Attached to this post is a self-guided written tour to Hollywood silent film locations and studios that I have prepared in connection with the “Hollywood’s Silent Echoes” presentation I will be giving Friday, August 30, 2013, at 10:30 a.m. at the Egyptian Theater, 6712 Hollywood Boulevard, as part of the Cinecon 49 – Classic Film Festival. With this tour you can follow a number of points I will cover during my presentation.
The tour starts at Hollywood and Vine, and encompasses nearly 50 filming locations and historic sites associated with Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Douglas Fairbanks, and Harry Langdon, including several new discoveries not found in my books or previously posted tours.
During the lunch break after my talk I will lead a quick walking tour from the theater of the historic 1600 block of Cahuenga nearby. I look forward to seeing you at Cinecon 49!
Hollywood’s Silent Echoes – Cinecon 49 Classic Film Festival Tour – 2013
Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd film locations (and more) 
John,
That’s great that you’ll be at Cinecon this year. I’m not sure if you and your LA readers know of a special Silent Salon series this month at the historic Villa Aurora in Pacific Palisades that includes four short Harold Lloyd films on Aug 10 with live organ accompaniment by renowned UCLA organist-in-residence Christoph Bull.
THE ACADEMY AND VILLA AURORA PRESENT
SILENT SALON
This summer, in collaboration with the Academy, Villa Aurora will celebrate its magnificent pipe organ and the sponsors who helped restore it to glory. For the first time, the Villa gardens will be open for film fans to come early to picnic, watch the sunset and settle in for a program of silent films featuring some of Hollywood’s top silent-era comedians, with live organ accompaniment. The grounds open at 6:30 p.m., with each program beginning at 8:30 p.m.
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Now I’m even more sad that I can’t be at Cinecon this year; it would have been delightful to see you again. To the blog readers who haven’t yet had the pleasure of meeting John in person, you are in for a marvelous treat.
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I’m really excited to attend your lecture and try to hit some of the highlights on your self-guided tour handout–it was very thoughtful of you to compile all that information in one place. I was trying to do something similar flipping between your three books, which was making my head hurt! I also saw that you are going to be leading a tour near the Egyptian at lunchtime, which sounds beyond wonderful. One question for you, if you have time to answer: I’m attending Cinecon that day with my film buff 7-year-old daughter. Are there parts of your self-guided tour that are especially packed with adult movie theaters and such that I might want to steer clear of? I would love to be able to bring her on your guided tour, but if it’s going to be a gauntlet of porn stores I’m a little worried for her, I may have to abandon that idea. I’d love your thoughts on the area, as I’m not from LA and don’t know it at all. Thanks much–if you can’t reply before the weekend, I’ll just try to talk to you at Cinecon. Can’t wait!!!
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Hi Carrie – thank you for your kind words. The lunch tour involves walking a good 5-6 blocks down Hollywood Blvd from the Egyptian to Cahuenga. It won’t be as bad as you dread. If you look on Google Street View, we will pass by a tattoo parlor, a lingerie shop or two, and a “gentlemen’s” club, but it will be broad daylight at lunch time. The block of Cahuenga we will tour does have an adult video store, but it has no windows or decorations, just a plain sign over the doorway, and should be easy not to notice. You definitely won’t be in Kansas anymore, but it should be OK, especially if we have a crowd. There will also be the Walk of Fame stars on the sidewalk to study all along the way, so you can focus on your feet! I look forward to meeting you and your daughter on Friday 🙂 Cheers, John
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Thanks for your response. She may opt to hang with her grandmother tomorrow and save her energy for the big night of Mary Pickford movies tomorrow evening, leaving me free to explore kid-free with the grown-ups. I cannot wait!
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