Despite Hollywood’s historical dominance, a considerable number of production hubs have always thrived in places other than Southern California. Whether they offered lucrative tax credits, diverse locations or spacious studio accommodations, over time they proved that making movies was indeed a far-flung enterprise.
A similar situation existed with regard to many of the companies that manufactured the tools of the trade. During a recent dive into the American Cinematographer archive, I started to notice the ads placed by the industry’s supporters throughout the ’40’s, ’50’s and ’60’s. The number and diversity of goods and services on display were impressive, but even more interesting was that they conducted their business so far from Los Angeles.
Enjoy the retro vibe as you peruse the samples below. They indicate that a lot more was happening in more places than you’d imagine. With the digital democratization of the filmmaking process firmly in place, I suspect the trend continues today more vigorously, though perhaps just as quietly as in the past.
Detroit, MI – 1946
Minneapolis, MN – 1949
Davenport, IA – 1946
Toledo, OH – 1953
Skokie, IL – 1957
Waltham, MA – 1963
St. Louis, MO – 1964
Colorado Springs, CO – 1964
Yuma, AZ – 1965
Chalfont, PA – 1968
There was a brief period around 1970 where some ads would be considered politically incorrect today, a few involving women in bikinis promoting equipment…
David – I noticed quite a few of those. Perhaps fodder for a future post…
Old Tucson in Arizona comes to mind as a motion picture studio outside of Southern
California. Its proximity to Saguaro National Park made it an ideal location for
western movies, John Wayne filmed four movies there. Others such as
Paul Newman, Clint Eastwood, and Jimmy Stewart also made western
movies at the studio.. Movies filmed there included Gunfight at the OK
Corral, Rio Bravo, and Tombstone to name a few. Its relative close proximity
to Los Angeles made it an ideal location for shuttling crews and actors. Unfortunately a fire in 1995
destroyed a great majority of the studio, costumes, and memorabilia.
You always know a western movie was filmed there because the same mountain shows up in the background.