Betsy J. Green

East Lynne

This movie was released on November 23, 1925. East Lynne was a silent movie that had been filmed shortly before the big 1925 Santa Barbara earthquake in June, 1925. The Fox Film Corporation filmed scenes at one of the million-dollar mansions in Montecito, California.

The novel East Lynne, dating to the 1860s, has been performed on stage, on radio, on television, and on the silver screen countless times. Obviously, the general public never tired of watching rich people behaving badly, and then getting their well-deserved comeuppance in the end. Previous versions of the film had been made in 1913, 1916, and 1921.

(There are no known copies of this film.)

Bonds of Love

This silent movie was released on November 2, 1919. It takes place in a mansion on the East Coast, but the movie was actually filmed by Hollywood's Goldwyn studio in one of the million-dollar mansions in Montecito, California.

"Channel City Charms Popular Goldwyn Star . . . the Pauline Frederick company spent six days in Santa Barbara obtaining exterior action . . . At Montecito, the famous G.O. Knapp estate, "Arcady," was used . . . Montecito, Santa Barbara's fashionable residential suburb, world-famous for its mansions and picturesque countryside, was taken full advantage of . . . The action is laid in Long Island." – Santa Barbara Morning Press, June 22, 1919

(There are no known copies of this film.)

The Miracle of Life

This 1915 silent film was an unusual "Flying A" movie about abortion. Some scenes were filmed at a million-dollar mansion in Montecito, California. A young married woman is unhappy to discover that she is pregnant. She is reluctant to give up her present lifestyle, and so obtains a medication to induce a miscarriage.

But before she can drink the medication, she falls asleep and dreams of herself as an unhappy old woman who regrets not having children. When she wakes, she has a change of heart and pours the medication into the garden on a plant that shrivels up. She then tells her husband that they are going to be parents, and this becomes another movie with a happy ending.

This film paved the way for a similar movie called Where Are My Children? made by another silent movie company in 1916.

There are no known copies of this film.

The Navigator

Buster Keaton stars in this silent film that was released on October 13, 1924. Most of the movie was made on or around California's Santa Catalina Island. A wealthy young man proposes marriage and a honeymoon cruise to a wealthy young woman. When she turns him down, he decides to go on the cruise anyway. Of course, he ends up on the wrong ocean liner – a ship with no one on it. And since this is a movie, the young woman somehow ends up on the same ship.

The movie was a hit all over.

"Laughter from beginning to end; good healthy, clean laughter." – Times (Waikato, New Zealand), April 6, 1926.

"Hurry for a voyage on the sea of hilarity. Roll along with Buster on tidal waves of joy." – Optimist (Abilene, Texas), May 7, 1925.

"A tidal wave of fun. Gales of laughter." – Daily Bulletin (Townsville, Australia), December 30, 1926.

This movie is a survivor and is available on Youtube.

The Singapore Mutiny

This silent film was released on October 7, 1928. Some scenes were filmed near California's Santa Catalina Island. The basic plot involves two men competing for the (ahem!) affection of a woman of ill repute. When their ship sinks, the three are marooned on a life raft and their true characters are revealed.

The movie received a wide range of reviews. "Brutal melodrama." – Educational Screen, December 1928. "There were many silly things in Singapore Mutiny." – Film Spectator, October 13, 1928

There are no known copies of this film.

Captain Blood

This pirate movie was released on September 21, 1924. One of the ships was blown up for a spectacular scene near California's Santa Catalina Island.

"Off the shores of Santa Catalina, great pirate ships rested in quiet waters. On the island's rocky vantage points and a small patch of land just off the isthmus, groups of studio folk and photographers gathered to watch developments . . . Then – a terrific explosion rent the waters. The ships staggered as though a tropic typhoon had spent its fury in this compact space . . . Falling wood, the grindings of splinters, bits of iron and all that goes to make up a sturdy ship descended in clouds, threatening the lives of the cameramen . . . On the tide-washed shore of Santa Catalina, the little groups stared aghast. That doughty vessel, 168 feet long . . . was no more." – Mercury (Madera, California), January 29, 1925

No copies are known to exist.

No permits; no problems! Oops!

Way back when, movie crews did not need permits to film out in the open, and this caused a problem when the American Film Company was filming in 1919. "An unsophisticated milkman, out in Santa Barbara, precipitated a whole wagonload of blue-coats upon the sleepy troupe which was working in Margarita Fisher's forthcoming American picture Trixie from Broadway."

The local paper reported, "They were making some night scenes out in the open, behind the stages at the 'Flying A' studios, and at 5 a.m., a new milkman passed on an adjacent street. He promptly detected burglars and notified the police. Ten minutes later, Santa Barbara's finest swooped down on the unsuspecting director and his players." Oops!

The Law of God

This movie was released on September 12, 1912. Jim, an atheist, falls in love with a minister's daughter. (You can see where this story is headed.) She and her father give him the heave-ho, so he joins a gang of robbers, which pretty much confirms their assessment of his character, I'd say. But don't worry, folks! Jim reforms before the credits roll.

Many of the 60+ silent movies filmed in Montecito, California were set in exotic locales such as Hawaii, Ancient Rome, or France in the 1500s. But The Law of God, actually took place in Montecito somewhere along the train tracks. Not the most picturesque spot in the community, but this one-reel movie dealt with a would-be train robber who got religion at the last moment.

This was one of several silent movies filmed in Montecito with a religious theme. It was filmed by Santa Barbara's "Flying A" (American Film Company) studio.

No copies are known to exist.

How Algy Captured a Wild Man

This movie was released on September 4, 1911 – one of the earliest movies filmed on California's Channel Islands. It was filmed on Santa Cruz Island and Santa Rosa Island.

The movie involved a group of people who encountered a caveman while yachting around the islands. The actor who played the part of the caveman caused a bit of a disturbance while traveling to the islands.

"Wild Man in Moving Pictures. Passengers returning from Catalina . . . reported having seen a wild man on the edge of the breakwater . . . the long flowing hair garments of fur plainly indicated that the man was out of touch of civilization . . . The 'wild' man was part of a troupe . . . To give the films a real wild touch, a part of the scenes was taken on Santa Rosa Island." – Motography, August 1911

No copies are known to exist.

The Song of the Seashell

Santa Barbara's "Flying A" film studio released this one-reel romantic fantasy on August 28, 1914. Some scenes were filmed at the Gould estate in Montecito, California. The movie starred glamorous Charlotte Burton, who plays a maiden who uses a seashell to create beautiful music. Since it's a silent movie, we just have to imagine how it sounds.

No copies are known to exist.