🎞️ A “lost” 1926 comedy turns up in a studio vault, and it’s a reminder to keep digging.

Excited to share this fascinating story from the world of film preservation. The restoration and premiere of the long-lost 1926 silent comedy "The New Klondike" at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival. Directed by Lewis Milestone and starring Thomas Meighan, this baseball-themed romp was thought vanished until restorers Robert Harris and James Mockoski unearthed it from the Paramount vault. Their meticulous work involved piecing together surviving elements to revive this slice of cinematic history for modern audiences.

As an archive producer with years of experience sourcing and handling rare footage, I can't overstate the thrill of such discoveries. It highlights the critical role of archives in safeguarding our cultural heritage, often requiring detective-like patience to track down "lost" prints that were simply mislabeled or overlooked.

As a bonus, the film dates to 1926, and surviving U.S. editions of many 1926 titles are now in the public domain.