Movies Way Back When: A Map of the Past

By Betsy J Green

By the time this map was made in 1930, the “Flying A” studio had been closed for years. They made their last films in 1921. Of the 14 that are listed for that year, seven are reissues, which means they simply renamed older films. Occasionally, other film companies used the “Flying A” studios – probably the large glass studio – to make movies.

It might seem odd that the main studio is built at an angle, until you remember that most of the streets in Santa Barbara are laid out at an angle. Basically, the studio is oriented so that the long side faces south to get better light than the original glass studio that faces Mission Street.