Common Clay is a 1915 play by the American writer Cleves Kinkead. A social drama, it shows the relationship between a servant and a member of the wealthy family which she serves. When she becomes pregnant she finds herself ostracized by them. The play was controversial on its release, but enjoyed a lengthy run on Broadway.[1] It was the outstanding success of Kinkead's career, and he struggled to repeat it with his later works such as Your Woman and Mine (1922).[2] [3]
It was the basis for a 1919 silent film starring Fannie Ward and two further adaptations during the 1930s: Common Clay starring Constance Bennett released in 1930 and a 1936 version called Private Number starring Loretta Young. A novelisation by D. Torbett was published by The Readers Library, to coincide with the release of the 1930 film.