Chronicling the ongoing adventure of staging silent film screenings with live music in theaters in New England, USA and elsewhere, including once in remote East Greenland, well above the Arctic Circle. Now over 2,856,000 page views!
Vilma Banky and Rudolph Valentino in 'The Son of the Sheik' (1926). This month marks the 100th anniversary of the untimely death of silent screen icon Rudolph Valentino, who passed away on Aug. 23, 1926 at age 31. This past Sunday, I accompanied the first of several screenings this month of 'The Son of the Sheik' (1926), Valentino's last film. I'm actually be doing it twice this weekend: on…
An original poster promoting 'The Black Pirate' (1926), which I'll accompany on Saturday, July 18 in Brandon, Vt. I hope everyone had a great 4th of July! I'm away from the keyboard for a short stretch, but will be back doing music for silent film screenings starting in mid-July. Here's a round-up of upcoming programs of silent film with live music by me. Hope to see you soon at a silent film…
Me outside the Jane Pickens Theatre, which always does amazing promotional posters. Last Thursday night, I had the honor of doing music for 'The General' (1926) for a very appreciative audience at the Jane Pickens Theatre in Newport, R.I. In introducing the film, I tried a new way to explain what an innovator filmmaker Keaton was. I asked everyone to look for a short sequence early in the film…
Buster with his co-star in 'The General' (1926). Even if we weren't celebrating the 100th anniversary of its release, Buster Keaton's 'The General' stands as one of the most requested silent films But this year, thanks to the big round number, I'm accompanying 'The General' more than ever. Next up: Thursday, May 21 at 6 p.m. at the Jane Pickens Theatre in Newport, R.I. More details on this…
Silent film comedian Harold Lloyd showing his aggressive side in 'Girl Shy' (1924). Up next: it's Harold Lloyd's 'Girl Shy' (1924), which I'm accompanying on Saturday, May 16 at 7 p.m. at the Leavitt Theatre in Ogunquit, Maine. More info on the film and this screening, which opens the 2026 silent film series at the historic venue, in the press release pasted in below. But first, a report on an…
A poster promoting 'America' (1924) and highlighting the Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, which is depicted in the film. This weekend, I'll be at the keyboard to accompany a screening of D.W. Griffith's historical epic 'America' (1924), a drama set during the American Revolution. The film, which I've never scored before, will be shown on Sunday, May 10 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton,…
A promotional lobby card for 'Annie Laurie' (1926) starring Lillian Gish. This year's silent film series at the Brandon (Vt.) Town Hall and Community Center opens with a screening of the MGM historical blockbuster 'Annie Laurie' (1926) on Saturday May 2 at 7 p.m. I'll be at the keyboard for the 16th year of silent films and live music in Brandon. It's turned into quite a run, which is good because…
Buster and his co-star in 'The General' (1926). I'm back on the road this week to the Regent Theatre in Arlington, Mass., where they're screening Buster Keaton's 'The General' (1926) on Wednesday, April 29, with music by me. It's the third visit to the Regent this month, as the venue pursues a mini-series of silent screenings that included Cecil B. DeMille's 'King of Kings' (1927) and Harold…
An original lobby card promoting 'Annie Laurie' (1927). More than a month since I last posted anything on this blog. Wow! I've still been accompanying as many films as ever. It's just that I've gone through a period where real life exceeded my capacity for writing about it. But here I am again. And we'll pick up with a preview of an upcoming screening: the MGM epic 'Annie Laurie' (1927), starring…
Ramon Novarro poses with a prop in 'The Flying Fleet' (1929). Heading down to the Sunshine State this morning for an unusual gig: doing live music for a screening of 'The Flying Fleet' (1929) at the Leeward Air Ranch in Ocala, Fla. What's going on is that awhile back I was up for auction as part of a fundraising event for the non-profit Aviation Museum of N.H., where I serve as Executive Director.…
An original poster for 'The Phantom of the Opera' (1925). Next up: doing music for a screening of 'The Phantom of the Opera' (1925) at the Falmouth Public Library in Falmouth, Mass. The show is Saturday, March 14 at 3 p.m. It seems somehow fitting to accompany a screening of the cape-wearing 'Phantom' on Cape Cod! A press release with more info about the film and the screening is pasted in below.…
A poster promoting the 1916 release of 'Sherlock Holmes' starring William Gillette. One of the first times I got to stay up late was in junior high, when I got in the habit of watching Sherlock Holmes movies that Channel 38 in Boston showed on Saturday nights starting at 11:30 p.m. They would run one of the Universal series of pictures from the late 1930s into the 1940s starring Basil Rathbone as…
The Steinway D concert grand piano on stage at White Concert Hall at Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas. And the star of the show is...the piano! Well, not entirely. Each year, the Kansas Silent Film Festival is worth experiencing for the films, and also the fine people who organize it and attend it, and the community that hosts it. And this year was no exception. The 29th annual edition of the…
An original release poster for the 1922 version of 'The Old Homestead.' UPDATE ON TICKETS for 'The Old Homestead' screenings. As of Thursday, Feb. 5, I'm told "tickets are gone" for both screenings. However, because the tickets are free, a number of no-shows are expected. So if you're in the area and really want to join us, it's worth stopping by The Showroom, 20 Commercial St., Keene, N.H. just…
'Annie Laurie' (1927) will be screened on Sunday, Feb. 1 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton, N.H. It really doesn't work without an audience. So today's snowstorm blew in earlier than expected, which led to not a single person showing up for our planned matinee screening of 'Annie Laurie' (1927) on Sunday, Jan. 25, with live music by me. Although the show must go on, when no one shows…
An original lobby card promoting MGM's 'Annie Laurie' (1927) starring Lillian Gish. The show must go on! That's the story for our screening of 'Annie Laurie' (1927), the MGM historical adventure epic that I'm scheduled to accompany on Sunday, Jan. 25 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton, N.H. Yes, a big slow-moving snowstorm is supposed to roll through our area starting that afternoon. The…
Posing in front of the display wall in the "Charlie Chaplin Room" upstairs at the Bear Pub on Charing Cross Road, London. Welcome to 2026 and another year of bringing silent films to life with live music. Right now I'm in London, but not for silent film purposes. The wife and I are on our quasi-annual mid-winter "pig out on theater" trip across the pond. Seven shows in four days. But you can't get…
A scene from Thomas Edison's early version of 'A Christmas Carol' (1910), which runs all of 10 minutes. Alas, there's no silent film equivalent of 'It's a Wonderful Life' (1946), the Christmastime classic starring Jimmy Stewart and directed by Frank Capra. But there are some films from a century ago that make use of the holiday setting to good effect. For comedy, there's Charley Chase in 'There…
A lobby card for 'So's Your Old Man' (1926), which I'll accompany on Sunday, Jan. 18 at the Cleveland Cinematheque. Welcome to the holiday preview edition of this blog, in which I try to catch up after several weeks of being just too busy to update it. First, the big news is that the glamorous showbiz life of a silent film accompanist will take me to Cleveland, Ohio for a pair of screenings in…
A Swedish poster for Buster Keaton's 'Seven Chances' (1925). Up next it's Buster Keaton's great comedy 'Seven Chances' (1925), which I'll accompany on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. at Brandon (Vt.) Town Hall. It's the final screening of this year's silent film series in Brandon. We'll return in May with another schedule of great early cinema with live music. So be sure to get your fix this Friday to…
At the Crandell Theatre in Chatham, N.Y. Hey, that doesn't look like me on the marquee! Pleased to report I've emerged intact from the annual Halloween silent film steeplechase. Yes, the last half of October is the busiest time of the year for this silent film accompanist, with screenings pretty much every night for two weeks straight. But I'm not complaining! I played for audiences in six states,…
A scene from 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' (1920). It's gonna be one crowded cabinet! This morning I got word that more than 130 people have pre-registered for a screening of 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' (1920), which I'll accompany on Wednesday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. at the Derry (N.H.) Opera House. Wow! Unless a lot of people ghost us (it IS the Halloween season, after all), that's a big turnout,…
A poster for the original silent film version of 'Phantom of the Opera' (1925), which I'm accompanying six times this Halloween season! It's a show 100 years in the making—in a vintage theater celebrating its 100th season! It's the silent thriller 'The Phantom of the Opera' (1925), which I'll accompany on Monday, Oct. 27 at the Leavitt Theatre in downtown Ogunquit, Maine. It's the last hurrah for…
That look! That face! Conrad Veidt stars as 'The Man Who Laughs' (1928). I suppose it's too late to approach the American Dental Association about sponsoring tomorrow's screening of 'The Man Who Laughs' (1928) in Plymouth, N.H. It's one film in which teeth play a featured role! But it's not too late for you to make your way tomorrow night to the Flying Monkey Moviehouse and Performance Center,…
A dramatic poster promoting 'Way Down East' (1920). Happy 'National Silent Movie Day' to one and all. Yes, Sept. 29 is the day we should all stop for...what, a moment of silence? No! How about 2½ hours of silence, but with live music throughout? That's what you'll get if you're anywhere near Greenfield, Mass. this evening (Monday, Sept. 29) and can make it over to the Garden Cinemas downtown.…