The Rockford Files - Film Locations - Donut Prince in Burbank

While watching the Season 2 episode of THE ROCKFORD FILES, The Girl in The Bay City Boys Club (1975), I was surprised to spot the Donut Prince, in Burbank, California. I knew the Donut Prince sign was old, but I never thought the place was serving up fresh pastries in the early 1970s when Jim Rockford (James Garner) would be driving by in his gold Pontiac Firebird Esprit. I've been making trips to Donut Prince for the last 10 years (fortunately my waistline doesn't show it), so when I caught a glimpse of the unique neon yellow sign it stood out immediately.

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James Garner on Olive Avenue, Burbank, CA

Donut Prince sign hidden just behind the trees. Olive Ave, Burbank.

The Donut Prince is located at 1721 W. Olive Avenue, Burbank, California. Just behind the Donut Prince is a McDonald's which is also still in business. The Safeway that can be seen just before the Donut Prince was later a Von's grocery store and then a few years ago it was changed into a CVS Pharmacy.

In the comparison below we can see that on the opposite side of the street there is a liquor store and a bank. Today there are still a bank and liquor store at these locations but not the same bank and liquor store from the date of the Rockford Files screenshot.

Garner looks into his mirror while passing the Safeway on Olive Ave.

The Safeway is now a CVS Pharmacy. Olive Ave, Burbank.

The Donut Prince has been used a few times as a filming location (Larry Crowne, T.J. Hooker) and is also popular with celebrities. Pictures of stars who have dined there adorn the walls. George Lopez apparently is an especially big fan of the place. Even though the place is a donut shop, I primarily go for the hot ham and cheese croissants. 

This episode of the Rockford Files includes many other Valley locations, including the Burbank YMCA, and a North Hollywood Jack-in-the-Box and Bob's Big Boy. Check out this Rockford Files website for additional locations.

Night Moves (1975) - Film Locations

Night Moves (1975), is a 70s era detective story starring Gene Hackman as a detective hired by an aging movie starlet to find her daughter. What at first appears to be a straight forward missing persons case turns out to be much more convoluted. What I found interesting about this film is that it features two old Burbank, California movie theaters that no longer exist. One was demolished and another has been completely remodeled and turned into a recording studio.

The first movie house seen in the film is the Magnolia Theater located at 4403 W. Magnolia Boulevard. In the film, Hackman is following his wife, who he discovers is having an affair when she walks out of the theater with another man. Classic movie fans may recognize this theater as the place where Fred MacMurray first meets Kim Novak in the crime film PUSHOVER (1954). The Magnolia Theater building is located just a mile and a half away from the Warner Bros. Studios lot, the studio that produced this film. Today the building is used as a recording studio and has been greatly remodeled from its days as a theater. The theater was built in 1940 and closed in 1979, just four years after Night Moves was released.

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Gene Hackman outside Burbank's Magnolia Theatre.

The former Magnolia Theatre building at 4403 W. Magnolia Blvd, Burbank, Ca.

Another view of the Magnolia Theatre as seen in Night Moves (1975).

The Magnolia Theatre building at 4403 W. Magnolia Blvd.

The screenshot below is of a building located next door to the Magnolia Theatre. That structure is also still standing, although remodled.

Building next door to Magnolia Theatre as seen in Night Moves.

The structure next door to the Magnolia Theatre.

Another old Burbank movie theater that appears in Night Moves is the old Cornell Theatre located at 1212 N. San Fernando Blvd, which can be seen in the screenshot below. What first caught my eye from the screenshot was the old Taco Bell sign and the McDonald's sign. From driving down this street multiple times before I remembered a Taco Bell restaurant and McDonald's located right next to each other. I figured if the earlier scene was filmed in Burbank then maybe this scene was also filmed in Burbank and perhaps at this location. What I didn't recognize was the Cornell neon sign on the right of the screenshot, but I recalled there being a Cornell Theatre in Burbank. I assumed that this must have been the location - and I was right.  That intersection where the Cornell Theatre stands is San Fernando Blvd and Cornell Drive.

The Cornell Theatre opened on November 18, 1949 and was demolished in 1980 after closing in 1978 - just three years after Night Moves was released. According to the website Cinema Treasures, The Cornell Theatre "had two main aisles that ran down the theatre... Inside the auditorium, all seating was on a single level. There were Art Deco style 'swirls' on the side-walls and on each side of the proscenium. The curved ceiling contained 'twinkling star' lights, giving a semi-Atmospheric style to the decoration."

Gene Hackman drives past the now demolished Cornell Theatre.

Looking down San Fernando Blvd. The Cornell Theatre once stood below the yellow arrow.

Night Moves (1972) was directed by Arthur Penn. Also starring are Jennifer Warren, Susan Clark and in early roles, James Woods and Melanie Griffith. The film is available on DVD and is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant. If you like 1970s era detective/crime films like Klute (1971) or The Long Goodbye (1973), then this may be your thing.

The Toluca Lake Homes of Shemp Howard

Shemp Howard of The Three Stooges.

Toluca Lake, a tony neighborhood located partly in Burbank and Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley, has long been a favorite place to live for Hollywood celebrities, including Bob Hope, William Holden, Frank Sinatra, Ann Sheridan and many others. Part of the appeal of Toluca Lake is the small town village feel. The primary commercial street in Toluca Lake, Riverside Drive, is like an Eisenhower era main street filled with little shops. The quiet tree lined residential streets look like they belong somewhere in Middle America, not minutes from the energy of Hollywood.

One of the best descriptions I've seen of Toluca Lake comes from Sandie Howard (granddaughter to Shemp Howard of The Three Stooges). In 2012, Howard wrote a post on the Los Angeles Times website in which she reminisces about growing up in Toluca Lake. Howard describes the shops, the homes,  and what life was like as a child in this celebrity hood. I thought Howard's description was a charming read. Here's what she wrote:

"Toluca Lake. I was born and raised as 3rd generation in our house. Born in 56' and resided there til 81. Grandparents, Babe and Shemp Howard bought this home at 4604 Placidia Ave. My grandpa was Shemp, the original of the Three Stooges. Our home was on the corner of Placidia and Sara St. They lived there from the 40's -mid 50's. They had chickens, a Victory Garden. My grandfather owned a gun only to use on pesty Gophers that would steel all the carrots. My dad bought the home shortly before I was born. We didn't have air conditioning nor a pool for many years. 

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Shemp Howard's home at 4604 Placidia Ave.

I recall the fwy being put in. Stayed cool by sprinklers, Water Wiggles, Slip and Slides. All the kids played together. Boys and girls, roller skating, riding bikes, having flour fights. We walked the back wall to get to friends houses regardless of being scratched or cut up by brush and bushes. Toluca Lake kids on Saturdays would spend much time on Riverside Dr. at Pop and Cork for a 'BigStick Popsicle then to The Five and Dime to play with all the open tables of toys. We'd walk through the T.L. Pharmacy where we were not allowed to touch anything. The T.L. Market where you could actually pick up the phone and order your groceries and have them delivered. Bob's Big Boy's car hops to see rollerskating waitresses. Patys for the big Pineapple and Marshmallow syrup. The Pancake House syrups. The Little Green Store on Camarillo. It was safe! Neighborhoods of Walnuts, Birch and Magnolias. 

4604 Placidia Avenue, Toluca Lake, CA.

The Rock on our lawn was the meeting spot for the kids. A mom would call and the friend would run home. I listened for the St. Charles Church bells at 6:00pm. T. Lake. Safe, quaint and well kept neighborhoods. Jill and I both had our weddings in our backyard. Doors of the house were only locked by Skeleton Keys. We had many varieties of fruit trees from Satsuma Plums to Kumquats. At 23, mom leased the house to Denzel Washington then sold it to him. I was crushed not to have an affiliation to that neighborhood anymore. I honestly thought someone in the family would be in that house, in Toluca Lake forever. I make a point to drive through the neighborhood still. I want to go inside to see my house but I don't have the nerve - yet. Toluca Lake is still quaint today. Still close with a couple of kids from the blocks. Many of businesses are still thriving. If you can raise a family in T.L. you are blessed."

10522 Riverside Drive, Toluca Lake, CA.

In addition to the home at 4604 Placidia Avenue, Shemp Howard also lived with his wife Gertrude in an apartment building at 10522 Riverside Drive. According to findadeath.com Shemp was living at this address at the time of his death. On November 22, 1955 Shemp had a heart attack on his way home from the fights. He died later on the way to St. Josephs Medical Center in Burbank. He was just 60 years old. I was once told that this apartment building, just like the house on Placidia Ave. was also later owned by actor Denzel Washington.

Brainstorm (1965) - Film Locations

Many times I've watched movies where the story is dull, or the film is ridiculous, but because of some interesting film locations, I'll continue watching. That's not the case with Brainstorm (1965) starring Jeffrey Hunter, Dana Andrews, Anne Francis, and Viveca Lindfors. This film, in addition to having some wonderful real world film locations, is a thrilling story, well acted, with beautiful black and white cinematography. This is a movie I could watch multiple times and I'm delighted that the Warner Archive has made this underrated noir available as part of their MOD releases.

Hunter plays a young and intelligent computer scientist who saves a beautiful woman (Francis) from attempting suicide. He returns the woman to her husband who turns out to be his wealthy enterprising boss (Andrews). Hunter and Francis become romantically involved and the two plot to kill Andrews. Hunter has a complex plan that involves killing Andrews, faking insanity to avoid the murder rap, and then waiting to be released from a sanitarium once he can prove he is safe to reenter society. However, do things ever go according to plan?

Here are some of the filming locations from this suspenseful noir.

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Greystone Mansion as seen in Brainstorm (1965).

Looking up at Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills.

The home of Hunter's boss, Cort Benson, is the Greystone Mansion, located at 905 Loma Vista Drive, in Beverly Hills, California. Many films have used the Greystone Mansion as a filming location and the Friends of Greystone website lists a few of these, including some of my favorites, The Disorderly Orderly (1964), Death Becomes Her (1992), and There Will Be Blood (2007). However, the website does not list Brainstorm, so perhaps it can now be added to the list. Above is a comparison view of the rear side of the mansion and below is a comparison of the entrance courtyard.

Greystone Mansion entrance courtyard.

Greystone Mansion courtyard entrance. Photo: mark6mauno flickr

The next location below is what was then known as the Lockheed Air Terminal and today is known as Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California. The airport has grown and been completely remodeled since the time Brainstorm was filmed. In the comparison below you can match up the screenshot with the contemporary view by looking at the mountain range in the background. I've used a green square to highlight a piece of the mountain range and if you look from left to right you can see how the ridge lines up.

Dana Andrews at was then known as Lockheed Air Terminal.

The Lockheed Air Terminal, now known as Bob Hope Airport.

Hunter works at Benson Industries, headed by Cort Benson (Andrews). Benson Industries was really the site of Thompson Ramo Wooldridge Inc. a then high tech computer company located on a large campus-like environment in Canoga Park, California. I recognized the office building seen in this film when I came across a brochure from 1962 promoting Canoga Park as a great place to live and a great place for business. The brochure can be seen in the California State University Northridge Oviatt Library Digital Collections. The Rocketdyne Archives website is another great source of information on this site where many high tech companies were located.

In the screenshot below we see Hunter leaving the Benson Industries office building. The following image is an aerial view from the brochure showing the site of the Thompson Ramo Wooldridge Inc. site. Using a yellow oval I've marked where the Benson Industries building was located (now demolished). The next image is a contemporary Bird's Eye view and again I've used a yellow oval marking the spot of the Benson Industries building.

Jeffrey Hunter leaving "Benson Industries."

Thompson Ramo Wooldridge Inc. Canoga Park, CA 1962

A Bing "Bird's Eye" view of the site today.

The yellow oval marks the building used as Benson Industries.

Hunter leaving Benson Industries. 

The next comparison shows the gate at the entrance to the Benson Industries campus. The entrance was located on Fallbrook Avenue, just a few blocks up from Roscoe Boulevard.

Hunter at the Benson Industries gate.

The gate was located on Fallbrook Ave a few blocks north of Roscoe Blvd.

Below, Hunter walks in front of his apartment building, the "Blair Arms." This building is actually the main administration building on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank. This building has been remodeled dramatically several times over the years, but I was able to identify this location from the door handles that were once attached to the front doors. In the next three images I've used a yellow square to highlight these door handles. In the first image we see Hunter walking past the apartment building. The second image shows the Warner Bros. main administration building as it appeared in 1976 and you can see that the same door handles were still in place at that time. In the third image, a photograph I took just a couple weeks ago, you can see that not only have the door handles been changed, but the entire facade has been completely remodeled. You can still see that the windows on the sides look mostly the same.

Hunter passes the Blair Arms apartment building.

The Warner Bros. Main Administration Building 1976. 

The Warner Bros. Main Administration Building August 2013.

Hunter at the Blair Arms apartment - really the WB Admin building.

The Warner Bros. Administration Building, August 2013.

Later in the film Hunter plans to assassinate Andrews while he is giving a speech at the International Hotel, which today is the Radisson Hotel located at 6225 West Century Boulevard, Los Angeles, right next to the LAX airport.

International Hotel, 6225 W Century Blvd, Los Angeles.

The Radisson Hotel near LAX airport, previously International Hotel.

The International Hotel entrance.

The hotel entrance as it appears today.

Hunter walks the hotel stairs from the main lobby.

A contemporary view of the hotel stairs.

At the end of the film Hunter is taken to the State Mental Hospital which in reality is the site of the Veterans West Los Angeles Health Care campus. About five years ago I attended a theatre performance put on by the Reprise Theater Company led by actor Jason Alexander (sadly I just learned the Reprise Theatre Company recently ceased operations) which was held at a building on this large veterans campus. It was my first time on the campus and actually the last time I was on the campus, but the appearance of the location has always stayed in my mind. My first instinct was to search the VA grounds and when I started looking at the sprawling campus using Bing Bird's Eye I was immediately able to pin point the area used in the film.

The purple circle below marks the spot on the VA health care campus where Jeffrey Hunter is being accosted by the security of the State Mental Hospital. The exact location on the campus is located between Patton Ave and Bonsalle Ave.

Hunter being dragged back to the State Mental Hospital.

Birds Eye view of the State Mental Hospital - really the Veterans Hospital.

Hunter at the State Mental Hospital.

Aerial view of the mental hospital.

Birds Eye view of the mental hospital/VA hospital campus.

Brainstorm (1965) is available on DVD through Warner Archive and is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant. The film can also be rented through ClassicFlix. I highly recommend this film.

Your thoughts?

All screenshots (c) Warner Home Video

The Rockford Files - Film Locations - Riverside at Maple

The Rockford Files: Season 1, Episode 4, "Exit Prentiss Carr" (1974)

During the episode "Exit Prentiss Carr," Jim Rockford (James Garner) takes a case in the fictional town of Bay City. One of the scenes that is supposed to take place in the small town of Bay City was actually filmed on Riverside Drive in Burbank. In the now and then comparisons below we see Garner turning right from Maple Street on to Riverside Drive heading east. He eventually pulls over a couple blocks down near the intersection of Riverside and Screenland Drive.

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Garner turns from Maple St. on to Riverside Drive.

Riverside at Maple, in Burbank, CA.

I recognized this spot immediately. I walk down this stretch of street regularly to pick up lunch. During the evenings this area is quiet, but with Warner Bros. only two blocks away, Disney, NBC, Universal, and other entertainment companies with offices nearby, this area gets pretty busy during the lunch hour. A lot is the same and a lot has changed. The chiropractor business building is still there but the practice is gone. The travel business is now a Subway. And the next building over is now a pizza restaurant and a Chipotle. I can't make out what used to be where the Chipotle now stands.

The Tolucan Motel on Riverside Drive, Burbank

The Tolucan Motel site is now a Best Western.

As Garner drives down Riverside Drive we see a motel called "The Tolucan Motel," which is now gone. On the site today is a Best Western motel.

Garner crosses Kenwood at Riverside.

Corner of Kenwood St. at Riverside Drive.

As Garner continues down Riverside he passes a laundry business at the corner of Kenwood Street. The building is still standing and until recently, was a restaurant called Salerno's. Things have changed again since the "now" image. The green shrubs have all been torn out. The building is still standing but being completely remodeled.

Looking west down Riverside Drive from Kenwood.

Looking down Riverside Drive from Kenwood.

In the comparison above, Garner looks in his rearview mirror and he sees the police getting ready to pull him over. We get a view looking West down Riverside from Kenwood. One noticeable thing that hasn't changed is the bright yellow liquor sign that is still standing tall.

Garner passes a motel on Riverside Dr. Burbank.

The Tangerine Hotel, Burbank

Garner passes another motel on Riverside Drive, this one across the street from the Tolucan Motel/Best Western. I can't tell what this motel used to be called, but it was remodeled in the last couple years and turned into what today is the Tangerine Hotel. 

3820 W. Riverside Drive, Burbank as seen in The Rockford Files.

3820 W. Riverside Drive, Burbank

In the above clip Garner begins to pull over to the side of the street. The building seen on the corner is no longer standing. In the last few years an AFTRA-SAG Federal Credit Union building was erected on the site.

The "Bay City" police pull Garner over on Riverside Dr.

3808 W. Riverside Drive, Burbank, CA

In the last comparison the "Bay City" police pull Garner over at 3808 Riverside Drive. This building has for a long time been the home to some medical offices. There has been some very recent changes to this building. In the last few weeks a Bank of the West has since moved in, at least on the ground floor, and painted the exterior a shade of white.

This is my first entry in my 1970s television flashback. I'll be back with some more The Rockford Files locations as well as Quincy M.E. and Columbo.