Betsy J. Green

No Honor Among Thieves!

Dateline: April 1924

Al Capone was not in Santa Barbara, but this was starting to seem like a film noir movie in our fair city. It was clear that bootleggers were not playing nice with each other during the Prohibition Era. "A war between rival bands of liquor dealers is expected to break out within a few days between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles factions, which may develop into a serious clash . . . A truckload of liquor was stolen from several rum smugglers north of Santa Barbara several days ago.

"Monday, two young men, alleged to be rum dealers, appeared in Santa Barbara to locate the men who were responsible for the theft. One of these men is alleged to have left a card at the home of the suspected man warning him to 'pack a gun today and to stay away from the ''plant" if you value your life.' " – Santa Barbara Morning Press, April 3, 1924

Santa Barbara High School Taking Shape

Dateline: March 1924

Construction of the Santa Barbara High School at its new location at 700 East Anapamu Street was nearing completion, and school officials were hoping that the new auditorium would be ready for June graduation ceremonies.

(Spoiler alert - the new school would open for classes in September 1924.)

A Complimentary Contribution!

Dateline – March 1920

The Pandora Productions studio of Los Angeles was making the silent film Crucifix of Destiny near the Santa Barbara Mission in 1920. An actor, dressed as a monk, "was given a handful of coppers by an old woman, who mistook him for the bona fide article." – Camera, March 20, 1920

A portion of this film is available for viewing online. Early scenes in the movie were filmed at the Mission and St. Anthony's Seminary, so it's a way to take a peek at that area 100+ years ago. (The final portion of the movie appears to be missing.) Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Tat4vwglsw

 A Peak Performance

Dateline – March 1915

There used to be a large, picturesque rock on Santa Barbara's West Beach called Castle Rock. It was popular with tourists and starred in some "Flying A" silent movies as well.

"A certain scene taken near the Castle Rock bluff called for a fall down. A dummy might have been used, but rather than that, the director decided to make the fall himself, and in the picture, he will be shown going down and clutching at brush and rocks, all of which gave way. The final landing was made in a net, but that does not show in the picture. All who saw it, declare that it was some stunt." – Santa Barbara Morning Press, March 4, 1915

Mermaids Uncovered and Unashamed

Dateline – March 1916

California's Channel Islands – Santa Catalina Island and Santa Cruz Island were popular locations for silent movie filming.

"The shores of Catalina Island furnished the settings of sandy beaches, rugged and jagged rocks." – News Pilot (San Pedro, California), March 13, 1916

Mermaid movies were popular in the early silent movie years when ladies rarely showed their ankles on the streets, so movies about mermaids wearing just a few wisps of seaweed were considered hot stuff. Scenes for the mermaid movie Undine were filmed on Santa Cruz Island (seen here) and Santa Catalina Island.

Mae Murray, or Mae Rooned?

Dateline – March 1916

A silent movie crew filming To Have and to Hold off the shore of California's Santa Catalina Island lost the movie's leading actress for a while. "Mae Murray was left all night on a rock during a storm at Catalina . . . Now they call her 'Mae Rooned.'" – Motography, March 4, 1916

Here's how it happened:

"In two vessels, they went to Church Rock. Early in the afternoon, the sky began to look like rain, and Director George Melford decided upon a return to Avalon. Those in each vessel thought Miss Murray was in the other, and it was not until 8:00 that night, sometime after their arrival at Avalon, that they learned definitely that she had not left the rock with either party.

"Melford and Wallace Reid headed a rescue party in a launch . . . it was raining heavily, and they found Miss Murray vainly trying to obtain some shelter from the storm as she crouched by the side of the rock. She was so cold and wet and exhausted that they found it necessary to lash her to the skiff." – Moving Picture World, February 12, 1916

Movie Making in Goleta, CA

Dateline: February 1915

There was little mention of Santa Barbara's "Flying A" studio filming in the Goleta area, but they did make a couple of silent movies there. "Twilight . . . and its long cast calls for the entire company and a number of extras. Thirty-four scenes were taken at the John Moore Ranch at Goleta." – Moving Picture World, February 6, 1915.

This silent film was released as In the Twilight.

A Genuine Black Eye

Dateline: February 1923

Things got kind of rough during the filming of a silent movie called The Isle of Lost Ships that was taking place on a ship near Santa Catalina Island, CA. Here's the story for the movie: A small group of passengers on a ship is stranded in the middle of the Sargasso Sea when their ship collides with a shipwreck floating amidst the seaweed. One of the group is a nasty guy who is mean to everyone, including the only young woman in the group.

When the hero steps in to save the folks, he has to battle the nasty guy, and the fight got pretty realistic. (Sometimes actors in silent films used a movie fight as a way to settle an old score.) Somehow, the actor playing the hero got an honest-to-goodness injury. "[The actor] is wearing a 'beautiful' black eye, the result of an honest-to-goodness battle . . . one of the most thrilling scenes in the big melodrama." – Camera, February 3, 1923

An Icy February Swim

Dateline: February 1916
The "Flying A" studio sometimes ventured outside of the Santa Barbara, CA area to find some variety in the landscape. For the silent movie Snow Stuff, they headed up to Truckee in Nevada County in search of some snowscape. As expected, the February weather made some stunts even harder to perform.

"[An actor] was called upon by the script to fall into the Truckee River, which was cold enough to make the bottom drop out of a thermometer. He did the stunt once and was rejoicing that it was finally in the past when [the director] added insult to injury by calling for a 'retake.' As a result, the rotund character man had to take two more immersions in the icy water before the proper effect was obtained. [The actor] says that from now on wild animals, autos, railroad trains and explosives will have no terrors for him."

The cameramen who were shooting this scene were also having a hard time. "Both of them were standing up to their waists in the river in order to 'shoot' the tumble from the best angle." – Santa Barbara Morning Press, February 20, 1916

Mary Pickford Films in Montecito Estate Garden

Dateline: January 1918

One of the more unusual silent films that Mary Pickford made was Stella Maris, in which she played a dual role. She personified both a rich woman and a bedraggled orphan, and looked dramatically different in both roles.

While playing the rich woman, some scenes were filmed in the garden of the palatial Bothin estate in Montecito, CA. Both Pickford and the scenery got a rave review in the Variety trade journal in January 1918. "It is a whale of a Pickford release . . . It is a revelation in exterior locations and interior settings." – Variety, January 25, 1918

Good news! This film is available for viewing on Youtube.