I've spent much of the past couple of months studying the filming history of the Conejo Valley from the safety of my living room, and the research has produced more than its share of surprises.
The biggest surprise may be simply the volume of film production. As Hollywood expanded out beyond the San Fernando Valley by the mid-1930s, the Conejo Valley became a movie-making hot spot.
Whiteside Ranch, Hidden Valley, ca. 1920s (Thousand Oaks Library)
Settled largely by ranchers in the late 19th century, the region would eventually be transformed into a series of suburban communities including Agoura Hills, Oak Park, Westlake Village, Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park.
Technically, some of these communities fall outside of "Conejo Valley proper," but for the purposes of movie history it's useful to consider the region as a whole — what might be called the "Greater Conejo Valley" area.
The Conejo Valley runs east and west along the "Highway 101 corridor" starting at the western edge of the L.A. metro area, filling a gap between Calabasas, in the southwest corner of the San Fernando Valley, and the east end of the Ventura "mini-metro," which starts with the farm country of eastern Camarillo.
Westlake Village before development, ca. early 1960s (Ed Lawrence photo)
When development came a-callin' in Southern California, the Conejo Valley held out longer than some of its neighbors. Even as the nearby San Fernando Valley succumbed to suburban sprawl in the 1950s and 1960s, huge swaths of Conejo ranchland remained untouched.
Filming an episode of "Gunsmoke" on the Janss Conejo Ranch in 1960 (photo by Frank Knight)
As the demand for filming locations surged — especially in the 1950s, with the advent of television — Conejo Valley ranchers found that their land was well-suited for a lucrative new "crop" — movies and TV shows.
"The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of Ghost Ranch" (Disney, 1957): John Morrison Ranch
Almost overnight, any number of the region's ranches sprouted significant filming operations — Janss Conejo, Morrison Ranch, Russell Ranch, Lynn Ranch, French Ranch, Albertson Ranch and others.
"Bullets for Bandits" (Columbia, 1942): A distinctive large barn
The beauty of turning your ranch into a filming location was that you could still keep it as a ranch too. The ambiance of a rural ranch was often just what filmmakers were looking for — especially for Westerns.
"The Lone Ranger": signoff shot for the episode "Damsels in Distress" (premiered June 8, 1950)
And Westerns were big business in the Conejo Valley for a good four decades — Western movies from the '30s through the '50s, segueing to TV Westerns in the late '50s and '60s.
A number of the region's ranch buildings, including the barn seen in this photo and the two above it — they're all the same barn — began turning up in so many productions that the buildings became landmarks. Sadly, those landmarks are virtually all gone now — including the large barn.
But that doesn't keep us from searching for the spot where a famous movie building once stood. I began seeing the large barn in movies and TV shows almost from the time I began doing location research 12 years ago, and even though it captured my imagination right off the bat, it took me most of those 12 years to track it down.
"The Outlaw Stallion" (Columbia, 1954): The large barn, in Technicolor
As it turned out, other film historians were chasing the same mystery. I learned years later that Harry Medved, one of the top authorities on filming in the Oak Park-Westlake Village area, was also looking for the barn.
2016 flier and news report about the search for the "Mystery Ranch" (Ventura County Star)
Of course, Harry was searching for the entire ranch, which he and other researchers had taken to calling the "Mystery Ranch." I first got wind of their search at a presentation on Oak Park movie history back in 2016.
Mike Malone gets the word out about filming at Paramount Ranch
Harry had recruited another legend of the movie history community, Mike Malone, a longtime National Park Service Ranger and expert on filming at Paramount Ranch and Malibu Creek State Park, to help with the search.
"The Fighting Kentuckian" (1949): John Wayne and Oliver Hardy on Oak Park's "Mystery Ranch"
I'm lucky enough to count both Harry and Mike as friends and collaborators, and have benefited in my own research from their generosity and their expertise. After Harry and Mike spent years doing most of the legwork, they brought me aboard the "Mystery Ranch" mystery train just in time to help bring 'er in to the station.
"The Phantom Empire" (Gene Autry, 1935): A mystery begins
One key to the mystery was connecting the large barn to another heavily filmed Conejo Valley movie structure — a two-story house framed by large trees, which was a fixture in movies as far back as the silent era.
"The Red Pony" (1949): The two-story movie "house" reported in error to be in Agoura Hills
The house — which it turns out was a movie facade and not an actual house — has been widely reported by film historians to have been located near Chesebro Road in Agoura Hills — reports that we now know are false.
Chesebro Road exit off the 101 in Agoura Hills, Calif.
For years it was believed that the remains of this important filming location — including foundations and even one standing building — could be found on preserved public parkland along Chesebro Road, north of Highway 101.
Google Maps tackles the Chesebro/Cheeseboro/Cheseboro area of Agoura Hills
Along with its multiple pronunciations — and I never did find out whether any of mine were right — Chesebro has at least three different spellings. Just ask Google.
If only actor George Chesebro, who played sheriffs and heavies in hundreds of B-Westerns, were still around, maybe he could sort it all out — pronunciation, spelling ... and how it all got so tangled up.
George Chesebro, left, with stuntman Eddie Parker on the Iverson Ranch ("Shadow Valley," 1947)
Chesebro was a regular on the Iverson Movie Ranch over the span of his 40-year career, but he was also the focus of persistent rumors that he owned a ranch on Chesebro Road in Agoura Hills. Some locals are convinced the road was named after his family — an assertion that tends to add fuel to the Chesebro controversy.
Blurb on the Chesebro situation from Susan M. Pascal's "Images of America: Agoura Hills"
Author Susan M. Pascal addressed the controversy — and introduced two additional alternative spellings — in her outstanding "Images of America" book on Agoura Hills. You'll find a link to her book at the end of this post.
While it might seem fanciful to go off on a tangent about place names with confusing spellings and multiple pronunciations, there's a serious reason for bringing it up in the context of movie location research.
The back of the John Morrison house (photos courtesy of Mike Malone)
The confusion over "Chesebro" is really just the tip of the iceberg — a symptom of a larger state of confusion about movie history in general, and in this case, about Conejo Valley movie history in particular.
The John Morrison house, with interpretive sign
Case in point: The former ranch house of Conejo Valley pioneer John Morrison. The building somehow escaped being flattened by developers' bulldozers when it became part of the park at Cheeseboro Canyon — and up until recently people could hike to the house. It even had its own interpretive sign.
The house burned down in 2018, but the sign survived
The house's circumstances soured, however, when it burned down in the Woolsey Fire in late 2018. The interpretive sign in front of the house survived the fire, as did the bathtub — and not much else.
The former John Morrison house and John Morrison tub
My pal Jerry Condit, a talented photographer and intrepid movie location explorer, visited the site soon after the fire, in early 2019, and documented the destruction — including snapping some cool shots of the bathtub.
John Morrison sat here ...
Jerry and I agreed that the bathtub belongs in a museum, but it's above both of our pay grades to make those kinds of important decisions.
Interpretive sign for what is now the John Morrison bathtub
The interpretive sign noticeably avoids saying anything about the site's history as a filming location, which was probably a smart decision by the parks people. You can click on the photo to enlarge it to read the text.
The John Morrison house turns up in "The Rifleman" (premiered Sept. 30, 1958)
The John Morrison Ranch was not the major filming location that a lot of people think it was. The house did, however, make an appearance in the first two episodes of "The Rifleman," in 1958.
The John Morrison house as the ill-fated Dunlap Ranch in "The Rifleman"
The Morrison house appeared as the ranch where Lucas McCain and his son Mark, played by Chuck Connors and Johnny Crawford, planned to settle down outside North Fork, New Mexico Territory — until the house was burned down by thugs in the show's second episode.
The new McCain Ranch set, located at today's Malibu Creek State Park
The father and son settled outside North Fork anyway, but in a new ranch set built at today's Malibu Creek State Park. "The Rifleman" did most of its filming at the site early on, but footage of the ranch continued to turn up throughout the popular show's five-season run.
The "Rifleman Ranch" area of Malibu Creek State Park, seen on Google Maps
Malibu Creek State Park was closed when I tried to go there recently, but I hear it has since reopened. Either way, the general location where the "Rifleman" set once stood can be pointed out using Google Maps.
The John Morrison house, sometime before the 2018 fire
Meanwhile, back at the John Morrison Ranch just off Chesebro Road in the Agoura Hills area, it's time to separate truth from fiction about the site's filming history — and there's quite a bit of fiction.
"Melinda Miles" episode of "Gunsmoke": An appearance by the John Morrison house
Besides its early "Rifleman" appearance, the John Morrison house did get filmed on occasion. One of the few examples I could find is the "Gunsmoke" episode "Melinda Miles," which premiered June 3, 1961.
The same tree, on a recent visit to the site
I was excited to find the tree still holding its ground — and retaining its shape from 60 years ago. Unfortunately, it was badly scorched in the Woolsey Fire, and the old oak's long-term outlook seems iffy at best.
A grand old oak — its glory days behind it
At any rate, much of the filming that has been attributed to the John Morrison Ranch and the Cheeseboro Canyon site has been misplaced, with the filming actually occurring about two miles northwest of there, in Oak Park.
The wrong location — the John Morrison Ranch — and the right location, two miles away
That's two miles as the crow flies, the distance between the burned-down John Morrison ranch house and another former ranch, which stood near the banks of Medea Creek — the "Mystery Ranch" of Oak Park movie legend.
"The Red Pony" (1949): The large barn is featured prominently
This "Mystery Ranch" in today's Oak Park, no longer a mystery, is where the large barn once stood.
"The Hills of Utah" (1951): The two-story house facade at Medea Creek
It's also where the two-story house facade was located — a facade that received a series of redesigns over the years for various productions.
The two-story facade in "Escape by Night" (Republic, 1937)
The house was configured as a Colonial-style mansion in the 1937 gangster caper "Escape by Night."
"The Hills of Utah"
The area on the right side of the house was only minimally modified between the two movies.
"The Red Pony" (1949): Kid, red pony, massive tree ... and famous movie facade
Here's a color shot of the same set in "The Red Pony." This is closer to how the set usually looks — you'll notice that it's similar to "The Hills of Utah" as seen in the shot above this one, but it's still not exactly the same.
"The Outlaw Stallion" (Columbia, 1954): Similar but not identical
Five years later we see another color shot of the set, in "The Outlaw Stallion." The house color is about the same as in "The Red Pony," but now the facade has double porch supports, as it did in "The Hills of Utah."
"Tough Assignment" (1949): Donald "Red" Barry and Marjorie Steele at the facade
The set had a more bare-bones look in Lippert's "Tough Assignment."
"The Law of the Range" (1928): Early version of the house set (photo courtesy of Mike Malone)
This is the earliest appearance I know of by the two-story house set, all the way back in 1928. But the Medea Creek Ranch site's movie history goes back even further.
"Tumbleweeds" (William S. Hart, 1925)
The landmark William S. Hart Western "Tumbleweeds" also filmed at the Medea Creek site — before the two-story facade was built. If you look closely at the tree in this screen shot, it matches the shot above this one.
"The Durango Kid" (1940): Sons of the Pioneers at a Medea Creek Ranch bunkhouse
In addition to the two-story house facade and large barn, the ranch at Medea Creek included a number of lower-profile buildings also seen in the movies, including at least one main bunkhouse.
"The Outlaw Stallion": Some of the lesser-known ranch buildings
Among the other ranch features and movie sets at the site were several sheds, corrals, silos, coops and stables, along with a variety of small ranch houses.
"The Red Pony": A distinctive oak tree, located just north of the barn
But the most interesting features of the Medea Creek Ranch may be its trees — a few of which have survived. The tree seen here was located a short distance north of the large barn.
"The Outlaw Stallion": Another appearance by the distinctive tree
The same tree turns up again in this pensive promo still for "The Outlaw Stallion," featuring Philip Carey and Dorothy Patrick.
The same tree in 2020
Today the tree stands on a residential cul de sac in Oak Park, a short distance east of Medea Creek.
Another famous movie tree?
On the same cul de sac, just west of the previous tree, is another old oak that was once situated on the Medea Creek Ranch. When I first spotted this one I got my hopes up that it might be a famous movie tree.
"The Red Pony": The big oak always seen framing the two-story house
I was hoping it would turn out to be this one, which we commonly see draped over the left side of the big two-story house facade. But even though the two trees have a lot in common, they're not in exactly the same place — and with trees, that's a deal breaker. Sadly, it appears that this tree did not survive development.
"The Man From the Alamo" (1953): The Simi Ridge, northwest of the ranch
A number of landmarks can be seen in the hills surrounding the Medea Creek Ranch, and in many cases they help identify just where on the ranch — and where in Oak Park — various scenes were filmed.
The Simi Ridge in modern times, northwest of the Medea Creek residential area
The rocky ridgeline known to Conejo Valley residents as the Simi Ridge is often associated with filming in Lindero Canyon and the Westlake Village community of North Ranch — one canyon over from Medea Creek, to the west.
The Simi Ridge in May 2020
Recently the ridgeline has been a little greener than usual, following heavy spring rains. But the green never lasts long enough, and by the time I captured this shot it was already beginning its annual fade to brown.
Two prominent "Y"-shaped creek formations largely define the topography of the North Ranch-Oak Park area. Both Lindero Canyon to the west and the Medea Creek region to the east have sizable portfolios as filming locations.
The Simi Ridge and Lindero Canyon, west of Medea Creek, in "The Big Valley"
Lindero Canyon and the Simi Ridge, the rocky formation that seals off the canyon at its north end, have come up previously on this blog. I reported in 2014 on shoots in North Ranch and the Lindero area for "The Big Valley," "Gunsmoke" and other productions — you can click here to see that post.
A typical group of Oak Park foothills in today's landscape, looking northeast across Mae Boyar Park
But the Medea Creek area to the east of Lindero Canyon turns out to be a more significant filming site than even Lindero Canyon. With careful study, many of its rolling hills can be pinpointed as movie locations.
Oak Park's picturesque hills turn up again and again in movies filmed over a span of several decades. You may be able to match up the low foothills seen here with the recent shot above this one.
"Of Mice and Men" (1939): Looking south from the Medea Creek Ranch to Ladyface Mountain
Shots filmed on and around the Medea Creek Ranch with the cameras aimed toward the south often catch the landmark Ladyface Mountain among the background hills.
Ladyface Mountain, to the south of Oak Park and the Medea Creek filming area
The mountain remains a distinctive feature of the hills south of today's Oak Park.
Ladyface Mountain, south of the Medea Creek residential area
I've never quite figured out where the "lady" is hiding in Ladyface, but I imagine she's in there somewhere.
The south side of Ladyface towers over the Paramount Ranch Western town (pre-Woolsey Fire)
Ladyface Mountain is also a landmark from the other side, appearing in the backgrounds of many productions filmed at Paramount Ranch. The storied movie ranch is located on the south side of Ladyface in the Santa Monica Mountains, about three miles south of Oak Park.
Eagle Peak or Deerhill Peak, directly north of Oak Park and the Medea Creek area
To the north of the Medea Creek Ranch is another of Oak Park's defining geological features — a picturesque hill that rises above Deerhill Road.
Kirk Douglas, the man who made Hollywood safe for cleft chins
Douglas, a three-time Oscar nominee, was known almost as much for his cleft chin as for his acclaimed film roles. Later in life he also became known for allegations of unforgivable misdeeds, so his legacy is a mixed bag at best.
They're all Spartacus!
One of the most acclaimed performances for Kirk and his chin was the title role in Stanley Kubrick's 1960 historical epic "Spartacus," filmed in part in Thousand Oaks on what was then the Janss Conejo Ranch.
Kirk Douglas as Spartacus (1960)
The cleft was just one of the actor's many nooks and crannies on display in the film.
Woody Strode and Kirk Douglas try to work things out in "Spartacus"
Despite what it might look like, this is NOT how Kirk Douglas got that cleft chin.
Michael Douglas embarrasses his dad with some PDA on the occasion of Kirk's 99th birthday
After "The Streets of San Francisco" became a hit TV show in the 1970s, Kirk Douglas became famous all over again for being the father of actor Michael Douglas, who starred alongside Karl Malden on the show.
The Hollywood icon died earlier this year at the ripe young age of 103, leaving behind a filmography that included roles in "Paths of Glory," "Lust for Life," "The Bad and the Beautiful" and many other classics.
"A Walk in the Sun" (1945): Kirk Douglas Peak, Eagle Peak or Deerhill Peak, on the left
His legacy also includes Oak Park's Kirk Douglas Peak — and just like its namesake, the hill turns up in its fair share of quality movies.
"The Red Pony": Looking north to Eagle Peak, aka Kirk Douglas Peak, from Medea Creek Ranch
Milestone's 1949 family pic "The Red Pony," starring Robert Mitchum, is one of the best showcases around for the Medea Creek Ranch — and of course Oak Park's famed peak again makes its presence felt.
"Out West With the Hardys" (1938): Kirk Douglas Peak to the north
Even in shots where the cleft is obscured, the peak can be helpful in identifying productions filmed in Oak Park. Here the hill oversees a bronc-busting session staged on the Medea Creek Ranch.
The peak rises above the Chambord neighborhood in the far northeast corner of Oak Park
In keeping with a pattern seen throughout much of the Conejo Valley region, suburban sprawl began closing in on Deerhill Peak, or Kirk Douglas Peak, as far back as the 1960s.
Kirk Douglas Peak, as seen from the Medea Creek neighborhood
Today the peak lives in relative harmony with Oak Park suburbanites, providing a scenic backdrop to their slice of paradise while satisfying the wide-ranging interests of hikers, looky-loos and others who dare to venture outside.
Hills to the east of the Medea Creek Ranch (2020)
In almost any direction one might look from the former site of the Medea Creek Ranch, one can find backdrops today that match up with shots seen in the movies. This shot is taken looking toward the east.
Here are those same hills as they appeared in 1939 in Lewis Milestone's "Of Mice and Men." Taken on the Medea Creek Ranch, the shot includes part of the south face of the large barn.
A wider shot seen in "The Man From the Alamo" shows a little more of the same landscape from a slightly different angle in which the hill at the center flattens out a bit.
The same vista in 2020, with "Flat-Top" in the center of the photo
The angles aren't a perfect match — they rarely are — but they should be close enough to make it clear that we're looking at the same hills in the movie shots and the recent photos.
"A Walk in the Sun" (1945): More Flat-Top
Director Lewis Milestone again aimed the cameras at Flat-Top when he filmed his World War II movie "A Walk in the Sun." The bulk of the walking referenced in the movie's title took place in the Medea Creek area.
As we move south from Flat-Top — here we're looking more southeast — we see other hills that also match up with filming on the Medea Creek Ranch. In this shot Flat-Top is near the left edge of the frame.
"The Red Pony" (1949): looking southeast from the large barn
These hills have been captured on film many times, including in "The Red Pony," as seen here.
"Of Mice and Men" (1939): the same hill to the southeast of the ranch
The patchwork hill stands out in the background of this screen shot from "Of Mice and Men."
Remember that "Lone Ranger" signoff shot we posted up above, showing part of the large barn near Medea Creek? Here it is again — and again we see the patchwork hill.
A fun fact about the Medea Creek Ranch is that it was once owned by two of the biggest stars of the radio era: the husband-and-wife team of Jim and Marian Jordan, who became famous as "Fibber McGee and Molly."
Wistful Vista — Oak Park's central open space area
The ranch became known as the Jordan Ranch when the couple owned it in the 1950s, and the Jordans' legacy lives on around Oak Park — especially in the expansive hilly area known as the Wistful Vista Open Space.
"Wistful Vista Mystery" game — merchandising from the "Fibber McGee and Molly" show
The name "Wistful Vista" is a playful reference to the old "Fibber McGee and Molly" radio show, where the couple lived at 79 Wistful Vista and made frequent references to their housing development, also named Wistful Vista.
And today's Wistful Vista, like just about everything else in Oak Park that rises above ground level, inevitably turns up in movies filmed on the Medea Creek Ranch — the Jordans' former ranch.
The same Wistful Vista ridgeline remains a part of today's residential landscape, as seen in this shot taken looking west from Conifer Street near Sabra Avenue.
"The Fighting Kentuckian": John Wayne defends Wistful Vista
An angular ridgeline that forms part of the northeast corner of Wistful Vista can been seen in the left half of the frame of this promo still for "The Fighting Kentuckian."
With the impressive filming history of the Medea Creek Ranch finally coming to light, it becomes clear that the Oak Park location was one of the most important production hubs in the Conejo Valley region.
Lindero Canyon: Final resting place of "Old Yeller" in the 1957 Disney tearjerker
Other sites in the region also boast exhaustive production resumes — notably nearby Lindero Canyon and Janss Conejo farther west, two filming locations we hope to explore in upcoming posts.
But it's exciting to be able to finally give Oak Park and the Medea Creek Ranch their long overdue spotlight — along with their proper place in Conejo Valley movie location history.
Oak Park: Sunset over Wistful Vista (Harry Medved photo)
Like the rest of the Conejo Valley region, Oak Park remains a beautiful place today — and its rich movie history just makes it that much more interesting.
Here's a video about filming in Oak Park and North Ranch — the Westlake Village community centered around Lindero Canyon — from Marc Franklin of Franklin Creative Media, who worked with Harry Medved on the project.
Below are some links to Amazon, where you can buy Harry Medved's incredible book about exploring Southern California filming locations, "Hollywood Escapes," along with "Images of America: Oak Park" (the one about the California location) and Susan M. Pascal's "Images of America: Agoura Hills."
27 comments:
Great post as usual. Well detailed and informative. Could have done w/out the Kirk Douglas homage, he truly wasn't a man to be celebrated.
My two centavos and opinion. I love your photos and work just the same.
Thank you and look forward to the next chapter...
Great post again, all content is relevant were not here to judge but to learn and be entertained, thanks for all your work.
FASCINATING! It is amazing to see how the "lay of the land" can change so quickly from field and farm to urban sprawl. The movie history takes me back to my youth--the TV era of old movie reruns all weekend, many of them westerns. Thank you for all of your hard work.
That was really interesting-- For a hot moment I thought it might have been the location for the Judy Garland musical number, "Howdy Neighbor, Happy Harvenst" from MGM's, "Summer Stock" (1950) -- lots of rockless rolling hills and barns in the background-- just watched it, and things looked different... Have you any idea where the number might have been shot? Thank you--
This may be my favorite post yet! John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Gunsmoke, The Rifleman, and The Big Valley are all in one blog! You answered one of my nagging questions as to where that pilot episode of The Rifleman was filmed. Could it be "Wagonload of Dreams" from The Big Valley, as they did a lot of location filming during the first two seasons. They used a lot more studio and interior locations to save money in seasons three and four. We can hardly wait to go see this area near Westlake Village on our next trip. Thanks for EVERYTHING!
I thoroughly enjoyed this post; your blog is terrific. But I cannot agree that the two-story ranch set seen in “The Phantom Empire” and many other movies was at Medera Creek rather than at Agoura off Chesebro Road, where many location researchers have placed it. I say that for two reasons. First, several actors who made films at the set, including Peggy Stewart who did two Bannon Red Ryders there and Richard (“Chito”) Martin who filmed several of the post-war Tim Holt series there told me that they made their films there and told me how to locate the site. Second, and more importantly, Patricia Russell Miller (as in the Russell Ranch, headquartered at what is now Westlake Village) directed me to the Chesebro Road site without hesitation when I asked her about the location of the two-story house set and other buildings. I spoke and corresponded with Mrs. Miller several times in the early 1990s after finding a photo of the French Ranch (for which I had long searched) in a memoir she had written. She was then in her eighties, but her mind was clear as a bell. She told me that the house set, framed by two large oaks, had been replaced by a house trailer, that a small house (John Morrison’s house originally) was located at an angle from the front of the house set, and that parts of the foundation of the huge barn could still be found in the ground farther out at an angle from the house set. We found everything just as she said, with the angle of direction from the house set to the bunkhouse and from the bunkhouse to the barn remains exactly where we had seen them in so many movies. The hills in the far distance from the front of the house set were much larger than in our films, but close examination of those hills made clear why: Those hills were now a huge LA dump site, and many garbage trucks could be seen unloading trash there, making the hills grow larger and larger. I’ve gone on much too long, but you get my point. I would only add that the Madera Creek/Oak Park area was no doubt also often used in our movies. Also, that the cabin burned down in the first episode of the Rifleman series was not the John Morrison house at Agoura, but the Alonzo Morrison house off Las Virgenes Road. I’ll send you an email of the Alonzo Morrison house (from “Stranger at My Door”) separately. Thanks for reading this, and best regards--Tinsley
Thanks for your comment, Tinsley. I know there are plenty of eyewitnesses who had the story wrong, and as we have discussed, there are a number of possible explanations for that. But rather than speculate about what was said in the past or why people may have been wrong about the location, I chose to focus on the evidence I have in front of me, including the background hills and surviving trees.
The hills and trees do not lie. Medea Creek, and not Cheeseboro Canyon, is where the movies were filmed that feature the large barn and the two-story house set, along with the rest of what I'm calling the Medea Creek Ranch.
Like everyone else, I also initially thought that the shooting location was at Cheeseboro Canyon. That's what everyone has been saying for years, and when I visited the site I saw foundations, trees and other features that could easily be interpreted as supporting the prevailing theory that it was the correct filming location.
But on closer examination, the foundations don't fit, the trees don't match and the background hills are completely different — and not just in one direction, where one can make the case that the nearby landfill has changed the look of the hills. There are no background hills at Cheeseboro Canyon in any direction that match the hills in the backgrounds of productions filmed at the large barn or the two-story house set. That's because those productions were not filmed there.
There is no question about where the large barn was located. Sure, there were other large barns in the area, as it was a region filled with ranches. But the barn seen in productions such as "The Red Pony," "Of Mice and Men," "The Lone Ranger," "Heroes of the Saddle," "Bullets for Bandits," "The Outlaw Stallion," "Brigham Young" and many others is immediately recognizable, as is its location, which was unquestionably Medea Creek. Not only are there countless shots of matching hills in the background, but there's even a surviving tree to pinpoint the location — which is purely a stroke of luck considering all the development that has taken place.
Similarly, the two-story house set can be pinpointed with almost equal precision, as it comes up in many pan shots showing the barn and the house set to be positioned near each other. The evidence proves that the house set and barn were both located in what is now a residential neighborhood in Oak Park. There are matching hills at virtually every point of the compass that verify the location — only a fraction of which I had room for in this post.
I'm focusing on other location challenges since I published this post, but if it would help erase any lingering doubts, I would consider doing a follow-up showing still more background hills and other features in present-day Oak Park that match shots from movies filmed at the large barn and two-story house set. I didn't have room for any more of them in this post, but there are more of them around.
Tinsley, your incredible research has always been an inspiration to me. I rank you among the absolute top researchers in the movie location space. I hope you will eventually see that the hard evidence in this case is conclusive, even where it contradicts what others have said in the past.
-SN
Thanks for your comments. When it's convenient, could you show a closeup of the house set and hills behind the house set, then identify the Madera Creek hills in the background? Thanks for indulging me--Tinsley
Boy, do I have egg on my face! I watched Tim Holt's "Law of the Badlands" today. I've watched it several times before, but this time I noticed the deep background behind the two-story ranch set that made it extremely unlikely that the scenes were filmed at the Chesebro Road property outside Agoura. My deepest apologies for taking issue with your findings. I obviously was unduly influenced by industry people who worked at the ranch, and I'm baffled by Patricia Russell Miller's statements that the two-story ranch set was off Chesebro Road. After all, she was "on the scene," so to speak, during that period. Have you identified the ranch where the two-story house was located? Could it have been on the Russell Ranch? If that's the case, that might help explain her confusion. In any event, you "young whippersnappers" continue your fine work, and I'll try to just enjoy reading the fruits of your labors! Best--Tinsley
Really lovely and informative post. I moved to Agoura in 2017, and really appreciate the history. There are a couple of good places to see the lady in Ladyface Mountain. There was a Shell station near the 101 at Chesebro (I pronounce it the Spanish way). I think it’s a Chevron now. I was pumping gas one day and looked toward Ladyface, and there she was, plain as day. She is a profile in repose, with flowing hair. You can see the profile from left to right or right to left; I don’t know which it correct, but I gravitate toward left to right. The other place she is in clear view is on the 101 freeway between Calabasas and Liberty Canyon (traveling west, or north - I’m terrible at directions). Keep your eye out for her, but keep your eyes on the road, too. Every day I travel home from Woodland Hills to Agoura Hills I see her and say “there she is!”.
Thanks, Margie. I'm looking forward to my "There she is" moment — next time I'm driving west (and north) on the 101 Freeway. (It's not you — west and north are the same direction on that part of the 101.)
Since my May 20 "egg in my face" comment about the location of the two-story ranch set on the Agoura Ranch, I've had a chance to read Harvey Kern, et al., Oak Park. That work makes clear why industry people who said that the two-story house set was along Chesebro Road were actually correct. In a caption to the bottom photograph on Page 28, the authors note that "the Chesebro Road exit [from Highway 101]. . . was the main route to the Oak Park area at the time [the early 1960s]." Chesebro was thus the likely road film crews travelled when going to the two-story ranch set. And we location researchers simply erred in concluding that the area about a mile north of Old Agoura (now a county park)--an area that included two large oak trees like those that framed the two-story set and the remains of a bunkhouse-type structure--was the site rather than the Oak Park area discussed in Dennis' excellent post and elsewhere. Hills and ridges can be an invaluable "smoking gun" tool of location research, but without the help of film folks many of our favorite locations could never have been discovered.
Thank you for such a detailed blog. I used to live in Oak Park, did not know so many movies were filmed there, its an absolutely beautiful place.
I used to hike and bike the Simi hills, including Simi Peak back in the early 90's. I still do it now but from Wood Ranch in Simi Valley.
On one of my bike rides to China Flat (A plateau above Oak Park) which was part of the Jordan Ranch and was still owned back then by Bob Hope and slated for development (which thank God did not happen), I came across an old Barn movie set on the North west portion of China Flat property, I was told later on that it was used to film the old west scene from Back to the Future sequel, I could not find any records about that, I was also told that the car chases from Dukes of Hazzard were filmed there, I remember seeing a lot of fire roads all around the property which now are all but disappeared.
Do you have any information about any filming done in China Flat?
I asked the park ranger and he also said that had information about the barn but I could not find any information about it.
Thanks
Hi, Juan Carlos. Thanks for your comment.
The short answer is no, I don't know anything about the filming you mentioned at China Flat. But it's an interesting question and deserves the long answer, which is usually better. I've begun looking into it.
I would love to hear more about your find if you have more. One thing that would be really interesting would be something that pinpoints the location where you found the old barn set. Maybe you could note it on a Google map and email it to me? (iversonfilmranch@aol.com)
Otherwise, I'll keep digging into it and see what I can find. One thing worth noting is that the Back to the Future series has an avid following, and for that reason it has been the focus of more than the usual amount of movie location hunting by fans of the movies. So you might be able to find stuff online by doing a search for the movies by title and looking for fan sites. I will probably do some of that myself.
There's also a pretty good list on IMDb of locations for Back to the Future III (1990), which is the one with the Wild West content. IMDb is never complete when it comes to locations, but it can be useful as a starting point.
I have poked around a little bit at Dukes of Hazzard in the past, including following up on various rumors about filming in the Conejo Valley. It does appear that it filmed some stuff in a few Conejo locations, but I don't have any specifics. I will be following up on your leads. I think the show mainly shot around Santa Clarita, but as with most TV shows that are on for a while, Dukes would have had quite a few shooting locations.
Thanks for your interesting comment. I hope you'll email me.
-SN
Very neat again Swami! Also big kudos to Tinsley for checking himself and relooking at things. I was going to point out that perhaps these was only the Chesebro road off what would have been Agoura Rd prior to the 101.Thanks
Hello. I really enjoy this site. I lived in Oak Park for 2 years. I'm currently watching Dusty's Trail, Tomahawk Territory. This looks a lot like Oak Park. Especially the scene where they're putting the wagon wheels back together, it looks like Flat Top or Camelback Hill in the background. Thoughts?
Hello again. Regarding The Dukes Of Hazzard. John Schneider posted himself out in Westlake Village, towards Lake Sherwood, showing some Dukes filming locations.
I'd be interested to see that John Schneider post. Couldn't find it on a quick Google search -- do you know where he posted it? I mainly found stuff from 2011 about his Agoura Hills home being for sale.
I'm also going to be taking another look at "Dusty's Trail" to follow up on your Oak Park comment.
Thanks!
... SN
Hi, thanks for the response.
He posts on his YouTube channel. I know one was called Dukes of Hazzard Locations- The Real Story, about 3 years ago. Another one he was actually walking around the locations around Westlake Village, Lake Sherwood areas showing the angles and such.
Some more now. Father Knows Best has a dude ranch episode, Never The Twain. Any ideas where?
Also, The Texan with Rory Calhoun. A location called Pearl Flats?
Thanks!
Great info! Thanks for the interesting leads.
I checked out the "Father Knows Best" episode and it's shot at the old Andy Jauregui Ranch in Placerita Canyon, in Santa Clarita. The same barn and other ranch buildings are in movies going back to the '30s -- "Justice of the Range" (1935), "Guns of the Pecos" (1937), "Arizona Ranger" (1948), "Golden Stallion" (1949) and "Never a Dull Moment" (1950), to name a few.
Around the time when "Father Knows Best" shot there (1956), the ranch was also being used by other TV shows including "Gunsmoke" (episode 3.9, "Romeo," 1957) and "The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp" (episode 3.37, titled "Four," 1958).
The Jauregui Ranch buildings are no longer standing, but a lot of the former Placerita Canyon movie ranch properties were absorbed by Disney's Golden Oak Ranch, and I have a feeling that's what happened to the old Jauregui property.
I couldn't get anywhere with Pearl Flats, except that it's said to be in the Mojave Desert. If anyone reading this happens to know anything about Pearl Flats, please comment and fill us in. Meanwhile, the Mojave Desert is known for its Joshua trees, so if anyone spots those in "The Texan," that may well be Pearl Flats — even if that particular place name has been lost to history. Help us out with an episode title if you can.
The John Schneider video you referenced (Dukes of Hazzard Locations - The Real Story) is quite informative. I hope to follow up on the locations he mentions and watch some of his other videos. It's really cool that he took the time to set the record straight, as much as possible. I was curious especially about the Boar's Nest, which he explains was set up in various locations at different times.
His lead about Lyons Avenue in Santa Clarita is interesting — I've previously seen a "Dukes" location match at a site called either Lyon Canyon or Lyons Canyon.
I don't think Schneider's recollection is entirely correct (and understandably so) when he references a place called "Warner Ranch" in the Santa Clarita area. The name "Warner Ranch" comes up all the time, and can refer to at least five different locations, including Woodland Hills, two different properties in Calabasas, the Warner Ranch (and former Columbia Ranch) in Burbank, and sometimes even the Warner Bros. studio lot in Burbank gets thrown into the mix, usually because people mix it up with the nearby Warner Ranch/Columbia Ranch. It seems just about everyone experiences some confusion about the name "Warner Ranch" from time to time -- I know I have. But I have my doubts that there's yet another location in Santa Clarita that we need to think of as "Warner Ranch" -- at least I sure hope not. Even so, I will keep in mind that if John Schneider said so, it's at least something to consider.
What I do think he may be talking about when he talks about a "Dukes" shooting location off Lyons Avenue in the Santa Clarita area, besides Lyons Canyon itself, is something more around the west end of Lyons, where it becomes Pico Canyon. He described a hilly location, and it's definitely hilly out that way -- and the area was known to be used for filming. Some of that history is documented in connection with Mentryville, located at the end of the Pico Canyon Service Road.
I don't know of a specific connection between "Dukes" and any filming around Mentryville or Pico Canyon, but it would be interesting to look into it.
I know "Dukes" locations have been studied a lot by fans of the show -- maybe there's more about Santa Clarita locations on YouTube? I just hope everyone makes an effort to get the story right so they don't risk undoing some of the good work John Schneider is doing.
Thanks again!
... SN
Excellent info, thanks!
Regarding Pearl Flats I even travelled down the rabbit hole of Pearl Bailey owning a ranch out there years ago and maybe the name had something to do with her.
http://mojavehistory.com/murray11.html
Very interesting to an old TV and Movie Western fan. The image on your website locates the McCain Ranch location more accurately than Google Maps or Google Earth. They have it several hundred feet north west. I matched the shots of the road coming over the hill (trailhead) and the small creek furrow with the wood bridge behind the McCain Ranch lines up much better with the plot next to the road/trail to the southeast. It's a shame the set burned down. Having a replica of the original set would be cool, but I'm afraid most people today haven't even seen an episode of The Rifleman.
Thanks, Tim, and thank you too, Rocknstv. I'm going to reply separately to Rocknstv's comment below. If there's a "reply" function on here, I've never figured out how it works.
Tim, thanks for fact-checking my placement of the McCain Ranch set at Malibu Creek State Park. I'm glad I did better than Google. I know when I was researching the location a while back I found a number of different versions online, and no two had it in exactly the same place. That's why I decided to do my own research to see how close I could get. I still think it's best described as "approximate."
When you say the set burned down, are you talking about the one at Cheeseboro Canyon? (aka John Morrison Ranch) That's the one that was sort of a "would-be" McCain Ranch, seen only in the first two "Rifleman" episodes. Other than that, I don't know about any McCain Ranch stuff burning down, and we've talked elsewhere (https://iversonmovieranch.blogspot.com/2020/09/the-incredible-janss-conejo-ranch-in.html?showComment=1691337535047#c4681031697262850744)about the main McCain Ranch set moving from Malibu Creek to Janss Conejo after season one.
It's good to bounce ideas back and forth with someone who knows his stuff. Thanks again!
... SN
Replying to Rocknstv from a few posts up ...
Boy, you said it when you mentioned that rabbit hole. But it's a good one. I got interested a while back in Murray's Dude Ranch out around Apple Valley, but had forgotten about the Pearl Bailey connection. The link you posted is just one of 14 pages of research on the dude ranch, and it's great stuff. Too bad it doesn't resolve the "Pearl Flats" question, but it's still not beyond the realm of possibility that it has something to do with Pearl Bailey.
I mainly got interested in Murray's Dude Ranch in connection with Herb Jeffries because he made a few Westerns there and also worked the Iverson Ranch a little bit. It's an obscure location with a really interesting history. Thanks for the link, and for the deep dive into "Pearl Flats"!
... SN
Hey, Swami, you're welcome and thank you!
And you mentioned the Happy Cowboy himself, Herb Jeffries?! I am a fan!
If you haven't seen it, check this out, a must for any Jeffries' fan.
https://youtu.be/ASgnHX9t3LA
Thanks for the link, Rocknstv. Very nice interviews with Huell Howser. Herb Jeffries seemed to get along with everybody. I understand he was pretty good friends with the Iverson family and used to spend time hanging out on the Iverson Ranch even though he only made one movie there.
... SN
You're welcome and thanks again.
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