How Elvis solved the "Escort West" mystery

"Escort West" (1959): the fake bridge

The location of the fake bridge in the Victor Mature movie "Escort West" managed to elude Western movie historians for decades. But thanks to Elvis Presley — and some collaborative sleuthing by determined location researchers — the site has been found.

The first Elvis movie: Neville Brand, left, and Elvis Presley in "Love Me Tender" (1956)

It took two location experts on opposite coasts, with two different research focuses, putting our heads together to unlock the mystery. One of them was Bill Bram, East Coast-based author of "Elvis: Frame by Frame," a highly regarded reference work on Elvis movie locations.

Promo still for "Harum Scarum" (1965): Elvis Presley at Iverson

Bill and I got together over a different Elvis movie, "Harum Scarum," in which Elvis scampered among the rocks of the Iverson Movie Ranch. I posted a blog entry back in October about the Elvis shoot at Iverson for "Harum Scarum" — but I have to admit, I knew less then about Elvis locations than I do now, thanks to working will Bill.

"Love Me Tender" (1956): Elvis Presley, Debra Paget and a fake cave

During our discussion of the remaining location mysteries in "Harum Scarum," the topic came up of "Love Me Tender," the 1956 Western in which Elvis made his acting debut. Bill mentioned that he had hit a dead end trying to find a particular filming location for the movie, and he sent me a few screen shots. When I got them I'm sure I let out an audible gasp: I was looking at the fake bridge from "Escort West."

"Escort West" — fake bridge sequence shot at Bell Ranch

It turned out Bill and I had been looking for the same spot. Neither "Escort West" nor "Love Me Tender," taken individually, provided sufficient clues to solve the location mystery, but when we put together shots from both movies, we had what we needed.

Site of the former Bell Location Ranch — Lower Plateau (2015)

It has been generally accepted among film historians that the fake bridge — or fake cave, as it appears in the Elvis movie — was located somewhere on the former Bell Location Ranch, west of the San Fernando Valley in Southern California. The question was always: OK, but where, exactly?

"Love Me Tender": Elvis on "the Rocky Hill"

The movie prop was filmed on a mystery hillside that Bill calls "the Rocky Hill." It was on the Rocky Hill that Clint Reno, the character played by Elvis in "Love Me Tender," met a violent fate in the movie's climactic sequence. Indeed, in a purely cinematic sense, we were looking for the place where Elvis died.

Debra Paget in "Love Me Tender"

It was all about a girl, of course — Cathy, played by Debra Paget, who also put in time on the Rocky Hill.

The Rocky Hill — shooting site for "Love Me Tender" and "Escort West"

Within a couple of months of our first examining the "Love Me Tender"/"Escort West" connection, Bill and I, along with location researcher Cliff Roberts, mounted an expedition to the former site of the Bell Location Ranch in search of the elusive hill. We found the Rocky Hill with relative ease — but climbing to the site of the fake bridge took some effort.

Much of the filming took place near the top of the Rocky Hill. Even with the area more cleared-out then than it is today, it would have been a logistical challenge to haul movie gear up to the spot. I've been exploring the theory that they came down from the top, but it does not appear that it would have been any easier.

The exact location where the fake bridge stood

Needless to say, we did make it up that hill. The above photo shows the site where the mythic movie prop once rested, and where Elvis, in a jealous rage, orchestrated a violent standoff at the end of "Love Me Tender."

Poison oak protects the spot today

The area today is overgrown with dense brush and riddled with poison oak, but almost nothing will stop a location researcher closing in on an important filming site.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of the location then and now. On the left is "Escort West," an early 1959 release that would have been filmed in 1958. The shot on the right is from the recent Bell Ranch excursion.

"Love Me Tender": wide view of the fake cave area

A wide shot from "Love Me Tender" shows the full span of the fake cave, along with some of the surrounding features. Both "Love Me Tender" and "Escort West" were originally released in CinemaScope, with its ultra-wide 2.35:1 aspect ratio.

It should be noted that a portion of the material supporting the main beam was also fake.

Where the fake beam would be today

This shot approximates where the movie prop would be positioned if it were still in place.

Dimple Rock in "Love Me Tender"

The rock behind which Elvis and Neville Brand take cover in "Love Me Tender" is referred to as "Dimple Rock" here, because of the indented area near Presley's hand. Also note that the fake cave is visible behind Elvis.

Dimple Rock remains in place directly in front of the area where the fake cave was positioned.

Dimple Rock today

The dimple remains evident today, making it easy to get a positive ID on Dimple Rock.

An intriguing footnote to the location discovery is the presence of two large "intruder rocks" in the midst of the setting. These rocks were not present when "Love Me Tender" and "Escort West" were filmed in the 1950s.

Another look at the "Escort West" shot confirms that the intruder rocks were nowhere to be seen in 1958. The rocks would have been right in the way of the bridge structure, blocking the area where the actors are standing.

The best explanation for the intruder rocks is that they rolled down the hill from above, possibly during one of the two major earthquakes to hit Southern California in the decades since the movies were filmed — the Sylmar/San Fernando shaker back in 1971 or the Northridge quake of '94.

Intruder rocks — bird's-eye view

The view from just above the intruders provides evidence for the earthquake theory, with a large crack running through the rock in the back. It makes sense that after the first rock came to a stop, the second rock would have broken into two pieces when it crashed into the first rock.

Note that the intruders would have had an ideal "chute" to roll down, at top right, before coming to a stop in exactly the spot where the movie prop once rested.

Bell Location Ranch: Well off the beaten path

The picturesque Bell Ranch pretty much defines "off the beaten path" when it comes to location ranches. With a film history said to date back to the silent era, the site remains largely undocumented. But in recent years it has begrudgingly begun to yield clues to its many filming location mysteries.

"Star Trek" TV series: "A Private Little War" (1968) — shot on Bell Ranch

I've been lucky enough to be a part now of two successful Bell Ranch location hunts — the Elvis/"Escort West" expedition earlier this month, and a "Star Trek" search two years ago. I blogged about the "Star Trek" expedition at the time, and you can see that post by clicking here.

"Bonanza": Dan Blocker at Bell Ranch in "The Rattlesnake Brigade"

Another Bell Location Ranch shoot that may be of interest to readers of this blog is featured in the "Bonanza" episode "The Rattlesnake Brigade," from 1971. That shoot, which you can read about by clicking here, took place right at the base of the Rocky Hill.

Off the Beaten Path is a series of posts that are not specifically focused on the usual subject matter of this blog, which is the Iverson Movie Ranch. Past subjects have included Pioneertown, Corriganville, Oak Park and other old filming locations. You can go directly to the Off the Beaten Path posts by looking up the term "Off the Beaten Path" in the long index of labels at the right of the page, or by clicking here.

How cool is James Coburn? Cool enough to be filmed at Zorro's Cabin ... which is extremely cool

James Coburn, right, at Zorro's Cabin in "Bat Masterson" (1959)

I'm going "Off the Beaten Path" here — veering away temporarily from the Iverson Movie Ranch — but I was pretty excited to find shots of Zorro's Cabin during a recent scan of some old episodes of the "Bat Masterson" TV show. Best of all, I ran across shots of one of my favorite actors, James Coburn, at the cabin and out in the nearby rocks.

Coburn had a major shoot on the Bell Location Ranch for a guest appearance in an episode called "The Black Pearls," playing a character named Poke Otis. The episode premiered July 1, 1959, toward the end of the show's first season. The rocks seen here are just across from Zorro's Cabin, on Bell Ranch's Upper Plateau.

Coburn had kind of an innately menacing look that made him a natural for Westerns — maybe not Lee Van Cleef menacing, but menacing enough. He appeared on just about every TV Western of the late 1950s and early 1960s — "Wagon Train," "Bonanza," "Have Gun — Will Travel," "Cheyenne," "Wanted — Dead or Alive," "Zane Grey Theater," "Black Saddle," "Rawhide," "The Rifleman" ... the list goes on.

Bad guys defend Zorro's Cabin in "The Black Pearls"

Zorro's Cabin played a pivotal role in the "Bat Masterson" episode, with a couple of bad guys holed up in the place before Poke, Coburn's character, and Bat, played by Gene Barry, partnered up to flush 'em out.

They also dragged Carol Otis, played by Jacqueline Scott, into the dispute. In this shot the three main protagonists are out in front of the cabin.

James Coburn in action, in front of Zorro's Cabin

The rocks seen here come up a lot during the action sequences shot at Zorro's Cabin for the episode. The same rocks can be seen in the shot above this one, and in a shot higher up with Coburn walking among the rocks.

Here's Bat Masterson himself — Gene Barry — at the front of Zorro's Cabin.

Bat regroups after dispensing with one of the ne'er-do-wells. The last couple of shots offer a good look at the fake movie wear and tear applied to give Zorro's Cabin that "lived-in" look.

They used the other side of the cabin for this shot, which appears elsewhere in the episode.

Bat comforts Jacqueline Scott's character, Carol, after rescuing her from being drug by a horse. Everybody except Bat gets a little messy in this one, with all the action taking place around Zorro's Cabin.

Zorro's Cabin in recent times

Zorro's Cabin still stands on the site of the former Bell Location Ranch off Box Canyon in the hills above the western San Fernando Valley. This portion of what we now think of as Bell Ranch was previously owned by the Berry family and has also been called Berry Ranch.

Zorro's Cabin, up close

I've heard a couple of different origin stories about Zorro's Cabin. One widely circulated story has it that the place was built by Disney for the old "Zorro" TV series, although another version of the story says the cabin was built by the owners at the time, the Berry family, and was not originally meant to be a movie building but served as the family's weekend getaway.

James Coburn as Leo Talley, with Carol Ohmart as Lisa Truex,

in the "Bat Masterson" episode "Six Feet of Gold" (1960)

James Coburn subsequently made a second guest appearance on "Bat Masterson," playing a different character, Leo Talley, in "Six Feet of Gold" in early 1960. Coburn's character in this one is more of a "dude," and Coburn never has to get his boots dirty much — although on the downside, I believe he gets killed off in both episodes.

"Bat Masterson" (1961) — the Western town at Bell Ranch

"Bat Masterson," which aired for three seasons on NBC, from 1958-1961, shot quite a bit on the Bell Location Ranch, and is a good source for screen shots of not only Zorro's Cabin, but also the Bell Western town. The above shot, from the episode "Run for Your Money," which premiered March 2, 1961, provides a sample of what the Western town looked like. To read an earlier post about a "Bonanza" shoot at Bell Ranch, please click here, and to read about a "Star Trek" shoot at Bell, try this link.

Off the Beaten Path is a series of posts that are not specifically focused on the usual subject matter of this blog, the Iverson Movie Ranch. Past subjects have included Pioneertown, Corriganville, Oak Park and other old filming locations. You can go directly to the Off the Beaten Path posts by looking up the term "Off the Beaten Path" in the long index of labels at the right of the page, or by clicking here.

Taking the "then and now" shot to the next level

"The Fighting Legion" (1930) — Lone Pine, Calif.

I recently discovered the work of film historian and documentary photographer Jerry Condit, whose re-creations of movie location shots elevate the concept of the "then and now" photo to an art form.

Lone Pine, Calif. — photographed in 2009 by Jerry Condit

The above example of Jerry's work showcases one of his favorite filming locations, the Alabama Hills in Lone Pine, Calif. His photo re-creates the shot from "The Fighting Legion" so closely it's hard to tell them apart, as even the shadows are virtually identical. The main difference between the two photos is the presence of horses and riders in the movie shot, which also brings out the imposing scale of the rocky landscape. The two shots are taken almost 80 years apart.

Some of Jerry's photos stand alone — that is, they're not movie re-creations, but scenic shots in their own right, such as the above photo he snapped recently of Iverson's Hawk Rock against a dramatic Chatsworth sky. I recommend clicking on any of these photos to see a larger version.

"Old Yeller" (1957) — Garden of the Gods

Did you cry over "Old Yeller"? Who didn't! In a certain age bracket it's the most remembered childhood movie for a lot of us kids. Parts of the Disney tearjerker were shot at the Iverson Movie Ranch, including the above scene in which Yeller runs through Iverson's Garden of the Gods. I love the way this shot projects how formidable those rock formations are.

The same location photographed in 2014 by Jerry Condit

Still formidable — and pretty much unchanged — more than a half-century later.

"Man in the Saddle" (1951)

Here's a shot taken in almost the same spot as the "Old Yeller" shot, but this one is from the Columbia Western "Man in the Saddle." The all-star cast in the above shot includes, from left, Randolph Scott, Ellen Drew and Guinn "Big Boy" Williams. The guy with his back to the camera is Cameron Mitchell.

The campfire site in 2014 (photo by Jerry Condit)

This is a recent shot of the site where the "Man in the Saddle" campfire scene took place, again in Garden of the Gods on the former Iverson Movie Ranch. The rock in the top left corner with the prominent crack is Mitchum Rock, named after the Robert Mitchum film noir "The Big Steal," in which Mitchum and Jane Greer take shelter behind the rock during a shootout. You can read more about Mitchum Rock and "The Big Steal" by clicking here.

"Saga of the Viking Women" (1957)

 
The original title of this movie, produced and directed by Roger Corman, is considerably longer: "The Saga of the Viking Women and Their Voyage to the Waters of the Great Sea Serpent." The title has been shortened in a variety of ways in connection with various releases of the movie, but under any title, the movie is strongly recommended both for its terrific Iverson location shots and because it's a fun movie.

The Viking whipping sequence takes place in central Garden of the Gods, a short distance from the "Man in the Saddle" campsite. Here's the same spot, Viking Whipping Rock, as it appears today, again photographed by Jerry Condit. I have a couple of earlier blog entries about the "Viking Women" movie — including my own attempt at a "then and now" shot for the whipping sequence — which you can find by clicking here.

"Bonanza" episode "The Dowry" (first aired April 29, 1962)

The Iverson Movie Ranch poses more than its share of challenges when it comes to re-creating movie and TV shots. The place has changed a lot since the filming days, and whether it's a condo or an overgrown bush in the way — or a rock or tree that's simply not there anymore — it's often impossible to get the same angle. For the above "Bonanza" scene, filmed on the South Rim of the Upper Iverson, duplicating the angle would have required a scaffold — or at least a good ladder.

The Slates as they appear today, in a 2014 photo by Jerry Condit

But the site is easily identified, even from a slightly lower angle. Looking at this recent photo I sometimes think I still see that rutted road running straight through the middle of the shot, between the two major rock formations.

The two main rocks seen in the "Bonanza" shot and the recent shot are identified above. You can find out why the Tomb has that name by clicking here. This portion of the South Rim remains relatively intact, but other sections have been drastically altered as the native terrain was replaced by large estates.

Bell Location Ranch, in the hills west of Chatsworth

The shoot for the above lobby card for the 1957 Columbia B-Western "Sierra Stranger" took place at Bell Ranch, west of Chatsworth and south of Santa Susana Pass Road off Box Canyon — a few miles southwest of the Iverson Movie Ranch.

Here's a promo still for the movie that uses the same photo as the lobby card, but in the original black and white.

The same location in 2014

Jerry Condit took this photo on a recent trip to Bell Ranch. You can probably see right away that it's all the exact same rocks seen in the promo shot, along with the same road in the foreground.

"Cripple Creek" (1952) — the Upper Iverson Movie Ranch

The above promo still for the Columbia B-Western "Cripple Creek" comes from the collection of location researcher and Western movie expert Jerry England. The scene is shot on the South Rim of the Upper Iverson, where a water feature was brought into play especially for this production. I've blogged before about this water feature, which I call the Reflecting Pool. You can see a brief video of this sequence — which included a waterfall — and read more about the Reflecting Pool, by clicking here. That blog post also includes another clip from "Cripple Creek."

The same site in 2014, photographed by Jerry Condit

Other than the absence of the water feature, the "Cripple Creek" site remains virtually unchanged, as seen in Jerry Condit's recent photo. Inspired in large part by these "then and now" shots, I was able to nail down a few details about the Reflecting Pool — notably that it had an "extended version" that brought it closer to Wrench Rock, as seen in "Cripple Creek." I previously spotted this extended Reflecting Pool in an episode of the "Annie Oakley" TV show from 1956, as seen in this earlier blog entry, but the "Cripple Creek" sequence adds perspective on the Reflecting Pool, the extended Reflecting Pool and the waterfall.


Above are some links to Amazon.com, where you can find DVD, Blu-ray and streaming versions of a number of the productions featured in this post. I can personally recommend the Roger Corman double feature 'Viking Women and the Sea Serpent" and "Teenage Caveman," with both movies having filmed at Iverson and "Teenage Caveman" featuring the Reflecting Pool. It's the same DVD set I used for my shot of the Viking whipping scene that appears in this post. Also note that the "Bonanza" Season 3 set includes the episode "The Dowry," which is featured above.