"WAY BACK WHEN" WEDNESDAY - Several prominent Hollywood personalities were seen in and around Santa Barbara in August 1919. One big-time film star who made an appearance here probably wished he had stayed back in Tinsel Town. John Barrymore, who had been visiting Santa Cruz Island, was pulled over for speeding. "John Barrymore, well-known American actor, and temporary visitor in Santa Barbara, was halted in his joyous flight out on East Haley Street yesterday afternoon. Traffic Officer Williams was stern in his decision that Mr. Barrymore was pushing a bit heavy on the throttle of his machine." Barrymore was fined $10.
This is probably how actor John Barrymore looked when one of Santa Barbara's finest nailed him for speeding. (Image: "Motion Picture News," April 19, 1919)
Note - All the "Way Back When" Wednesday items will be part of the 200+ items in the book "Way Back When: Santa Barbara in 1919" to be published in November 2019. This will be the sixth book in the "Way Back When" series.