vintage-hollywood – Phantom of the Backlots

Mission Impossible-Mayberry in Disguise

July 15, 2025 Phantom of the Backlot2 Comments

Never say Never!

We start with a Mission Briefing, inside this KVWV truck located at the Paramount Studios lumber storage and mill.

The Big Black Vehicle arrives…

The briefing involves election fraud in Mexico. In this swank 1966 apartment, the record player is disabled as we browse the folders on I.M.F personnel needed for infiltration.

“Cinnamon” is perfect for this assignment and “every” mission period.

We have our small yet tactical force. “Rollin Hand” is a code name we used. It describes how we rolled our “Doobies” on the backlots…

This Mission starts in Mexico, look behind the curtains, this is Mayberry…

Behind this ‘False Front” is the Mayberry Post Office. A Police Station, for this episode. Directly across the street, where camera is, is Andy Griffith’s Courthouse. The backlot uses several disguises in this Golden Age classic. Several Mayberry and Gone With the Wind facades will be altered. T.A.G.S was still shooting this street almost daily, so these set decorations and modifications required “striking.” This backlot was as busy as anywhere in Hollywood. T.V was never as good as this era.

Our I.M.F Force has arrived…

We need a free and honest election…Liberation !

Window set dressing…often-this kind of stuff ends up in my forts. Winston Churchill is a perfect trespasser motivational influence! We would sneak up to these widow displays from the back entrances and remove set decorations. Right after a scene was filmed and before set decorations could retrieve their items.

On the set of Roger Corman’s “CAPONE,” an entire tobacco shop was relocated upstairs in my fort. This included cigars and brier pipes relocated to the Mayberry R.F.D House set. This happened after a gangster was shot from a passing car band was blasted through the picture window. That story in full detail can be found in Book One titled…”Bootleggers, Tommy Guns and L.S.D”…Hole in the Fence–Book One.

This election…is rigged!

A day of reckoning -I.M.F in Volkswagon- Election fixer in dark glasses.

Downtown, Mayberry was built to be Atlanta in 1938. When television was born, this Main Street was disguised as any Metropolis in the world. Paint, cars, signs, and costumes can transform your mind. Production wants you to experience different places, all within the comforts of the studio.

Long before Mexico, this street was used as Atlanta in …Gone With the Wind

Lets unpack this picture...The West End of Atlanta/Mayberry. The Desilu Watertower overlooks the backlot. He pictured above the Atlanta train depot, still standing in 1966. False fronts were installed to block the view of this iconic depot used in GWTW.

There were two theaters in Mayberry. On the corner on the left side, you can see a marquis. An alleyway, not shown, separates the theater from Main Street.

This is that corner, minus the train depot. My picture taken in 1972. The single one story row of buildings that blocked this view of the depot is no longer standing. I took this photo after they had been removed. This is where the pavement begins on this dirt backlot. It was dirt for Gone With the Wind. No backlot in history used so little cement.

Same corner in…Gone With the Wind

Mayberry became the next identifier on this main street. The Untouchables branded it as Chicago, Metropolis in Superman, Gotham City in Batman and Berlin in Hogan’s Heroes.

Election interference…”I was pushed off the road!“

This crash was where the theater alongside the Mayberry Hotel stood. Donkeys are first responders.Concerned voters assist with election ballots inside ambulance.

Meanwhile, in the nearby jungle“We need some gas- Cinnamon”

“I need a smoke Rollin!“ I have seen this gas station before…

Wally’s “Gasolina” Station

This famous turn into Goober’s Gas Station

Goober’s filling station. This dirt road parallels the La Ballona Creek. Gomer Pyle films across the way…

If only I had some music to unwind-says Cinnamon…Mission Accomplished!

To the left of this jeep is the filling station. Music for a successful “Mission Accomplished.”

Final thoughts;

I thought I would share my version of Mission Impossible dating back to 1966. These screen grabs, combined with my photos and personal experiences paint at picture of a wonderful era of television. As God would lay out my future, I worked on the first feature of the same name with Tom Cruise. Paramount rented the Universal -“SKY” backdrop and water basin for some stunts and inserts.

Paramount owned Desilu when this T.V series was in production. Hogan’s Heroes was also a regular Paramount location on the 40 Acre backlot. These streets were like revolving doors, different shows, every day-non stop. Crime had no chance with all the capped Super Heroes and detectives roaming these streets.

I Spy, The Green Hornet, and Batman followed Superman and the Untouchables. Sheriff Taylor also patrolled this street with Barney through much of this 60’s decade. It was originally designed as Atlanta in GWTW.

I rode my bike here in the late 60’s. I came just to look through the fence. I was in search of all these- “Heroes.”

The marvel of television allowed me to watch episodes then go relive scenes where they were filmed. Basically, “I lived my T.V set.” Even my parents were amazed by this passion burning inside me. We would sit and watch television together and I would have my own stories…like a real life Opie Taylor. I put a fort upstairs in the Andy Griffith house.

My folks saw the Hogan’s Heroes tree stump effect become my own personnel hide out. That big bulky item moved in and out of my bedroom to various locations around my house. Everyone wanted to go -“under the lid.” My house had signs with bullet holes nailed to it. I even had a working Barbers Pole that would spin and light up when plugged in.

I was quite the sight. I could be seen towing tree stumps, various props of all sizes, spears, bows and arrows, etc. I had weapons ranging from rifles to ray guns. I brought B.B guns to play inside Combat sets. I fought real Marines from Camp Pendleton. I gave tours of Camp Henderson to these same soldiers. Gomer Pyle, Jim Nabors- was a recruiter and recruitment soared.

Most kids carried school books, but I carried props. I even had bushels of King Kong horse fir, so much I attached it to my dog. That was quite the monster looking creature. My dogs trespassed at times with me. I wasn’t like all the other kids, needless to say.

It’s fun being the “Black Sheep.” I never wanted these times to stop and they never did. My life evolved into living this lifestyle everyday. 35- Universal working years later, I feel a need keep and hand down my history. I did not realize then I was living in the Golden Age. I thought things would never disappear. But disappear they did.

Thankfully, I took notes, no matter what time of night I came home. I gobbled up discarded “call sheets” and have taken more studio pictures than anyone alive. MGM blessed me with hundreds of Art Department pictures. I became a legend long before I worked at these studios. Everyone knew me, or about me-at MGM. I had an endless supply of blank ammo shells, what kid has that?

Not bad for a trespassing kid who even snagged the studio “Trespassers List” from a guard shack. I knew 50 percent- of the captured folks!

I thank all of you. You like to return to that marvelous era I specialize in capturing. This era is called- The Phantom of the Backlots. I always knew I was experiencing “special things.” A salute-from me to you…

Written and lived by…Donnie Norden

But wait-There’s More…Glamour Tram is back up and running. Come take a tour with me. This site on WordPress reads like a book. You must scroll to the beginning for “cast of characters & training exercises.” Otherwise, your just lost on the tram route, which is really fun anyways…

Real life Tram Tours with Donnie Norden, you too may be on my celebrity list of “miscasts.“

More adventure stories now on sale at Amazon. Follow The Phantom in his escapades back in time…

As always…Boots on the ground stories–Written and Lived by…Donnie Norden

The Wild Wild West

June 28, 2025 Phantom of the Backlot2 Comments

This story can be found in my second book-The Uninvited Visitor…

Well, here we go again…

The challenge…

Just like last year around the Christmas Holidays, we’ve gone mobile. Studio City here we come. We were out here casing a few of these valley backlots last weekend. Jimmy and I have determined CBS has passed go, and that’s the first stop on today’s Monopoly board that we will circumvent. The fence along the L.A. River is as simple as a recreational climb. This corner fence that has had little activity on its crest is no match for Jimmy, Pat, and myself. You can tell when a fence gets action by shoe marks and bends from what must be trespassers. Apparently, kids are compliant to the trespassing signs here in a city named after the industry itself. CBS Radford is the facilities operating name.

Universal is a true studio city, since they have their own mayor, fire department and post office. But Culver City has always been the hub for the greatest movies and TV shows ever made. We take pride in the backlots in our city. We live on them. We’re professionals…

**Our typical greeting…all the motivation we need!**

Today, we explore the unknown. We know every square inch of our backlots, but each turn today will be a passage into the unknown. Every open door, or structure, possibly trees and bushes, will be approached and used as camouflage. Like three chameleons, we are on a mission, to find Gilligan’s Island.

Sure, we might see a security guard, earning double time today. That said, the badge will be in for double trouble, if we cross paths. Better have a fast golf cart buddy, trespassing doesn’t stop on holidays in our world.

This is how we mentally prepare for our excursion. Like a team, a team that’s undefeated. When we touch down on the forewarned private property, it’s like taking the field for the big game. If Maureen and her pals were here, they’d be cheering… Go Centaurs!

First and ten…

We’re in and the three of us take cover in some houses laid out in a rustic tree lined area void of roads and activity. That’s how we like to start, quietly nestled in, observing activities. Jimmy and I both have camera bags on our shoulders, Pat is shopping for old cars. Where we begin reminds us of MGM lot 3. The landscape is all we see, a large grass field with lots of trees around it, could the remains of the lagoon be around this spot?

We sometimes need to put on detective hats to connect dots to the past. Things get buried easily when ratings cease to meet expectations. You’re only as good as your last sweep weeks in Hollywood.

With Gilligan canceled years ago, who knows if this deserted island still exists. At MGM and Desilu, Tarzan filmed on sets like this. But Tarzan’s deep “AHHHAAHHHA” as he swings vine to vine would be replaced by the Skipper shouting “Gilligan” on this lot.

***We have no idea of what this set was used for, but that’s the* *beauty of being kid detectives.***

The silence of a backlot on a holiday morning is similar to a prayer moment in church. Pristine quiet, we skip the kneeling of course. Morning dew covers the grass during this chilly but bright morning sunrise. We touch everything, we are on an expedition. Last year on this same day, we conquered The Burbank Studios. My camera is still dented forever after saving me from falling through a roof on Laramie Street, last New Year’s Day. Of course, at Disney, my camera received more battering, and was captured, only to be released to my parents, who were forced to drive all the way out to get me.

This year’s resolution was the same as last year’s, go where few if any kids trespass, and explore new frontiers. If all goes well on this tiny lot, we will visit the Columbia Ranch afterwards. But first, where is this damn island?

My other island was torn down for housing, the former MGM lot 3. Some of it remains and is located in what is called Raintree Condominiums. We sneak in there also- to remember the glory of MGM lot 3. A few original things still remain besides the magnificent trees, if you have a keen studio eye.

Right off the bat, this area seems to be where you would stick an island or lagoon on the Radford backlot. We scrounge through the bushes, as if searching for the remains of a downed aircraft or yacht that’s been marooned. It appears the castaways have been rescued, there are no signs of life now-or ever. The jungle gives and the jungle taketh away…

Our exploration has centered on another set that says CBS on its credits. This is the home of The Wild Wild West, starring Robert Conrad. I love Cowboy shows, and this one is slick. He’s a thinking man’s Cowboy. We usually just watch shows from Culver City lots, but Alias Smith and Jones and this show are too good to pass up. I made my own 8mm western movie on the Desilu lot, in front of the saloon, I feel at home as we pass a gallows pole…

**Follow these tracks and you’ve arrived in the Wild West, CBS style.**

Just like last year at a saloon on Laramie Street, we toast to the New Year with a big joint in the old west. We sit on barstools lined up along the dust covered dark stained countertop. The three amigos are reunited, this time in a different saloon. Satisfaction gleams on all our faces. Adventure awaits, maybe we’ll find a picture car from My Three Sons. A station wagon tour, after all, we are three boys!

Smoke blows out the swinging doors as we follow its swirling path. The aroma sets us free. Life is easy- welcome 1976.

There are props all over the place on this western street, it’s like we’re at a Cowboy yard sale. The street is jam-packed with lanterns, whiskey barrels, gun powder boxes and livery equipment. Such wonderful items, it’s deserted here so we take our time. Must be no hangings planned today.

Behind the western street is a small-town square, Mary Tyler Moore films her show here. She should, she and husband Grant Tinker own the place. I found a call sheet from Dick Van Dyke Show at Desilu. Here she lives, ten years later, different husband and studio. That’s Hollywood for ya!

No- we’re not driving this car and trailer…

My Three Sons set has been discovered… Kids were so good back then!

Well, we covered this entire, quaint, backlot and it’s just now noon, after a nearby- Bob’s Big Boy lunch, we will plan the second half of today’s adventures at this iconic hamburger joint. It’s much older than the ones where we live. While Ohio State is kicking off versus UCLA today, we will be climbing a fence to take on Columbia Studios.

It’s good for the taking- we already cased the joint!

Another backlot…another year of backlot fun awaits!

I have a 3rd book, just released. A trilogy of trespassing all the backlots in the 70’s. I have permanent scars on my body from events that I lived during these wild times. I call them MGM tattoos-remembrances I cherish, caught in the exact moment they took place. Trust me, this trespassing game is not as easy as it sounds in the…Wild Wild West!

Written and Lived by…Donnie Norden

The Outer Limits of MGM Lot 3

January 26, 2025 Phantom of the BacklotLeave a comment

This sensational MGM Lot 3 photo is compliments of Todd Spiegelberg. Todd and David Barns excel at matching pictures of sets on these studio lots. They connect these pictures to the films and T.V shows filmed on these dusty old streets…

“**Please Stand By”**…That was your standard test pattern. It was also the original title for this series that lasted two seasons. The creators feared audiences would change the channel. They thought this was an emergency broadcast system interruption, so the name was scrapped.

“***Leave my TV alone!”***…*Donnie Norden*– 1963

“*Looks like a friendly planet*“…***The Zanti Misfits*** *1963.*

“*Look Out Kid*” –***The Zanti Misfits***…*Terrorizing TVs everywhere.*

***Vasquez Rocks.***..A very popular location. I have filmed there, Sliders-TV series. Wind Machines…blowing dust and tumbleweeds.

“*Another film company rolling in here again… I’m sick of terrorizing these idiots!”*

*MGM Lot 3 and Vasquez Rocks blend together.* *MGM has Baldwin Hills as a western backdrop.*

“*I think I got bit”…”I’ll get help if I don’t die first*“

**MGM Lot 3-** Two other sci-fi series film back here. **The Twilight Zone** and **One Step Beyond.** All three, including **My Favorite Martian** used this very street. One of two church steeples on Europe Street can be seen sprouting behind the western corner. Combat filmed this lot regularly in 1963.

The simple two window, one door set right of the driving M.P. appeared in the Dust episode of the Twilight Zone. In that episode, a man gets saved from a gallows pole by some Magic Dust. This building was the jail where the man was incarcerated.

*This picture of mine is same angle as screen grab. Notice The Mutiny on the Bounty masts are sticking up above the Western Street- far end.*

*Zanti set two years prior- The Twilight Zone episode “DUST”*

*Wait till the Zantis get a hold of you!*

*The MGM grip department mounted* *this capsule on the roof. A studio union operated spacecraft.*

*This kind of stuff ends up in our property storage on the backlot. And possibly, it will land at my house to complete its mission. Two kids could easily carry this to my MGM version of Mission* *contro*l.

*These Zantis are available for purchase on-line…duplicates of course.* *Technically,* “***Zantis are trespassers!”***

“*Where’s MGM security when you need them?”..*.

“*Air Police- MGM Police- everybody open fire!”*

“*I got some grenades off the Combat set”…*

*Zantis, Germans*, this lot has ammo everywhere…This is where- **War is filmed.**

*The camera twists in the wind as the TV tries to regain* *control through its roof antenna.* *Moving the antenna doesn’t fix this problem*, *it’s just magic.*

These trains block the view into the lot, we work this fence line. An irrigation drain is on the public side of a chain link fence. We run up and down it to view into the lot. We look in between the wheels. The **Horse Soldiers** is a film starring John Wayne. John Ford directed it. The movie had one of the best battles ever staged out of these trains.

This is a hiding spot, but MGM was well aware of it. Salt Rock guns shoot at you here as you attempt to exit. The irrigation run -off trench worked like a WW 1 trench. Many Culver Residents met their fate in this gully that still occupies and exits along what is now Raintree condos. This area was like Gettysburg. If you’re going to get shot, it’s probably in this location.

*That’s a real good name for this town…*

This is my MGM Art Department photo of this street in this story.I am fortunate to have been given my own private stash of MGM backlot pictures from Tony Vallone, he headed the Department. He was hired by MGM in 1938. He was a kid in the Real Boystown when MGM went on location to film in Nebraska. Over the decade of the 70’s, my backlot notoriety spread through the studio as I became…**The Phantom.** I spent an entire afternoon going through cabinet after cabinet of MGM stills. I was handed an envelopes and told “take what you wish!

I felt like Burgess Meredith in “Time Enough at Last.” I met this Penguin at MGM on the film “Rocky.” He was hanging out outside a stage. I went up to him. I told him how much I love his Twilight Zone episodes. “Mr Dingle” I call him…

This irrigation catch basin trench still exists along the southern border of Raintree. It was there back when MGM was. This was a very strategic trench; we could see clearly into Lot 3. Trains partially blocked our views down the Western Streets. Security chases often conclude here. You’re successful if you escape without a buttocks full of salt rock. This was like a trench from W.W1. Its purpose was to protect MGM, now Raintree, from storm runoff water. Three other catch basins on the oil field side provided additional protection. The runoff cascades down these hills toward the old backlot. There have been times where this backlot flooded. But we had canoes and several different watercrafts to overcome flooding.

*Lot 3 looking west-* *Raintree Condos now surround a smaller but original lake.*

This picture from an oil derrick captures Lot 3, Raintree in a similar current angle today. The field in the foreground is currently a Pumpkin Patch for kids… Mr. Bones will greet you here. The eucalyptus trees are original to MGM and that straight line is the Eastern MGM Lot 3 boundary. The best place to sneak in at. There is usually no one around these parts and when you’re inside the studio, the jungle is your friend. Some rusted old fence posts with barb wire still stand, representing MGM. Chain link fences were used facing hills, so camera doesn’t pick up a wooden fence. Those were used on Jefferson and Overland Blvd. Half the lot had green wood fences with- No Trespassing Signs, Forbidden by Law, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer attached everywhere.

**Charles Bronson** *close up Death Wish 4. Plexiglas camera protection*…**shots fired!**

**Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson, and Telly Savalas** appeared in the Twilight Zone before making this film.

*This pointed ear concept developed for* *David McCallum would be* *used on Leonard Nimoy as Spock.*

1963- MGM Backlot 3

The Outer Limits filmed a few episodes on the MGM backlots in its two-year run. Joseph Stefano wrote most of the episodes. He just completed work with Alfred Hitchcock. He wrote the screenplay for Psycho. He was this show’s –Rod Serling. Many monsters and props got reused after the show was canceled. Many of the crew ended up on a new series-Star Trek. William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy both appeared in The Outer Limits before liberating outer space.

The process used to make David McCallum’s ears pointed in The Outer Limits would be copied for Spock.

Talent existed everywhere and Cinematographer Conrad Hall photographed 15 episodes. He was the man behind the lens for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in 1969. This series ended abruptly due to a schedule change. it would be located as the lead in for Lawrence Welk. The opposition was Jackie Gleason, my dad’s favorite guy. It was an attractive show for a younger audience, so this change to a mature time zone lead in failed. I watched it. I love this show’s opening television take over. It seemed real. You can tell by my kid picture. This TV is for watching Combat, back off Space Men.

My last post was located on the Universal Backlot, featuring The Birds, in 1963. 21 miles away, these Zanti creatures were terrorizing MGM, by way of The Vasquez Rocks. MGM Lot 3 fits the landscape needed to match up those real rocks with sets built at MGM. Lot 3 is the most rustic backlot ever built.

A 67-acre playground of bombed out European Villages, Western Towns… complete with blowing tumbleweeds, jungles with canoes, tall ships and even a paddleboat. Half-tracks, tanks, jeeps, trains and planes are parked everywhere. All these sets have a 1400-acre oil field directly behind it.

The Baldwin Hills are the backlot extension very few are aware of. But you have seen them. Laurel and Hardy and The Little Rascals used dirt roads. These roads can easily get you lost. They are located right behind MGM Lot 3. I worked on Beverly Hills Cop 2 in the hills overlooking these sets. We were firing bazookas; “Dent Industries” was an fictitious oil company. I recently saw an episode of the Highway Patrol. It starred Broderick Crawford himself in 1955. He was pursuing oil larceny suspects. They were robbing payroll with a Bazooka of all things. If you live long enough, everything happens twice. Bazooka attacks, 30 years apart. I also met Charles Bronson up here, overlooking this studio, on Deathwish 4.

We chatted about the Twilight Zone episode titled- TWO. He starred with Elizabeth Montgomery in that classic on MGM Lot 3. We were pointing sets out, where they stood, from atop these hills. Then we talked –The Dirty Dozen. The famous climax on a backlot located in England. Yep, “The Chateau” was on a backlot across the ocean at MGM’s British Studio. Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson and John Cassavetes fought for their lives as the Chateau goes up in flames. This show happens to be my all-time favorite movie along with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. My 3rd favorite is Kelly’s Heroes.

So, these hills are extensions of the backlot, and Howard Hughes owned a hilltop overlooking Desilu. Howard was going to build a mansion up on the top. It would overlook Los Angeles and the distant Hollywoodland sign in the Hollywood Hills. However, something happened in 1924. Richfield/Standard Oil discovered oil reserves up here. An oil boom sprouted wells surrounding this entire area. Howard sold the property to Charles Wright. He stated, “The last thing I want to see is oil wells out my living room.” Wrightcrest became a Culver City Street. Charlie built himself a mansion where Howard had planned to build one. This change came after crude was discovered.

Rance McGrew and Mr. Garrity and the Graves have the hills off in background in those classic Twilight Zone episodes. Combat avoided camera angles that would connect to these hills.

What’s cool was this lot was a wildlife area due to its location. Skunks, possums, raccoons-like the one that took out hunting dog- Rip and Hyder Simpson. This is-that place, The Hunt was done here. Rod Serling would walk these trails developing concepts and plots. I daydream here too.

Owls, hawks, crows, and doves combine aviation forces here. Snakes, squirrels and gophers complete this fun backlot. Horse stables still exist up in these hills. When Combat filmed, birds took flight and rodents took cover on the safer oil field side. Filming turned into escape time for these critters who fled this studio home when Combat yelled “ACTION”

When the lot was quiet, you could hear the churning oil wells. MGM Lot 3 was the best backlot in history. The legend of Arnold Gillespie and his MGM ocean still resonates back here in this wilderness area.

Lastly, The Zanti Misfits was ranked #98th on TV Guide’s 100 Greatest Episodes of all-time.

That’s today’s story, everywhere I go –I kick up movie dust

Good news…I have regained control of my TV- just in time to watch some quality reruns!

Written and lived by…Donnie Norden

MGM …Full Scale Toy Chest

July 11, 2018April 17, 2025 Phantom of the Backlot7 Comments

*These pictures show the east end of Lot 3 and give the scope of just how large this backlot is. As a kid exploring, you could get lost in this vast expanse.* *That’s a good thing*!

MGM had its own stables since its horses were in demand, as were elephants. To create the illusion of African elephants, large prosthetic ears were attached to Asian elephants. This allowed extra mileage out of the beautiful creatures that were maintained here. Tarzan required African elephants…welcome to Hollywood!

*Movie stars are being pampered below. Credits include Tarzan. There is no other place in the world I would like to live as an elephant than MGM lot 3. Heck, that applies for us kids too…*

Is this a zoo, what century are we? What goes on inside this poorly fenced Adventureland? Airplanes from World War 2 lie in a field of sagebrush, as if they were shot down. Not by gunfire, but by low TV ratings. MGM has something for everyone. These backlots draw inspiration for writers like Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ray Bradbury, and the genius- Rod Serling;

In a cement flood control channel…we appear.

A trampled, rusted old barb wire fence allows easy entry, inviting any and all who dare inside its boundaries. It looks like a herd of animals hastily exited here before us. An abandoned barn sits vacant as if life stopped abruptly, not long ago. The unmistakable scent horses and hay stacks makes us think some Mustangs might still be hiding out.

Next to the barn on what could be some French farmland, bombers lay in ruins. B-17’s sit empty, void of crew, in deafening silence. Jimmy and I wonder most quietly, but each thinking the same things. Silence is how you first react to amazing things. That awe while processing the images, the abandoned and lonely landscape. Objects can be identified by unique smells. This is the opening credits for our own… Twilight Zone

We boys in my neighborhood play Army all the time…and here we stand where it looks like a great air battle liberated this farmland. It’s as if we’re dreaming. We climb and crawl into one of the fuselage doors that parachutists begin or end their missions jumping out of. Machine gun turrets, or little glass bubbles line the plane and are just the right size for kids our age.

This was a flying fortress…as we look out a window and down the wing, the propellers gently turn in the wind. It’s as if they are trying to fire up these old engines. The smooth skinned young flight crew has arrived. School teaches us history, but this place is history-we have the class room to ourselves!

12 O’Clock High has a property tag on one of these fuselages. This indicates how long ago this has been lying here. That series was made by 20th Century Fox, but MGM Lot 3 is a Disneyland with weapons. Swastikas painted on the cockpit might as well represent T.V shows these bombers finished their distinguished service on this MGM Backlot.

Across from this airplane graveyard sits MGM Lot 3, a 67-acre wonderland with exterior sets ranging from multiple western streets; a lake that goes on and on that’s wrapped by a jungle nestled below rolling hills packed with oil wells. The sounds and smells of the petroleum industry seem part of this lot as Standard Oil Company has a large oil field just beyond the studio fences.

You see these oil derricks often in the background of loosely framed exterior shots in many TV reruns. A huge painted sky stands out as the most distinguishing set of all. It is massive, the painted backdrop alters itself like a chameleon, depending on the sun light. New Orleans and France also represent themselves here. There are winding tree lined dirt roads that appear to go on forever. Hyder Simpson and his old hunting dog RIP have been seen wondering down this eternity lane.

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Continue if you dare do so…

One side of the fence is magical, the other side is reality… and far too serious. But you must dare yourself to visit the magic. It is forbidden. Trespassing is what the studio calls it.

Well what fun is life without risk? I was born ready, nothing ventured, nothing gained. This land calls out to Jimmy and I…

Holes in the fence happen…naturally and artificially. Climbing is easy when you’re a kid, so getting in is easy. The rush begins immediately. Generally, you hide…every chance you can. Slow and steady. No clocks here. These lots have movie production prepping or shooting, all the time. Night and day. But weekends are generally just a guard and a big empty lot. Plus, kids get weekends off from school also, so it’s a perfect match.

MGM does not use dogs. Lot 3 should be patrolled by dogs. It is almost twice the size of all the other backlots. But thankfully they do not. They leave it up to old men who take turns driving a jeep that packs a salt rock gun inside it…. Yes, you can be shot here!

First, they have to find you in this labyrinth of hiding places. That’s why we pick and choose the paths most isolated and off the beaten trail. There are false fronts, everywhere, it’s a world of trickery and illusions.

Hiding behind the sets…and in many cases, in the sets, is the key to successfully avoiding unwanted meetings in security. This sounds intimidating because it is. Most people shy away, honoring the No Trespassing requests posted along the fences. Especially as you hear accounts from older kid trespassers who have been…shot at!

Lack of challenges puts security in auto-pilot mode. We even see them nap, often… I told you they should go with dogs!

I recognize equipment that was on Lot 2…now at Lot 3. The backlot world is interchangeable with many moving parts, literally. The Rat Patrol moves their squad back and forth down Overland, the public street that connects these lots, depending on what village or train station they are attacking. Combat did the same, as did Garrison’s Gorillas, starring Ron Harper.

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Combat was canceled in 1967, but the crew jumped on to The Rat Patrol, then Garrison’s Gorillas. More quality war TV.

The Rat Patrol, starring Christopher George, followed that ill-fated but really cool TV show and had a bit more success. , A.D Flowers expertly does special effects for all these shows. Constantly blowing things up…safely!

I have a Combat board game we play on Copperfield Street, in an upstairs that still has large holes from a German Panzer Tank and a Rat Patrol lunch box that has been inside the equipment that is painted on its tin exterior. I live for this stuff. I play with games inspired by shows exactly where they were filmed. Reruns take us backwards to war torn ravaged sets. Shell casings from a machine gun nest lay on the floor, beneath our tennis shoes as we …roll the dice for our next battle.

I have eaten peanut butter and jelly sandwiches out of my Rat Patrol lunch box…inside the real German half-track from the Rat Patrol series. And I drank my Kool-Aid out of my Rat Patrol thermos. Gomer Pyle is my Desilu lunch pale. I buy my lunch pails because they- come to life!

I have yet to be chased here, at Lot 3…and don’t want to. I have run into trespassers who warned us this happens here…getting shot at, that is. It hurts badly, the salt rock-I’m told.We have no doubts about that. On the film Soylent Green, a chase occurred with Bronco Bob Coleman in the notorious Red Jeep. The loudest gun shots I ever heard as I ran off with handfuls of Soylent Green. We put our lives on the line for dyed green loafs of stale bread.

“Being hit” by blast of rock requires soaking in a tub to recover.We try to avoid that, at all costs. Your choices are… keep a lot of distance, cut and run like a jack rabbit and crisscross…so they can’t aim straight. Doorways are your friends, but don’t get in a building where you’re trapped. Words to live by.

Jimmy, my best pal, and I, are like a modern Lewis and Clark. We deal with the same harsh but rustic surroundings. They dealt with Indians. We deal with guards. Both will scalp ya. But just like them, we successfully map this wild frontier. We can make fake storms here, I see snow in storage bungalows. Dirty, dusty decades old snowflakes are overflowing from box after box. MGM Lot 2 also has a snow room.

In fact, this is where you would film Lewis and Clark. Anything you can imagine can happen here. It’s where the right side of your brain can enjoy itself. Creative time and space for your mind to expand. Not the dribble you get brainwashed with at school. We sneak in comic books from these war T.V series. We are our own cartoon book.

Lot 3 could be a train museum. A real steam engine pulls passengers half way around the Lot. The Harvey Girls, starring Judy Garland, capture this in the song “On the Atchison, Topeka & the Santa Fe.” This defining number sang by Judy herself, capture for eternity what backlots are about. History goes backwards here, but it’s captured on film for us to enjoy today. I get goosebumps when I see scenes and productions that used my old sets.

“Willoughby, next stop is Willoughby,” shouts the conductor. That is a Twilight Zone episode, starring James Daly. In this episode, shot at our little train station at Lot 3, James succumbs to the corporate grind and dreams of of this backlot town, called Willoughby. He wants only to live the simple life that exists inside these fences. This train stops at Willoughby!

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That episode describes how wonderful my life is becoming. I live in Willoughby!

Inside these studio fences is an unmistakable sense of history. You feel it, see it, it exists. Pure Magic!

I am catching on, that inside these fences is a time machine of history—created where I am standing. One side of the fence is the harsh reality of school, responsibility, and expectations to succeed. But inside these fences, time merges…not a care in the world.

Time you learn to appreciate stuff not taught in school: a special time that you hope never disappears.

This Church Steeple has been center stage of some of the best battles ever captured on film.

Just inside the main gate, this village greets you…

A calm body of water fit for Gondolas.

This Ghost Town is famous for Magic Dust. Sprinkle some on yourself and the Hangman’s Knot will come untied. “That’s what she is…she’s Magic!”

The jail cell is the Art Department Picture picture of North Side of Ghost Town.

Rance McGrew showed up to work on this street famous for saloons -in shiny Cadillac Convertible

Call my Agent Please

Lee Marvin arrives by horse here at Fort Canby in a lot 3 Dust Storm in – The Grave

Fort Scott also appeared as Dachau in Deaths-Head Revisited

Cloudy Street…

*It’s easy to get lost in here, a huge lake is on the other side of these trees…*

*We have a paddle boat, none of the other kids have one!*

The Cotton Blossom was sold at the MGM Auction in 1970 and ended up in a theme park in Missouri.

The Cotton Blossom found a new home closer to the Mississippi River. It survived much longer than the MGM studios backlot did.

*Jupiters Darling set*– The Baldwin Hills and a Eucalyptus road still stand beyond Raintree. Old, rusty barbed wire still hangs from original MGM fence poles. The tennis courts are now built in this corner of the former backlot.

This picture from MGM’s Art Department is amazing. Baldwin Hills Oil Fields, Standard Oil owned this area back then, and those wonderful old derricks stand out. Oil production preceded film production starting in 1924. Oil is still being pumped out of the ground here. Filming stopped as clocks hit …1970. Oil and film combine on this backlot production filmed next to the fake rock formation set. This castle was removed before I had a chance to actually see it in person. The Fake Rocks was the first set we would hide in, this was the section we snuck in at. A four foot, chain link, barb wire topped fence was your physical barrier. We could see inside clearly and could be seen just as clear. Those rocks have platforms to stand on or kneel.

Palm trees were mostly fabricated that you see in the background. Made of molding and composite materials. They get moved around where needed. There was a storage area where they laid horizontally. They were moved by mobile cranes. Notice in this exact angle above, none exist…They are props in an adult toy chest.

In fact, we have all kinds of ships, from the Bounty, to Tom Sawyer canoes

So, put on your tennis shoes, and grab your fishing pole, we got a huge lake inside…are you coming?

Everything you could possibly imagine has taken place right here…follow me!

Written and lived by Donnie Norden…

Donnie here...Checkout my other WordPress site, The Glamour Tram. Real life stories from behind the wheel of of this 16 tire contraption. If you rode a tram in the 80’s, I may have been your driver. Please Subscribe on WordPress…All Aboard–The Glamour Tram…

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