
A.K. Smiley Public Library’s “Southern California in Film” series continues on Saturday, December 21st at 2pm in the Contemporary Club with a screening of the long-lost 1928 version of Ramona starring Dolores de Rio.
Based on Helen Hunt Jackson’s eponymous novel about racial discrimination in mid-19th century California, Ramona is the story of an Irish-Native American orphan and her relationships with Alessandro, a Native American sheep shearer, and Felipe, a wealthy Californio. Published in 1884, the novel became an instant success and has been adapted into five feature films, a television series, a musical, and an outdoor play. The Ramona Pageant has been performed annually since 1923. The 1928 film version of this story was lost for decades before being rediscovered in 2010 and restored by the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division of the Library of Congress. This screening is made possible by a loan from the Library of Congress’s Moving Image Section.
Registration is requested, but not required. No admission is charged for film screenings, thanks to the generous contributions of donors to the Library. The Contemporary Club, 173 S. Eureka Street. For more information or to see schedule updates, visit www.akspl.org or call (909) 798-7632.