Peter the Great

Frankenstein, released in 1910, was the first motion picture adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic gothic novel. Produced by the Edison Manufacturing Company at their studio in the Bronx, New York, the film was part of a broader effort by the studio to create sophisticated entertainment for growing nickelodeon audiences. It was conceived as a moral study rather than a pure horror film, intending to emphasize the psychological and internal struggle of the creature rather than just the supernatural elements of his creation.

The film was directed by J. Searle Dawley, who oversaw a remarkably compressed production schedule that allowed the short film to be completed in just a few days. Charles Ogle portrayed the creature, utilizing a makeup style that was notably distinct from the later, more iconic Boris Karloff version. While it achieved modest success in its own time and was praised for its ambitious special effects—particularly the scene where the creature appears in a mirror—the film was largely forgotten for decades before being rediscovered by collectors in the mid-20th century.