Dear Old Hollywood

Shemp Howard of The Three Stooges.

Toluca Lake, a tony neighborhood located partly in Burbank and Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley, has long been a favorite place to live for Hollywood celebrities, including Bob Hope, William Holden, Frank Sinatra, Ann Sheridan and many others. Part of the appeal of Toluca Lake is the small town village feel. The primary commercial street in Toluca Lake, Riverside Drive, is like an Eisenhower era main street filled with little shops. The quiet tree lined residential streets look like they belong somewhere in Middle America, not minutes from the energy of Hollywood.

One of the best descriptions I've seen of Toluca Lake comes from Sandie Howard (granddaughter to Shemp Howard of The Three Stooges). In 2012, Howard wrote a post on the Los Angeles Times website in which she reminisces about growing up in Toluca Lake. Howard describes the shops, the homes, and what life was like as a child in this celebrity hood. I thought Howard's description was a charming read. Here's what she wrote:

"Toluca Lake. I was born and raised as 3rd generation in our house. Born in 56' and resided there til 81. Grandparents, Babe and Shemp Howard bought this home at 4604 Placidia Ave. My grandpa was Shemp, the original of the Three Stooges. Our home was on the corner of Placidia and Sara St. They lived there from the 40's -mid 50's. They had chickens, a Victory Garden. My grandfather owned a gun only to use on pesty Gophers that would steel all the carrots. My dad bought the home shortly before I was born. We didn't have air conditioning nor a pool for many years.

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Shemp Howard's home at 4604 Placidia Ave.

I recall the fwy being put in. Stayed cool by sprinklers, Water Wiggles, Slip and Slides. All the kids played together. Boys and girls, roller skating, riding bikes, having flour fights. We walked the back wall to get to friends houses regardless of being scratched or cut up by brush and bushes. Toluca Lake kids on Saturdays would spend much time on Riverside Dr. at Pop and Cork for a 'BigStick Popsicle then to The Five and Dime to play with all the open tables of toys. We'd walk through the T.L. Pharmacy where we were not allowed to touch anything. The T.L. Market where you could actually pick up the phone and order your groceries and have them delivered. Bob's Big Boy's car hops to see rollerskating waitresses. Patys for the big Pineapple and Marshmallow syrup. The Pancake House syrups. The Little Green Store on Camarillo. It was safe! Neighborhoods of Walnuts, Birch and Magnolias.

4604 Placidia Avenue, Toluca Lake, CA.

The Rock on our lawn was the meeting spot for the kids. A mom would call and the friend would run home. I listened for the St. Charles Church bells at 6:00pm. T. Lake. Safe, quaint and well kept neighborhoods. Jill and I both had our weddings in our backyard. Doors of the house were only locked by Skeleton Keys. We had many varieties of fruit trees from Satsuma Plums to Kumquats. At 23, mom leased the house to Denzel Washington then sold it to him. I was crushed not to have an affiliation to that neighborhood anymore. I honestly thought someone in the family would be in that house, in Toluca Lake forever. I make a point to drive through the neighborhood still. I want to go inside to see my house but I don't have the nerve - yet. Toluca Lake is still quaint today. Still close with a couple of kids from the blocks. Many of businesses are still thriving. If you can raise a family in T.L. you are blessed."

10522 Riverside Drive, Toluca Lake, CA.

In addition to the home at 4604 Placidia Avenue, Shemp Howard also lived with his wife Gertrude in an apartment building at 10522 Riverside Drive. According to findadeath.com Shemp was living at this address at the time of his death. On November 22, 1955 Shemp had a heart attack on his way home from the fights. He died later on the way to St. Josephs Medical Center in Burbank. He was just 60 years old. I was once told that this apartment building, just like the house on Placidia Ave. was also later owned by actor Denzel Washington.

Jersey Boys, the hit Broadway musical about Frankie Vallie and the Four Seasons, is getting the cinema treatment. The film version, directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Christopher Walken and Vincent Piazza, hits theaters on June 20, and a new trailer was released today. One thing I spotted immediately in the trailer was a scene that was clearly filmed on the Warner Bros. New York Street backlot set in Burbank, California.

The below screenshot was taken from the trailer. As the movie has not yet been released, I don't know exactly what is taking place in the scene, but it looks like the band must be arriving to perform at a concert. Notice how with a little movie magic the film designers were able to change the background to appear differently from what the actual background looks like. If you go see this movie in theaters, keep your eyes open for this scene.

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A screenshot from Jersey Boys (2014).

The Warner Bros. New York Street backlot set.

A wider view of the Warner Bros. New York Street backlot set.

Below is the full trailer for Jersey Boys. I must admit, when I first heard that Clint Eastwood was directing a musical I was a bit skeptical, but the trailer looks interesting and I'm much more excited than I was before.

Official Trailer for Jersey Boys (2014).

So what do you think of this upcoming film?

All images (c) Warner Bros.

Dennis Morgan and Ginger Rogers

When I watch classic movies I often watch them differently than contemporary films. With classic films I can get sucked in just by the vintage fashions and sometimes the real world film locations. That's the case with Perfect Strangers (1950), a court room drama starring Dennis Morgan and Ginger Rogers.

The film is a day in the life of Los Angeles jurors forced to live together during a trial. Morgan plays a married man who falls in love with another juror, a woman separated from her husband, played by Rogers. The story is interesting for its look into the juror process circa 1950, but the drama is a bit lackluster. What really won me over was the fantastic Los Angeles film locations and also that the film features some of my favorite actors. In addition to Morgan and Rogers, the film also features, Thelma Ritter, Paul Ford, Alan Reed (the voice of Fred Flintstone), and other recognizable character actors.

Here are some of the Los Angeles filming locations that appear in Perfect Strangers.

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United States Post Office Terminal Annex

Los Angeles Terminal Annex, 900 N. Alameda Street

The film begins with a scene of Los Angeles residents being selected at random for jury service and the notices being processed for delivery at the United States Post Office Terminal Annex located at 900 North Alameda Street, in downtown Los Angeles. In the comparison above is a screenshot of the Terminal Annex as seen in the film and an image of how the historic post office building appears today.

In the comparison below, we see a helicopter take off from the roof of the Terminal Annex. In the background, we get a glimpse of Olvera Street, the oldest part of downtown Los Angeles. One of the structures that can bee seen and is still standing is La Plaza United Methodist Church, which stands at the entrance to Olvera Street. See inside the yellow rectangle.

Terminal Annex rooftop. Olvera Street can be seen inside the yellow rectangle.

Bird's Eye View of Olvera Street as it appears today.

In the next comparison the helicopter takes off from the Terminal Annex rooftop and we see, from left to right, Los Angeles City Hall, the United States Courthouse building, and the historic Hall of Justice building.

From left to right: City Hall, Courthouse, Hall of Justice buildings.

A view of the three buildings as they appear now.

One of the people called for jury service is Ginger Rogers. In the scene below, Ginger Rogers arrives via trolley in front of Los Angeles City Hall, located at 200 north Spring Street. She gets off the trolley and walks across the street from City Hall towards the Hall of Records building.

Ginger Rogers arrives by trolley in front of City Hall.

Los Angeles City Hall, 200 N. Spring Street.

Below we see Rogers walking towards the Hall of Records building located directly across from City Hall. After Rogers arrives at the Hall of Records building she then walks next door to the Hall of Justice building. The Hall of Records was a 12-story building constructed between 1909 and 1911 and then demolished in 1973. The Hall of Justice building, which was damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, has been closed ever since the quake, but is still standing and undergoing a 231 million dollar renovation.

Rogers walks towards the LA Hall of Records building.

A photo from 1954 looking down Spring Street showing the Hall of Records, Hall of Justice, and on the right, the United States Courthouse and City Hall buildings.

Looking down Spring Street in front of City Hall as it appears today.

Rogers first arrives at the Hall of Records building.

After Rogers arrives at the Hall of Records building, she then heads over to the Hall of Justice building next door. Below is a historic photo from 1947, three years before the film, showing how the Hall of Justice building appeared at the time. The building stands at the corner of Temple Street and Spring Street. The yellow circle next to the green arrow marks where Rogers can be seen walking up the sidewalk. In the second and third images, the red rectangle marks where the United States Court House building can be seen in the background.

A 1947 photo of the Hall of Justice.

The yellow circle shows Rogers in front of the Hall of Justice.

Looking down Temple Street in front of the Hall of Justice. The red rectangle marks where the United States Court House building is located (hidden behind the trees).

United States Court House building.

In the next scene, Morgan can be seen leaving a restaurant after dining with fellow juror, Rogers. The restaurant where Morgan and Rogers eat was clearly a fake created on a sound stage, but in the background of the screenshot below, we see a restaurant called the Court House Sandwich Shoppe. This was a real restaurant located on the corner of Broadway and Temple, near the Hall of Records building. Like the Hall of Records building which was demolished in 1973, the Court House Sandwich Shoppe building has also been demolished.

Morgan at the corner of Broadway and Temple. The Court House restaurant can be seen in the background.

A photo from 1954 shows the Court House Sandwich Shoppe.

The red rectangle marks the site of the Court House restaurant.

All the jurors are housed in what is supposed to be a downtown Los Angeles hotel with a view looking over City Hall and the Court House; however, I'm not 100% on this one, but I'm pretty sure that the hotel was really a facade located on the Warner Bros. Studio New York Street backlot in Burbank. Below is a screenshot of the jurors arriving at the hotel and an image of the facade I believe to be used as the location of the hotel. The signage, lamps and other details on these facades are changed all the time, but the skeleton of the building looks like it could be a match - plus, the fact that this is a Warner Bros. film, makes it likely that they could have used this facade.

The jurors arrive via bus at what is supposed to be a downtown hotel.

A Warner Bros. backlot facade I believe to be the real location.

During the trial, the jurors are taken by bus to the scene of the murder. I assumed that the bus was going down Sunset Boulevard along the Hollywood Hills, I just needed to find the right cross street, which I did when I came to Kings Road. In the scene below, the bus passes a restaurant called Leon and Freddie's, located at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Kings Road, where the popular Saddle Ranch bar is now located.

The bus takes the jurors down Sunset Blvd at Kings Rd.

The corner of Sunset Blvd. and Kings Rd.

The "murder" took place near the cliff side of a Hollywood Hills home. This was the most interesting part of the film for me. The hills look so different today. Where at the time of the film there was mostly open land, there are now so many homes dotting the hills. After combing the hills with a few different aerial views I was finally able to pinpoint the location of the home that was used for filming. The home is located at 8412 Franklin Avenue, West Hollywood.

The bus heads up Kings Road to the scene of the crime.

Looking up Kings Road in West Hollywood.

The Hollywood Hills home sits on a cliff on Franklin Ave.

The yellow oval marks the home as seen from Kings Road.

The bus winds up Franklin Avenue in the Hollywood Hills.

The same view from Franklin Ave as it appears today.

Below the jurors get to see a reenactment of what might have been the way things played out the night of the crime. Behind them is the house that is located on Franklin Avenue up in the hills. Just below that is an image showing the home as it appears today. I was actually quite shocked when I found the home to see that it hadn't been demolished and replaced by some modern Hollywood Hills mansion. After I found the home, I did some more digging and learned that the house was built in 1944, six years prior to this film. While the jurors are at the crime scene walking around we get views of some landmark buildings as seen from the Hollywood Hills, including the Sunset Tower Hotel and the Granville Towers apartment building.

The jurors see a reenactment in front of the Franklin Ave home.

Over 65 years and the home is still standing. An eternity by LA standards.

Below, jurors take in the view from the Hollywood Hills. The art deco Sunset Tower Hotel can be seen in the background. The hotel has long been a residence for Hollywood celebrities, including John Wayne, Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Paulette Goddard, Preston Sturges, Billie Burke, and Zsa Zsa Gabor.

The Sunset Tower Hotel as seen in the film.

A Bird's Eye View of the Sunset Tower Hotel.

In another scene we get a view showing the Granville Towers, a posh West Hollywood apartment building built in 1930 by legendary architect, Leland Bryant. The Granville Towers has been the home to many notable celebrities, including Marilyn Monroe, Rock Hudson, and singer David Bowie.

The Granville Towers as seen in Perfect Strangers.

A Bird's Eye View of the Granville Towers.

During the reenactment at the crime scene, we get this view looking down from Franklin Avenue in the Hollywood Hills towards the next street below, Hollywood Boulevard. Amazing enough, the homes located on Hollywood Boulevard at the time of the film still appear to be intact.

Looking down from Franklin Ave toward Hollywood Blvd.

Bird's Eye View of Franklin Ave. and Hollywood Blvd.

In one scene during the film we get a glimpse of a news ticker on the side of a building announcing an update to the trial. That news ticker was a big deal. According to a The Billboard magazine article from September 7, 1946, on a Tuesday night, August 6, 40,000 people showed up to see the premiere of that sign, the "Trans-Lux Flashcast news ribbon...brought to Los Angeles by Warner Bros. KFWB." The news ribbon was located on the side of of the historic Taft building at the intersection of Hollywood and Vine, in Hollywood.

The news ribbon as seen in Perfect Strangers.

A crowd gathers under the news ribbon at Hollywood and Vine. Photo from the Flickr page of AliceJapan.

The Taft building in Hollywood. The news ribbon has been removed.

During the final scenes of the film we see the jurors leaving the Hall of Justice building back in downtown Los Angeles. As I mentioned before, the Hall of Justice has been closed ever since the 1994 Northridge earthquake, this is a great glimpse inside of the historic building. Below is a screenshot from the film showing Dennis Morgan exiting the Hall of Justice and a contemporary image showing how the same location appears today.

Dennis Morgan leaves the Hall of Justice.

A contemporary view of the Hall of Justice.

The interior of the Hall of Justice appears in another film I've blogged about, the 1978 film The Big Fix, starring Richard Dreyfuss.

Perfect Strangers is currently available to rent through Classicflix and through the Warner Archive collection.

Hepburn hiking country road during break from filming in London.

Katharine Hepburn was always athletic. At an early age, while growing up in Hartford, Connecticut, Hepburn's father, a doctor, encouraged his kids to swim, play tennis, ride horses and golf. Swimming was an activity that Hepburn was particularly fond of and she would continue to swim regularly even into her 80s. Another activity that Hepburn enjoyed doing for exercise was hiking and during her time living in Los Angeles, one of her favorite hiking spots was by the Franklin Canyon Reservoir.

Franklin Canyon Lake at Franklin Canyon Reservoir. Source.

Located just below Mulholland Drive, west of Coldwater Canyon and near Beverly Hills and Studio City, Franklin Canyon Reservoir feels like an escape from the city. No wonder why Hepburn, someone who enjoyed her privacy, liked hiking this spot. Without ever having visited the canyon, you may recognize the location from numerous appearances on film and television. Shows like Bonanza, The Waltons, Lassie, Murder She Wrote and Combat have filmed scenes here. During the opening credits of each episode of The Andy Griffith Show one can see Griffith and little Ron Howard walking around the 3-acre lake. The films It Happened One Night (1934), The Lady Escapes (1937), I Met My Love Again (1938) and even the Hepburn film On Golden Pond (1981) have filmed scenes at Franklin Canyon Reservoir.

The Andy Griffith Show filmed at Franklin Canyon Reservoir. Source.

During Hepburn's years with Spencer Tracy, she would urge him to join her for walks around Franklin Canyon Reservoir. In early 1964, a few months after Tracy had started to recover from a major health scare, Hepburn purchased a police dog named Lobo to encourage Tracy to go on walks at the reservoir.

Spencer Tracy, Ruth Gordon, Garson Kanin, Katharine Hepburn

Hepburn's friend, the writer Garson Kanin, in his memoir on Hepburn and Tracy recounts a story in which Hepburn played hero in the rescue of a kidnapped boy during one of her hikes at the reservoir. In 1969, the teenage son of Dr. Simon Ramo, a wealthy aerospace executive living in Beverly Hills, was kidnapped. During Hepburn's hike she heard some yelling. She was then approached by a police officer who had been called out by the reservoir keeper. Kate pointed the officer in the direction of the keeper's house and later the boy was recovered unharmed. One can imagine that Hepburn's involvement was probably played up for dramatic effect.

On a side note, during the early 1960s Hepburn's frequent co-star, Cary Grant, participated in supervised medical LSD experiments. Grant was a proponent of LSD "therapy" and claimed that it helped to control his drinking and to come to terms with unresolved conflicts he had about his parents. While praising the benefits of LSD Grant mentioned, "Just a few healthy magnums of LSD in the Beverly Hills reservoir..." So while Hepburn hiked the reservoir Grant found relaxation in the reservoir in his own way.

Address for the trailhead: Lake Drive & Franklin Canyon Drive, Franklin Canyon Park, CA 90210

This post is part of The Great Katharine Hepburn Blogathon hosted by blogger Margaret Perry.

In the film version of Sinclair Lewis's story, Cass Timberlane (1947), Spencer Tracy plays the title character, a judge who falls for a younger woman (Lana Turner) from the "wrong side of the tracks." Although the story for Cass Timberlane is set in a small Minnesotan town, filming actually took place in California, around Los Angeles and the MGM Studios backlot in Culver City. Early in the film, when Tracy first meets Turner, he literally crosses the railroad tracks but they are a long way off from Minnesota.

In the scene below Tracy sees a baseball roll from underneath a railroad car. Tracy is standing near Myers Street, just north of the 1st Street bridge in downtown Los Angeles.

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Tracy stands on N. Myers St near the 1st Street bridge.

Looking toward the 1st Street bridge from N. Myers St.

Tracy joins the action of a baseball game taking place in a parcel of land north of the 1st Street Bridge and east of the Los Angeles River. Naturally, being a judge, Tracy acts as the umpire. While Tracy stands next to Turner near the pitching mound, we get a view of the Southern California Gas Company tanks that once stood near Jackson Street and Center Street, just across the LA River. These recognizable structures appeared in quite a few early films before they were razed, and were particularly popular in film noirs.

Tracy and Turner with the The Southern California Gas Company tanks in the background.

Looking across L.A. River towards Jackson Street. The gas tanks have since been razed.

A closer view of the tanks that stood near Jackson St. and Center St.

Spencer Tracy's home in Cass Timberlane was one of the homes originally built for the popular Vincente Minnelli film Meet Me in St. Louis (1945) starring Judy Garland. For Meet Me In St. Louis, Minnelli insisted that MGM construct an entire street of Victorian homes rather than dress an existing set, which would have been much cheaper. The sets remained well after Minnelli's film, getting their fair share of screen time. Tracy would not only work on this St. Louis Street backlot for Cass Timberlane, but also in the film The Sea of Grass which came out the same year.

Tracy walks home, one of homes on MGM's St. Louis Street backlot.

Cass Timberlane is available on DVD through the Warner Archive Collection, it can be rented through ClassicFlix, and is currently available for streaming on the Warner Archive Instant service.

Frank Capra is one of those directors where I can watch just about any one of his films and be entertained. Many of Capra's movies are heavily sentimental, wholesome message pictures which some critics have dismissively referred to as "Capra-corn." Although Capra's filmmaking style may seem a bit old-fashioned, for me personally it's one of the qualities I enjoy about Capra's films, and regardless of Capra's style, the subject matter in his films from the 1930s and 1940s, are just as relevant now as they were then. Whether it be a naive scout leader who thinks by becoming a senator and going to Washington he can help his country in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) or a presidential candidate who struggles to stick by his ideals and not sell out to special interest groups in State of the Union (1948), Capra's films touch on subjects that still strike a chord as a contemporary viewer watching the current political circus taking place.

The film Meet John Doe (1941), starring the always wonderful to watch Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck, is another Capra classic portraying a "common man" fighting greed and corruption for the greater good of society. In this story, Stanwyck is a reporter who finds out that she is being laid off. For her last column she publishes a letter from a fictional "John Doe" who threatens to kill himself on Christmas Eve in response to society's inattention to people in need. When the letter is printed it causes a sensation and newspaper sales spike. Stanwyck is kept on at the newspaper to continue her charade and to exploit the popularity of John Doe to sell more papers. After interviewing several hobos, Stanwyck discovers John Willoughby (Gary Cooper), a former baseball player in need of cash to repair an injured arm, to portray her John Doe.

With Cooper as the face of John Doe, Stanwyck continues to be John Doe's voice through her typewriter, publishing a series of letters from John Doe in the newspaper. With people all over the country stirred by John Doe's philosophy, the newspaper's publisher, D.B. Norton, decides to take things further and hires Cooper to give radio speeches which Stanwyck will write. A grassroots movement begins with John Doe supporters around the country creating John Doe clubs, with the simple philosphy of "Be a better neighbor."Intending to capitalize on John Doe's growing popularity, Norton plans to use John Doe to endorse him as a presidential candidate. Cooper himself begins to believe the John Doe philosophy, realizes he is being used and attempts to make things right with the public by exposing the entire scheme.

There is no real life city mentioned in the film, only a fictional town called "Millville" but the exterior scenes were all filmed in the Los Angeles area, including the Warner Bros. Studio backlot in Burbank. Here are a few of the Meet John Doe filming locations as they appear today.

Looking south down Vine Street just above Yucca Street.

Looking down Vine St. above Yucca St. as it appears today.

When John Doe is going to make his premier on radio, the scene opens with a shot of a guy hammering an advertisment to a pole that is on Vine Street in Hollywood. The camera gives us a view looking south down Vine Street from just above Yucca Street. We get a glimpse of the Broadway Hollywood building on the right. Just behind the bill advertising "Hear John Doe TONIGHT 9 P.M. W.B.N." is where today stands the Capital Records building, which wasn't finished until 1956, fifteen years after Meet John Doe was made.

NBC Studios, corner of Sunset Blvd. and Vine St.

Former site of NBC Studios at Sunset and Vine.

The location where Cooper gives the radio speech as John Doe is NBC Studios in Hollywood, located at the northeast corner of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street. The art deco NBC building opened in 1938 and was the West Coast headquarters for NBC Radio Networks. In 1962 NBC moved to a new building in Burbank and in 1964 the Hollywood location was demolished. Today the site is the home to a Chase bank.

The "Millville" town square is Midwest Street at Warner Bros.

Midwest Street at Warner Bros. Studio, Burbank, Ca.

Later in the film, after Cooper realizes he is being used and decides to go back to obscurity, he is recognized in a diner in the small town of "Millville." Millville is really part of the Warner Bros. Studio backlot area known as Midwest Street. In the screenshot above the people of Millville frantically run across the town square to get a glimpse of John Doe. Midwest Street has appeared in numerous films including The Hard Way (1943), East of Eden (1955), The Music Man (1962), Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came? (1970) and The Monster Squad (1987) to name a few.

Millville City Hall

The city hall building on Midwest Street.

Looking across the Millville town square.

Looking across Midwest Street.

Near the end of the film, Cooper is supposed to give a big speech as John Doe endorsing Norton for president. Instead, Cooper plans to expose the whole deceptive scheme. The big speech takes place in a stadium and the stadium that was used for filming was Wrigley Field in Los Angeles. The stadium was located on 10 acres between San Pedro Street to the west, Avalon Blvd to the east, E. 41st Place to the north, and E. 42 Place to the south. The stadium opened on September 29, 1925 and for 33 seasons was the home to the Angels and for 11 seasons it was also the home to the rival Hollywood Stars. The stadium was eventually demolished in 1969.

Wrigley Field Los Angeles as seen in Meet John Doe.

Aerial view of Wrigley Field's opening in 1925.

Image from Los Angeles Public Library.

Aerial of the site of Wrigley Field as it looks today.

In the two images above, the first yellow rectangle shows the portion of the stadium that appears in the film and in the second image the yellow rectangle shows where that portion of the stadium would be if the stadium were still standing.

In the two images just below, the first is a screenshot showing the inside of Wrigley Field as seen in the film and the second is a clearer vintage photo from 1937, during a game of Hollywood comedians against Hollywood leading men.

Inside view of Wrigley Field as seen in Meet John Doe.

1937 Comedians vs. Leading Men game.

Image from Los Angeles Public Library.

The end of the film involves Cooper contemplating jumping from City Hall on Christmas Eve. Although Los Angeles is not mentioned as the location of the story, the city hall that is used for the story is the Los Angeles City Hall as seen in the screenshot below. However, it looks like the LA City Hall was recreated in one of the Warner Bros. Studio sound stages. For one, the skyline is different and second, although possible, its not likely to be snowing in downtown Los Angeles.

City Hall as seen in Meet John Doe.

The Los Angeles City Hall.

I highly recommend this film. If you haven't yet seen this classic, ClassicFlix currently has Meet John Doe available on DVD to buy or to rent.

Luise Rainer and Spencer Tracy

When I really like an actor I feel the need to see all of their films. I know not all of them will be great. Some will probably be only so-so or simply bad, but I get some enjoyment from watching the smaller or maybe less appreciated films that my favorite stars appeared in. At times I'm even surprised and a movie that I go into not expecting much turns out to have some qualities I really like. That's what happened when I watched Big City (1937), starring Spencer Tracy and Luise Rainer.

Tracy plays a New York City cab driver married to an immigrant wife (Rainer). The two are madly in love but things are tough in the big city, especially for independent cab drivers trying to make a living like Tracy, who are constantly being harassed by the big unionized cab drivers. Things get out of control, escalating to an all out battle between the independents and the union cabbies. After one person dies in an explosion, Tracy's immigrant wife is threatened to be deported.

The trouble with Big City is the story is all over the place. What starts as a romantic drama evolves into a manic slapstick comedy by the end, when a brawl erupts between the independents, the union cabbies and some famous athletes. The feel of the movie is inconsistent. Nevertheless, Tracy and Rainer make this movie fun to watch. I really enjoyed seeing Tracy and Rainer on screen in the only film they made together. Some other gems include seeing cameo appearances by some famous athletes of the time and something I'm always interested in, real world film locations.

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Jack Dempsey's Restaurant as seen in Big City.

Former site of Jack Dempsey's Restaurant in New York.

Near the end of the film, Tracy barges into a dinner meeting taking place inside Jack Dempsey's Restaurant. Tracy's wife is about to be deported and he pleads with the mayor, who is speaking at the dinner to help him, that if anyone could save his wife, it would be the mayor. The restaurant was a real location, located at 8th Avenue and West 50th Street in New York and owned by heavyweight boxing champion Jack Dempsey, who has a cameo appearance. The place opened in 1935, just a couple years before Big City was filmed. Above is an image of Jack Dempsey's Restaurant as it appears in the film and below that is a vintage postcard image of how the restaurant looked over the top of a Google Street View of the present day location. Below is the present day location without the postcard.

Jack Dempsey Restaurant site, 8th Ave at 50th St.

The mayor decides to help Tracy. Escorted by some of the other dinner patrons (more famous athletes including Jim Thorpe, Jim Jeffries and Maxie Rosenbloom) the group races to the docks in a few cars to stop the ship that is about to deport Rainer. We see the cars race down two more real New York streets and then suddenly, for someone looking closely, one will notice the cars are racing down the streets of Hollywood! Below are two more views of New York and then the jump to Hollywood.

The first view is of Broadway, near the Jack Dempsey Restaurant location. In this view we see the Trans-Lux Theatre, located at 1619 Broadway. This theatre, which opened in 1931, was struggling by 1937 when this film was made. What's interesting is that in 1937, Jack Dempsey and his business partner Jack Amiel purchased the Trans-Lux property and converted the site into Jack Dempsey's Broadway Bar and Cocktail Lounge.

Trans-Lux Theatre, 1619 Broadway, New York

Contemporary view of the Trans-Lux Theatre site.

The next New York view seen in the film shows us the corner of West 47th Street and Broadway in Times Square. The most prominent building that can be seen in the screenshot is the Florsheim Shoe store. It's amazing how different Times Square looks today compared to 1937.

W. 47th Street and Broadway, New York

Now we jump to the Hollywood locations. As Tracy races down the New York City streets to reach his wife before she is deported we suddenly see the cars driving down Hollywood Boulevard and also down Ivar Avenue. Some of the buildings that can be seen are the Hollywood Citizen Stationary Store, a Schwab's store, Nancy's, Delphene's, a Thrifty Drug Store, a Colombia building, the Guaranty Building and the Broadway Hollywood Building.

Looking west down Hollywood Blvd from Cosmo St.

Above is the first shot of Hollywood. This view is looking west down Hollywood Boulevard from Cosmo Street. The building with the neon "Dentist" sign is part of the Julian Medical Building, a former drug store with medical offices on top.

Hollywood Blvd at Cosmo St.

Corner of Hollywood Blvd and Cosmo St.

Former site of Schwabs and Hollywood Citizen Stationary.

Tracy's car races past Schwabs.

Thrifty Drug Store, SW corner of Hollywood Blvd at Ivar Ave.

Former site of Thrifty Drug Store, Hollywood Blvd at Ivar Ave.

Guaranty Building 6331 Hollywood Boulevard.

Looking east down Hollywood Blvd from Ivar Ave.

Above is a view looking east down Hollywood Boulevard. The "Columbia" building is now hidden behind some trees. Below you can see a closeup image of this building to see how this building looks now. In the background of the screenshot the signs from the Broadway Hollywood Building and the Taft building can be seen - both buildings are still standing at the corner of Hollywood and Vine.

The former Colombia Building 6324-32 Hollywood Blvd.

Big City (1937) is available for rent through ClassicFlix. The film was directed by Frank Borzage and also stars Charley Grapewin, Janet Beecher, Eddie Quillan, Victor Varconi, Oscar O'Shea, Helen Troy, William Demarest, John Arledge, Irving Bacon, Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams, Regis Toomey, Edgar Dearing, and Paul Harvey.

Bronk (1975-1976) is a TV series starring Jack Palance. It would be only one of a couple times that Palance would be the star of his own show, but unfortunately, it only lasted one season. In films Palance frequently played villains or dark characters, but in Bronk, Palance is a sympathetic good guy, although still a tough guy. If you're a fan of 1970s era detective shows like The Rockford Files or Columbo, then Bronk may be worth checking out. However, where Rockford and Columbo have plenty of humor, Bronk has a more serious tone.

In the pilot episode directed by Richard Donnor, one of the locations that shows up is Koontz Hardware in West Hollywood. In the scene below Bronk (Palance) is leaving a pet store and the neighboring building in the background is Koontz, located at 8914 Santa Monica Blvd. Koontz is still in operation on the same site, but in a newer building from the time this show was filmed.

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Palance leaves a pet store next door to Koontz Hardware.

Koontz Hardware, 8914 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood.

As Palance walks back to his car he notices a note on the windshield. In this view we get a glimpse of the business located across the street on the corner of Santa Monica and Hilldale. The corner building is still standing and today is home to Champagne French Bakery & Cafe. Before New Line Cinema was basically absorbed by Warner Bros., New Line used to have production and post production offices in the tall building just behind Champagne. When I used to work at New Line I would pass this intersection daily.

Palance finds a note on his car. The NE corner of Santa Monica and Hilldale can be seen in the background.

Looking towards Champagne French Bakery & Cafe at 8919 Santa Monica Blvd.

Below is another view looking across Santa Monica Boulevard from inside the Pet Store location next to Koontz Hardware.

Looking towards 8921 Santa Monica Blvd.

8921 Santa Monica Blvd is now the site of a Bank of America.

This last view is looking west down Santa Monica Boulevard from in front of the Pet Store location. In the background we can see a Safeway grocery store. Today this building has been replaced be a new modern Pavilions supermarket. Across the street is the Hamburger Haven burger stand on the opposite corner.

Looking west down Santa Monica from out front of the pet store.

Looking west down Santa Monica toward Robertson Blvd.

Bronk is currently available for streaming through Warner Archive Instant.

Another landmark that can be seen in the pilot episode of the television series BRONK (1975-76) starring Jack Palance is the Banning House. Built in 1863, the Banning House was originally the home of Phineas Banning, a businessman and entrepreneur known as "The Father of the Port of Los Angeles." Banning was also one of the founders of Wilmington, the neighborhood in Los Angeles where this house can be found. Since 1927 the Banning House property has been owned by the City of Los Angeles and is currently operated as a museum.

In BRONK, the Banning House is used as the location for a convalescent hospital where Jack Palance's daughter is living. In the scene below we see Palance pulling out of the front driveway.

Palance leaving the Convalescent Hospital / Banning House.

The Banning House, 401 E M St, Wilmington, CA

In the next shot we can see the view looking across the street from the Banning House driveway. The house on the corner in the screenshot is still standing.

Palance exits the Convalescent Hospital.

Looking across E. M St, from the Banning House.

To learn more about the Banning House visit The Banning Museum website. Coming up on August 16, the Banning House will be having a 150th Anniversary celebration on the property that will be "in the spirit of the Rancho-period of the Banning property." There will be live country music, country style dancing, and a "good old fashioned BBQ buffet" provided by The Outdoor Grill.

BRONK: THE COMPLETE SERIES is currently available for streaming through Warner Archive Instant.

Coming up on TCM as part of their Summer Under the Stars tribute to actress Alexis Smith, is one of my favorite Paul Newman films, The Young Philadelphians (1959). Newman plays an up and coming young lawyer, who despite having a respected family name in Philadelphia society, has to work his way up the corporate ladder. Along the way he faces several ethical dilemmas.

As the title suggests, the film is set in Philadelphia, however, the movie was actually filmed in California in Glendale, Pacific Palisades and the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank. Here are the primary filming locations seen in the film.

The film opens with a scene at a church that is supposed to be located on Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia. There is even a street sign that reads Rittenhouse Square, but I didn't buy that the film crew would have gone to Philadelphia to shoot this scene so I started researching old Los Angeles churches that had a clock tower. I then found a photo of a matching church in the Los Angeles Library collection. Below are two screenshots of the church in the film, a photograph of the church from the 1920s, and an image showing the same modern day location.

Click images to see larger.

The church as seen in the film.

Don't let the street sign fool you. This is no where near Philadelphia's Rittenhouse Square.

Glendale Presbyterian Church. Corner of Harvard and Louise Streets. Photo Credit: LAPL

Current Glendale Presbyterian Church. Corner of Harvard and Louise Streets.

The Glendale Presbyterian Church building that is seen in the film was constructed in 1923, but was destroyed by an earthquake in 1971. There was so much damage that the building had to be demolished and a new building was later built on the same site on top of the existing basement.

Early in the film we see Paul Newman as a young guy managing a construction site. That big hole in the ground was actually on Warner Bros. New York Street backlot. Below you can see a screenshot showing the New York Street set and a modern image of the same set location.

Warner Bros. New York Street backlot used for a Philadelphia construction site.

Warner Bros. New York Street Backlot.

Paul Newman duking it out on WB's New York Street backlot.

Newman's character ends up falling in love with a young socialite played by Barbara Rush. In one scene Newman takes Rush back to her family home. The exterior of the home was actually the Warner Bros. Brownstone Street. These Warner Bros. facades are constantly being changed for project to project and in fact the facade used in the scene below was again being changed out when I took the modern day image.

Warner Bros. Brownstone Street was used for the home of Barbara Rush.

Warner Bros. Brownstone Street as it appears today.

Below is a view of Newman and Rush on Brownstone Street, but looking across to the other side of the street. The facade used during the time of the film has since been completely wiped out. Today this side of the street is the location of the Warner Bros theatre, which does have a facade that can be used for filming - although it now now way resembles the facade which used to be there.

Newman and Rush on Brownstone Street.

The Warner Bros. Theatre now stands on this site of Brownstone Street.

One of the locations in the film is a bar called Ernie's Cocktails. This too was filmed on the Warner Bros. backlot, on New York Street. This facade also has been greatly changed since the film, but you can see below where I've marked with a yellow box, where the Ernie's facade would have been located.

Warner Bros. New York Street was used as the location for Ernie's Cocktails.

The yellow box marks the portion of the facade used as Ernie's Cocktails.

Below is another shot of the Warner Bros. New York Street backlot, this time at Christmas. I love seeing the fake snow on the ground and people wearing heavy jackets. As this is really California - not Philadelphia - I bet it was 80 some degrees at the time.

Warner Bros. New York Street backlot dressed for Christmas time.

The same corner of the New York Street backlot as it appears today.

The next two comparisons show the site of Paul Newman's law office in the film which was also the New York Street backlot.

The Warner Bros. NY Street backlot was used as the exterior for Newman's law office.

The yellow box marks the location of the New York Street backlot exterior used as Newman's law office.

Looking across the street from Newman's office toward the alley.

The WB New York Street backlot. The alley can be seen to the right of the theatre marquee.

This last location is supposed to be the home of the character played by Alexis Smith. In reality, this home is the former Will Rogers Estate, located at 14253 Sunset Boulevard in the Pacific Palisades. The ranch became a State Park in 1944 and today the site includes the 31-room ranch house, a stable, corrals, riding ring, roping arena, golf course, polo field and riding and hiking trails.

Will Rogers House, 14253 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles was used as the home of Alexis Smith.

Will Rogers Ranch House. Source

In addition to airing on TCM, The Young Philadelphians is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant and is available on DVD through ClassicFlix. The film, directed by Vincent Sherman, stars Paul Newman, Barbara Rush, Alexis Smith and Robert Vaughn.

Night Moves (1975), is a 70s era detective story starring Gene Hackman as a detective hired by an aging movie starlet to find her daughter. What at first appears to be a straight forward missing persons case turns out to be much more convoluted. What I found interesting about this film is that it features two old Burbank, California movie theaters that no longer exist. One was demolished and another has been completely remodeled and turned into a recording studio.

The first movie house seen in the film is the Magnolia Theater located at 4403 W. Magnolia Boulevard. In the film, Hackman is following his wife, who he discovers is having an affair when she walks out of the theater with another man. Classic movie fans may recognize this theater as the place where Fred MacMurray first meets Kim Novak in the crime film PUSHOVER (1954). The Magnolia Theater building is located just a mile and a half away from the Warner Bros. Studios lot, the studio that produced this film. Today the building is used as a recording studio and has been greatly remodeled from its days as a theater. The theater was built in 1940 and closed in 1979, just four years after Night Moves was released.

Click images to see larger.

Gene Hackman outside Burbank's Magnolia Theatre.

The former Magnolia Theatre building at 4403 W. Magnolia Blvd, Burbank, Ca.

Another view of the Magnolia Theatre as seen in Night Moves (1975).

The Magnolia Theatre building at 4403 W. Magnolia Blvd.

The screenshot below is of a building located next door to the Magnolia Theatre. That structure is also still standing, although remodled.

Building next door to Magnolia Theatre as seen in Night Moves.

The structure next door to the Magnolia Theatre.

Another old Burbank movie theater that appears in Night Moves is the old Cornell Theatre located at 1212 N. San Fernando Blvd, which can be seen in the screenshot below. What first caught my eye from the screenshot was the old Taco Bell sign and the McDonald's sign. From driving down this street multiple times before I remembered a Taco Bell restaurant and McDonald's located right next to each other. I figured if the earlier scene was filmed in Burbank then maybe this scene was also filmed in Burbank and perhaps at this location. What I didn't recognize was the Cornell neon sign on the right of the screenshot, but I recalled there being a Cornell Theatre in Burbank. I assumed that this must have been the location - and I was right. That intersection where the Cornell Theatre stands is San Fernando Blvd and Cornell Drive.

The Cornell Theatre opened on November 18, 1949 and was demolished in 1980 after closing in 1978 - just three years after Night Moves was released. According to the website Cinema Treasures, The Cornell Theatre "had two main aisles that ran down the theatre... Inside the auditorium, all seating was on a single level. There were Art Deco style 'swirls' on the side-walls and on each side of the proscenium. The curved ceiling contained 'twinkling star' lights, giving a semi-Atmospheric style to the decoration."

Gene Hackman drives past the now demolished Cornell Theatre.

Looking down San Fernando Blvd. The Cornell Theatre once stood below the yellow arrow.

Night Moves (1972) was directed by Arthur Penn. Also starring are Jennifer Warren, Susan Clark and in early roles, James Woods and Melanie Griffith. The film is available on DVD and is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant. If you like 1970s era detective/crime films like Klute (1971) or The Long Goodbye (1973), then this may be your thing.

In Champagne For Caesar (1950), Vincent Price, the "Master of Horror," shows that not only can he be sinister, but uproariously funny as well. I'm actually quite surprised that after this film that Price didn't do more comedies than he did. He nearly steals every scene in which he appears. But seeing Price in a perfect comedic part is just one of the delightful reasons that make Caesar a fun film to watch.

The story centers on Beauregard Bottomley, a genius (naturally played by Ronald Coleman) who goes on a television quiz show. While Coleman is on the show, he keeps getting all the questions correct and wins more and more money. The show's sponsor, the Milady Soap Co., headed by Price, wants to stop Coleman from winning. His solution is to send the seductive Celeste Holm after Coleman as a distraction. Coleman must resist Holm if he wants to continue winning on the show.

Click images to see larger.

CBS Columbia Square as seen in Champagne For Caesar.

CBS Columbia Square, 6121 Sunset Boulevard.

The quiz show takes place at CBS Columbia Square, located at 6121 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. See the comparison above showing how the building appears in the film compared to how the building appears today. This building served as CBS's radio and television operations for the West Coast from 1938 to 2007. Many popular radio programs originated here, including shows for Jack Benny, Jimmy Durante, Donald O. Connor, Burns and Allen, and Steve Allen. When television arrived, shows such as The Ed Wynn Show and the pilot episode for I Love Lucy were produced here. According to the book, James Dean: Dream As If You'll Live Forever, author Karen Clemens Warrick mentions that James Dean was an usher at CBS. She writes of Dean's experience that "Dean enjoyed watching the shows, but he did not like being told what to do and what to wear. He called the uniform a 'monkey suit.' He was fired at the end of the first week."

Art Linkletter and Ronald Colman at CBS.

Art Linkletter stars in the film as the quiz show host. In real life Linkletter was a popular radio and television host including the popular CBS program House Party, which ran for 25 years.

Vincent Price and Celeste Holm.

Red Studios Hollywood located at 846 North Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood was the location used for the Milady Soap Co. headquarters. The independent studio lot, first built in 1915, has had many previous tenants over the years and has been known at various times as the Metro Pictures Back Lot #3, Motion Picture Center Studios, DesiLu Cahuenga Studios, Television Center Studios, and Ren-Mar Studios. Although the main entrance to the studio is on Cahuenga, for Champagne For Caesar the back entrance to the studio located on Lillian Way was used to film the entrance to the Milady Soap Co. Although the studio has been drastically remodeled, there are some details that are still the same, like the power source on the side of the building in the red circle and the sliding wire fence.

Red Studios Hollywood used for the "Milady Soap Co."

The back entrance to Red Studios located on Lillian Way.

During one part in the film we see Celeste Holm take Ronald Colman on a wild ride through Hollywood. They mainly drive down Hollywood Boulevard and then make a turn from Hollywood on to Vine Street heading south. They pass such landmarks as the Egyptian Theatre, the Vogue Theatre, and in the distance of one shot we see radio towers that stand on top of the Warner Hollywood Theatre.

Hollywood Boulevard approaching Las Palmas Ave.

Hollywood Blvd looking towards Las Palmas Ave.

In the comparison above we can see that the Egyptian Theatre is still standing on the right, the Vogue Theatre is still on the left, and in the distance the radio towers are still standing on top of what was formerly the Warner Hollywood Theatre.

Hollywood Boulevard and Cherokee Avenue.

Hollywood Boulevard at Cherokee Avenue.

In the next scene Holm and Colman turn from Hollywood Boulevard on to Vine Street heading south. In the background we get a glimpse of the Melody Lane Restaurant located on the northwest corner of Hollywood and Vine. Before this building was the Melody Lane Restaurant it was Carl Laemmle's Coco Tree Cafe. Laemmle (yes, the Universal Studios mogul) had hired architect Richard Neutra in 1932 to design a modern and fancy lunch spot, but with the idea that there would be billboards above the restaurant advertising Universal pictures. The Coco Tree Cafe was a success but when Carl Laemmle died in 1939, the Pig 'n' Whistle manager Sidney Hoedemaker took over the location and completely remodeled the building, turning it into the Melody Lane Restaurant. After Melody Lane the building would have several other tenants including Hody's, Howard Johnson's, and most recently Basque Nightclub, until a fire destroyed the place in 2008. Today the corner is an empty lot.

Colman and Holm pass the Melody Lane restaurant at Hollywood and Vine.

Looking north on Vine Street across Hollywood Blvd. Vintage postcard view.

The same intersection of Hollywood and Vine as it appears now.

The final round of the quiz show takes place at another Hollywood landmark, the Hollywood Bowl. In the next two comparisons we first see cars arriving at the entrance to the Hollywood Bowl located on Highland Avenue and in the second the interior of the Hollywood Bowl. The Hollywood Bowl, an outdoor amphitheater primarily used for summer concerts, has long been a popular filming location. Other films that feature the Hollywood Bowl include A Star is Born (1937), Hollywood or Bust (1956), Moonlight Murder (1936), Two On A Guillotine (1965), It's A Good Feeling (1949), Anchors Aweigh (1945), and Double Indemnity (1944).

The Hollywood Bowl entrance as seen in the film.

The Hollywood Bowl entrance.

The quiz show moves inside the Hollywood Bowl.

A modern view inside the Hollywood Bowl.

Champagne For Caesar can be rented through ClassicFlix. The film includes a great cast with superb comedic performances. Add this to your queue the next time you're looking for a few laughs or are interested in seeing a few Hollywood landmarks.

Author and Historian, John Bengtson

I'm back with another installment of Talking Old Hollywood and this time I had the chance to ask silent filming locations expert and historian John Bengtson a few questions. John has written three expertly researched books chronicling the filming locations of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd. He blogs about these and other silent filming locations at his website Silent Locations. John's detective work uncovering many long gone or deeply hidden locations is impressive. I'm honored to have him share a little about his research, interest in silent films, and which of the three silent film comedian greats he would choose to spend the day with.

How and when did you first become interested in silent films?

I grew up watching silent movies on Public Television, and seeing the Robert Youngson compilations. The good silent comedians were so talented and clever that they immediately hooked me.

When did that interest evolve into hunting down silent film locations?

I’ve always enjoyed looking at old photographs, and how they draw you into real-world environments from the past. But my interest in the location work began as a fluke. When Buster Keaton’s films first became available on home video in 1995, I was surprised to notice that a chase scene from Day Dreams (1922) was clearly filmed in North Beach in San Francisco, near where I once used to live. So I set my camera up on a tripod, took photos of the scenes off of my television set, and after getting the photos back from the drug store (this was all pre-digital!), I walked around North Beach armed with my snapshots and quickly found all five spots. It was a very odd sensation to stand in a spot where many elements were exactly the same as when Buster had filmed there, and contemplating all of the history over the decades these buildings had silently witnessed. I never set out to do a series of books, but what started as a simple curiosity kept expanding, and triggering amazing coincidences and lucky breaks, until it reached the point where I just gave in to it, to see where it would lead. That process continues expanding even today.

What are your methods for finding locations and how might they have changed over time?

My first approach is to look for street signs and business signs in the background. Sometimes you get lucky and can find things this way quite easily using the old city directories. In one movie Keaton actually covered up a street sign with a paper bag, but I still figured out where it was filmed! I also look for trolley tracks, “T” intersections, and special use buildings like churches and schools. The ridge lines in the background are also good markers.

Apart from the city directories, I like to use vintage maps and aerial photographs. The Sanborn Fire Insurance Company maintained large scale maps, covering just a block or two at a time, detailing the precise footprint and construction materials of nearly every building in Los Angeles. The Baist Atlases were drawn with a broader view, showing all of the buildings within a several block radius. The US Geological Survey’s topographic maps from the early 1900s also show streets and neighborhoods as they once looked.

My favorite tools are low elevation oblique vintage aerial photographs, with views like you would see from a helicopter. These photos are true time machines, placing everything in context to everything else. What did this corner look like, what was across the street, what was nearby? A good aerial photo provides all of the answers, and often reveals how related shots were staged adjacent to each other.

The Internet has made everything so much easier. I once had to travel to Los Angeles in person to study research materials, and drive around looking for clues. Today the city directories, the maps, even the old Los Angeles Times newspapers, are all available for searching online. Likewise, with Google Street View and Bing Bird’s Eye View, I can zoom to any spot in Los Angeles to verify matches, and to confirm whether buildings are still standing, without leaving my computer at home.

What is the most satisfying silent film location you discovered and why?

I found a block on Bronson and Olympic appearing during a tracking shot in Keaton’s Seven Chances (1924) as Buster is chased by a hoard of angry brides across a commercial street and one-by-one past a series of bungalow homes. Ninety years later, the commercial buildings, and five consecutive bungalows are all still standing.

The only clue was a blurry bank sign in the background for a branch with a short name and a longer name. Checking the city directory for short name-longer name combinations, none of the possible branch locations, such as the Pico & Alvarado branch, matched the setting. I was confused by this for over two years until I somehow realized that the longer name “Tenth” used in the city directory could be spelled as a short name “10^th” on a sign, and thus checked the setting for the Tenth and Bronson branch, which turned out to be the correct spot. (Tenth Street was later re-named Olympic to promote Los Angeles hosting the 1932 Olympic Games.)

I don’t know if taking two years to associate Tenth and 10^th means I am clever or slow, but it had bothered me for such a long time, so when I finally figured it out, and saw in person that the buildings were all still standing, it was incredibly satisfying. (This was all long before the instant gratification of checking on Google Street View. I have to laugh, because back then I had to wait months for my next trip to Los Angeles before learning whether the street was still unchanged.)

Is there any location that you haven’t found yet that you continue to research?

I was stumped by one location for years until a helpful reader of my blog solved it for me! Early in Lloyd’s Safety Last! (1923) Bill Stother, the real life Human Spider who plays Harold’s friend, climbs a four story building in order to escape a cop. The building stood facing south along an east-west trolley line, next to an alley and the “California Garage.” Despite all of these clues I could never figure it out. Thankfully a reader, following only hunches, was able to identify it as the former Dresden Apartments, still standing, although heavily remodeled, at 1919 W 7th Street. You can read about his discovery here.

Have you met any interesting people or had any unusual experiences since starting this hobby?

Well, to start, I’ve been able to meet my hero, Kevin Brownlow, several times. I also met Mrs. Eleanor Keaton, and had a fun afternoon driving her around on a tour of Buster’s filming locations. She and Buster once lived very near Bronson and Olympic, where he had staged that tracking shot from Seven Chances, yet it never occurred to him to mention this to her. I’m also honored to know Harold Lloyd’s grand-daughter Suzanne, and Chaplin’s biographer David Robinson. Lastly, I have been able to meet so many wonderful authors, historians, and movie fans along the way – it’s really been a great experience.

You’ve written fabulous books on the filming locations of the three greatest silent film comedians: Keaton, Chaplin and Lloyd. If you could select one of them to spend the day with, who would it be and what would you guys do during that day?

I’d pick Keaton of the three, hands down. Keaton always struck me as the most down to earth and least affected by fame. It would be great just to hear him reminisce, and prompt him for stories. Of course it would also be fun to take him on a tour, and hear what memories and associations revisiting these places would trigger.

There are many locations in these silent films that have been demolished and now only exist on film. If you could actually travel back in time what now lost location would you like to visit in person?

There are a number of amazing lost neighborhoods, including the original 1880s Chinatown, the old Venice amusement park piers, and Bunker Hill. But if I could pick just one spot it would be Court Hill.

The distinctive twin bore Hill Street Tunnel ran beneath Court Hill, the second of LA’s two incline railways, Court Flight, ran up and down Court Hill, and standing guard over it all was the unbelievably ornate Bradbury Mansion. It was here, overlooking the Hill Street Tunnel, that so many high rise stunt climbing comedies such Harold Lloyd’s Never Weaken were filmed. The technique involved constructing a single story set above the tunnel overlook, and filming across the face of the set to capture the low-lying streets of LA in the background, while cutting off from view the bottom of the set resting on the ground. The resulting illusion made it appear as if the set were many stories up in the air. Further, Hill Street, which is relatively flat, was so-named because it originally lead straight to Court Hill, where it terminated before the tunnels were built. Today not a shred remains of the hill that gave Hill Street its name; it’s all been completely bulldozed.

Do you have a favorite film (silent, sound, or both) and what makes it so?

It’s difficult to answer. Chaplin, Keaton and Lloyd are all great, but I also enjoy Fields, the Marx Bros., Laurel & Hardy, pre-Code, noir, classics, and goofy cult films like The Big Lebowski and Napoleon Dynamite. I especially enjoy Roman Polanski’s Chinatown. Because of the movies, it’s difficult for me to imagine the 1920s and 30s in anything but black and white. Whenever I try hard to image the 1930s in color, it always ends up looking like Chinatown.

What do you do when not tracking down filming locations?

Well, aside from watching old movies, I try to read lots of books, I enjoy hiking and bicycling near where I live, and I like playing the piano.

Do you have any special projects you are working on now or that are coming up?

My SilentLocations blog keeps me fairly busy. I have ideas for some further books, but the researching and writing takes several years, like running a marathon, and so I don’t anticipate starting a new book for at least a couple of years.

If you made it reading this far, thank you so much, this was fun. Thank you Robby.

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Thanks John. You can find John's books here and visit his blog here.

While watching the Season 2 episode of THE ROCKFORD FILES, The Girl in The Bay City Boys Club (1975), I was surprised to spot the Donut Prince, in Burbank, California. I knew the Donut Prince sign was old, but I never thought the place was serving up fresh pastries in the early 1970s when Jim Rockford (James Garner) would be driving by in his gold Pontiac Firebird Esprit. I've been making trips to Donut Prince for the last 10 years (fortunately my waistline doesn't show it), so when I caught a glimpse of the unique neon yellow sign it stood out immediately.

Click images to enlarge.

James Garner on Olive Avenue, Burbank, CA

Donut Prince sign hidden just behind the trees. Olive Ave, Burbank.

The Donut Prince is located at 1721 W. Olive Avenue, Burbank, California. Just behind the Donut Prince is a McDonald's which is also still in business. The Safeway that can be seen just before the Donut Prince was later a Von's grocery store and then a few years ago it was changed into a CVS Pharmacy.

In the comparison below we can see that on the opposite side of the street there is a liquor store and a bank. Today there are still a bank and liquor store at these locations but not the same bank and liquor store from the date of the Rockford Files screenshot.

Garner looks into his mirror while passing the Safeway on Olive Ave.

The Safeway is now a CVS Pharmacy. Olive Ave, Burbank.

The Donut Prince has been used a few times as a filming location (Larry Crowne, T.J. Hooker) and is also popular with celebrities. Pictures of stars who have dined there adorn the walls. George Lopez apparently is an especially big fan of the place. Even though the place is a donut shop, I primarily go for the hot ham and cheese croissants.

This episode of the Rockford Files includes many other Valley locations, including the Burbank YMCA, and a North Hollywood Jack-in-the-Box and Bob's Big Boy. Check out this Rockford Files website for additional locations.

Jim Brown, a football star turned actor, is the lead in ...tick...tick...tick (1970), a drama about racial relations in a small town in Mississippi. The film is similar in some ways to, In the Heat of the Night (1967), starring Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger, but lacks the depth and punch of that earlier film.

The story is set in the American South, but the movie was actually filmed in the small Northern California town of Colusa. Here are some of the Colusa, California filming locations.

Click images to enlarge.

Colusa Police Department, 260 6th Street

260 6th Street, Colusa, California

Above is the Colusa Police Department building located at 260 Sixth St which also is used as a police department in the film. In the screenshot we see actor George Kennedy approaching the stairs of the police department. Although the building is still used as a police department today, it was originally built as a Carnegie library in 1906. It was one of 13 Carnegie libraries built in the Sacramento Valley during 1903-17.

Below are two views looking up the street from the police department building. The first view is looking towards 210 Sixth St. and the second is looking at the lot next door to the police department.

210 6th Street, Colusa, Ca.

The parking lot next to Colusa Police Department.

George Kennedy, one of the police officers, lives in a home located at what is now 659 Jay Street in Colusa, California. The below views show comparisons of the homes across the street at 644 Jay Street, the home at what is now 659 Jay Street, and the home next door. The property next door to Kennedy's house has since been razed and replaced by a new building.

George Kennedy with 644 Jay Street in background.

644 Jay Street, Colusa, Ca.

George Kennedy's home at what is now 659 Jay Street.

659 Jay Street, now the site of Steidlmayer Leo Law Office.

The property next door to the Kennedy house.

The property next door to the Kennedy house appears to have been replaced by an apartment building.

Below, is a comparison of the First Christian Church located at 725 Jay Street, just up the street from Kennedy's home.

First Christian Church, 725 Jay Street

Jay Street at 7th Street

Below is a view of actor Fredric March with the Colusa Hall of Records building located in the background, just across the street from the Colusa Police Department.

Hall of Records in background from Colusa Police Department.

Hall of Records building across from Colusa Police Department.

Looking towards the Federal Land Bank Association, Jay Street at 6th Street

Market Street at 5th Street

Jim Brown walks along 6th Street at Market Street.

6th Street at Market Street.

The finale of the film takes place on a bridge leading out of town. I believe the location is the River Road bridge near B Street.

River Road bridge near B Street.

River Road near B Street.

...tick...tick...tick also stars George Kennedy and Fredric March. It was directed by James Lee Barrett. The film is available on DVD through the Warner Archive Collection.

In The Rockford Files season 2 episode, "In Hazard," Jim Rockford (James Garner) discovers a body inside the garage of a suburban house. The home just happens to be the former "Paramount House" which used to be located on Universal Studios Colonial Street backlot and was originally constructed for the film The Desperate Hours (1955) starring Humphrey Bogart and Fredric March. Below is a comparison of the Paramount House as seen in The Rockford Files episode and in The Desperate Hours.

The "Paramount House" in The Rockford Files.

The Paramount House as seen in the film The Desperate Hours.

The house looks mostly the same except for in The Rockford Files episode there is the addition of a lower roof. What I find most interesting is seeing how the tree in the front lawn has grown in 20 + years between Desperate Hours and Rockford Files. The tree trunk and branches still maintain the same shape, but by the time of the Rockford Files the tree is much larger and fuller.

I first learned of the film City of Fear (1959) from reading a review over at Laura's Miscellaneous Musings and I'm glad she put it on my radar. This little B film has a lot of things going for it; a thrilling plot line, some great camera work, and most of all lots of real world location filming around Los Angeles.

The story is about a killer (Vince Edwards) who breaks out from San Quentin prison with a canister which he believes to contain heroin. However, it's not heroin he is carrying, but a radioactive material that is of great danger to anyone who comes in contact with it and having the potential danger of wiping out an entire city. The convict heads to Los Angeles and it is here that law enforcement attempt to catch up with him before a major population is affected by the dangerous substance in his possession.

Here are some of the many real world filming locations for City of Fear. Click the images to enlarge.

Vine Street looking South toward Yucca Street in Hollywood.

Vine Street looking south toward Yucca Street.

In this first comparison we see the escaped killer, who has taken a driver of a car hostage, moving down Vine Street in Hollywood, just above Yucca Street. We can see a very small portion of The Capital Records Tower which was completed in 1956, just three years prior to City of Fear.

Continuing down Vine Street to Yucca Street.

The corner of Vine Street and Yucca Street.

In the same scene, we get another view of the car from the outside which shows the Vine Manor Hotel. This hotel has since been demolished and replaced by a modern office building.

The Vine Manor Hotel on Vine Street in Hollywood.

The Vine Manor Hotel has been replaced by a modern office building.

In this next scene we see the killer pull into a business which was located at 7827 Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood.

Looking west from 7827 Santa Monica Blvd in West Hollywood.

7827 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood

In the next couple comparisons below we see a scene that was filmed at the intersection of Fairfax Avenue and Sunset Boulevard. In the first comparison we see two gas stations. Although the buildings have completely changed, there are still gas stations on both corners. And the home behind the gas station on the east side of Fairfax is still there as well.

Looking across Fairfax Ave from the gas station at 7901 Sunset Blvd.

The corner of Fairfax Ave at Sunset Blvd.

The comparison below is also Farifax at Sunset but looking south instead of north. The Thrifty drug store is now a Rite Aid. The building on the opposite corner has been demolished and is now the site of a Bristol Farms grocery store.

Looking toward the southeast corner of Sunset Blvd and Fairfax Ave.

Thrifty drug store at 7900 Sunset Boulevard.

Rite Aid drug store at 7900 Sunset Boulevard.

Below a cop car drives down Romaine Street in Hollywood, passing what was once the Howard Hughes headquarters located at 7000 Romaine St.

A police car passes the Howard Hughes Headquarters.

Former Howard Hughes Headquarters, 7000 Romaine St, Hollywood.

This next scene is the location where the killer meets up with one of his contacts who works in a shoe store. The store was located on Wilshire Boulevard at the intersection with S. Curson Avenue and right across the street from the La Brea Tar Pits. The shoe store building seen in the film has since been demolished and a new building stands on the site.

Looking down Wilshire Blvd from S. Curson Ave.

One of the few buildings that is still reconizeable is the building with the two chimney's, which is now home to the Craft and Folk Art Museum at 5814 Wilshire Blvd.

Detectives race to the shoe store at Wilshire Blvd and Curson Ave.

The shoe store is gone. Now the site is home to The Counter burger restaurant.

The shoe store at Wilshire and Curson Ave.

The restauarant that stands on the shoe store location.

There are several scenes that were filmed in Elysian Park, near Dodger Stadium. Some scenes show police cars driving down the roads that lead to the Police Academy. Much of the action that takes place in Elysian Park was filmed at the location below at the Elysian Therapeutic Recreation Center and surrounding grounds located at 929 Academy Rd., Los Angeles.

Elysian Park Recreation Center, 929 Academy Rd.

929 Academy Road, Elysian Park, Los Angeles

Parking lot at Elysian Park Recreation Center.

Parking lot at Elysian Therapeutic Recreation Center.

Different law enforcement officials are seen coming and going from a brick building with a garage. The building was located at 1012 N. Orange Drive, just a couple blocks north from the Howard Hughes headquarters location.

Looking towards 1001 N. Orange Drive, Hollywood.

1012 N. Orange Drive, Hollywood.

The brick garage at 1012 N. Orange Dr. has been replaced by this building.

There is a long scene of Vince Edwards driving around Los Angeles. We see Edwards drive south down La Brea Avenue, make a right on Melrose Avenue, then a left on Stanley Avenue. Below are some of the locations we see Edwards pass.

Edwards passes Santa Monica Blvd driving south on La Brea Ave.

Looking down Santa Monica Blvd. from La Brea Ave.

In the scene above Edwards drives pass Santa Monica Boulevard while heading south on La Brea Avenue. The tall building that can be seen in the distance is the Iron Mountain storage facility. This building was previously a Bekins storehouse and before that a building for the Hollywood Storage Co. This 11-story landmark located at 1025 N. Highland Ave. was the tallest structure in Hollywood when erected in 1925.

Another view looking east down Santa Monica Blvd. from La Brea Ave.

Looking east down Santa Monica Blvd. from La Brea Ave.

Edwards turns from La Brea Ave. onto Melrose Ave.

The southeast corner of La Brea Ave. and Melrose Ave.

Edwards passes a Standard Station at 7100 Melrose Avenue.

A Chevron station is now located on the site of the Standard Station.

Edwards passes 7116 Melrose Avenue.

The house at 7116 Melrose Ave. is now an Animal Hospital.

Edwards on Melrose Ave. crossing Gardner St.

Looking towards 7473 Melrose Avenue.

Edwards on Melrose Ave. crossing Sierra Bonita Ave.

Looking west down Melrose Ave. from Sierra Bonita Ave.

In the scene below Edwards pulls into a gas station which was located at 7600 Melrose Avenue near the intersection of N. Curson Ave. The gas station has been demolished and a strip mall stands on the site.

Edwards approaches the gas station at 7600 Melrose Ave.

Looking towards 7600 Melrose Ave.

7577 Melrose Ave. can be seen across from the gas station.

Looking towards 7577 Melrose Ave. from the gas station location.

Looking north towards Curson Ave. and Melrose Ave.

Looking north up Curson Ave. from Melrose Ave.

Edwards next makes a left onto Stanley Avenue from Melrose Avenue. Where at the time of the film was a parking lot is now the home of a Starbucks.

Edwards turns onto Stanley Ave. from Melrose Ave.

A Starbucks is now located on the corner of Stanley and Melrose.

Looking from Melrose across Stanley Ave.

One of the homes seen in the background on Stanley Ave.

In the next scene we see a police car cruising a residential neighborhood. I made the assumption that this neighborhood was likely somewhere in Hollywood. I could see that it was on a street with a T intersection, so using Google aerial view, I searched over residential patches in Hollywood looking for T intersections. After eliminating a few intersections I found a home at the corner of N. Orange Grove Avenue and De Longpre Avenue that had windows that matched the house at the forefront of the screenshot. The following two comparison show different views of this location.

Looking west down De Longpre Ave. towards N. Orange Grove Ave.

N. Orange Grove Ave. at De Longpre Ave.

The same house at 1400 N. Orange Grove Ave.

The corner of N. Orange Grove Ave. and De Longpre Ave.

The final scenes in the film end with the police catching up with the outlaw on the run. Edwards is seen running around the area near Sunset Boulevard and Gardner Street in Hollywood.

Looking south down Gardner St. across Sunset Blvd.

Looking south down Gardner St. at Sunset Blvd.

A police car turns into an alley near 1512 N. Gardner St.

Looking towards the alley at 1512 Gardner St.

Edwards runs pass 1519 Gardner St.

Looking towards 1519 Gardner St.

Edwards near an alley at 1509 Gardner St.

Looking down the alley near 1509 Gardner St.

Edwards runs into a cafe restaurant located in the alley above Sunset Boulevard near Gardner Street. It's here that the police catch up with Edwards and force him out of the restaurant and into the alley. In the aerial view below, the red circle marks the stairwell where a police officer stands with his gun aimed at Edwards as he comes falling through the restaurant doors and into the alley.

Detectives roll into an alley above Sunset Boulevard.

Bing Bird's Eye view of the alley. The red circle marks the spot of the officer with the gun.

The police move in on Edwards in the alley near Sunset and Gardner.

Looking down the alley near Sunset and Gardner.

Edwards on the ground outside the cafe in the alley.

The cast for City of Fear also includes Lyle Talbot in a small role, John Archer, and Patricia Blair. It was directed by Irving Lerner. The film is available on DVD. I purchased the film as part of the Columbia Pictures Film Noir Classic II DVD set which also comes with the films Human Desire, The Brothers Rico, Nightfall, and Pushover. I strongly recommend this film for lovers of film noir and/or films featuring Los Angeles as a filming location.

Cary Grant with his Siamese Cat. Beverly Hills 1955.

Film scholar and writer Farran Nehme, a.k.a. the "Self-Styled Siren," posted the above picture taken in 1955 of Cary Grant walking his Siamese cat through Beverly Hills to her Twitter page. I couldn't resist looking up this corner of Beverly Hills to see if the location has changed. Below is a Google Street View screenshot showing the same corner.

Click image to enlarge.

Southeast corner of Charleville Blvd and Swall Dr. Beverly Hills.

The location is the southeast corner of Charleville Blvd and Swall Dr in a residential part of Beverly Hills just a couple blocks from the high-end retailers and medical offices on Wilshire Boulevard. Unfortunately, the house that Grant passes now appears to be blocked by tall bushes, however, you can see part of the roof and the small chimney in the back.

On Wednesday, August 28, Turner Classic Movies will be playing films starring actress Shirley Jones as part of their Summer Under the Stars series. One of my personal favorites, The Music Man (1962), will be showing at 8:00 PM EST. I grew up with this film. My mom loved musicals, so films like The Music Man, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and The Sound of Music were regularly being played on the VHS player. Certain images from all of these films always stood out to me. In Seven Brides it was the exciting barn raising dance. In Sound of Music it was the dance in the rainstorm by the gazebo. And in The Music Man it was seeing all the kids marching through town in their colorful uniforms. I later even participated (briefly) in a middle school marching band (until I ditched the school band to form a rock band which seemed like the cooler thing to do).

As part of the 2013 Summer Under The Stars Blogathon hosted by the blog Sittin' on a Backyard Fence, I've put together a special film locations post highlighting the colorful town of "River City, Iowa" featured in The Music Man.

River City, Iowa is a fictional town based on Mason City, Iowa, the hometown of playwright Meredith Willson. Although the story is set in the Midwest, the film was actually made at the Warner Bros. studio in Burbank, California. Some sets were constructed inside large sound stages, but most of the town scenes were filmed on the Midwest Street backlot which is still standing (although remodeled several times since).

Click images to see larger.

The back side of the chapel as seen in The Music Man.

Contemporary view of the back side of the chapel.

One can imagine how many films and television shows have been filmed on the Midwest Street backlot over the years. I've covered a few here on Dear Old Hollywood in the past. This same area on the back side of the chapel can also be seen in No Time For Sergeants (1958) with Andy Griffith and Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came? (1970) starring Tony Curtis, Brian Keith, Ernest Borgnine, Suzanne Pleshet, Tom Ewell and Don Ameche.

Robert Preston passes the River City bank.

The bank facade on the left. The pool hall facade on the right.

Above is a comparison of the facades that are used as the River City bank building and the pool hall. Remember that scene where Preston tells the town folk, "Ya got trouble, my friend right here, I say, trouble right here in River City...Trouble with a capital 'T' and that rhymes with 'P' and that stands for pool!"

Preston and Buddy Hackett sit in front of the pool hall.

Looking towards the pool hall facade.

Preston with the town folk in front of the River City City Hall.

A contemporary view of the City Hall facade.

Preston sitting with the Midwest Street chapel in the background.

Looking above Midwest Street towards the chapel.

Preston runs toward the livery stable.

Looking towards the livery stable facade as it appears now.

Some of the facades that have changed dramatically since The Music Man was made are those looking in the direction of the livery stable buildings. You can see the difference in the comparison above.

Hackett and Preston sitting on a bench in the center of town.

Looking across the Midwest Street courtyard.

Another facade on the Midwest Street backlot that has changed is the home located on the left side of the below screenshot (where the couple are riding a bicycle). The City Hall building can still be seen on the right side of the screenshot.

A view of Midwest Street seen in The Music Man.

The same view of Midwest Street as it appears today.

In the next comparison Preston leads the band through Midwest Street and in the background we see that the same building that houses the City Hall on one side, houses the Library on another, and later you will see also houses the Fire Station on the opposite side.

Preston leads the band past the library and city hall facades.

Looking towards the Library facade (left) and City Hall (right).

The band marches past the Midwest Street courtyard.

Looking across the Midwest Street courtyard.

Another view of the chapel.

Although the chapel has been remodeled, it still has the same basic shape.

Looking up Midwest Street as the band marches on.

Looking up Midwest Street with the City Hall facade in the background.

The River City Fire Department.

Fire Department facade shares the same building as the City Hall.

Off from the main courtyard of Midwest Street is a small residential street. The next few images show the homes on this street.

Paul Ford passes a home on Midwest Street.

The same home as it appears today.

Preston stands in front of another home on Midwest Street.

The same home as it appears today.

Preston in front of another Midwest Street home.

The yellow oval marks the spot where Preston is standing in the screenshot above.

The marching band heads down the residential street off of Midwest Street.

Looking from the residential street towards the center of Midwest Street.

In addition to Shirley Jones and Robert Preston, The Music Man (1962) also stars Buddy Hackett, Hermione Gingold, Paul Ford, Pert Kelton, Timmy Everett, Susan Luckey, Mary Wickes and a little Ron Howard. The film is available on DVD but I recommend picking up the blu-ray release which looks amazing.

Some additional films previously covered here on Dear old Hollywood to feature the Midwest Street backlot set include The Hard Way (1943), No Time For Sergeants (1958), Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came? (1970), Nickelodeon (1976), The Monster Squad (1987), East of Eden (1955), and Rebel Without a Cause (1955).

Except where noted otherwise, all images (c) Warner Bros.

Many times I've watched movies where the story is dull, or the film is ridiculous, but because of some interesting film locations, I'll continue watching. That's not the case with Brainstorm (1965) starring Jeffrey Hunter, Dana Andrews, Anne Francis, and Viveca Lindfors. This film, in addition to having some wonderful real world film locations, is a thrilling story, well acted, with beautiful black and white cinematography. This is a movie I could watch multiple times and I'm delighted that the Warner Archive has made this underrated noir available as part of their MOD releases.

Hunter plays a young and intelligent computer scientist who saves a beautiful woman (Francis) from attempting suicide. He returns the woman to her husband who turns out to be his wealthy enterprising boss (Andrews). Hunter and Francis become romantically involved and the two plot to kill Andrews. Hunter has a complex plan that involves killing Andrews, faking insanity to avoid the murder rap, and then waiting to be released from a sanitarium once he can prove he is safe to reenter society. However, do things ever go according to plan?

Here are some of the filming locations from this suspenseful noir.

Click images to see larger.

Greystone Mansion as seen in Brainstorm (1965).

Looking up at Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills.

The home of Hunter's boss, Cort Benson, is the Greystone Mansion, located at 905 Loma Vista Drive, in Beverly Hills, California. Many films have used the Greystone Mansion as a filming location and the Friends of Greystone website lists a few of these, including some of my favorites, The Disorderly Orderly (1964), Death Becomes Her (1992), and There Will Be Blood (2007). However, the website does not list Brainstorm, so perhaps it can now be added to the list. Above is a comparison view of the rear side of the mansion and below is a comparison of the entrance courtyard.

Greystone Mansion entrance courtyard.

Greystone Mansion courtyard entrance. Photo: mark6mauno flickr

The next location below is what was then known as the Lockheed Air Terminal and today is known as Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California. The airport has grown and been completely remodeled since the time Brainstorm was filmed. In the comparison below you can match up the screenshot with the contemporary view by looking at the mountain range in the background. I've used a green square to highlight a piece of the mountain range and if you look from left to right you can see how the ridge lines up.

Dana Andrews at was then known as Lockheed Air Terminal.

The Lockheed Air Terminal, now known as Bob Hope Airport.

Hunter works at Benson Industries, headed by Cort Benson (Andrews). Benson Industries was really the site of Thompson Ramo Wooldridge Inc. a then high tech computer company located on a large campus-like environment in Canoga Park, California. I recognized the office building seen in this film when I came across a brochure from 1962 promoting Canoga Park as a great place to live and a great place for business. The brochure can be seen in the California State University Northridge Oviatt Library Digital Collections. The Rocketdyne Archives website is another great source of information on this site where many high tech companies were located.

In the screenshot below we see Hunter leaving the Benson Industries office building. The following image is an aerial view from the brochure showing the site of the Thompson Ramo Wooldridge Inc. site. Using a yellow oval I've marked where the Benson Industries building was located (now demolished). The next image is a contemporary Bird's Eye view and again I've used a yellow oval marking the spot of the Benson Industries building.

Jeffrey Hunter leaving "Benson Industries."

Thompson Ramo Wooldridge Inc. Canoga Park, CA 1962

A Bing "Bird's Eye" view of the site today.

The yellow oval marks the building used as Benson Industries.

Hunter leaving Benson Industries.

The next comparison shows the gate at the entrance to the Benson Industries campus. The entrance was located on Fallbrook Avenue, just a few blocks up from Roscoe Boulevard.

Hunter at the Benson Industries gate.

The gate was located on Fallbrook Ave a few blocks north of Roscoe Blvd.

Below, Hunter walks in front of his apartment building, the "Blair Arms." This building is actually the main administration building on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank. This building has been remodeled dramatically several times over the years, but I was able to identify this location from the door handles that were once attached to the front doors. In the next three images I've used a yellow square to highlight these door handles. In the first image we see Hunter walking past the apartment building. The second image shows the Warner Bros. main administration building as it appeared in 1976 and you can see that the same door handles were still in place at that time. In the third image, a photograph I took just a couple weeks ago, you can see that not only have the door handles been changed, but the entire facade has been completely remodeled. You can still see that the windows on the sides look mostly the same.

Hunter passes the Blair Arms apartment building.

The Warner Bros. Main Administration Building 1976.

The Warner Bros. Main Administration Building August 2013.

Hunter at the Blair Arms apartment - really the WB Admin building.

The Warner Bros. Administration Building, August 2013.

Later in the film Hunter plans to assassinate Andrews while he is giving a speech at the International Hotel, which today is the Radisson Hotel located at 6225 West Century Boulevard, Los Angeles, right next to the LAX airport.

International Hotel, 6225 W Century Blvd, Los Angeles.

The Radisson Hotel near LAX airport, previously International Hotel.

The International Hotel entrance.

The hotel entrance as it appears today.

Hunter walks the hotel stairs from the main lobby.

A contemporary view of the hotel stairs.

At the end of the film Hunter is taken to the State Mental Hospital which in reality is the site of the Veterans West Los Angeles Health Care campus. About five years ago I attended a theatre performance put on by the Reprise Theater Company led by actor Jason Alexander (sadly I just learned the Reprise Theatre Company recently ceased operations) which was held at a building on this large veterans campus. It was my first time on the campus and actually the last time I was on the campus, but the appearance of the location has always stayed in my mind. My first instinct was to search the VA grounds and when I started looking at the sprawling campus using Bing Bird's Eye I was immediately able to pin point the area used in the film.

The purple circle below marks the spot on the VA health care campus where Jeffrey Hunter is being accosted by the security of the State Mental Hospital. The exact location on the campus is located between Patton Ave and Bonsalle Ave.

Hunter being dragged back to the State Mental Hospital.

Birds Eye view of the State Mental Hospital - really the Veterans Hospital.

Hunter at the State Mental Hospital.

Aerial view of the mental hospital.

Birds Eye view of the mental hospital/VA hospital campus.

Brainstorm (1965) is available on DVD through Warner Archive and is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant. The film can also be rented through ClassicFlix. I highly recommend this film.

Your thoughts?

All screenshots (c) Warner Home Video

Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan, two classic Hollywood heavyweights, go head to head in the noir The Racket (1951). Ryan is a violent crime boss trying to elect a crooked prosecutor to a judgeship by using his corrupt methods. Mitchum is a police captain who wants to bring Ryan and his racket down. Although the cinematography is not quite as dramatic as some top notch noirs, the strong cast do an excellent job of pushing this crime story along at an active pace. In addition to the superb Ryan and Mitchum, the cast includes other recognizable noir performers such as Lizabeth Scott, Ray Collins, Don Porter, and William Conrad.

The Racket was produced by Howard Hughes when he headed RKO Studios. It was a remake of a film he had produced in 1929 which was an adaptation of a stage play starring Edward G. Robinson and John Cromwell. Hughes selected Cromwell to direct the 1951 film version but was ultimately disappointed with Cromwell's direction. Hughes then brought in director Nicholas Ray to fix the picture. Additionally, Sherman Todd and Tay Garnett were also brought in to film some scenes. Despite a slew of directors and an interfering producer like Hughes, The Racket turned out pretty well.

I don't recall the city is ever named in the film, but I get the impression the story is supposed to be set in New York City. However, filming was actually done in California in downtown Los Angeles, Culver City and Encino. There is even one location with a connection to the popular classic film, It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - keep reading to find out.

Note: Click images to see larger.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES

In this first location a man is killed in a parking lot that was once located on Wilshire Boulevard a couple blocks west of Grand Avenue. As you will see in the next few scene comparisons there are a few structures from the time of the film that are still standing, but overall, this area has vastly changed. The parking lot and the buildings that stood right next to the parking lot are now demolished but the buildings that we see in the background when looking in the direction of Grand Avenue are still there.

Looking down Wilshire Blvd towards Grand Ave.

Looking east from Grand Ave near Wilshire.

The building in green in the background outlined in the purple box is the Los Angeles Jewelery Center located at 629 Hill Street. It's a twelve-story office building that was built in 1930. The building located on the far right of the above image stands on Grand Avenue where Wilshire Boulevard dead ends. You can see more of this building in the below screenshot.

A view of Grand Avenue in background.

Looking at Grand Ave from Wilshire Blvd.

The next screenshot is a closeup of the parking lot where the man is murdered. The parking lot and the building in the background were located behind what was then Dawson's book store. Dawson's used to be at 627 South Grand Avenue at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard. To give a better idea of how this area once looked, below the screenshot of the parking lot there is a vintage photo from 1952 from the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) photo collection showing the view of Dawson's book store, the parking lot (see the green box) and the building just behind the parking lot. Today this location is the site of modern glass office towers as can be seen in the contemporary view.

Car lot on Wilshire Blvd one block west from Grand Ave.

Looking west down Wilshire from Grand ca. 1952. Car lot can be seen in the green square. Dawson's book store is on the corner. Photo: LAPL

Contemporary view looking west down Wilshire from Grand.

When some of the crooks are driving downtown they come to a stop at the intersection of 7th Street and Flower Street. In the screenshot below where the traffic officer is helping pedestrians cross the street we get a view looking down 7th Street from the intersection at Flower Street. Although the buildings immediately on the right of the screenshot are demolished the building on the left (in the yellow box) is still standing, as are some other buildings in the background.

Looking down 7th Street from Flower Street.

The "7th District Police Station" was really the Los Angeles Central Division Police Station which was located at 318 West 1st Street. Although this building was demolished long ago, I recognized the stonework entrance from digging through old photos for another project. In the next three images we see 1) a screenshot of Ryan entering the police station, 2) an LAPL photo from 1936 showing a full shot of the Central Division Police Station and how it once looked, and 3) a contemporary view of the corner of 1st Street and Hill Street revealing the vacant lot where the police station once stood.

Ryan enters the Central Division station at 318 W. 1st St.

Central Division police station 1936. Photo: LAPL

318 W. 1st Street. Central Division demolished.

In the scene where Ryan enters the police station below, we get a glimpse of the Hill Street Tunnel in the background. The Hill Street Tunnel was made up of two tunnels that at one time allowed trolleys and automobiles to enter/exit downtown Los Angeles. This view is of the south side of the Hill Street Tunnel. In another noir, Criss Cross (1949) starring Burt Lancaster, Yvonne DeCarlo and Dan Duryea, we get a view of the north end of the Hill Street Tunnel. A few years after the making of The Racket the Hill Street Tunnel and the surrounding buildings would be demolished for future developments.

Ryan enters the Central Division Station. The edge of the Hill Street Tunnel can be seen in the background.

Hill Street Tunnels being deconstructed in 1955. Photo: LAPL

Contemporary view of Hill Street from 1st Street. Tunnels demolished.

This last downtown Los Angeles location is just another view of 1st Street outside of the Central Division Police Station. This view is of 1st Street looking in the direction of Broadway. You can see from the comparison below that the buildings on the right towards the front are all demolished, however, in the background we get a glimpse of the historic Los Angeles Times Building which is still standing. When the Los Angeles Times Building opened in 1935 it was the largest building in the western U.S. designed and occupied entirely for the purpose of a daily newspaper publishing operation.

Looking down 1st Street towards Broadway. The Los Angeles Times building can be seen in the background on the right.

Looking down 1st St. towards Broadway. LA Times building still standing.

The It's a Wonderful Life (1946) connection.

THE RKO ENCINO RANCH

During one scene Mitchum visits the home of a friend and warns him not to cause trouble in his precinct. As Mitchum leaves the home a bomb explodes on the front porch. At first I had no idea where this home might be located, but I figured as this was an RKO film, that maybe they might have filmed the scene on their ranch property out in Encino. Eventually I found a screenshot from that popular film starring Jimmy Stewart, It's a Wonderful Life, on the amazing website Retro Web, and I recognized a few details from the house used in It's a Wonderful Life as being the same in the house used in The Racket. It's already known that It's a Wonderful Life was filmed on the RKO Encino Ranch so now I can confirm that The Racket also filmed on the RKO Encino Ranch. The home used in The Racket was the building used as "Ma Bailey's Boarding House" in It's a Wonderful Life. I've highlighted in purple details on the windows and the front porch columns on the screenshot from The Racket and on the image from It's a Wonderful Life so you can see how the two match up. By the way, if you have not visited the Retro Web site I recommend jumping on over. They have numerous images of different Los Angeles area studio buildings and other fun stuff to check out.

Mitchum leaves a house on the RKO Encino Ranch.

Ma Bailey's Boarding House from It's a Wonderful Life.

Mitchum stands inside a house located on the RKO Encino Ranch.

The RKO Encino Ranch was bounded by Burbank Boulevard to the South, Louise Ave to the West, Oxnard Street to the North and stopped at where the Balboa Park begins, just before Balboa Boulevard to the East. Below is a vintage aerial view of the RKO Encino Ranch showing where the residential neighborhood used for the scene where the bomb goes off in The Racket and where It's a Wonderful Life were both filmed. The purple box in the next three images shows the exact area where this part of the ranch set was located. 1) Vintage aerial of RKO Encino Ranch sets, 2) Vintage 1952 aerial view of Encino (see purple box for RKO ranch, and 3) an aerial view of Encino from 2013 (purple box outlines the former site of the RKO sets).

Aerial view of the RKO Encino Ranch.

Vintage 1952 aerial view of the ranch.

A contemporary view marking the site of the former RKO Encino Ranch.

CULVER CITY

Near the end of the film there is a chase scene between the police and Ryan who is attempting to get away. The chase cuts right through the heart of Culver City. You can tell I've forced my wife to sit through a lot of old movies because even she yelled out during the scene below, "that looks like the Culver Hotel." And indeed it is the historic Culver Hotel located at 9400 Culver Boulevard.

During the chase the cars race down the part of the street between the Culver Hotel and what is today a Pacific Theatre and then continues pass the site of the historic Culver Studios. The stretch of street between the Culver Hotel and the Pacific Theatre is now closed off to traffic but it is still open in the area in front of The Culver Studios.

The Culver Hotel in Culver City. 9400 Culver Blvd.

Looking east down Culver Blvd towards the Culver Hotel. Source.

Buildings located across from Culver Hotel, between Van Buren Place and the Culver Studios.

New buildings stand in the place of the ones that were once located across from the Culver Hotel.

Today, directly across from The Culver Studios is the location of a large parking lot. When The Racket was filmed we can see that there used to be many different commercial buildings that once stood at this location. In the next three images we see: 1) screenshot from The Racket showing the Chop Suey restaurant, liquor store and other buildings that used to be located on the site of the parking lot, 2) a vintage view from the LAPL showing the same buildings (but looking the opposite direction towards the Culver Hotel), and 3) a 2013 view showing the parking lot where the buildings seen in The Racket once stood.

Buildings located across the street from the Culver Studios.

A vintage view of buildings across from the Culver Studios. This view looks west towards the Culver Hotel. Photo: LAPL

The buildings across the Culver Studios and the Culver Hotel are now demolished and is the site of a parking lot.

Aerial view of the Culver City chase scene location.

The above aerial view shows the location of the chase scene through Culver City. The bright yellow arrow marks the path that the cars take when they pass The Culver Hotel and The Culver Studios. The orange box marks the parking lot where the Chop Suey restaurant and liquor store once stood.

To use a baseball expression, The Racket may not be a grand slam, but it at least pounds a double with Mitchum and Ryan heading the picture. The great locations make the film all the more enjoyable to watch. The Racket is available on DVD, can be rented through ClassicFlix and Netflix, and is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant.

Your thoughts?

Happy Land (1943) is a sentimental story about a father struggling with grief after learning that his only son was killed during World War II. The subject of the story is still relevant. Parents still struggle with the loss of their children due to fighting wars, but the way this particular story is told is a bit old-fashioned, what modern audiences may consider corny. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the sweetness of this film and its touching moments.

Don Ameche plays the father, Lew Marsh, a pharmacist in the small town of Hartfield, Iowa. One day while having lunch with his wife Agnes (Frances Dee), he receives a telegram that their son was killed in action. Marsh, overwhelmed with grief, stops talking with Agnes and neglects the pharmacy. Reverend Wood tries to comfort Lew with the idea that Rusty died for his country, but this doesn't comfort Lew at all, who feels his son Rusty never had a chance to live a full life. After the reverend leaves, Lew is visited by the spirit of his late grandfather, Edward "Gramp" Marsh (Harry Carey). Gramp accompanies Lew on a walk and in the process Gramp takes Lew on a walk back in time, recounting tender moments in the family's past.

In addition to Ameche, Dee, and Carey, the cast also includes Ann Rutherford, Richard Crane, a young Harry Morgan of M.A.S.H. fame and a very young Natalie Wood in a blink and you'll miss her scene.

The story is set in the fictional town of Hartfield, Iowa. Location filming actually took place in the Northern California cities Healdsburg and Santa Rosa (where Hitchcock filmed the classic Shadow of Doubt during the same year).

Click images to see larger.

Healdsburg Locations

Looking down Healdsburg Ave towards Matheson St.

The Healdsburg Plaza in the city of Healdsburg, California was used as the location for the fictional Hartfield center of town. The Marsh's pharmacy where Ameche's character works was located on Healdsburg Avenue between Matheson Street and Plaza Street. The old structures on this block, including the building that was used as the pharmacy location, have all been replaced by one large modern structure. Above is a comparison of the view looking down Healdsburg Avenue towards Matheson Street as seen in the film compared to the contemporary view. Below is a close up comparison of the Marsh's pharmacy site.

Marsh's pharmacy on Healdsburg Ave.

The Marsh's pharmacy building has been replaced by this modern building.

The interior of Marsh's pharmacy looking out towards Healdsburg Ave.

The next location is also on Healdsburg Avenue located between the pharmacy and the Healdsburg Plaza, looking in the direction of Plaza Street. This scene is part of one of the flashback moments. Although all the buildings on the left of the screenshot have been demolished, the building marked by the yellow square is still standing, however, in the contemporary view the building is hidden behind trees.

Healdsburg Ave looking towards Plaza Street.

In the next scene below Ameche is seen walking with Harry Carey down Matheson Street with the old Healdsburg City Hall in the background. I recognized the City Hall location when I was searching through old photographs on the Sonoma County Library online catalog. That's how I discovered that the town scenes were filmed in Healdsburg and from this location I was able to then identify the other Healdsburg locations. The old Healdsburg City Hall, which stood on the corner of Matheson Street and Center Street, was torn down in 1960. Presently an Oakville Grocery stands on the site. The Healdsburg Patch has an interesting article on the history of the old Healdsburg City Hall and contains a slide show of some old images of the building.

Ameche and Carey walk pass the old Healdsburg City Hall.

Looking towards the corner of Matheson and Center Streets where the old Healdsburg City Hall once stood.

The next scene is of a World War I parade and spectacle taking place inside the Healdsburg Plaza. This view is looking into the plaza from across the Marsh's pharmacy location on Healdsburg Ave.

Looking into the Healdsburg Plaza.

Below is another view looking out from the Marsh's pharmacy towards the plaza. In the screenshot we can see part of a building peeking out from behind the trees. That building is still standing on Plaza Street and is currently the site of Gallery Lulo.

The site of Gallery Lulo in background.

Gallery Lulo on the corner of Plaza and Center Streets.

Below is a postcard view looking down at the Healdsburg Plaza from above the old City Hall and Court House building and a contemporary Bing Bird's Eye view looking at the plaza. In the postcard you can see how the plaza used to look, including the buildings on the left which were used for the pharmacy location. In the Bird's Eye View I've marked the location of the pharmacy, the Gallery Lulo building, and the old Court House/City Hall building.

View of Healdsburg Plaza looking from old Court House.

Bing Bird's Eye View of Healdsburg Plaza.

Santa Rosa Locations

In the city of Santa Rosa, where Hitchcock filmed Shadow of Doubt the same year, two homes, a train depot, and a church were used as filming locations.

The main home where Ameche and Dee live is located on Santa Rosa's McDonald Avenue, specifically 1127 McDonald Avenue. I knew that Happy Land had filmed in Santa Rosa, but I didn't know where the house may have been filmed. Where does one begin to look in a city? I figured if Hitchcock had filmed on McDonald Avenue then maybe so did Happy Land. After a few minutes of searching homes on this street I fortunately was able to identify the house! Many homes in fact have filmed on McDonald Avenue. See my McDonald Avenue post for more on this street.

Ameche and Carey approach the family home at 1127 McDonald Ave.

1127 McDonald Ave, Santa Rosa, Ca

Ameche and Carey leaving the home at 1127 McDonald Ave.

Another view of the home at 1127 McDonald Ave, Santa Rosa, CA.

The screenshot below is a view looking across the street from the yard of 1127 McDonald Avenue.

Looking across the street from 1127 McDonald Ave.

In the scene below we see Ameche and Carey pass a home on McDonald Ave across the street from the family home located at 1127 McDonald Ave.

Ameche and Carey walk down McDonald Ave.

The same small house across the street is still recognizable.

There is another home featured in Happy Land that is located on McDonald Avenue that I didn't cover in my earlier post about McDonald Avenue, and that is the house below which is used in one of the flashback scenes when Ameche is supposed to be a teenager. This house is located at 805 McDonald Ave, just a few blocks down the street from the other home.

805 McDonald Ave, Santa Rosa, CA

In another flashback scene we see Ameche and Dee leaving a church after being married. I was able to identify the church as the First Presbyterian Church from an historical photograph in the Sonoma County Library collection. The street address on file was listed as Johnson at Humboldt. I couldn't locate a Johnson Street, but from further digging I learned from the Santa Rosa Seventh Day Adventist website that the Adventist church acquired the building from the Presbyterian Church and that Johnson Street is now "Seventh" Street. The church stood at the corner of Seventh and Humboldt until 1957, when the city decided the building was an earthquake danger to the public and asked that the church be torn down. The site is now a parking lot for the Press Democrat.

First Presbyterian Church

Corner of Humboldt St. and 7th St. in Santa Rosa

Corner of Humboldt St. and 7th St. Santa Rosa

Ameche and Dee leave the First Presbyterian Church.

This final location is the Santa Rosa Train Depot. In the film, Ameche and Richard Crane see Dee off at what is supposed to be the Hartfield, Iowa railroad station. This historic train depot has been used a few times for films, most famously in Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt.

Crane, Dee and Ameche arrive at the Santa Rosa train depot.

Looking at the train depot in July 2013.

Another view of the train depot from Happy Land.

The same view of the train depot in July 2013.

Ameche and Crane leaving the Hartfield train stop.

The Santa Rosa, CA train depot.

Happy Land is available on DVD and also available for rent exclusively through ClassicFlix. If you like simple, old-fashioned melodramas, I recommend this film.

The Jimmy Stewart Show wasn't a hit when it originally aired during the 1971-1972 television season and likely wouldn't perform well today, but classic film fans may enjoy watching this sitcom that features one of the silver screens greatest stars. Yes, the show is hokey, but come on, it has Jimmy Stewart with all his 'Aw, shucks' likability! I could watch Stewart mumble the alphabet and find it amusing. And in addition to Stewart the cast includes the lovely Julie Adams, John McGiver, and a few guest stars including Beulah Bondi and Vincent Price.

Stewart plays James K. Howard, an anthropology professor at the local university of a small fictional town. Things are fine in Howard's life until his oldest son moves back home bringing his own family after their house burns down. Howard's simple life suddenly becomes more crowded and complicated.

The show almost exclusively filmed on the Warner Bros. lot. There are very few scenes that were filmed outside the studio. The center of town was the Midwest Street exterior set and the neighborhood was Residential Street/Kings Row which branches off of Midwest Street. Other exterior sets used include the Jungle/Lagoon set as well as an office building on the lot.

Click images to see larger.

Stewart in front of "Valley Elementary School."

Valley Elementary School. An office building on the WB lot.

On the show, in addition to Stewart's older son, he and his wife have a young son that is just ten years old. The younger son attends Valley Elementary School which in reality is just an office building on the Warner lot located not far from the present location of the iconic studio water tower.

Stewart talks with his son at Valley Elementary School.

The office building on the Warner lot used for the elementary school set.

The Howard Family Home on Residential Street/Kings Row.

A contemporary view of the Howard Family home house.

Above is a comparison of the Howard Family home which is one of the houses located on Warner's Residential Street. Below are views of a couple more homes located on Residential Street which can be seen on the show.

Stewart rides his bike down Residential Street.

A contemporary view of Residential Street.

The view from the Howard's front yard.

The same view on Residential Street.

The next few comparisons feature the Midwest Street exterior sets.

The center of Midwest Street as seen in The Jimmy Stewart Show.

Contemporary view looking towards the center of Midwest Street.

Stewart drives through Midwest Street.

Midwest Street on the Warner Bros. lot.

Stewart arrives at a Leather Goods shop.

The Leather Goods facade as it appears now.

Stewart's older son works at the East Valley Construction Co. which is an exterior set located on Midwest Street. This facade and the one next to it actually look quite different from the way they did at the time of the show. In the next few comparisons I've used a red rectangle to mark the building/sign for the East Valley Construction Co. site.

East Valley Construction.

Contemporary view of the East Valley Construction Co. facade.

East Valley Construction can be seen in the background.

Looking along the facades that include East Valley Construction.

The East Valley Construction sign location is marked by the red rectangle.

The next comparison shows the view looking inside out from the East Valley Construction facade. The same building that can be seen through the window can still be seen in the background today.

Jonathon Daly and Ellen Geer inside the East Valley Construction set.

The view looking from the East Valley Construction location.

The Howard family arrives at church.

A contemporary view of the church set.

Julie Adams at an art contest. The City Hall facade can be seen in the background.

A contemporary view of the Midwest Street City Hall facade.

The comparison below is of of an exterior set that no longer exists on the Warner Bros. backlot. The first image is a screenshot from The Jimmy Stewart Show where the set is used as Josiah Kessel College. The second image is a screenshot from the film The Music Man (1962) which used the same set as a school in the fictional River City, Iowa. I'm keeping my eyes peeled now to see where else this set appears to see if I can pin point when this set disappeared from the lot.

UPDATE (November 22, 2013) Thanks to Steve Bingen, one of the co-authors of the excellent book MGM: Hollywood's Greatest Backlot, I've learned that the set below used for the Josiah Kessel College was a backlot set known as "Hank's School" and was once located on the backside of the Hennesy Street set, where the Park Place set is located today. According to Steve, "Hank's School got its name from a TV series called Hank from the early 60s. Although the set predated the show. Village of the Giants is another film where its possible to get a good look at the set. It was also Boatwright University in The Waltons in the 70's. It was taken down in 1995 when Batman Forever did a rebuild of Hennesy Street."

Josiah Kessel College in The Jimmy Stewart Show.

A screenshot from The Music Man (1962).

The Park Place set stands where the Josiah Kessel College/"Hank's School" set once stood.

This last comparison is a view of the Jungle/Lagoon backlot set. In The Jimmy Stewart Show there is an episode where Stewart and his younger son are seen fishing from a pier.

Stewart fishing with his son on the Warner backlot.

The Jungle/Lagoon set on the Warner Bros. backlot.

The Jimmy Stewart Show is not available on DVD but can currently be viewed on the Warner Archive Instant streaming service.

More Midwest Street/Residential Street on screen appearances covered here on Dear Old Hollywood include: The Hard Way (1943), East of Eden (1955), Rebel Without a Cause (1955), No Time For Sergeants (1958), The Music Man (1962), Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came? (1970), Nickelodeon (1976), The Monster Squad (1987).

All images (c) Warner Bros. except where otherwise noted.

Now that the end of the year is upon us the studios have been releasing to theaters all of their award worthy films and campaigning for Oscar nominations. One film getting some Oscar buzz is Alexander Payne's Nebraska, which stars Bruce Dern, one of Hollywood's most underappreciated actors. Paramount is pushing for Dern to be nominated for Best Actor, who if nominated and wins, would earn his very first Academy Award. Dern has had some compelling roles in many significant films including They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969), The King of Marvin Gardens (1972), and The Great Gatsby (1972). He was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor performance in Coming Home (1978) but lost to Christopher Walken in The Deer Hunter (1978). Come time for the Academy Awards I'll be rooting for Dern to win his first Oscar. I'd much rather see the guy get an Oscar for a distinguished performance than a lifetime achievement award (if he would even be given that). And forget prestige pictures, my favorite Dern performance is as Mark Rumsfield in Joe Dante's underrated classic, The Burbs (1989). I could watch that film over and over again without tiring, and that is award worthy enough for me (but I'm probably in the minority on this one).

Like nearly every actor, in addition to some important films, Dern has also starred in some real turkeys. One of Dern's early films, The Cycle Savages (1969) is one of them. The film is so ridiculous it's entertaining. Dern is a leader of an LA biker gang who wants to cut off the hands of an artist who he catches sketching him and his girl being intimate. The film was shot mainly on location around the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Echo Park and Silver Lake. Here are many of the filming locations for this low budget flick.

Click images to see larger.

Food stand on Sunset Blvd near Rosemont Ave.

A strip mall is now located on the site of the food stand.

During the opening scene of the film we see the biker gang roll up to a food stand and begin harassing a couple of the patrons. The food stand was located on Sunset Boulevard near the intersection of Rosemont Avenue. Today the food stand building is gone and on the site is a generic looking strip mall. See the comparison above. I had a hunch that this location was located on Sunset, so using Google Street View, I started scanning businesses in the Echo Park neighborhood located on Sunset. I was able to confirm the location when I identified the buildings in the comparison below located across the street from the food stand.

Shops at 2235 Sunset Blvd across from the food stand.

The same shops and houses at 2235 Sunset Blvd.

The above comparison shows the view looking across the street from the food stand site. The businesses (the address for the first business is 2235 Sunset Boulevard), and the homes just above the businesses are all still standing and recognizable.

The scene below shows the seating area and parking lot for the food stand. In this view we can see a church in the background. That church, located at 1025 Rosemont Avenue can still be found just behind the strip mall parking lot.

The outdoor seating at the food stand on Sunset Blvd.

1025 Rosemont Ave. The church located behind the food stand.

The scene below is a view looking from the food stand towards Rosemont Ave. It appears there was another food stand next door but as can be seen in the Google Street View screenshot for comparison, this business has also been demolished.

Looking toward the SW corner of Sunset and Rosemont.

Looking toward Rosemont Ave from Sunset Blvd.

The biker gang getting ready to leave the food stand on Sunset.

A generic strip mall is now located on the food stand site.

Above is a comparison showing the full view of the food stand and the strip mall that is located there today. Does anyone know what this food stand was and how long it was there?

After harassing the patrons at the food stand Dern leads his gang down the streets of Echo Park and Silver Lake. Below Dern can be seen riding his bike down Silver Lake Boulevard near the intersection of Reservoir Street.

Bruce Dern leads the gang down Silver Lake Blvd near Reservoir St.

Looking down Silver Lake Blvd from Reservoir St.

Below Dern continues riding down Silver Lake Boulevard. In this shot he is passing homes located at 1332 and 1334 Silver Lake Blvd. The homes, although painted new colors, look mostly the same. By the way, according to Zillow, that home at 1334 is a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom place built in 1962 and has an estimated value of $783,666. It last sold in 1983 for only $29,000!

Dern and gang pass 1334 Silver Lake Blvd.

Contemporary view of the homes at 1334 and 1332 Silver Lake Blvd.

One of the primary locations that appears throughout the film is an apartment building located at 1000 Echo Park Avenue, just across the street from Echo Park Lake. The apartment building, known as the Sir Palmer apartments, is still standing and looks little changed. In the scene below we see the biker gang driving down Echo Park Ave and approaching the apartment building.

The gang heads toward 1000 Echo Park Ave.

Looking down Echo Park Ave. The lake would be on the right.

Dern on his bike in front of 1000 Echo Park Ave.

The same apartment building still stands at 1000 Echo Park Ave.

Looking north down Echo Park Ave.

Another view of the Sir Palmer apartment building.

The Sir Palmer apartments at 1000 Echo Park Blvd.

Another location that shows up more than once is a dive bar, in the film called "Rudy's" (not sure if this was the name of a real place or fictional) that was located on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Portia Street. Today this building is the location of Little Joy Cocktail Lounge, a popular Echo Park dive bar. In the scene below we a see girl, who was recently raped by the biker gang, walking down Sunset Blvd toward Portia St. The building in the red orange brick is the side of Rudy's/Little Joy.

Looking down Sunset Blvd from Portia St.

Looking down Sunset from Portia street.

In a separate scene we see the artist (Chris Robinson) entering Rudy's. In the background we can see a couple of old homes. These old homes can still be seen in the background on Portia Street.

Robinson enters "Rudy's" on the corner of Sunset and Portia.

The Little Joy bar is now located at the corner of Sunset and Portia.

On the opposite corner from Rudy's/Little Joy there used to be a Shell Service Station. This was still a gas station until April 2012 when it was bulldozed to make room for another gas station and convenience store.

A Shell Station across from Rudy's.

The Shell Station site is now a vacant lot (April 2012). Photo by Mary-Austin Klein.

Robinson passing 1485 Sunset Boulevard.

Looking towards shops at 1485 Sunset Boulevard. The black building is Little Joy.

A few scenes take place at Echo Park Lake. There is an early scene of the artist watching people and sketching in the park. Another scene shows the biker gang beating the crap out of a guy and then taking his motorcycle. Most of the action takes place near the end of the lake where the bridge is located.

Ladies walk along Echo Park Lake. The bridge can be seen in the background.

Looking at Echo Park Lake. The bridge is in the background.

Bing Bird's Eye view of Echo Park lake and the bridge.

A man gets beaten at the park near Echo Park Lake.

The picnic area near the bridge at Echo Park Lake.

In the scene below one of the bikers in the gang rides by Echo Park Lake at the intersection of Park Avenue and Glendale Boulevard. He turns from Park Ave on to Glendale Blvd where he stops at a bus stop to flirt with some chicks eating ice cream.

Biker on Park Ave at Glendale Blvd.

Corner of Park Ave and Glendale Blvd.

The biker passes the California Federal Savings on Glendale Blvd.

The California Federal Savings building is now a Citibank.

One of the landmarks we see when the biker drives down Glendale Boulevard and pulls up to the bus stop is the California Federal Savings building which is now a Citibank.

Looking north down Glendale Blvd from Park Ave.

The biker approaches the girls at the bus stop located on Glendale Blvd near Park Ave. This is still a real bus stop location. In the background in the screenshot below is part of the building which is now home to the Echoplex music venue.

The biker picks up chicks at the bus stop at Glendale and Park.

There is still a bus stop at Glendale and Park.

In a later scene we see the girl wander back to the bus stop location after she has been raped by the gang. We get another view of the bus stop location, this one looking down Park Avenue in the direction of Echo Park Lake. She then wanders up to an apartment building located at 1944 Park Ave before heading into the park.

The girl wanders back to Glendale and Park after being raped.

Looking down Park Ave towards Glendale Blvd.

The girl wanders to 1944 Park Ave.

Looking towards 1944 Park Ave.

Once the girl enters the park at Echo Park Lake we get a glimpse of some apartment/housing buildings in the background. All of these buildings are still standing as can be seen in the comparisons below.

The girl heads to the park at Echo Park Lake.

Apartments near 1024 Echo Park Ave.

Apartments on Echo Park Ave in background.

Looking down Echo Park Ave from Park Ave.

The girl passes out in the park and we then see her rushed by ambulance to the hospital. In the scene below we see the ambulance racing down Valencia Street toward Sixth Street. In the distance we see a TWA building. This building is still standing but is an office building with mixed businesses.

Looking down Valencia St. from Sixth St.

The ambulance arrives at 1401 W. Sixth Street, the site of what was then the Central Receiving Hospital. This building has since been torn down and today The Rampart Division police station is located at the site.

1401 W. Sixth St. - Central Receiving Hospital

1401 W. Sixth St. - Now the Rampart Division police station is located on the site.

As the ambulance turns into the hospital driveway we see a couple of apartment buildings in the background. Although the hospital was torn down, these apartments seen in the background are still standing. They are located on Loma Drive, just off of Sixth Street.

Apartments stand on Loma Dr. in the background.

Looking down Loma Drive just off 6th Street.

The Cycle Savages is available on DVD and is currently available for streaming on Netflix. In addition to Bruce Dern and Chris Robinson, the film also stars Melody Patterson, Maray Ayres, and Casey Kasem who was also a producer on the film.

Gena Rowlands won an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for her portrayal of Betty Ford in the Made-for-TV movie, The Betty Ford Story (1987). The real Betty Ford was an interesting woman. As the First Lady during the presidency of Gerald Ford, a Republican, Mrs. Ford occasionally irked some conservatives in the party for her more liberal views on social issues. The First Lady was pro-choice, supported some feminist causes such as equal pay for women, was for gun control and supported the Equal Rights Amendment to name a few issues at odds with some fellow Republicans. Mrs. Ford also raised awareness of breast cancer, when in 1974 she underwent a mastectomy. But out of all the causes the real Mrs. Ford supported, it is probably the awareness she brought to battling addiction that she is best remembered for. During the 1970s Betty Ford battled alcoholism and when she herself recovered from addiction, she co-founded the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California, a non-profit recovery hospital to help others with addiction problems. The film The Betty Ford Story focuses on the period during the 1970s when Ford's addiction started and then snowballed into a major problem. Rowlands delivers an excellent performance as the former First Lady, illustrating the struggles she dealt with due to physical pain, the stress of her husband's ambitions, and the effects alcohol had on her.

In the film Betty Ford goes on the campaign stump for her husband's run for president. One of the stops is supposed to take place in the state of New Hampshire. However, the location used for this campaign stop was actually on a completely different coast. The location was really what is today the Warner Bros. Ranch at 411 N. Hollywood Way, Burbank, California.

A campaign stop in New Hampshire. Really the Warner Bros. Ranch.

The same facades on the Warner Ranch as they appear today.

Gena Rowlands as Betty Ford on the Warner Ranch.

The film also stars Josef Sommer as President Gerald Ford and Rowlands fellow Wisconsinite, a pre-West Wing Bradley Whitford, as her son Jack Ford. The Betty Ford Story is available as an MOD DVD through the Warner Archive Collection. The film is also currently available for streaming on the Warner Archive Instant site.

All images (c) Warner Bros. Entertainment

The Toluca Lake Homes of Shemp Howard

Jersey Boys (2014) - Film Locations

Perfect Strangers (1950) - Film Locations

Katharine Hepburn's Hiking Spot

Cass Timberlane (1947) - Film Locations

Meet John Doe (1941) - Film Locations

Big City (1937) - Film Locations

Bronk (1975-76) - Film Locations: Koontz Hardware

Bronk (1975-76) - Film Locations: Banning House

The Young Philadelphians (1959) - Film Locations

Night Moves (1975) - Film Locations

Champagne For Caesar (1950) - Film Locations

Talking Old Hollywood: John Bengtson, Silent Filming Locations Historian

The Rockford Files - Film Locations - Donut Prince in Burbank

tick...tick...tick... (1970) - Film Locations

Jim Rockford and the "Paramount House"

City of Fear (1959) - Film Locations

Cary Grant Walks His Siamese Cat

The Music Man (1962) - Film Locations

Brainstorm (1965) - Film Locations

The Racket (1951) - Film Locations

Happy Land (1943) - Film Locations

The Jimmy Stewart Show (1971-1972) - Film Locations

The Cycle Savages (1969) - Film Locations

The Betty Ford Story (1987) - Film Locations