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A few nights ago, I went to my local movie theater in Berkeley to see a movie I had been looking forward to ever since I heard that it was part of the Cannes Film Festival last year. Entitled Ingrid Bergman-In Her Own Words, this beautiful documentary based on the diaries of Ingrid Bergman and sup read more

A few nights ago, I went to my local movie theater in Berkeley to see a movie I had been looking forward to ever since I heard that it was part of the Cannes Film Festival last year. Entitled Ingrid Bergman-In Her Own Words, this beautiful documentary based on the diaries of Ingrid Bergman and sup read more

A few nights ago, I went to my local movie theater in Berkeley to see a movie I had been looking forward to ever since I heard that it was part of the Cannes Film Festival last year. Entitled Ingrid Bergman-In Her Own Words, this beautiful and alluring documentary, based on the diaries of Ingrid B read more

The 14th annual Noir City festival, the spectacular tribute to film noir that has become a must-see San Francisco tradition, took place last week at the Castro Theatre. The festival is one big noir extravaganza, with the theater packed to the gills every day and every night for ten days straight. read more

The 14th annual Noir City festival, the spectacular tribute to film noir that has become a must-see San Francisco tradition, took place last week at the Castro Theatre. The festival is one big noir extravaganza, with the theater packed to the gills every day and every night for ten days straight. read more

The 14th annual Noir City festival, the spectacular tribute to film noir that has become a must-see San Francisco tradition, took place last week at the Castro Theatre. Normally, Noir City spans several weekends throughout the month of January, but this year, the festival powers-that-be decided to read more

From beautiful, unseasonably warm New York City, where I have spent the past week engulfed in research, I wish you a very happy holiday! Here are some photos of classic Hollywood stars celebrating. The Marion Davies Children’s Clinic, 1954 Marion Davies founded her children’s clinic i read more

With his swashbuckling persona, jaw-dropping acrobatics and million dollar smile, Douglas Fairbanks was the definition of what it means to be a movie star. Known equally well for being half of the most influential celebrity power couple of the 1920s, and for his lavish estate known as Pickfair tha read more

Yesterday afternoon at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival hosted its annual Day of Silents, featuring a magnificent lineup of silent films from around the world that whet the festivalgoer’s appetite for the larger festival taking place in June. This y read more

In light of the terrifying events in Paris yesterday, like the rest of the world I have been struggling with how to respond. I have deep ties to Paris, both personal and familial, and 2015 has been one of the city’s most terror-filled years in recent memory. Though all of my friends and rela read more

Maureen O’Hara, whose subtle Irish beauty and fiery red hair made her a favorite of director John Ford, died yesterday in her sleep at 95. In recent years she had moved from her home in the south of Ireland to Boise, Idaho, to be with her family, and was continuing to make appearances as lat read more

Starting tomorrow and continuing through the month of October, TCM will partner with Women in Film Los Angeles to focus on the women behind the camera with their much-anticipated Trailblazing Women programming. Spanning from the earliest days of cinema to the present day, TCM and WIF will present read more

I am back in the United States after a wonderful August researching Marion Davies in France. The research is going well, and I did have some downtime to enjoy the country as well, including several days in beautiful, rugged Corsica and tranquil northern Provence. I came back in late August, and am read more

Olivia de Havilland and Yvette Mimieux in Light in the Piazza (1962). Today’s Summer Under the Stars marathon focuses on two-time Academy Award winner, cinematic legend and all-around delightful human being Olivia de Havilland, who at age 99 is still living and enjoying life in Paris where sh read more

Rex Harrison as the ghost of a seaman haunting Gene Tierney’s cottage in THE GHOST AND MRS. MUIR (1947). TCM’s annual Summer Under the Stars programming is officially underway. During the month of August, TCM salutes a different star each day, marathoning that star’s movies and pr read more

Mike Grant and his daughter Rachael were working at a recycling center in Sidmouth, Devon in the UK, when something unusual caught their eye. Next to an old tin of paint on an old shelving unit lay two 16mm film reels, discarded as junk along with the shelves and the paint. Upon further inspection, read more

Readers, a quick glance at the history of Backlots tells me that I have not updated since June 10, which feels like a terrible sin on my part. I apologize for my absence, and I promise you that I am alive and have not forgotten about my blogging duties. There is an explanation for my absence. As m read more

The first time Lillian Gish saw Hollywood was after a five day train journey from a blustery New York. She describes Los Angeles as warm and inviting, a city that “smelled like a vast orange grove, and the abundance of roses offered a cheery welcome.” This was the Hollywood of the earl read more

Another marvelous festival has come to a close, and these five days were certainly ones to remember. With world-class guests such as Kevin Brownlow and Serge Bromberg and some of the greatest silent film accompanists in the business, festival attendees experienced the very best that silent film ha read more

The San Francisco Silent Film Festival is taking place the week of Memorial Day this year, and a fitting film opened the festival this evening. A packed crowd filled the Castro Theatre at the corner of Market and Castro to see All Quiet on the Western Front, a beautiful adaptation of Erich Maria R read more