I first met Ray Bandar in 2003, during a backstage tour of the Skulls Exhibit at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. Our small group of visitors was looking at skulls while he provided us insight into the death of the wild creatures he had collected over 50 years of volunteering.
Listening to Ray, natural history and science were about adventures and storytelling. He created a setting and a plot – a narrative – and took us through individual skulls in the exhibit, recalling how he collected them and how the animal had lived and died. He pointed out the different sizes of the eye sockets, differentiating those animals who are active during the day versus those who are out at night.
I found out that he’s been called Dr. Bones and Reptile Ray. He was usually seen dressed in tattered “field-trip” clothes, and was a fixture at the California Academy of Sciences and the beaches around the San Francisco Bay Area for more than 60 years.
I ended up making a movie about him called “A Life with Skulls,” which captures Ray’s obsession for collecting skulls from local beaches, road kill, zoo animals and on field trips to Mexico, Australia and in the United States. This humorous movie investigates Bandar’s history as a skull collector, showing many of the thousands of skulls he has accumulated over the years, talking to Alkmene, his resilient wife, and touring the awe-inspiring Bone Palace.
“A Life with Skulls” is an inspiring look at a man who had a special tie to the natural world. You will be motivated to go out and explore it for yourself.
It showed at many film festivals and on The Natural Heroes Series on PBS for 3 seasons (2008-2012). In 2018, I self-published a photography book with a selection of skulls from his museum. A limited number of copies are available.
Ray passed away peacefully in his home on December 23 of congestive heart failure at 90 years old. Here is Ray’s obituary from the San Francisco Chronicle: http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Ray-Bones-Bandar-biologist-and-skull-12468945.php
Here is a recording of a presentation at the San Francisco Public Library on January 31, 2018:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-e-nZkZFoU&feature=youtu.be
Description: Film director Beth Cataldo and Cal Academy colleague Moe Flannery remember “Reptile Ray” Bandar. After giving a short biography of Ray Bandar and his work, Moe Flannery and Beth Cataldo sit down to discuss the film and answer audience questions about his life and the future of the skull collection.
You can also check out the film “A Life With Skulls” from the San Francisco Public Library: https://sfpl.bibliocommons.com/item/show/3427944093
Previous Screenings:
• San Francisco Public Library, January, 2018
• California Academy of Sciences Skulls Exhibit (May–Nov. 2014)
• The Natural Heroes Series on PBS for 3 seasons (2008-2012)
• Ocean Night, Pt. Reyes National Seashore, August 2007
• City College of San Francisco Arts and Lectures Series, April 2007
• SeaFlow, March 2007
• The Randall Museum, March 2007
• Bay Model Museum, February 2007
• San Francisco Ocean Film Festival, January 2007
Awards:
• Best of Festival Award – Documentary, Berkeley Film and Video Festival
• Best Storytelling – International Wildlife Film Festival
Review:
http://www.sfgate.com/thingstodo/article/REP-PICKS-2598932.php
bethcataldo.com 