Monday the 29th is International Silent Film Day, and Seattle is showing F.W. Murnau’s “The Last Laugh” at the Paramount Theatre. The film stars Emil Jannings as a hotel doorman who must cope with losing coveted job. The show begins at 7 p.m. #stgpresents, #seattleparamount

It’s September 26th in Seattle, 1920. If you’re headed to the Coliseum Theatre downtown, you’re seeing “Harriet the Piper,” starring Anita Stewart. This First National release, with its own special musical prologue was paired with a short scenic film and the Mermaid comedy “Dynamite.”

Audrey Munson was famed for modeling (often nude) for painters and sculptors. But she also made a few movies, though her pictures gave the censors fits. See how Seattle and Bremerton dealt with the controversial Miss Munson…now playing, at Northwest Picture Show. nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

The explosion of nickelodeon theatres before 1910 was great for moviegoers, but a headache for regulators. Get a glimpse of how Seattle and Spokane were monitoring their early movie houses in 1909...now playing, at Northwest Picture Show. nwpictureshow.com/regulating-e...

Northwest Picture Show is getting some free press in the Seattle Times! The article runs on Sunday, but you can get a sneak peek at: pauldorpat.com Thanks to Clay Eals for a great story and the demonstration on how to shoot photographs in the middle of 2nd Avenue without getting hit by a car.

At 12pm on Friday, Sept. 19th, the SF Film Preserve will hold an online seminar on the preservation of the mutoscope work of artist Douglass Crockwell (1904-1968). Mutoscopes were a pioneer movie machine which Crockwell adapted for his own work. Registration info: filmpreserve.org/event/online...

Who wants a new Studebaker? Well, many people do, to judge from a 1915 contest held at Spokane’s Empress Theatre. Only it didn’t go as planned, so this promotion became a public relations disaster. How not to run a contest…now playing, at Northwest Picture Show. nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

The Frank Buxton Silent Film Festival at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art (550 Winslow Way E., Bainbridge Island) concludes today with two features. At 1 p.m. is the John Ford western “3 Bad Men,” followed at 4 p.m. by the Garbo/Gilbert romance “Flesh and the Devil,” directed by Clarence Brown.

Tonight at 7 p.m. the Frank Buxton Silent Film Festival kicks off at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art (550 Winslow Way E.) with F.W. Murnau’s “Sunrise” (1927). The plot follows a young married couple who struggle following infidelity. Don't miss one of the greatest films ever made!

The Bainbridge Island Museum of Art is hosting Frank Buxton Silent Film Festival this weekend. Screenings begin Friday night with "Sunrise" (1927), and include features/shorts such as Buster Keaton’s "The General" (1927) and "Flesh and the Devil" (1926). www.biartmuseum.org/event/the-fr...

The Los Angeles Silent Film Festival opens Friday night with Harold Lloyd's "The Freshman." Weekend highlights include a few classics ("The Big Parade") and smaller films (Clara Bow in "Kid Boots"). Screenings will be held at the Los Feliz Theatre. www.americancinematheque.com/series/los-a...

In some rural areas, early motion pictures were rarely seen. But Samuel "King" Kennedy brought them from town-to-town, entertaining children throughout northeast Washington for nearly 40 years. Long Live the King…Now playing, at Northwest Picture Show. nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

Coming this weekend is the Denver Silent Film Festival, featuring such films as The Black Pirate (1926), Blind Husbands (1919) and Diary of a Lost Girl (1929). Screenings will be held at the Sie FilmCenter in Denver with live musical accompaniment. denversilentfilmfestival.eventive.org/welcome

How big was this film? When R.K. Dunham, a small exhibitor in Skagit County, booked it in 1917, he could only afford to get it for one day. And he STILL made a killing. Learn more about early cinema’s most notorious film…Now playing, at “Northwest Picture Show.” nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

In 1915, a promotional article in "Moving Picture World" tried to sell Washington as a filmmaker's paradise. If you stayed on the WESTERN side of the mountains, that is... nwpictureshow.com/a-charming-c...

What if you want to build a new movie theatre, but the city council won’t approve your plan? That's easy - you get right to work. Replacing that city council. Come see Ray Connell battle the city of Aberdeen. Now playing, at “Northwest Picture Show.” nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch... #aberdeenwa

In my own biased opinion, all you'll ever need to know about silent cinema can be found on my website, Northwest Picture Show (www.nwpictureshow.com). But, in fairness, there are others writing about the silent era, and some of it is quite good. Here's a few: silentlondon.co.uk/2025/08/20/s...

On Monday, August 25th, at 7p.m., the Paramount Theatre in Seattle will show Harold Lloyd’s silent comedy "The Freshman" (1925). The comedian plays Harold Lamb, an overeager newbie on campus who wants to make a name for himself, and fast. Music will be provided on the Paramount's Wurlitzer organ.

In 1910 Jim Jeffries was supposed to defeat Jack Johnson, boxing’s first black heavyweight champion. Only he didn’t. And that made the resulting film not only a huge blockbuster, but hugely controversial as well. Now playing, at “Northwest Picture Show.” nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

On Friday, August 22nd, the Pickford Film Center in Bellingham will present a free series of silent films with live musical accompaniment. Festivities start at 7:30p.m. This outstanding program of 5 short films includes the classic "A Trip to the Moon "(1902) and Buster Keaton’s "One Week" (1920).

On Sunday, August 17th, the Olympia Film Society (olympiafilmsociety.org) will screen a restored version Fritz Lang’s 1927 film "Metropolis" at 7p.m., complete with a live musical score. Tickets are $18.25 (general admission) and ($15.25 OFS members). #metropolis, #fritzlang, #olympiafilmsociety

This is Frank Richardson. He has thoughts on how best to run your movie theatre. You should probably listen. Some folks in Everett found this out the hard way. Now playing, at Northwest Picture Show. nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch... #nwpictureshow, #silentfilm, #frankrichardson, #movieprojection

Operating a rural theatre in the silent era could be a tricky business. Come meet the Fowlers, a husband-and-wife team who spent a decade building their business, only to have circumstances take it away. Now playing, at Northwest Picture Show... nwpictureshow.com/the-highs-an...

All aboard the train to anywhere…and nowhere. Hale’s Tours was a 1906 sensory ride that used motion pictures to mimic the experience of train travel. Come see what Northwest audiences thought of this novelty attraction…now playing, at Northwest Picture Show. nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

Don’t miss the rare opportunity to see Alfred Hitchcock’s 1959 classic thriller "North by Northwest" on the big screen this Sunday, August 10th, 1 p.m. at the Pickford Film Center (138 Bay Street Street) in Bellingham. www.pickfordfilmcenter.org #pickfordfilmcenter, #hitchcock, #carygrantmovies

At 7 p.m. on August 3rd, the Rose Theatre in Port Townsend will screen the Billy Wilder classic "Sunset Boulevard." Don’t miss the opportunity to see Gloria Swanson as a former silent actress who’s slowly losing her grip on reality. “We didn’t need dialogue – we had FACES!” www.rosetheatre.com

What did it take to be an early newsreel cameraman? Visit Northwest Picture Show and learn how these intrepid journalists brought the news (or a simulation thereof) to movie audiences around the country. nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

What to do with your unruly children at the picture show? Several early theatres in Seattle had a fix for that... nwpictureshow.com/crybaby/

The Seattle General Strike of 1919 was a national news event. The story was so huge, in fact, that it inspired not one, but TWO feature films during the silent era. Tales of labor, capital, art and commerce…now playing at: nwpictureshow.com/portfolio/ch...

Little boys and lots of attitude. Visit "Northwest Picture Show" and learn about the venue they're about to attend, the Circuit, one of Seattle's best and most popular nickelodeons. nwpictureshow.com/the-circuit-...

A 15-cent coin? nwpictureshow.com/minting-mone...

A moving picture studio on the shores of Lake Washington? That was the idea of Beverly B. Dobbs, pioneer Northwest filmmaker who in 1913 attempted to parlay his early success into a full-fledged studio in Seattle. Now playing, at www.nwpictureshow.com ...

On July 18th and 24th, Northwest Film Forum (nwfilmforum.org) will be showing a series of newly-restored vintage cartoons by Max and Dave Fleischer, with selections featuring the characters of Koko the Clown, Betty Boop and Popeye the Sailor Man. Tickets are $15 general admission.

On Friday, July 18th, San Francisco Film Preserve will host an online presentation by Dr. Veronica Johnson on the Film Company of Ireland (FCOI). This presentation is free and open to anyone – simply register in advance to participate: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Thomas Edison's kinetoscope, a half-step toward projected motion pictures, made its Seattle debut in the fall of 1894. Learn more about the kinetoscope and its introduction to Northwest audiences in "Reel 2: A Peep Show Preview," at Northwest Picture Show (www.nwpictureshow.com).

Director Thomas Ince would like you to know that Northwest Picture Show (www.nwpictureshow.com) is now up and running. Drop by, read a little, leave us a message and let us know what you think. Mr. Ince is telling you nicely, and he's telling you only once. Please do not make him raise his voice.

Theatre interior or proof of a government cloning program? Find out tomorrow when Northwest Picture Show (www.nwpictureshow.com) finally launches...

Paul Revere reminding everyone on July 4th that Northwest Picture Show (www.nwpictureshow.com) is coming in two days. You've been warned.

The countdown is on for the official launch of Northwest Picture Show, coming in three days! Northwest Picture Show is a new website that looks at silent film exhibition in the Pacific Northwest from the 1860s to present -- the inside story of the early motion picture trade. Follow us for updates!