Silent-Film Historian and Location Sleuth
Remembering those we recently lost
Plant the first tree in their honor
Key moments and achievements from John Bengtson's life.
John was born
· Pleasant Hill, California, USA
Achievement
In 1995, while watching a Buster Keaton film, Bengtson recognized a San Francisco location, sparking his decades-long pursuit of uncovering silent film shooting sites that would earn him the title 'the great detective of silent film locations' from The New York Times.
Achievement
In 1995, while watching a Buster Keaton film, Bengtson recognized a San Francisco location, sparking his decades-long pursuit of uncovering silent film shooting sites that would earn him the title 'the great detective of silent film locations' from The New York Times.
Achievement
Bengtson authored 'Silent Echoes: Discovering Early Hollywood Through the Films of Buster Keaton,' the first of his acclaimed trilogy of film location books that The New York Times called 'a Proustian collage of time and memory.'
Achievement
Bengtson authored 'Silent Echoes: Discovering Early Hollywood Through the Films of Buster Keaton,' the first of his acclaimed trilogy of film location books that The New York Times called 'a Proustian collage of time and memory.'
Achievement
Bengtson published 'Silent Traces,' documenting the filming locations of Charlie Chaplin's movies, continuing his detective work across Los Angeles's changing urban landscape to pinpoint where cinema history was made.
Achievement
Bengtson published 'Silent Traces,' documenting the filming locations of Charlie Chaplin's movies, continuing his detective work across Los Angeles's changing urban landscape to pinpoint where cinema history was made.
Achievement
Completing his trilogy, Bengtson published 'Silent Visions,' tracing the filming locations of Harold Lloyd's silent comedies and solidifying his reputation as the foremost authority on silent-era Hollywood geography.
Achievement
Completing his trilogy, Bengtson published 'Silent Visions,' tracing the filming locations of Harold Lloyd's silent comedies and solidifying his reputation as the foremost authority on silent-era Hollywood geography.
Community
Bengtson gave walking tours and created documentary shorts about the locations of classic silent films including The General, Modern Times, and works by Mack Sennett, Laurel and Hardy, making film history accessible to the public.
Community
Bengtson gave walking tours and created documentary shorts about the locations of classic silent films including The General, Modern Times, and works by Mack Sennett, Laurel and Hardy, making film history accessible to the public.
John Bengtson passed away
