The Iverson Movie Ranch Western street, one building at a time ... Part XV: The Corral Rocks Shack

"Bonanza" TV series (1960) — The Corral Rocks Shack

Apologies for starting off with a shot of a dead guy, but if you're a fan of Westerns, you're probably used to it. This is one of the best screen shots I could find of the Corral Rocks Shack, a tiny but surprisingly durable building that played a key role in the saga of the Iverson Western street.

"Along Came Jones" (1945): First sign of the Iverson town set

The on-screen history of the Western street begins and ends with the Corral Rocks Shack. While the Shack has been largely overlooked, it was the first building associated with the Iverson Ranch town set to appear on screen, and it was also the last.

The Shack appears in the background as Gary Cooper, in the white hat, and his sidekick, played by William Demarest, arrive in Payneville, played by the newly minted Iverson Movie Ranch Western street.

Cooper, who also produced "Along Came Jones," had the town built specifically for the movie. It appears that the Corral Rocks Shack, situated on the outskirts of town among the movie rocks that border the town's sprawling corral area on the east side, was a part of that construction.

"Night Raiders" (1952)

During the years the town set was in place, from 1944 to 1957, the Shack's main role consisted of sneaking into the background on occasion. Here's an example from the Whip Wilson movie "Night Raiders."

The Shack appears at the left of the frame, beneath the Corral Rocks — a line of large boulders bordering the corral that gives the Shack its name. The southernmost Corral Rock is Hook Rock, noted at top right. In the middle of the corral, which is adjacent to the Livery Stable, are the Livery Rocks.

"The Cisco Kid" TV series (1954)

Here's a blurry background appearance by the Shack in the TV show "The Cisco Kid." The Western street was still in place when this sequence was shot, and Cisco was running through the corral near the Livery Stable.

The screen shot comes from the episode "Mining Madness," which premiered Nov. 6, 1954.

"Bonanza" (1960) — Hoss (Dan Blocker) at the Corral Rocks Shack

After the town was demolished — a process that was completed by early 1958 — the only building left standing was the Corral Rocks Shack. This appearance by the Shack in "Bonanza," in the episode "Denver McKee," came two years after the Western town had been torn down.

"The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp" (1958): The Corral Rocks Shack, in "The Hole Up"

Some of the best appearances by the Shack took place between 1958 and 1963 — the period following the dismantling of the town. The tiny building had a role in a sequence that played out over multiple episodes of the TV Western "The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp," starting with the episode "The Hole Up."

Morgan Woodward, as Shotgun Gibbs, lives up to his name on "Wyatt Earp"

The Shack was part of the modest spread owned by Shotgun Gibbs, played by Morgan Woodward. The rough-around-the-edges character was introduced in "The Hole Up," which premiered Sept. 16, 1958.

Gibbs' spread included the Corral Rocks Shack, which served as a small stable, along with a temporary shed on the left that was set up on the site to appear as Gibbs' house.

Even though the Corral Rocks Shack was a much more permanent structure, standing for a good 18 years, the temporary shed, which may have stood in that spot for as little as a few days, was probably more suitable to be lived in — and it definitely looked a lot newer, for better or worse.

Gibbs valued his privacy, to put it mildly, something the sign posted on his fence made clear. Some of the Corral Rocks can be seen in the background.

Recalling the first meeting between Earp and Gibbs

Gibbs started off as an adversary of Marshal Earp's, but eventually became Earp's deputy and friend, evolving into a regular on the series. A later episode, "Hail and Farewell," used a flashback to recall the testy first encounter between the two men. A portion of the Corral Rocks Shack can be seen on the left.

Hugh O'Brian as Wyatt Earp near the temporary shed in "Hail and Farewell"

The flashback brought in additional footage to expand on the reminiscence — including shots of the Shack and the temporary shed. It's likely that the new footage was shot at the same time as the original footage, in 1958.

"Hail and Farewell" included some wide shots of Sheep Flats, where the Western street had stood previously.

Some of the key features are noted in this version of the shot. "Hail and Farewell" was the first episode of season five of "The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp," premiering Sept. 1, 1959.

"Wagon Train": "The Stagecoach Story" (Sept. 30, 1959)

Around the same time "Wyatt Earp" kicked off its fifth season with the "Hail and Farewell" episode, another popular TV Western, "Wagon Train," launched its third season with an episode titled "The Stagecoach Story," which also included shots of Sheep Flats and the Corral Rocks Shack.

The Shack was barely noticeable in the background in the "Wagon Train" sequence. This shot identifies the Shack, along with some nearby rocks. You may recall that Hidden Rock was located near the Barn when the Western street was in place; you can click here to see an earlier blog post about it.

The centerpiece of the "Wagon Train" sequence was Iverson Pond, while the massive string of sandstone boulders I call the Corral Rocks was also prominently featured. The Corral Rocks, most of which remain in place today, bordered the Corral area on the east side when the town set was standing.

"The Three Stooges Meet Hercules" (1962) — Iverson Pond

The Three Stooges turned up on Sheep Flats in 1961 for a shoot at Iverson Pond for "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules," released in early 1962. It was one of the few times Sheep Flats hosted actual sheep for a movie shoot.

The Three Stooges sequence again included the Corral Rocks Shack, but as was often the case, it was way in the background and barely noticeable.

"The Virginian": "Strangers at Sundown" (1963)

A beautiful sequence featuring Iverson Pond surfaced in 1963 in an episode of "The Virginian" titled "Strangers at Sundown." The sequence marked one of the last times filming was done on Sheep Flats.

Once again, the Corral Rocks Shack appeared in the background. Also appearing were a couple of rock features that were formerly positioned along the Western street: Pond Rock and Hidden Rock.

Indian Hills Mobile Home Village — on the former site of the Iverson Western street

The same year the "Virginian" episode aired, 1963, Sheep Flats was sold — the first section of the former Iverson Movie Ranch to be sold off. Later that year, construction began on the Indian Hills Mobile Home Village, which still occupies the space today.

This aerial view of the mobile home park from 2003 notes the approximate area where the Iverson Movie Ranch's Western town set once stood.

In this version of the 2003 aerial we can also see where the Corral Rocks Shack was located, along with some of the nearby rock features that remain in place today.

With the permission of one of the moblie home owners, I once conducted a search for any traces that might be left from the Corral Rocks Shack, focusing on the area noted above. Sadly, but to no surprise, the terrain had been fully graded during construction of the mobile home park, and nothing remained of the Shack.

Next up: The big finish to the Western street series.

"The Iverson Movie Ranch Western street, one building at a time" is a series of posts on the movie and TV history of each of the major structures making up Iverson's town set, which stood from 1944 to 1957 and appeared in hundreds of productions.



To see all of the posts in the series on the Iverson Western street, please click on the following links:

Part I: Casa Grande
Part II: The Livery Stable
Part III: The Saloon
Part IV: The Hotel
Part V: The General Store 
Part VI: The Barn
Part VII: The Sheriff's Office
Part VIII: The North and South Adobes
Part IX: The Lost Dutchman
Part X: The original north end of town
Part XI: The North and South Towers
Part XII: The Harness Maker
Part XIII: Rainbow Mine Co. 
Part XIV: The Church/Schoolhouse  
Part XV: The Corral Rocks Shack
Part XVI: The decline and fall of the Western street

Adventures of the Three Stooges on the Iverson Movie Ranch, Part III: "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules"

The third and final entry in the series "Adventures of the Three Stooges on the Iverson Movie Ranch" focuses on the 1962 movie "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules," in which Iverson is used to depict ancient Greece. The movie is probably the most highly regarded of the three movies in this series, although admittedly the bar isn't very high when it comes to the later Stooges efforts.

This Dell "Movie Classic" comic book was issued in connection with the movie in 1961, with the movie itself following on Feb. 15, 1962. Hamming it up with the Stooges for the cover shot is Samson Burke, who plays Hercules in the movie. "Hercules" did reasonably well at the box office, making the Stooges some money and helping to make up for their being underpaid throughout most of their careers.

Here's an example of what the comic book looks like on the inside.

"The Three Stooges Meet Hercules" (1962)

The Stooges lineup for "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules" includes, as always, Larry and Moe, with the rotating third spot filled this time around by Joe DeRita (or "Curly Joe"). With them in the shot above are Vicki Trickett and Quinn K. Redeker. Behind Quinn, in the top left corner, is the time machine that has just delivered the group to Greece in the time of Hercules, circa 800 B.C. — although they're really on the Upper Iverson Movie Ranch in Chatsworth, Calif., in 1961.

Moe and Larry on the South Rim, in "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules"

This shot includes a "special effect" of the time machine materializing over ancient Greece (supposedly) — and also features a beautiful view of a rock I call Water Turtle. The rock appeared in many movies and TV shows, and is still in place on the former Upper Iverson. Today it's part of a private residential property, and as far as I know it has never been documented by film historians in its contemporary setting.

I have a hard time explaining the name "Water Turtle," but here's a picture of a real one. Maybe the name works for you, maybe not.

"The Golden Stallion" (1949)

Here's an earlier movie appearance by Water Turtle — looking less "turtle-like" this time, but revealing some of the background hills and neighboring rocks. This shot from Republic's 1949 Roy Rogers movie "The Golden Stallion" includes an unusually large herd of horses on the Upper Iverson — unusual because filmmakers had to pay by the head for bringing livestock onto the site, so they usually kept it to a minimum.

A substantial battle sequence was filmed at Iverson for "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules."

This view of the battle includes a few Iverson rocks. The battle was filmed in the South Rim area of what was then the Upper Iverson.

Another shot from the battle introduces the Greek hero Hercules — even though that's his Roman name. His Greek name was Heracles, but for some reason he has gone down in history as a Greek hero known mainly by a Roman name. Anyway, the above two shots are filmed in the same spot and include most of the same rocks.

That's Eagle Beak Rock in the top-left corner, as the production continues to shoot in the South Rim area on the Upper Iverson.

"Oklahoma Territory" (1960): Gloria Talbott sees something; Eagle Beak Rock in the background

Here's another look at Eagle Beak Rock from almost the identical angle, from the United Artists B-Western "Oklahoma Territory." The point of this shot is to show Eagle Beak Rock with more of its surroundings — but also seen here are some of the same rocks that appear in the "Hercules" shot above this one.

"Rocky Mountain Rangers" (1940)

This shot of Eagle Beak Rock, taken from a familiar chase angle, is more representative of what the rock usually looks like when it appears in movies and TV shows. That's Eagle Beak Rock at the far left. The shot is from Republic's Three Mesquiteers movie "Rocky Mountain Rangers" — which is in my personal pantheon of the Greatest Iverson Productions. This is such a big deal that I capitalized all three of those words: Greatest Iverson Productions.

"Calamity Jane and the Texan" (1950) — Eagle Beak Rock

Another familiar view of Eagle Beak Rock, in color this time, as seen in the Columbia Western "Calamity Jane and the Texan."

"The Golden Stallion" (1949)

Here's what Eagle Beak Rock looks like up close.

Eagle Beak Rock is seen here in its contemporary setting, as part of a residential landscape.

Prominent Rock, also known as Medicine Rock, appears directly behind the Greek warrior's head, at top right, in another battle shot from "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules."

This is Prominent Rock from the same angle — from farther away, in color and in the top-left corner this time — as seen in the 1949 movie "The Golden Stallion." The shot gives an idea of the kind of space the filmmakers had available to stage that battle sequence in "Hercules."

Another shot from "The Golden Stallion" illustrates how Prominent Rock could be featured artistically, effectively becoming a part of the action. At least that's what I see. Your mileage may vary.

From a different angle, here's a photo of Prominent Rock as it looks nowadays. This shot is from 2009. The photo also shows Round Rock, the much smaller rock near the bottom left corner.

This screen shot shows the setting for the first encounter between the Stooges and the ancient Greeks, with more South Rim rocks in the background.

Later in the movie, the action shifts to the Lower Iverson. In the above shot the Stooges are seen entering the Eucalyptus Grove area, with Flat Rock visible in the background near the Stooges. In the distance, near the center of the shot, you can see a portion of Stoney Point, off in the haze. Stoney Point is one of Chatsworth's best-known landmarks, a popular rock-climbing area next to Topanga Boulevard just below the 118 Freeway.

Here we get a closer view of Flat Rock, above Curly Joe's arm. Something else of interest here is the triple-stack rock directly above Larry's head.

 

For what it's worth, here's a detail taken from the above screen shot, zoomed in on the triple stack (and part of Larry's head). A larger rock is behind the triple stack, making it hard to see the smaller rock at the top of the stack.

"Escort West" (filmed in 1958, released in 1959)

The triple stack can be seen again at the far left in this screen shot from the Victor Mature movie "Escort West." It's worth pointing out that the producers chose to film a water feature for this shot — whether it was a puddle left over from a rainstorm, or they brought in their own water to create the effect. Water features were not common at Iverson, where filmmakers typically had to haul in their own water. Even so, two of the Three Stooges movies in this series — "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules" and "Have Rocket, Will Travel" — both included scenes featuring Iverson Pond. (See below for more about that.)

"Have Gun, Will Travel" (1959)

A quick glimpse of a slightly blurry triple stack pops up again here, in an episode of the TV Western "Have Gun, Will Travel." It's the same stack of rocks seen in the previous shots. This episode from the show's second season, "Death of a Gunfighter," first aired March 14, 1959.

That triple-stacked rock is still around today. Here's a shot of it in recent times, along with Flat Rock to the left.

A closer look at the triple-stacked rock as it appears today reveals that it is a manmade creation. The rocks are real, but they've been joined by cement, which you can see between the top two rocks.

"The Roy Rogers Show" (1953)

I haven't determined the date when the triple stack was created, but as the above shot from "The Roy Rogers Show" proves, it was around at least as early as 1953. The shot comes from the episode "Gun Trouble," which first aired Nov. 22, 1953. It's likely that this three-rock stack goes back even further, as a lot of that type of cement work took place at Iverson around 1950-1951. Another example of cement-assisted rock stacking is Gold Raiders Rock, named after the 1951 Three Stooges movie "Gold Raiders." Click here for more about Gold Raiders Rock.

"The Three Stooges Meet Hercules" (1962)

As they did a few years earlier in "Have Rocket, Will Travel," the Stooges paid another visit to Iverson Pond for "Hercules." Iverson Pond was a feature of Sheep Flats that appeared after a good rain. Incidentally, this is the only time I can think of that I've seen actual sheep in a production shot at Sheep Flats.

At Iverson Pond we meet a whacked-out shepherd played by comedic actor Emil Sitka, who worked extensively with the Three Stooges over the years. Toward the right of the shot, rising out of the pond, is Pond Rock. Directly above Pond Rock, peeking out through the tree, is a partial glimpse of Center Rock, which is discussed in detail here. I also talked about both Iverson Pond and Pond Rock in the entry on the Stooges' "Have Rocket, Will Travel."

The Stooges and their much taller traveling companion — Schuyler, played by Quinn Redeker — listen to the shepherd's story, with Sheep Flats in the background. The rocks in the background are mostly still in place, with the bulk of them located in the swimming pool area of the mobile home park that now occupies Sheep Flats.

Something of interest in this shot, though it's a little hard to make out, is the small shack in the background, which I call the Corral Rocks Shack. You may want to click on the photo to see a larger version.

"Bonanza" (1960) — The Corral Rocks Shack

This shot comes from the "Bonanza" episode "Denver McKee," which premiered Oct. 15, 1960. The shot features Dan Blocker as Hoss, with a dead guy on the ground near him and the Corral Rocks Shack behind him. The shack's name is derived from its location next to a group of rocks I identify in my research as the Corral Rocks.

"Marshal of Heldorado" (1950): The Corral Rocks Shack, with some of the Corral Rocks

A shot from the Lippert B-Western "Marshal of Heldorado" provides a good look at the shack's neighboring rocks, the Corral Rocks, many of which have their own names. The large, pitted rock in the top right corner is one I identify as Big B, which is also one half of a pair of large rocks widely known as the Cave Rocks.

The Corral Rocks Shack's origins go back at least to 1945, when it first began appearing in movies. It was most likely built during the construction of Iverson Village, which stood from 1945 to about 1957. But the tiny shack was surprisingly resilient, outlasting the town itself by several years.

"The Virginian" (1963)

The above shot is probably the final appearance of the Corral Rocks Shack in any production. It's from an episode of the TV series "The Virginian" called "Strangers at Sundown," which aired April 6, 1963. The episode would have been shot during the winter of 1962-63.

Corral Rocks Shack, hiding in background

The land seen in this screen shot was sold later in 1963 to be turned into a mobile home park, becoming the first part of the Iverson Ranch to be sold off. This setting and the area seen in shots above of the sheep herd are all part of the Indian Hills Mobile Home Village now.

 "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules" (1962)

The action in "The Three Stooges Meet Hercules" builds up to a climactic chariot battle filmed mostly on the Upper Iverson, with one scene shot at Iverson Pond, on the Lower Iverson. The frame above takes place in what is now the Cul de Sac area on the former Upper Iverson's South Rim.

This sequence lends itself more to video — here's the clip:

Columbia title card, 1936

The Stooges are best known for the 190 Columbia short features they cranked out from 1934-1959, which can still be seen in regular rotation on TV. In the early title card above, note the spelling of "Curley," which would later evolve into the more widely recognized "Curly," as seen below.

Moe, Larry and Curly were the quintessential Stooges lineup. Curly Howard — real name Jerome Lester Horwitz — was the younger brother of Moe Howard (Moses Harry Horwitz) and Shemp Howard (Samuel Horwitz), and in many ways, the star of the show. You know: "Nyuk-nyuk-nyuk," "Soitenly!," "Oh, a wiseguy," etc.

Curly

Curly died in 1952 after years of poor health. He suffered the first of several strokes around 1944 and was replaced in the Stooges lineup by Shemp in 1946. Moe and Larry were a part of every configuration of the Stooges, with only the third spot rotating. Larry Fine was unrelated to the Howards.

Columbia title card, 1952

Shemp Howard's return to the fold in 1946 reunited the original Stooges lineup. Shemp had already done his first tour of duty back in the early 1930s, when they were known as "Ted Healy and His Stooges." Healy was reportedly an exploitive boss who underpaid the hard-working Stooges. But after they left Healy they wound up in another difficult situation, with tough-as-nails Columbia studio boss Harry Cohn taking over where Healy left off and taking advantage of the Stooges for years. During Shemp's second go-round with the Stooges, he was a part of the 1951 movie "Gold Raiders," one of the Stooges' feature films shot at Iverson. Shemp died in 1955 at age 60.

Columbia title card, 1958

Joe Besser signed on for a brief run as the third Stooge from 1957-1959 — a period that is not highly regarded by the Stooges faithful. Along with Larry Fine, Besser was one of the few Stooges who weren't related to brothers Moe, Shemp and Curly. Also noteworthy, sort of, about Besser is that he became part of a tradition of name confusion involving the third Stooge, with a Joe, a Curly and a Curly Joe all in the rotation at various times — along with a Shemp.

Book: "The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations"

I'm a long way from finished examining the extensive body of work contained in the Three Stooges shorts, but I'm reluctantly arriving at the conclusion that they did not film any of the shorts at Iverson. The Stooges cognoscenti have been examining shooting locations for the Columbia shorts for years, and at least one fairly comprehensive book has been written on the subject. That's the cover above.

The previous entries in our Three Stooges series can be found by clicking here for Part I, on "Have Rocket, Will Travel," or here for Part II, on "Gold Raiders."