpretation. In 1946, [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] considered filming the story but ceased production after protests led by the [[National Association for the Advancement of Colored People]].<ref name="Hollywood">{{cite web |url=http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/cameos/hollywood.html |title=Uncle Tom's Cabin in Hollywood: 1929–1956 |work=Uncle Tom's Cabin and American Culture, a Multi-Media Archive |publisher=Department of English, University of Virginia |access-date=February 21, 2022 |archive-date=April 11, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090411193731/http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/cameos/hollywood.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> The story was adapted as a play within the musical film version of [[The King and I (1956 film) | The King & I]]. Within the main story, the character of [[Anna Leonowens]] gives Tuptim a copy of the book of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Tuptim relates to the anti-slavery themes of the book, and adapts it in to a traditional Siamese play for a state dinner. In this version, called "The Small House of Uncle Thomas", the characters are re-written as Buddhists. This version eliminates most of the white slave owners as characters, and focuses only on Tom, Simon, Eliza, Eva, and Topsy. Film versions were created overseas in the following decades, including a 1965 German-language version and a TV soap opera in [[Brazil]] called ''[[A Cabana do Pai Tomás]],'' which ran for 205 episodes from July 1969 to March 1970.{{sfn|Jackson|2017|p=106}} The final film version{{sfn|Frick|2016|p=xviii}} was a [[Uncle Tom's Cabin (1987 film)|television broadcast in 1987]], directed by [[Stan Lathan]] and adapted by John Gay. It starred [[Avery Brooks]], [[Phylicia Rashad]], [[Edward Woodward]], [[Jenny Lewis]], [[Samuel L. Jackson]] and Endyia Kinney.{{sfn|Hamilton|2002|p= 25}}

In addition to film adaptations, versions of ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' have been produced in other formats, including a number of [[animated cartoon]]s. ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' also influenced movies, including ''[[The Birth of a Nation]]''. This controversial 1915 film set the dramatic climax in a slave cabin similar to that of Uncle Tom, where several white Southerners unite with their former enemy (Yankee soldiers) to defend, according to the film's caption, their "[[Aryan race|Aryan]] birthright". According to scholars, this reuse of such a familiar image of a slave cabin would have resonated with, and been understood by, audiences of the time.{{sfn|Williams|2001|p=115}}<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/cameos/griffithhp.html |title= H. B. Stowe's Cabin in D. W. Griffith's Movie |work= Uncle Tom's Cabin and American Culture, a Multi-Media Archive |publisher= Department of English, University of Virginia |access-date= February 21, 2022 |archive-date= April 11, 2009 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090411193726/http://www.iath.virginia.edu/utc/onstage/films/cameos/griffithhp.html |url-status= dead }}</ref>