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Generously Sponsored by:
The John C. Mithun Foundation and Susan Torrey and Mercedes Millington

The Granada Theatre opened in 1924 as a Grand Movie Palace and Live Performance Venue.  Tonight, our host Ross Melnick, Film Historian and UCSB Professor of Film and Media Studies, takes us back in time to revisit those glorious years!

A CENTENNIAL DOUBLE FEATURE!

This 1924 American silent comedy classic, opened at the Granada in the theater’s very first year.  The film was directed by and stars Buster Keaton.  In 1991, the Library of Congress chose Sherlock Jr. for preservation in the United States National Film Registry, recognizing it as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” Tonight’s fully restored 4K presentation of Sherlock Jr. will feature live piano accompaniment by award-winning composer and musician Michael Mortilla.

Michael Mortilla has accompanied silent films for many years and has received commissions from The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Chicago Symphony, and the Library of Congress, among others. He performed his first live accompaniment of a silent film at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in 1986. Michael estimates he has accompanied Sherlock Jr. more than 45 times!

Star Wars: A New Hope was first presented at the Granada on September 16, 1977, and ran for 15 weeks! This epic space opera film was written and directed by George Lucas. It was the first film released in the Star Wars film series and the fourth chronological chapter of the Skywalker saga. It received numerous awards at the Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards, and Saturn Awards, among others. The Granada is thrilled to return this fully restored 4K version to its big screen.