Old Tucson Studios

If only these old buildings could talk! This is a working movie set which has seen more than 300 movie and television show productions over its history, not to mention a hundreds of commercial shoots and still photos for print pieces. If you expect Universal Studios, this isn’t it. It has year-round entertainment, the sort of things you would expect, like gunfights in the streets and can-can dancers, people walking around in costumes, that sort of thing. It seems the people who enjoy this little “town” most are those who love movies and can envision John Wayne walking the wooden plank sidewalks (Rio Bravo, McClintock!, El Dorado and Rio Lobo) or Chevy Chase doing his schtick (Three Amigos). Sharon Stone, looking like no authentic western woman of the era, once stood in the middle of the smokey street, gun in hand, about to right an old wrong (The Quick and The Dead). If you get a charge out of walking where the stars walked, you will enjoy your day here, because just about any star who shot a Western spent time here. Old Tucson Studios dates back to 1939, when it was built as a replica of 19th century Tucson for the movie Arizona, starring William Holden and Jean Arthur. The adobe buildings were constructed with the labor and expertise of local Tohono O’odham tribe members. The location was pretty much abandoned after that, used infrequently for films made in the late 1940’s. By the late ‘50’s, the Western genre became very popular and Old Tucson began four decades of steady bookings. It also grew steadily, adding more buildings, a steam locomotive and a large number of props to add to its authenticity. In April, 1995 a fire of yet unknown origin ravaged the movie town, destroying 25 buildings. A number of artifacts were destroyed, including the wardrobe of Little House on the Prairie. A little less than two years later, the movie set and theme park opened for business again. In the restoration, the owners chose to give the town a different look rather than try and reconstruct the buildings destroyed by the fire. As computer design becomes more sophisticated, shooting on location in a place like Old Tucson may become a thing of the past, which means standing where the stars stood will someday be impossible. Old Tucson Studios is located west of Tucson, at 201 S. Kinney Road, Tucson, Az 85716. The park is open daily from 10:00 a.m. It is advisable to call or check their website, since they sometimes close for private parties and events. Phone is 520-883-0100. The website is www.oldtucson.com. blog comments powered by Disqus