Norman Studios, the historic movie studio in Arlington, is currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Next week it may be listed as a National Landmark. Becoming a National Landmark will help the studio to be preserved for future generations.
The studio was originally named, Eagle Film Studios.
Richard Norman returned home to Jacksonville in 1920 and purchased the studio. Eagle Film became Norman Studios. Norman made “race films” where African Americans were cast as the heroes of the story rather than the stereotypical, racist films that other studios were making.
The studio’s only surviving film, “The Flying Ace” has been preserved by the Library of Congress for its cultural significance.
In The Flying Ace “A veteran World War I fighter pilot returns home a war hero and immediately regains his former job as a railroad company detective. His first case: recover a stolen satchel filled with $25,000 of company payroll, locate a missing employee, and capture a gang of railroad thieves.” ~Aaron Pichel