Travel Tips & Adventures

What do John Wayne, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Clint Eastwood, Paul Newman, Gene Wilder, Michael Landon, James Arness and Kenny Rogers have in common?

Yes, some of them are singers, but I don’t ever recall John Wayne belting out a tune in Las Vegas …

What they have all done is star in Western-themed movies and TV shows.  And, their second claim to fame is that each one, and hundreds more, has made those movies and TV shows (or parts of) on the lot of Old Tucson Studios and their sister property, Mescal.

The Outlaw Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood), The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (Paul Newman), The Gambler (Kenny Rogers), The Frisco Kid (Gene Wilder … with Harrison Ford fresh from a galaxy far, far away as Hans Solo), Little House on the Prairie (Michael Landon), and Gunsmoke (James Arness) are just a few of the memorable projects that were shot on location in the Arizona desert.

Even the 1956 classic, Gunfight at the OK Corral with Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas and DeForest Kelly (Leonard “Bones” McCoy from the Star Trek TV series) was shot on the lot.

Wait a minute!  You mean they didn’t actually shoot the movie in its actual location of Tombstone, Arizona?  Just down the road!  NOOOO … Welcome to Hollywood!

Since 1939, the studio has been making movies.  Columbia Pictures needed a replica of Tucson in the 1860s and built the town from scratch with the help of Tohono O’odham Nation craftsmen.

The studio brought William Holden and Jean Arthur to the set for the filming ofArizona (now that’s a novel name for a movie filmed in … Arizona.)  This actually helped to jumpstart the “On Location” boom that we see today. Fifty buildings were built in 40 days, and Old Tucson studios was off and running!

Well, not quite!

It was 1945 before another film was produced there and it had nothing to do with the Wild West.  Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman filmed The Bells of St. Mary’s.What???  That’s not a Western!

But in 1947, Gene Autry showed up to film The Last Roundup. Now that’s more like it!  A real western with a real western kind of guy!  And a singer to boot!

By 1960, Old Tucson Studios became both a movie set and a family entertainment center where anyone (with money of course) could come and see where the likes of John Wayne and many others had ridden into town to save the day.

There are also restaurants, live action stunt shows, a museum, a narrow gauge train ride around the property and other rides and games.

MESCAL

For a real out of the way experience, you can try to see the Mescal lot, which is east of Tucson.  This lot is a full set of old west buildings that have been seen in productions like The Quick and the Dead starring Gene Hackman and Sharon Stone.  This is the “quiet” lot as there are no services (restrooms, water, etc.)  and its location is remote.

Unfortunately for tourists, its opening schedule is severely limited due to the many movies, and commercials that are filmed there.  (Check the website for information.)

OLD TUCSON STUDIOS INFO:

*** Due to actual film production still being shot on the lot, the availability or actual cancellation of shows and attractions is possible.

FOOD: Phoebe’s Wagon Wheel Pizza / Big Jake’s Bar-B-Q and More / Grand Palace Hotel & Saloon / The Big Scoop Ice Cream Shop

HOURS: Hours Vary According To Season With Additional Tuesdays and Wednesday Designated As Tour Only Days (See Website.)

“Tour Only” Days: Limited food services, but tours are available and the museum is open.

ADMISSION:

Regular: Adults – $16.95  Children (4-11) – $10.95

Tour Only Days: Adults – $8.75  Children (4-11) – $5

www.oldtucson.com

Tags: Arizona, Food, Historic, Movie Backlot, Old West, Romantic Travel, Scenery, Southwest, Travel

This entry was posted on Monday, January 25th, 2010 at 6:00 am and is filed under Adventure, Arizona, AZ, Family Fun, Food, Historic, Scenery, Southwest, Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.