You’re watching TV and you see Andy and Barney walk out of the courthouse onto Main Street in Mayberry – something you’ve seen a thousand times. Then, surfing the channels you see that episode of the original Star Trek where Kirk and Spock get teleported through time and end up on a city street that looks a lot like the storefronts and courthouse columns of Mayberry. What the heck?
Another famous location, 1313 Mockingbird Lane, actually Colonial Street, was the Munsters’ house. Located on the Universal lot, this street was the location for many films and TV shows. The Munsters house was dressed as a frequented location because of its unique architecture.
Located close by was the Leave it to Beaver house that was the Marcus Welby, M.D. house and many other film locations. The street itself served as the location for Desperate Housewives.
Above, the house visible in the opening titles of Leave it to Beaver after the first couple of seasons. It’s really just a facade, like most of the structures on a movie backlot. The Cleaver house was also the filming for the 1989 film, The ‘Burbs, directed by Ron Howard.
There are some good books and blogs about the old Hollywood studio backlots where many exterior sets were staged. Sadly, backlots are history, bulldozed and sold for development. Some backlot houses have been moved from their original sites, like the Bates house (below) from Psycho. That’s an iconic structure that is forever a piece of Hollywood history.
I guess this will be part one of a series taking you into the world of make-believe. No, not Washington DC. There are some great sources about the backlots and ranches used for TV and movies. Check out their sites for more photos and history. These treasuries are invaluable and represent a lot of work, and personal memories.
Sources:
phantomofthebacklots.com
Wikipedia
Retroweb Studio Backlots and Ranches
Ticket 2 Ride 
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