Discover California’s silent film history with Betsy J. Green!
Hundreds of silent movies were filmed on the idyllic islands of California starring luminaries such as Gloria Swanson, Rudolph Valentino, Douglas Fairbanks, Buster Keaton, Oliver Hardy, Stan Laurel, and many more. Daring actors and actresses jumped off cliffs, battled pirates, swam with sharks, thwarted evildoers, and rescued mermaids. The earliest films were five- or ten-minutes long and filmed on the beaches. Island movies later grew into million-dollar features with casts of thousands. Join local author and historian Betsy J. Green for a talk on her latest book, Silents on the Islands: Silent movies filmed on California’s Channel Islands.
Santa Barbara Historical Museum SBHM Lecture - History Happy Hour series