Dallas Classic Film Group keeps vintage entertainment alive

[Bruce Calvert]

Here's a piece on our local film group in Dallas that features forum member Jim Reid. Click on the link to see the video. I'm the guy in the dark room running the projector.

http://www.cafeconcine.com/dallas_class ... ent_alive/

Dallas Classic Film Group keeps vintage entertainment alive
Posted by
Liz Casanova
14 hours ago

The Dallas Classic Film Group meets once a month to watch 16 mm reels. Collector Jim Reid hosts the viewings in his duplex in North Dallas. Reid and film historian Bruce Calvert have about 700 reels that include films, cartoons and TV shows.

The June movie night group enjoyed the animated short “Mickey’s Garden,” the silent comedy “Long Fliv the King,” a Laurel and Hardy short “County Hospital,” and the feature film “My Man Godfrey” starring William Powell and Carole Lombard.

Movie lovers started the collection craze in the 1930s and 1940s, according to Film Threat. Unlike the 35mm nitrate prints that easily deteriorate, 16 mm are easier to find in fair to good condition.

Calvert describes the attraction of vintage entertainment.

“Watching any films from the 20s, 30s or 40s you are instantly transported back to that time,” Calvert said. “Life was simpler. People weren’t quite as materialistic as they are now.”

Recent blockbuster hits like Baz Luhrmann’s “The Great Gatsby” have also contributed to a new interest in the 1920s culture. Silent films stars like comedian Harold Lloyd are resurfacing to a new generation of cinephiles.

The Dallas Classic Film Group started in 2000. Local film collectors communicated online and decided to meet up, talk shop and show the films. Some of the core group of collectors still remains, but word-of-mouth has contributed to the recent growth. Actors, producers, artists and enthusiasts that have nothing to do with the industry, gather in Reid’s living room to watch the latest finds.

“If everybody who’s on Facebook shows up one night, we’re going to be in trouble,” Reid says.

Calvert mentioned the possibility of expanding to the Alamo Drafthouse in Richardson. He says sometimes the group has screenings at local churches or other venues.