Showing posts with label Philadelphia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Philadelphia. Show all posts

3/1/15

Philadelphia Film History #6- The Show Off part 4 WHERE ARE WE?


Want to play historian? I've had a great time figuring out the 1926 location shooting for The Show Off. However, there are a few scenes that have me stumped. Can you identify any of these?

Most of these are a part of a car chase so these shots could have been filmed anywhere but, due to Hollywood efficiency, are more likely to take place near to locations where the camera has already been set up. Not always, as seen here in the jump from Washington Square to Logan Circle .

#1
That is a gorgeous bank - which one is it? Is this First National Bank on Chestnut Street? The buildings are closely packed so possibly this is Center City.




#2
 I think I've tracked down the hotel. This source from the University of Pennsylvania says that the Bertram Hotel was located in West Philly on Woodland Avenue near 33rd Street. Our protagonist is based in West Philly, so this makes sense. Which street is this?




#3
That is a hotel straight ahead and there is another to our left. Neither name is clear. There appears to be a sign with raised letters above the hotel on the left, maybe reading "THEBA"- it really isn't clear.




#4
I have the feeling this is a different neighborhood since there is so much space around the building. Are the rounded curbs a clue? They are similar to the curbs encircling Washington Square.

I love being a detective. I needed to do this type of investigation as a film archivist, to figure out when and where a home movie was filmed. Now it's your chance. Leave your answers in the comments.

9/29/14

Change of Address


2013 Franklin Street
Treasure of Monte Cristo (1949)

Sorry to have been gone so long. No, I was not in a sanitarium. If I was it would be this one.

Life can be tough for a recent college graduate looking for a job as a film archivist and I have been putting my focus elsewhere. In fact, I've pulled up stakes and moved clear across the country. These will likely be the last of the San Francisco address posts. Now I'm looking for films set in Philadelphia, just like me.

Can you tell me the titles of classic films set in Philadelphia? I know of The Philadelphia Story and that's it. There is such history here that there ought to be more. I doubt there was much focus on Colonial times or the Revolutionary or Civil wars, but a lot happened here during prohibition. There must be a good noir or two that I'm overlooking. Please add them to the comments.

These days times are still tough and I don't have a way of watching films just yet. In the meanwhile, I still intend to bring back a lot of the archive of images. I think I'll re-post them so they'll be ripe for fresh viewing instead of having them slide back into their old slots unannounced as I have done so far.

I'm so glad to be back!


Filbert Street and Sansome Street
Treasure of Monte Cristo (1949)