Anne of Green Gables ( 1934 film ) - wikipedia Anne of Green Gables ( 1934 film ) Anne of Green Gables Theatrical release poster Directed by George Nicholls, Jr. Produced by Kenneth Macgowan Written by Sam Mintz Based on Anne of Green Gables 1908 novel by Lucy Maud Montgomery Starring Dawn O'Day Helen Westley Tom Brown Sara Haden Charley Grapewin June Preston Bonita Granville Ben Hall Ann Miller Paul Stanton Music by Alberto Colombo Max Steiner Roy Webb Cinematography Lucien Andriot Edited by Arthur P. Schmidt Distributed by RKO Radio Pictures Release date November 23, 1934 ( 1934 - 11 - 23 ) Running time 78 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $226,000 Box office $793,000 Anne of Green Gables is a 1934 film directed by George Nicholls, Jr., based upon the novel, Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery. The actress Dawn O'Day who portrayed the title character of Anne Shirley changed her stage name to Anne Shirley after making this film. There was also a sequel ; Anne of Windy Poplars. This modest film became a surprise hit in 1934, easily succeeding in becoming one of four top - grossing films RKO made that year ( as noted in The R.K.O. Story published by Arlington House ). Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Reception 4 References 5 External links Plot Anne Shirley ( Dawn O'Day ) is an orphan who has been adopted by farmer Matthew Cuthbert ( O.P. Heggie ) and his sister, Marilla ( Helen Westley ). Although the pair were expecting a young boy to help on their farm, Anne endears herself to them and to the local villagers. She befriends Diana Barry and most of the children at her school, all except for Gilbert Blythe after he calls her ' carrots ' and she smashes her slate over his head. She and Diana have a bet that Anne can flirt with Gilbert and he will fall head over heels in love with her. Little do they know, Gilbert overheard them and has already fallen in love with her. Anne flirts with him, which becomes unsuccessful, and Diana wins the bet. Anne lies to Gilbert that she has a boyfriend to make him jealous, but she only ends up embarrassing herself. Shortly after, Anne is playing the Lady of Shalott when she realizes her boat is sinking, and Gilbert sees her and saves her life. She then decides to forgive him and give him a reward for saving her. She will kiss him. Gilbert is surprised. Anne thinks he does n't want to claim his reward, but he tells her he does and that he wants her to be his girl. For three years they have an affair, but Mrs. Barry spies on them and tells Marilla. Marilla does not want Anne to even talk to Gilbert, since his mother broke Matthew 's heart. Anne and Gilbert are both devastated and Matthew is upset with Marilla, since it was n't she who got her heart broken. Anne goes to college. Diana, who is now married, visits Anne and tells her that Matthew is ill. She returns to Green Gables, finding out it 's for sale to save Matthew, since he needs the best doctor in Halifax. She remembers Gilbert is studying with this doctor, so she goes to see Gilbert. He tries flirting with her, and she eventually gives in and finds out that Gilbert heard about Matthew and begged the doctor to save him for free, which he did. After Marilla finds out what he had done, she forgives the Blythes and lets Anne and Gilbert see each other again. Cast Dawn O'Day as Anne Shirley ( billed in this and subsequent films as `` Anne Shirley '' ) Tom Brown as Gilbert Blythe Helen Westley as Marilla Cuthbert O.P. Heggie as Matthew Cuthbert June Preston as Mrs. Blewett 's Daughter Sara Haden as Mrs. Rachel Barry Murray Kinnell as Mr. Phillips, the Teacher Gertrude Messinger as Diana Barry Charley Grapewin as Dr. Tatum Hilda Vaughn as Mrs. Blewett Reception The film made a profit of $272,000. References ^ Jump up to : Richard Jewel, ' RKO Film Grosses : 1931 - 1951 ', Historical Journal of Film Radio and Television, Vol 14 No 1, 1994 p55 External links Anne of Green Gables on IMDb Anne of Green Gables ( 1934 ) Anne of Green Gables at the TCM Movie Database Anne of Green Gables at AllMovie The Anne of Green Gables series by L.M. Montgomery Characters Anne Shirley Gilbert Blythe Walter Blythe Original novels Anne of Green Gables ( 1908 ) Anne of Avonlea ( 1909 ) Anne of the Island ( 1915 ) Anne of Windy Poplars ( 1936 ) Anne 's House of Dreams ( 1917 ) Anne of Ingleside ( 1939 ) Rainbow Valley ( 1919 ) Rilla of Ingleside ( 1921 ) Companion books Chronicles of Avonlea ( 1912 ) Further Chronicles of Avonlea ( 1920 ) Before Green Gables ( authorised prequel by Budge Wilson, 2008 ) The Blythes Are Quoted ( 2009 ) Films Anne of Green Gables ( 1919 ) Anne of Green Gables ( 1934 ) Anne of Windy Poplars ( 1940 ) Anne of Green Gables ( 1956 ) Anne of Green Gables ( 1985 ) Anne of Green Gables : The Sequel ( 1987 ) Anne of Green Gables : The Continuing Story ( 2000 ) Anne : Journey to Green Gables ( 2005 ) Anne of Green Gables : A New Beginning ( 2008 ) L.M. Montgomery 's Anne of Green Gables ( 2016 ) Television series Anne of Green Gables ( 1972 ) Anne of Avonlea ( 1975 ) Anne of Green Gables ( 1979 ) Road to Avonlea ( 1990 - 1996 ) Anne of Green Gables : The Animated Series ( 2000 ) Kon'nichiwa Anne : Before Green Gables ( 2009 ) Anne ( 2017 ) Stage Anne of Green Gables : The Musical ( since 1965 ) Anne & Gilbert ( since 2005 ) Related articles Avonlea Green Gables Films directed by George Nicholls Jr. Finishing School ( 1934 ) Anne of Green Gables ( 1934 ) Chasing Yesterday ( 1935 ) The Return of Peter Grimm ( 1935 ) Chatterbox ( 1936 ) The Witness Chair ( 1936 ) M'Liss ( 1936 ) The Big Game ( 1936 ) The Soldier and the Lady ( 1937 ) Portia on Trial ( 1937 ) Army Girl ( 1938 ) Man of Conquest ( 1939 ) High School ( 1940 ) The Marines Fly High ( 1940 ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anne_of_Green_Gables_(1934_film)&oldid=823724397 '' Categories : English - language films 1934 films 1930s comedy films American comedy films American films Anne of Green Gables films American black - and - white films Films scored by Max Steiner Films set in Atlantic Canada RKO Pictures films Films directed by George Nicholls Jr. Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch فارسی Italiano Nederlands Português Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 3 February 2018, at 00 : 35. 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Question: who played the original anne of green gables
Answer: Dawn O'Day