The Iverson Movie Ranch after the brutal Southern California wildfires of fall 1970: A record found in an obscure TV show

An episode of the short-lived early 1970s Glenn Ford TV show "Cade's County" contains some unusual Iverson Movie Ranch footage — unusual in part because it was late in the life cycle of the movie ranch, where production wound down for the most part by the end of the 1960s, and also unusual because the "Cade's County" footage captures some of the effects of the devastating fall 1970 Southern California wildfires.

"Cade's County" TV series: "The Mustangers" (premiered Nov. 14, 1971)

Shot in 1971, the "Cade's County" episode "The Mustangers" showcases the Upper Iverson as it existed in the summer following the fires: a combination of dried grass and charred trees and bushes still struggling to survive. The footage documents the regeneration process of the native foliage: The grass had grown back during the winter and spring following the fire, then subsequently dried out as another hot Chatsworth summer set in.

Front-page story in The Valley News, Sept. 27, 1970

The wildfires raged for 13 days that fall — from Sept. 22-Oct. 4, 1970 — a notorious chapter in California's history of natural disasters. By the time the flames were extinguished, 16 people had perished, 722 homes were destroyed and 576,508 acres had been burned, according to various media accounts.

In all, a reported 773 wildfires were documented throughout the state around that time. The huge fire that swept through the Iverson Ranch, sometimes called the Newhall-Malibu Fire or the Chatsworth-Malibu Fire, destroyed virtually all of the movie ranch's remaining manmade sets, along with most of what was left of Corriganville, several miles to the west in Simi Valley.

Laguna Fire, 1970

One of the most infamous fall 1970 wildfires became known as the Laguna Fire, which was also called either the Kitchen Creek Fire or the Boulder Oaks Fire while it was raging. The above map shows the area it destroyed, mainly in eastern San Diego County. Said to be either the second largest or third largest fire in California history at the time, the Laguna Fire broke out on Sept. 26, 1970, as a result of downed power lines caused by Santa Ana winds, and went on to burn 175,425 acres, killing eight civilians and destroying 382 homes.

Topo map: Clampitt Fire, 1970

The Newhall-Malibu Fires of 1970 break down in various ways according to various reports, but one of the major trouble spots was the Clampitt Fire, outlined in the topo map above. The Clampitt Fire is said to have destroyed between 105,000 and 115,000 acres and is blamed for the loss of four lives and 86 structures. A close look at the map reveals that the Clampitt Fire would have cut a swath through a number of well-known movie sites, including parts of the Lower Iverson, in the top right corner of the map.

"The Quick Gun" (1964): The Bell Location Ranch Western town

The Clampitt Fire also swept through historic filming locations including Spahn Ranch, just southwest of the Iverson Ranch; Bell Location Ranch, in the area designated "Box Canyon" on the map; Burro Flats, near where "Rocketdyne" is indicated; and Ahmanson Ranch, which is pinpointed on the map. As it was officially mapped out, the Clampitt Fire missed both Corriganville and the Upper Iverson, although those areas were hit by other destructive fires around the same time.

"Gunsmoke" episode "Shadler" (1973): The surviving Bell Ranch Western town

Surprisingly, the Western town at Bell Ranch survived the fires, and went on to appear in a number of later productions, including "Gunsmoke." The town was eventually torn down and replaced by residential homes.

This photo dated Sept. 25, 1970, from what was being called the Chatsworth-Malibu Fire, ran on the front page of the L.A. Times with a caption reading: "Randy Pearson, 18, kneels in front of his Chatsworth home as the roof goes up in flames."

But on the Iverson Ranch the following summer, it was back to business as usual, as much as possible, with the shoot for "Cade's County." George Maharis, above, guest-starred in "The Mustangers" as a motorcycle-riding, fringe-leather-wearing, gun-totin' bad guy. This shot shows Maharis on the Upper Iverson, with Prominent Rock, also known as Medicine Rock, in the background. Notice the thick coating of dry grass on the ground, along with some oak trees that appear to have been missed by the fires.

Here's Maharis on his ride, which he uses on the show to illegally round up wild horses. Turtle Rock, a familiar feature from countless chase sequences in the B-Western era, looms in the top right corner, and a little more of the charred remains of foliage is visible in the background.

This shot from "The Mustangers" shows a familiar Upper Iverson rock formation I call the Three Stooges. To my eye the terrain, as it appeared in the summer of 1971, looks even more dusty and sparse than usual.

Some things never change — the producers couldn't resist working Wrench Rock into the episode. That's the widely filmed Wrench Rock — also known as Indian Head, Upper Indian Head, Bobby and various other names — directly above the heads of the young couple.

Wrench Rock was used as a prop for an impromptu photo shoot in the episode, with the young man taking pictures of his girlfriend in front of the charismatic rock feature. The Rocky Peak area of the Santa Susana Mountains to the west, specifically a formation I call Pyramid Peak, can be seen in the background.

The young lady mugs for the camera below Wrench Rock.

Wrench Rock also got its own closeup, seen in this screen shot. The rock can still be found today on the former Upper Iverson Movie Ranch, although access to the area tends to be difficult.

A number of "wild" mustangs were turned loose on the Upper Iverson during the shoot for "Cade's County" — probably one of the last times that happened on the Iverson Ranch. Here again, the landscape looks even more desolate than it usually does.

Glenn Ford, the star of the series, made it out to the ranch for the shoot, and is seen here riding on the Upper Iverson's South Rim. He usually drove a Jeep on the show, which was essentially a contemporary Western focused on Ford as a small-town sheriff. The show's run on CBS lasted only one season — from September 1971 to April 1972 — with a total of 24 episodes airing.

Rhonda Fleming — and why there's a Rhonda Fleming Rock in Chatsworth, Calif.

Screen icon Rhonda Fleming appeared in a number of movies shot on the Iverson Movie Ranch, including the 1959 Bob Hope Western comedy "Alias Jesse James." But her most memorable Iverson movie may be the 1955 Ronald Reagan-John Payne Western "Tennessee's Partner" — which includes a defining moment involving the actress and a particular rock.

Rhonda Fleming, and Rhonda Fleming Rock, in "Tennessee's Partner" (1955)

In the movie, Fleming is seen riding in a rarely filmed area just west of Garden of the Gods, and at one point she hides behind a monolithic rock that these days film historians call Rhonda Fleming Rock — and yes, I plead guilty to starting it. One reason is because "Tennessee's Partner" is probably the only movie where the rock is featured like this, and Rhonda seems to bring out the best in it.

Here's a short video clip of Fleming's moment in "Tennessee's Partner," featuring  the monolith that now bears her name:



So why is it that the rock almost never appeared on film? It might have to do with the rock's appearance, being perhaps a bit too, well, upright for some tastes. But I think the main reason was because it was a bit out of the way and hard to get to — especially when hauling a bunch of cumbersome movie equipment. The hillside on which Rhonda Fleming Rock is located is just that — a hillside — and filming there would have been tricky.

Rhonda Fleming Rock in 2008, after the Sesnon Fire

Rhonda Fleming Rock remains in place today, and is not hard to find — especially if you know where to look for it. (Check out the bird's-eye view near the bottom of this post.) In general, it's just west of the big sandstone monsters that define Garden of the Gods. Climb down from Garden of the Gods heading west, walk around a little and you'll probably stumble onto it. It's a bit "tucked in" among foliage and other rocks, so it doesn't exactly jump out and say "Here I am!" But it's there and you should be able to find it.

Rhonda Fleming Rock in 2011

Above is another recent view of the rock, along with some of its much larger neighbors along the western edge of Iverson's Garden of the Gods.

Another view of Rhonda Fleming Rock in 2011

Today the rock, visible at the bottom center of the above shot, is part of a landscape that includes condos and, above them, a sprawling church complex. The Rocky Peak area can be seen in the distance, to the west.

Garden of the Gods, Chatsworth, Calif. (Bing bird's-eye view)

A tiny but distinctive glimpse of Rhonda's rock can be seen here, in the shady area just to the left of the center of the photo. This is the view looking east — you can click on the photo for a larger version. But unless you're in the mood for a "Where's Waldo"-type hunt, go on to the next photo, where Rhonda Fleming Rock is pinpointed.

To visit the rock, first find your way to Chatsworth, Calif., and then find Topanga Canyon Boulevard. Just south of the 118 Freeway, head west on Santa Susana Pass Road, then turn right on Redmesa Road and park just before the condos. The blue-green iron gate on the west side of Redmesa marks the trail into Garden of the Gods — Have fun!

I've blogged before about "Tennessee's Partner," which includes a memorable Ronald Reagan death scene shot in central Garden of the Gods — just around the corner from Rhonda Fleming Rock. Click here to read my blog entry all about the location where Reagan was gunned down.

Below you'll find links to a few different versions of "Tennessee's Partner" on DVD, for sale on Amazon.com. If you can snag the DVD that has both "Tennessee's Partner" and "Cattle Queen of Montana," starring Barbara Stanwyck, that one's an especially good deal for Iverson Movie Ranch aficionados, as both movies were filmed on the ranch.

Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper rendezvous at the border between France and Spain — really the Iverson Movie Ranch's Garden of the Gods

I found a terrific sequence filmed at the Iverson Movie Ranch in the 1936 Paramount movie "Desire," starring Gary Cooper and Marlene Dietrich — with both of the film's big stars putting in some time on location in Iverson's Garden of the Gods for the sequence.

Dietrich watches as Cooper tries to figure out what's wrong with her car in a scene that takes place at the border crossing from France into Spain. In reality it was shot in the Garden of the Gods on the Iverson Movie Ranch in Chatsworth, Calif. Notice the sharp, pointed rock in the top right corner, which is a widely filmed movie rock.

The same pointed rock appears at the far left in this shot taken on a recent visit to Iverson. You can also see Rocky Peak in the background, in the hills directly to the west of Iverson.

The pointed rock is at the left again in this shot from the 1937 Columbia B-Western "Ranger Courage." You may recognize the rock at the right, as it also appears in the recent shot above.

Here's one more look at the pointed rock, in the 1938 RKO B-Western "The Renegade Ranger," starring George O'Brien. This time the pointed rock fills up the middle of the frame.

A promotional still of Dietrich in the car was part of the Iverson shoot, with minor Garden of the Gods rocks visible in the background. The car was a fairly spectacular ride back in its day (and still is) — a 1935 Auburn 851 Supercharged Boattail Speedster.

Here's a shot of the Auburn 851 in action, cruising past Iverson rocks as it nears the border crossing. It's kind of obviously not Dietrich at the wheel in this shot, but I'm not going to quibble about that with all the great shots coming up.

This is what the same car looked like when it was put up for auction in 2010. This was the exact car used in the movie, and it had been specially fitted with a rear-mounted spare for the movie. The spare was removed before the sale to restore the car to its original state, but was included as part of the sale.

Here's another shot of the car as it appeared when it was being auctioned. I'm told it went for $377,000.

The focal point of the scene in "Desire" is the border crossing between France and Spain, a source of tension because Dietrich's character is carrying stolen pearls. Here Dietrich's car approaches the crossing, where the filmmakers apparently built a set in the Garden of the Gods to serve as the border guards' headquarters.

Dietrich's car arrives at the border, with a familiar Iverson movie rock visible in the distance, at top center.

That same movie rock as it appears today, toward the top left of this shot. The rock is a prominent feature of the Iverson Gorge and a part of the Hole in the Wall group. I have referred to it in the past as GTR, and noted that from its back side it adopts the persona of a Jaunty Sailor. I hope you can match up the profiles of the rock in the above two photos.

Another view of the border crossing. Now Cooper is behind Dietrich in his Pontiac, about to get dragged into her situation. This shot offers a better view of part of the border crossing set, along with an improved view of some of the rocks.

This shot of Dietrich has the look of a studio shot or backlot, and we might think that's what it was if we hadn't already got a look at the border crossing set. She was on location at Iverson, and at this point was setting her sights on Cooper.

Dietrich and Cooper connect, with Garden of the Gods and part of the set in the background. Technically, I've never heard that this set was built specifically for this movie, but everything adds up: Paramount had the budget for that sort of thing, and this was a heavily filmed area and a busy time for Iverson. If these buildings had been built for any other reason, or had remained standing for any length of time, they would have turned up in other productions.

Another shot from the sequence, featuring Cooper's Pontiac, is also filmed in Garden of the Gods. Notice the rock and tree in the background.

"Cowboy Holiday" (1934)

The same rock and tree also surface in the 1934 Guinn "Big Boy" Williams B-Western "Cowboy Holiday," as seen above.

By the end of the scene in "Desire," Cooper is clearly smitten with Dietrich — and appears to have no idea what kind of trouble he's in.

"Desire" seems to be a hard movie to find. I wanted to include a link here for a DVD or Blu-ray on Amazon.com, but I could only find non-USA DVD formats and clunky old VHS — so you're on your own. Good luck!

Jesus met the woman at the well — so who was that woman he met in the trailer park?

Jesus, played by Nelson Leigh, at "Jacob's Well" in 1952

The Bible story about Jesus' encounter with a Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well was brought to life in the early 1950s in a film series by the Christian-oriented production company Family Films.

 

This is where Jesus met the woman at the well

The "Jesus met the woman at the well" story was filmed in what is now the swimming pool area of the Indian Hills Mobile Home Village in Chatsworth, Calif. At the time the location was part of the Iverson Movie Ranch.

 

"The Living Bible Collection" — 12-episode series on DVD

The scene is included in a 12-episode series of Bible stories that first came out in 1952 and has been repackaged over the years and marketed in a variety of formats under various titles. One of the most common versions appears on a DVD set under the title "The Living Bible Collection."

 

The same series, repackaged as "The Bible Series: Jesus the Christ"

Another variation is "The Bible Series: Jesus the Christ," which can typically be found on DVD on eBay and other websites. The series has also been released as "The Life of Christ," while individual chapters also have multiple titles and have been edited to various chapter lengths for the different releases.

 

"Living Christ Series" (1951): NOT filmed on the Iverson Ranch

Adding to the confusion, a "rival" studio, Cathedral Films, produced its own series of Bible stories under similar titles around the same time. Cathedral's "Living Christ Series" was not filmed on the Iverson Ranch and is not the same production as Family Films' "The Life of Christ," "The Living Bible" or "The Bible Series: Jesus the Christ."

 

"The Living Bible": Jesus and his followers shuffle through today's swimming pool area

In this post we'll focus on the Family Films production, one major Bible series of the early 1950s that WAS filmed on the Iverson Movie Ranch — and for simplicity, we'll just call it "The Living Bible."

Jesus meets the woman at the well — Notice the rock at top right

Here we find Jesus chatting with the Samaritan woman, and we see not only Jacob's Well — the concrete-looking structure behind Jesus and the woman — but also a distinctive rock in the background.

 

Identifying marks on the background rock

The rock has two prominent horizontal indentations, which will be useful in helping us identify the same rock in other shots — and in turn should help pinpoint the filming location for the Jacob's Well sequence.

 

A better look at the rock

This shot from the Jacob's Well encounter provides a slightly closer look at the rock, and also reveals another distinctive marker.

 

Another key marker on the rock

Near the base of the rock on its left side, we can see another indent, this one more vertical in orientation.

 

"Secret Service in Darkest Africa" (Republic serial, 1943): "Walnut"

Here's a shot of that same rock from a different angle and in a different production, the old serial "Secret Service in Darkest Africa." I refer to this rock as "Walnut," based on its overall shape and general appearance.

 

The horizontal indents are also visible from this angle

The screen shot from "Secret Service in Darkest Africa" again shows those two distinctive horizontal indentations on Walnut, even though this is a different angle from the "Living Bible" shot.

 

"Six-Gun Gospel" (Monogram, 1943)

Walnut can be found in quite a few movies and TV shows, including the Johnny Mack Brown B-Western "Six-Gun Gospel." The big rock on the right is Walnut.

 

Walnut, a casualty of the mobile home park

Unfortunately, Walnut no longer exists, having been destroyed to make way for the rec center at the Indian Hills complex. For more about Walnut and some of its neighbors, please click here.

 

A survivor lurks in the background

Also seen in the "Six-Gun Gospel" screen shot is Tilted Cube, which was one of the closest neighbors to Walnut. Unlike Walnut, Tilted Cube did survive development — click here for a little more about that part of the story.

 

"Secret Service in Darkest Africa": Another appearance by Walnut and Tilted Cube

Here's a much different view of Walnut, essentially from the opposite side. That's Walnut at top center, and also visible in this shot is the "back side" of Tilted Cube, on the left.

 

Walnut, looking more like a tilted cube

From this angle, Walnut actually looks more like a tilted cube than Tilted Cube does — a fact that also complicated the search for the real Tilted Cube in today's landscape.

 

Tilted Cube — still tilted, but not nearly so cube-shaped

Tilted Cube doesn't look nearly as much like a tilted cube from this angle. It's much less orderly on this side, really just a big mess of a rock.

 

Tilted Cube and its new neighbor, the mobile home park's rec center

This is what that "messy" side of Tilted Cube looks like in the modern landscape. This photo, which I took from the swimming pool area in 2013, shows how close Tilted Cube is to the rec center.

 

Tilted Cube and the rec center from the north side

To get a better sense of the scale of some of these old movie rocks, note that today Tilted Cube rises well above the roof of the rec center — and Walnut was several times larger than Tilted Cube.

 

"The Lone Ranger" TV series (1956): Walnut and friends

For another illustration of how these big rocks size up, consider this shot of Walnut and some of its neighbors in the season five "Lone Ranger" episode "The Return of Don Pedro O'Sullivan."

 

The late, great movie rock Walnut

Pointing out the obvious, this is Walnut, outlined here in blue.

 

Tilted Cube — overshadowed by Walnut, as usual

Less obvious is Tilted Cube, dwarfed by its camera-hogging neighbor, Walnut. Their size difference is exaggerated here by Walnut's being closer to the camera, but even so, Walnut is a much larger rock.

 

"Secret Service in Darkest Africa": Another look at the south side of Walnut

Here's another shot of Walnut's "back side," which includes a vertical indentation we discussed previously — the dark area on the rock, to the right of the fighter.

 

Indentation near the base of Walnut

It's a little hard to see here, but this indentation is the same one near the base of Walnut that we pointed out in "The Living Bible."

 

"The Living Bible": Walnut, with its nooks and crannies

Here's the same indentation as it appears in "The Living Bible."

 

"Secret Service in Darkest Africa": Today's swimming pool area

In another shot from "Secret Service in Darkest Africa," we again see the back side of Walnut at top center, along with Tilted Cube to its left.

 

Two longtime neighbors vie for screen time

As we've noted, the two rocks were close neighbors. In this case Tilted Cube is closer to the camera, but even so, the larger Walnut makes its presence felt.

 

Another surviving rock in the swimming pool area

The shot also features a third rock, which I call Johnny Crawford Rock. Like Tilted Cube, Johnny Crawford Rock has survived and remains in place today in the Indian Hills Mobile Home Village.

 

"First Wages" ("The Rifleman," season four): Johnny Crawford at his namesake rock

The name "Johnny Crawford Rock" comes from a 1961 episode of "The Rifleman" called "First Wages," in which Crawford, as young Mark McCain, rides next to the rock.

 

Johnny Crawford Rock's copycat vertical indentation

Something to note about Johnny Crawford Rock is that it has a distinctive marker that is almost an exact duplicate of the vertical indentation we've been seeing on Walnut.

 

"The Living Bible": Jesus and his followers walk near Johnny Crawford Rock

Johnny Crawford Rock also appears in this shot we looked at previously of Jesus leading a group through the swimming pool area. Here again we see the rock's vertical indentation.

 

Johnny Crawford Rock in modern times

Today Johnny Crawford Rock is part of the landscaping around the swimming pool at the Indian Hills Mobile Home Village in Chatsworth, Calif.

 

The rock's distinctive marker

The rock's prominent vertical indentation remains a part of the modern landscape.

 

Famous movie rocks decorate the swimming pool area

A wider shot of the swimming pool area again shows Johnny Crawford Rock, toward the right, along with some other old movie rocks. All of these rocks appeared frequently in movies and on television.

 

The key indent in Johnny Crawford Rock

Here again, Johnny Crawford Rock's indentation is pretty easy to spot.

 

"The Living Bible": Behind Jesus we see a similar indentation

Taking another look at the Jacob's Well set in "The Living Bible," we again see an indentation in a rock behind Jesus and the Samaritan woman — but this is not the same rock we've been looking at.

 

This time the indentation is in Walnut

As we've noted previously, this is NOT the indentation in Johnny Crawford Rock — it's the oddly similar indentation in nearby Walnut.

 

"Blazing Bullets" (1951): Johnny Crawford Rock, Tilted Cube and Walnut

Ideally we could get a look at the indentations on both Johnny Crawford Rock and Walnut in the same shot, but the closest thing I've seen is this shot featuring both rocks, along with their neighbor Tilted Cube.

 

Three important movie rocks in "Blazing Bullets"

The three rocks line up nicely in the shot, and by examining their positions relative to each other, we can determine that the Jacob's Well set in "The Living Bible" would have been located in the swimming pool area.

 

Matching indentations — but only one is fully visible

The "Blazing Bullets" shot includes Walnut's indentation, marked here in red, but a tree prevents us from getting a clear look at Johnny Crawford Rock's matching marker, mostly hidden in the yellow outline.

The Jacob's Well location — now a swimming pool

In the end, the rocks confirm that the Jacob's Well encounter in "The Living Bible" was filmed approximately where the Indian Hills Mobile Home Village's swimming pool is located today.