Movie locations

[V.C. Brunswick]

Television shows, naturally, since they were located in southern California, used the locations in and around L.A. a lot, and not only for Westerns. An episode of U.N.C.L.E. famously used the Griffith Park Observatory to stand in for a similar observatory "somewhere in the Austrian Alps." Going on location was unusual for that show. Nearly all the episodes used the MGM backlot sets (the New York street, the jungle, etc.), or filmed outdoors on the MGM lot itself, using the Irving Thalberg Building to stand in for a college, for example.

Farther afield there was -- I forget the name of it, Vasquez Rocks, or something like that? But Star Trek filmed there, and U.N.C.L.E. had the area stand in for the Andes in a story set in Peru. Without looking it up, I dunno if that area is still semi-wild, or if it's been taken over by homes.

Vazquez Rocks was also used in the Batman TV series for exterior shots of the Bat Cave. It also served as Bedrock in The Flintstones movie.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

There was actually some filming going on when I took these pics of Downtown L.A.'s Art District in February 2013.

You'll recognise this building from the TV show It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

 

[BlueTrain]

The only place I intentionally visited to see a movie location was Big Bear (Fawnskin, actually). There is a book about the movies filmed around there entitled, I think, "Those Mountain Movies" or something close. Don't have the book, naturally.

I also recall watching a movie when I was in the army with someone from Long Beach. I don't recall the movie--but clearly set in Southern California, maybe Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. There was a building that was a police station in the movie and he mentioned what it was, which I don't remember. If you're familiar with Washington, DC, you can sometimes recognize a few places in The Day the Earth Stood Still.

 

[Matt Crunk]

On my recent stay in New York and travels in New England, I ate at several places that were famous filming locations . . .

The Airline Diner in Queens , NY . . . featured in the film Goodfellas, and others.
Katz's Deli in lower Manhatan . . . famous restaurant scene from "When Harry Met Sally".
Tom's Restaurant, corner of Broadway and 112th, Manhattan . . . the neighborhood diner from Seinfeld.
Mystic Pizza in Mystic , CT . . . Setting for the film Mystic Pizza.
Edgartown and other locations on Martha's Vineyard, MA . . . filming locations for JAWS.

 

[Matt Crunk]

A few off the top of my head, more to follow:

• The pizza place where "Mystic Pizza" was filmed: okay pizza, not bad, but nothing special.

Was there just a few weeks ago . . .

 

[Fading Fast]

Was there just a few weeks ago . . .

What were your thoughts no the pizza?

 

[Matt Crunk]

What were your thoughts no the pizza?

It was a little slice of heaven. LOL. Good pizza but nothing remarkable. The coolest thing about the place was the connection to the film.

 

[green papaya]

ALCATRAZ is a popular tourist attraction and they filmed ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ there back in the late 1970's

also the movie THE ROCK was filmed there, but several of the scenes were fake or never existed, the scene where they sneak in from the cistern does not exist, the shower room where they had the big shoot out scene also does not exist, it was all movie props.

Ive been there numerous times

 

[Fading Fast]

It was a little slice of heaven. LOL. Good pizza but nothing remarkable. The coolest thing about the place was the connection to the film.

Agreed - I felt the exact same way.

 

[HadleyH1]

Any movies made in Chinatown, in San Francisco? It probably isn't the greatest place for shooting a movie but it certainly has atmosphere.

Several scenes in the movie "Lethal Weapon 4" were filmed in LA Chinatown.

The final scenes of Roman Polanski's "Chinatown" was also filmed there.

Many TV shows like "The Streets of San Francisco" had scenes filmed in Chinatown.

 

[Edward]

Loads of filming locations here in London.... one of my favourites was the old roundabout sequence in National Lampoon's European Vacation - "Look kids, Big ben!" / "We KNOW!".

Back in Northern Ireland, several key locations for filming Game of Thrones are just a few minutes' drive from my parents' house. Particular the sequences around the wall, if memory serves, which are around Magheramourne quarry. Balintoy Harbour up the coat is where Alfie Allen arrived at the Iron kingdom (they set up the camera in front of the ice creamshop). The interiors are shot in a big soundstage built on the spot here the Titanic was built, in a part of ton I used to pass through on the train to university every day. There's a chunk of the second Hellboy film was shot on the Giant's Causeway too.

As to television, anyone following Line of Duty, although set in England, that show has long been filmed in Belfast. The scenes at the climax of series 3, including a crucial dying confession, were shot around Tate's bridge, off Tate's Avenue and on the Donegal Road - a rather ropey end of the south side of town where friends of mine lived when we were at Queen's. The Fall was, of course, shot and set, in Belfast, some great views of the town. ASmusingly enough, Belfast City hall stood in for the Reichstag in Christopher and his kind, the Matt-Smith starring BBC retelling of Christopher Isherwood's Berlin years (which inspired the stories that later became Cabaret). Much of the rest of that was also filmed in Belfast.

The movie business coming to NI is a fairly recent thing - one of the so-called 'peace dividends'.

 

[MisterCairo]

As to television, anyone following Line of Duty, although set in England, that show has long been filmed in Belfast

A great show.

Looks like Belfast is becoming the UK's Vancouver or Toronto - a key film and tv centre standing in for everywhere else. Prince Harry has called Toronto his home away from home, because Ms Markle lives there filming "Suits". The law firm's building exterior is the Bay Adelaide Centre at 333 Bay St., the actual heart of Toronto's legal industry ("Bay Street lawyer/Bay Street firm" are Canada's equivalent of London's "City").

And if anyone wonders why so many American shows and films take place in Seattle, it is because they are filmed in and around Vancouver BC...

 

[Lean'n'mean]

There is a western town film set in Vancouver called 'Jamestown' which is very familiar to folk like me who watch a lot of low budget westerns.

The T.V. series ' Stargate SG1' was shot in Vancouver BC too.

 

[scottyrocks]

I was in the Wendy's on Queens Blvd, before it became 'McDowell's' for the movie Coming To America (1988).

No comment on the food. It was a Wendy's.

While the movie was filming, I used to ride by there on the way to work in the mornings. You could see the transformation, and then later the big lights for filming. It wasn't until months later when I saw the movie that I knew what the transformation was for.

 

[Doctor Strange]

So many movies and TV series are shot in Vancouver that it's sometimes referred to as Hollywood North!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_North

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Television_series_produced_in_Vancouver

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Films_shot_in_Vancouver

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_filming_locations_in_the_Vancouver_area

 

[Haversack]

HadleyH1 wrote: "Many TV shows like "The Streets of San Francisco" had scenes filmed in Chinatown."

One thing I noticed about The Streets of San Francisco is that when they say they are going from one part of town to another, the intervening scenes are of a plausible route. (Unlike the famous car chase in Bullitt).

One movie from 1936 which had establishing scenes shot locally in San Francisco and which are still pretty much extent is After the Thin Man. The opening scene where their passenger train is making the bend at 7th Street approaching the SP terminal at 3rd & Townsend, clearly shows the old Baker & Hamilton furniture warehouse at 7th & Townsend. Its still there to be seen as your Caltrain commuter train makes the same bend at 7th. (Unfortunately, the Mission Revival SP terminal where the scenes of Nic and Nora disembarking no longer exists). The next scene which still looks much the same is at the corner of Market, Geary, and Kearny by Lotta's Fountain in front of the De Young building. This where Nic in an open car is greeted by some of the street kids and plug-uglies who knew him when he was a single detective. Finally, the driveway and surrounding landscaping of their house is actually the drive and gardens in front of Coit Tower on top of Telegraph Hill. It still looks much the same if you can ignore all the tourists.

 

[Zombie_61]

I was in the Wendy's on Queens Blvd, before it became 'McDowell's' for the movie Coming To America (1988)...

As I was leaving for work one day years ago I drove past a local dry cleaner and saw a crew performing what appeared to be some form of construction on the two sides of the building facing the street (it was/is on a corner lot). When I returned home from work that evening I discovered they had built a facade over the building, transforming it into a "local burger joint". Now, I had worked a full eight hour shift, had a one-hour lunch period, and traveled about two hours to and from work. That's 11 hours, and I have no idea when that crew started or when they finished because they were still there when I returned home and the next day the facade was gone and the business was once again a dry cleaner. Bring it, build it, film it during the day, film it at night, tear it all down and haul it away. Between the time, labor, and materials, I can't begin to imagine what that transformation cost the production company. And what did they do all of that work and spend all of that money for? A three-second establishing shot (i.e., a brief scene that informs the viewers that the characters are now at this burger joint) for a sitcom on ABC. These days they would probably use CGI to create that shot, but this was before that became so prevalent in the industry.

...One thing I noticed about The Streets of San Francisco is that when they say they are going from one part of town to another, the intervening scenes are of a plausible route. (Unlike the famous car chase in Bullitt)...

This is one thing that always makes me laugh when I see it in movies or on television. One moment someone is driving down a street in downtown Los Angeles, and a moment later they're at Los Angeles International Airport. Anyone who is unfamiliar with the area might conclude the two locations are actually that close, but here in the real world that's at least a 20-45 minute drive depending on traffic.

 

[MisterCairo]

There is a western town film set in Vancouver called 'Jamestown' which is very familiar to folk like me who watch a lot of low budget westerns.

The T.V. series ' Stargate SG1' was shot in Vancouver BC too.

And the first five seaons of The X-Files plus the new season, the "new" Addams Family, Supernatural, Once Upon a Time, and so on....

 

[Matt Crunk]

Agreed - I felt the exact same way.

Considering your profile pic is a slice of pizza, I take it you are a bit of a pizza connoisseur. In your opinion, what is the best pizza in NYC?
I've been to Lombardi's which is supposed to be where American pizza originated. It wasn't bad but frankly I wasn't all that impressed.

 

[Matt Crunk]

I was in the Wendy's on Queens Blvd, before it became 'McDowell's' for the movie Coming To America (1988).

No comment on the food. It was a Wendy's.

While the movie was filming, I used to ride by there on the way to work in the mornings. You could see the transformation, and then later the big lights for filming. It wasn't until months later when I saw the movie that I knew what the transformation was for.

Is the Wendy's still there?