Berkeley, California Fire (1923)

★★★ · Berkeley, California Fire · Christine Hennig · 2003-04-27

Silent newsreel footage of a devastating 1923 fire that destroyed much of Berkeley, California. Footage of the fire is followed by scenes of the aftermath and cleanup efforts. Most interesting is a few brief scenes of homeless fire victims cheerily making the best of it by cooking outdoors or playing a rescued piano. Mostly, this is just a historical document, though. Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: N/A. Weirdness: **. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ***.

★★★ · Oh the irony! · Spuzz · 2005-12-11

More footage of the terrible (I guess) fire that hit the Berkeley area in 1923. Although most of the shooting is murky and is hard to see anything, you do get a glimpse at how helpless people mustve been watching the fire go from one house to another. There is some salvage shots shown too, and in a highly surreal shot, a woman plays a piano that was salvaged in the fire. They also make dinner, from what looks like still hot embers from the fire. Kooky! There is another film about this fire in the archive, choose that one over this.