''The New Disciple'' is a 1921 American

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

directed by Ollie Sellers and produced by labor organization the Federal Film Corporation in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

. It was the most widely viewed labor film of this period, with over one million viewers in the year of its release. The film featured Alfred Allen,

Norris Johnson ''For the publisher and activist see Buzz Johnson'' Norris Johnson (1898–1971) was an actress in silent films in the U.S. She had supporting roles in various films and also had lead roles in Thomas H. Ince and Samuel Goldwyn productions. Film ...

, and

Pell Trenton Pell Trenton (born William T. Baker; August 29, 1883 – March 3, 1924) was an actor in theater and Hollywood films during the silent film era. He was popular and had leading roles. Background Pell Trenton was born August 29, 1883, in New Y ...

. The

included titles from Woodrow Wilson's 1913 '' New Freedom'' and told the story of a war veteran and a corrupt capitalist war profiteer. Ollie Sellers directed the anti-

open shop An open shop is a place of employment at which one is not required to join or financially support a union ( closed shop) as a condition of hiring or continued employment. Open shop vs closed shop The major difference between an open and closed ...

film which was an indictment of the American plan. Promotions for the film called for union members to "wait" on their film exchanges to show the film. Film production was supervised by

John Arthur Nelson John Arthur Nelson was a director, actor, and writer. Nelson wrote, acted in, and directed more than a dozen short films in 1913 and 1914, including a series of Slim Hoover films in which he portrayed the title character. He wrote pro-labor union an ...

who wrote the story which was published at the same time. William Piggott wrote the screenplay. The film was made in Los Angeles.

Plot

Cast

Margaret Mann Margaret Mann (4 April 1868 – 4 February 1941, in Los Angeles, California), was a Scottish-American actress. Early years Mann was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, one of 10 children in her family. The family moved to South Africa when she was 12 ...

* Alfred Allen *

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman Jr. (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist; he also wrote two novels. He is considered one of the most influential poets in American literature and world literature. Whitman incor ...

* Arthur Hall

References

1921 films American silent feature films American black-and-white films Films directed by Oliver L. Sellers 1920s American films {{Silent-film-stub