Santa Monica, CA as a filming location

Jim Henry · Post by **Jim Henry** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 1:44 pm

Can anyone think of an available silent film that includes a substantial amount of recognizable location filming in Santa Monica, CA? Preferably a comedy short. I know of a couple shot in nearby Venice and Long Beach, such as Lloyd's "Number Please" and Arbuckle's "The Cook," and but are there any that were shot in Santa Monica?

rollot24 · Post by **rollot24** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 1:51 pm

Weren't a lot of Laurel & Hardy shorts filmed in and around Santa Monica?

drednm · Post by **drednm** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 7:48 pm

I believe Wallace Reid's The Roaring Road was filmed on the dirt roads of Santa Monica in 1919 for a road race.

greta de groat · Post by **greta de groat** » Fri Feb 19, 2010 12:26 pm

Didn't Kalem have a company in Santa Monica? Don't know how many of those exist, though, but they might be worth checking out. Was this Ruth Roland's unit?

greta

greta de groat · Post by **greta de groat** » Fri Feb 19, 2010 2:48 pm

This is probably totally irrelevant too, but i'm looking at Wids Yearbook for 1919-1920, and there is an advertisement for Paton Film, Inc., Stuart Paton, director general "Now producing the serial The Sign of the Rat." They have a picture of a pier and a building with the caption: Studio of the Paton Film, Inc. The only studio of its kind in the world, located at Santa Monica Bay,Calif. Extends 500 feet into the ocean. A great many artistic and novel effects will be produced here under the direction of Mr. Paton. Address: Nat Goodwin Pier, Hollister Ave. and Ocean Front, Santa Monica, Calif.

I have no idea if this studio actually made anything, let alone anything that survives. I don't see anything with the above title in IMDB. But, just tossing it out there since it was kind of interesting.

greta

rogerskarsten · Post by **rogerskarsten** » Fri Feb 19, 2010 10:27 pm

According to the IMDb, Stuart Paton did direct a serial called THE FATAL SIGN (1920); maybe THE SIGN OF THE RAT was the working title.

~Roger

rogerskarsten · Post by **rogerskarsten** » Fri Feb 19, 2010 10:32 pm

greta de groat wrote:The only studio of its kind in the world, located at Santa Monica Bay, Calif. Extends 500 feet into the ocean. A great many artistic and novel effects will be produced here under the direction of Mr. Paton.

Among the artistic and novel effects: watch as the tide sweeps the whole studio out into the ocean!

Hm, I see that Stuart Paton directed 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1916). How fitting...

~Roger