6 years ago
By Darryl Tardy First Coast News
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Jacksonville has a rich film history dating back at least 90 years. Now we're getting a chance to see some of the first films from the First Coast.
The collector who has these films is hoping Jacksonville will actually buy them.
The River City was once considered the silent film capitol of the world. But some like silent film collector Sandra Birnhak, the owner of the Killiam Collection, believes we, the city, has let that history fade.
Birnhak says, "I think Jacksonville has let its silent film history slip. It's been something that's pushed under the rug or it's just been something that's never been brought out from under the rug." The Norman Studios which produced films like "The Flying Ace" in 1926 put Jacksonville on the map for the movie industry. But it wasn't the only studio shooting silent films.
Birnahk says, "We're fortunate to have several films in the Killiam Collection that we'ved traced back to Jacksonville." Movies like, "The Son of the Sheik", filmed with the legendary actor Rudolph Valentino, were shot in Jacksonville in 1926. Birnhak says, "He died shortly after it was released in NYC. And the Sheik was shot out here on the dunes of Jacksonville in the 1920s..early twenties." Or the film "A Fool There Was" which was shot in 1914. Birnhak says, "This is a very film nois film that was shot on location between Jacksonville and Saint Augustine." They are just two of nearly 5000 silent classics that Birnhak recently decided to sell. "We'd like somebody to take it over who can let it out and let the public see it and let the people come around the world to use it." Birnhak's pitched the idea to the Cummer Museum and to city leaders. She's hoping someone locally will buy the collection and keep our film history silent, no more.
Birnahk says, "I think it's a good opportunity to put Jacksonville on the map for current film as well for its own history and legacy."
Films from the collection won't be sold separately. All five films will be kept together. The collection is valued at more than $18 million. City leaders have not yet decided whether they will purchase the collection.
First Coast News