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| Above, an Old Tucson hotel and saloon set. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
One of the places I've always wanted to see was Old Tucson in Arizona.
Old Tucson is a studio near the city of Tucson, Arizona and Saguaro National Park. Hundreds of movies and television westerns were filmed there. Movies included Rio Bravo, El Dorado, McLintock! and others.
I got my chance two years ago when I was in Tombstone, Arizona. From there, I headed to Old Tucson and spend a good part of a day wandering it.
RV Travel has an article on Old Tucson and it begins with:
Growing up, I always wanted a horse. My wish probably stemmed from the popular television shows of the 1950s and ’60s: Westerns.
My sisters and I sat transfixed while watching Roy Rogers, Zorro, The Lone Ranger, and Bonanza. If the same is true for you, it’s time to saddle up! Old Tucson awaits your visit.
What is Old Tucson?
Old Tucson is a time capsule of past Western-themed television shows and movies. Built as a Hollywood set in 1939, it later opened to the public as a Western-themed park.
Columbia Pictures built a replica of 1860s-era Tucson in 1939 for the feature film, Arizona. Construction crews reportedly erected more than 50 buildings for the movie in just a few weeks.
After more movies and TV shows used Old Tucson through the 1940s and 1950s, the site was refurbished and opened as a theme park in 1960.
Over the decades, Hollywood kept coming back. Old Tucson has been a backdrop for hundreds of film and TV productions. Included in this list are movies like Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Rio Bravo, and El Dorado. Old Tucson also provided the setting for television hits like The High Chaparral and Little House on the Prairie.
To read more, go here.
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