Winter Preview: Part 2

Flying south for the winter …

Vitaphone Vaudeville (1926-1930)
December 1, 11:00 a.m. The Castro, San Francisco

Intolerance (1916)
December 1, 2:00 p.m. The Castro, San Francisco

Flesh and The Devil (1926)
December 1, 8:00 p.m. The Castro, San Francisco

The San Francisco Silent Film Festival returns to the Castro Theater for its annual winter program Saturday December 1. The day begins with more of the rarely seen Vitaphone shorts presented last December, continues with D.W. Griffith’s landmark historical epic, Intolerance (1916), and concludes with a film that helped define MGM’s glory days, Flesh and The Devil (1926). Musical accompaniment for both features will be performed on the Castro’s 4/21 Wurlitzer by Dennis James. For more on this program please see Annie’s preview posted here on November 6.

… home again ….

The General (1927)
December 5, 7:30 p.m. SIFF Cinema (Nesholm Family Lecture Hall)

Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928)
December 5, 9:00 p.m. SIFF Cinema (Nesholm Family Lecture Hall)

SIFF Cinema presents Buster Keaton in The General (1927) and Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928) as part of its "30 years of Kino" program Wednesday, December 5, at 7:30 & 9:00 p.m. respectively. Keaton’s contribution to 1927, The General stands as the most popular and best remembered of his feature films. A meek and unassertive railroad engineer does his best to save the Confederacy and his beloved engine, while persuading his girl that he’s not the coward he appears to be. Among the outstanding highlights are Buster’s scene with a large loaded canon, fuse lit, on a moving flatbed car (he actually puts his head in the barrel at one point), and the spectacular collapse of a railroad trestle just as a Union train is crossing in pursuit.
Steamboat Bill Jr. is best known for the most exhilarating and dangerous stunt Keaton ever attempted, the kind of thing MGM forbade him to do later in his career. A citified dude reunites with his salty old dad, a riverboat captain played by Ernest Torrence (Tol’able David 1921, Peter Pan 1924, The Covered Wagon 1923), and saves the family business from a raging hurricane. Watch for the very brief but hilarious appearance of Keaton’s trademark porkpie hat.

… and points north.

The Third Annual Port Townsend Silent Film Festival

Following a presentation of Paramount’s 1924 holiday classic Peter Pan that packed Port Townsend’s Rose Theater for two shows last winter, the PTFF will expand its winter silent film program to cover an entire weekend in 2008. The Third Annual Port Townsend Silent Film Festival will present treasures from Hollywood’s silent era January 26 & 27, with two shows each day. Live musical accompaniment includes the return of PTFF favorite Donald Sosin, and the long awaited Port Townsend debut of Dennis James (hoorah!). Film titles have not been announced, but stay tuned….

This just in ...

Late word from Lou Magor at West Seattle's Kenyon Hall, for those of you who can't make the trip to San Francisco: Harrold Lloyd's funniest, Lon Chaney's most bizarre, and Buster, Buster, Buster!

"Two years ago, when he was only 93, Bob Mitchell wowed capacity crowds at
Kenyon Hall with his mastery of our Wurlitzer as he accompanied three classic
silent movies.

Bob has graciously agreed to return to the hall the week after Thanksgiving for
two days of movie and musical magic.

On Friday, November 30 at 8, he'll accompany the Harold Lloyd comedy "Why
Worry?" Saturday, December 1 at 2 p.m., it's Buster Keaton in "Seven Chances."
Saturday at 8 p.m., "The Unknown," starring Lon Chaney and Joan Crawford.

Front table seats are $14. Row seats are $12 general, and $10 seniors and
students. With a reservation, row seats are only $10 general and $8 seniors and
students. To make a reservation, simply e-mail kenyonhall@earthlink.net."

Thanks Lou