According to the 2 Jan 1927 FD, filming began in late 1926. The item noted that the film company had just returned to the studio "after a location trip of eight weeks in the old South." Director Harry Pollard hoped to be finished in two months. After the film was released, a 29 Dec 1928 [Baltimore, MD] Afro-American article stated that black stage actor Charles Gilpin had originally been cast in the film "but was mysteriously relieved of his work shortly after he had started to work."
       According to reviews, when this film opened in New York, its 141 min. running time was split with an intermission.
       Composer-conductor Hugo Riesenfeld compiled and composed incidental music to play for the initial silent roadshow engagements of the film, and the sheet music for this score was published in 1928 by Robbins Music Corp. (New York). A separate thematic cue sheet was compiled by James C. Bradford for less ambitious presentations. The recorded Movietone score for the general release version was compiled by Erno Rapee.
       A Var news story in Sep 1952 reported that the film was released illegally in 1950 in a sound version in which a narrator read the original titles. The perpetrator, Howard G. Underwood of Pine Grove, KY, removed the original Universal credits and substituted credits which read, "Howard G. Underwood presents Uncle Tom's Cabin. Produced by Howard G. Underwood, Copyrighted 1950." Universal sued for damages, an injunction against exhibition, seizure of prints and destruction of prints and negatives. In Sep 1952, a U.S. Marshal in Lexington, KY seized and impounded three prints of the film from Underwood's garage, in accordance with a court order.
       Var noted, "Strange aspect of the case is that the film has been showning in hundreds of theatres and drive-ins and has been doing tremendous biz, often outgrossing many present-day pictures." According to an audio transcription at NYSA, the 1950 version opened with the following statement: "Please do not form an opinion of this great motion picture from the opening scenes. Remain here in this theatre during its complete showing. We assure you you will be rewarded by its greatness."
       In 1958, Universal rereleased a version of Uncle Tom's Cabin incorporating the general release Movietone musical score compiled by Erno Rapee and an introductory sequence starring Raymond Massey as Abraham Lincoln. According to the Var review of the released film, Massey is seen visiting Litchfield, CT, Harriet Beecher Stowe's birthplace, where he speaks about "the 100-year-old propaganda novel and prepares the audience to accept the 'overemphatic' screen acting of the silent era." Massey also provided a voice-over narration throughout the film.
       For information on other adaptations of Stowe's novel, please consult the entry for the World Film Corp.'s 1914 Uncle Tom's Cabin, directed by William Robert Daly and starring Sam Lucas (See Entry).
       There are several typographical errors in the surviving general release main titles. Continuity writer Harvey Thew is credited as "Harvey They," and actress Aileen Manning is credited as "Aileen Mannin."