Olaf—An Atom
1913 film
title: "Olaf—An Atom" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1913-films", "1913-short-films", "1913-american-films", "1910s-english-language-films", "american-black-and-white-films", "american-silent-short-films", "biograph-company-films", "films-directed-by-anthony-o'sullivan", "english-language-short-films"] description: "1913 film" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olaf—An_Atom" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary 1913 film ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox film"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Olaf—An Atom |
| image | The Wanderer poster.jpg |
| caption | Aywon Film Corporation re-release poster |
| for the film, retitled The Wanderer | |
| director | Anthony O'Sullivan |
| writer | William E. Wing |
| starring | Harry Carey |
| cinematography | G. W. Bitzer |
| studio | Biograph Company |
| released | |
| runtime | 17 minutes (16 frame/s) |
| 1,003 feet | |
| country | United States |
| language | Silent with English intertitles |
| :: |
| name = Olaf—An Atom | image = The Wanderer poster.jpg | caption = Aywon Film Corporation re-release poster for the film, retitled The Wanderer | director = Anthony O'Sullivan | writer = William E. Wing | starring = Harry Carey | cinematography = G. W. Bitzer | studio = Biograph Company | released = | runtime = 17 minutes (16 frame/s) 1,003 feet | country = United States | language = Silent with English intertitles
Olaf—An Atom is a 1913 American film directed by Anthony O'Sullivan and featuring Harry Carey.
Plot
Broken by grief after his mother's death, Olaf becomes a wanderer. He is treated cruelly until he is given a meal by a woman at the homestead where she lives with her husband and baby. Olaf is able to return her kindness when he overhears a plot to rob the settlers of their home. He alerts the couple and delays the would-be thieves long enough for the husband to file a claim on his land. Olaf is injured by the claim jumpers but he recovers, alone and forgotten by those he has helped. He then moves aimlessly along.
Cast
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Olaf-An-Atom-1913.jpg" caption="Olaf (Harry Carey, left) overhears a plot to seize the homestead of a couple that has been kind to him."] ::
- Harry Carey as Olaf
- Kate Bruce as Olaf's Mother
- Charles Hill Mailes as A Parent
- Claire McDowell as A Parent
- Donald Crisp as The Beggar
- Frank Evans as The Blacksmith
- John T. Dillon as The Claim Jumper
- Thomas Jefferson as The Doctor (unconfirmed)
Production
Directed by Anthony O'Sullivan and written by William E. Wing, Olaf—An Atom was produced by the Biograph Company and released May 19, 1913, in the United States. The drama was released August 4, 1913, in the United Kingdom.
The film was retitled The Wanderer and re-released by the Aywon Film Corporation, a New York City company formed in early 1919. Aywon reissued films including the Biograph Company short films, which were often lengthened by the addition of intertitles.
References
References
- (September 1913). "Answers to Inquiries".
- Graham, Cooper C.. (1985). "D. W. Griffith and the Biograph Company". Scarecrow Press.
- (May 31, 1913). "Comments on the Films".
- (May 17, 1913). "Calendar of Licensed Releases".
- Katchmer, Gerald A.. (1991). "Eighty Silent Film Stars". McFarland & Company.
- (July 2, 1913). "Supplement to The Cinema".
- Slide, Anthony. (2001). "The New Historical Dictionary of the American Film Industry". Scarecrow Press.
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::