The Iverson Movie Ranch's mighty Sphinx welcomes an unexpected visitor

The Sphinx, located in the Garden of the Gods (viewed from the southeast)

Many fans of the Iverson Movie Ranch are familiar with the Sphinx, one of the former movie location ranch's most famous and most widely filmed rocks.

Promo still for "Bullet Code" (1940): The Sphinx, seen from the northeast

The Sphinx's name appears to be derived from its profile as seen from the north or northeast.

The western end of the rock has a "face" that bears a resemblance to Egypt's famed Great Sphinx of Giza. 

The Great Sphinx of Giza, in Egypt

Egypt's Sphinx has a few extra centuries of recorded history behind it, but the Iverson Movie Ranch's Sphinx has the advantage of still having its nose.

Egypt's Great Sphinx — front view

The front view of the Great Sphinx is a more familiar angle. But from this angle the ancient landmark loses its resemblance to Iverson's Sphinx.

"Tarzan's Savage Fury" (1952) (promo still from the Jerry England Collection)

The Iverson Movie Ranch's Sphinx strikes an especially "Sphinx-like" pose as it looms in the background of a promotional photo for "Tarzan's Savage Fury," starring Lex Barker and Dorothy Hart.

The Sphinx — at least that's what we're calling it these days

The Sphinx has had a number of other names. As recently as 10 years ago the rock was still widely known as Eagle Beak — a bit of mislabeling that has been attributed to confusion with the "real" Eagle Beak Rock.

The "real" Eagle Beak Rock — on the Upper Iverson

The real Eagle Beak Rock was a common feature in the background of chase scenes filmed on the Upper Iverson. Today it provides a backdrop for the mansions that now occupy that part of the former movie ranch.

"Calamity Jane and the Texan" (1950): Eagle Beak Rock, at top left, presides over a chase

Here's just one example of what Eagle Beak Rock looked like as it towered over hundreds of chase scenes. Readers should be able to match up the rock as it appears "then and now" in the above two photos.

"Overland Trails" (Monogram, 1948): Responsible for one of the "Indian Heads"?

For part of the filming era, the Sphinx was known as "Indian Head" — one of at least four or five rocks on the Iverson Ranch to be called that. The name appears to have originated in the movie "Overland Trails."

"Overland Trails": The rock pinpoints a hidden waterhole and mine

I've only been able to find a very low-res version of the movie, but when the boys ride up on the rock seen above (which we know as the Sphinx), Johnny Mack Brown says: "Hey Dusty, look — look at that rock. Doesn't that look like an Indian head to you?" And Dusty, played by Raymond Hatton, answers: "Well it sure does!"

The Sphinx, identified as "Indian Head Rock" in Leon Smith's movie location books 

That's probably why some researchers started identifying the Sphinx as "Indian Head," as author Leon Smith does in his movie location books.

Lone Ranger Rock — once known by another name

Many of the major rocks at Iverson have multiple names — and the most common of those names is "Indian Head." Even the ranch's most famous rock, Lone Ranger Rock, used to be called "Indian Head." That was long before Clayton Moore came along on Silver and established the rock's new identity.

The Sphinx: Intrigue at the west end

Getting back to the Sphinx, each corner of the rock has its own movie history and its own stories to tell, but I'd like to call attention to the rock's complicated and rarely talked about bottom half at its western end.

"The Lone Ranger" TV series: "War Horse" episode (1949)

I was watching some early episodes of "The Lone Ranger" when I noticed what appears to be the entrance to a cave. A few days later I found myself on the Iverson Ranch searching for the cave.

The "War Horse" episode premiered on Oct. 20, 1949, back in the earliest days of television as a mainstream medium. These early episodes of "The Lone Ranger" were filmed heavily on the Iverson Ranch. They also occupy an important place in TV history, with "The Lone Ranger" being one of the medium's first hit shows.

The same location on a visit to the Iverson Ranch in 2018

Based on the context in the TV episode I had a good idea where to look for the cave, and as it turned out, it was pretty easy to find. Of course, when we find these sites in the real world, they rarely look the same as they did in the movies and on TV, and this location is no exception.

As usual, it's the little details that make the match. This shot identifies some of the common reference points between the photo I took on my recent visit, seen here, and the "Lone Ranger" screen shot, seen below.

Here are the same reference points in the "Lone Ranger" screen shot.

Should we be talking about the "elephant in the room"?

Have you spotted the "elephant in the room" yet? There's one big, glaring difference between the site as it appeared in "The Lone Ranger" and the site as it appears today.

Intruder alert! What the heck is that thing doing in there?

The glaring difference is a big rock that wasn't there back in 1949. This monster is one of the best examples I've seen lately of what I call an "intruder rock."

Intruder rocks we have known and loved: The "Love Me Tender" filming area at Bell Ranch

My initial reaction whenever intruder rocks show up is typically along the lines of: "Get outta there — you're ruining the shot!" But the truth is intruder rocks often add something to the story. If nothing else, they demonstrate that rocks don't necessarily have to sit still all the time.

Photo from the "Love Me Tender" expedition to Bell Ranch in 2015

These intruders provided a fun twist back in 2015 when we went "Off the Beaten Path" to Bell Ranch to track down an Elvis Presley filming location from his first movie, "Love Me Tender." You can click here to read the full report.

As for the Sphinx intruder, a look at that corner of the Sphinx provides clues to where it may have come from.

Considering how gravity works, we know the intruder rock must have come from somewhere up above. And directly above the rock's present position we find evidence of rock movement.

Just above the intruder we can see some new rock surface — an indication that something did break off from here. We also find a distinctive curved edge to the new surface area.

The curved edge up above appears to match an edge on the intruder rock. The evidence strongly suggests that we have identified the spot where the intruder rock was hanging around before it broke away.

Factor in that the intruder rock is positioned RIGHT BELOW the target area of the "mother rock," and we have a mountain of evidence supporting the proposed point of origin.

Damage from the Northridge Earthquake (Jan. 17, 1994)

 

The intruder most likely snapped off during one of the region's two big earthquakes of modern times — either the Sylmar/San Fernando Quake in 1971 or the Northridge Quake in 1994.

"The New Adventures of Spin and Marty" (1957): The western edge of Sphinx

Delving further into the rock's origins, I tracked down this shot from the "Spin and Marty" TV serial that aired in 1957. Here we see that corner of the Sphinx as it appeared before the rock took the plunge.

The area where the fresh rock surface is visible today is located roughly here in the "Spin and Marty" shot.

As I studied the available "then" and "now" shots, I became increasingly focused on the rock noted here.

The west end of Sphinx on a recent visit

It's hard to duplicate the angle seen in "Spin and Marty" when visiting the site today, in part because the lower sections are now blocked by foliage. But this recent shot offers a reasonable approximation.

Notice the rocks marked "A," "B" and "C" in the recent photo.

The same rocks are indicated here in the "Spin and Marty" shot.

The possible intruder rock is positioned in the space between rocks A, B and C.

The intruder rock appears to be missing from the recent shot.

I'm reluctant to say this analysis "proves" that we've correctly identified the intruder rock, because just when we think we have rocks figured out, they can surprise us. But I have a feeling we've found our culprit.

It seems as though these two surfaces may have originally been attached. The rock would have twisted as it fell, and what was previously the rectangular front "face" of the rock is now hidden in back.

Back side of the intruder rock (2018)

Taking a look at the back side of the rock, yeah, I can believe this was the part that formed the rectangular "face" of the rock as it appeared in "Spin and Marty." Again, nothing conclusive here, but it seems to work.

Seeing the intruder rock in its contemporary setting, I can't help thinking the rock has settled in nicely. If nothing else, it's appealingly framed by the rocks around it.

It's almost as though the rock finally arrived home — the place where it wanted to be all along. And its journey provided hours of diversion for some among us who already spend way too much time thinking about rocks.

"Dick Turpin" (1925): Promo still helps clear up the mystery of the intruder rock

Update: About six months after this item was originally posted, this promo still for the 1925 Tom Mix movie "Dick Turpin" surfaced, adding clarity to the intruder rock's origins. Click here for the full update.