One of the best parts of any road trip, are the unplanned stops. We were driving through the dusty town of Lone Pine, when we happened upon The Museum of Western Film History. This cozy gem of a museum has a treasure trove of film memorabilia from the decades of filming done in the area, primarily with westerns during the “Golden Age of Hollywood.” Entrance was a suggested donation of five dollars and it was practically empty during our hour-long visit.
Lone Pine, with its rolling hills and desert landscape, has a rich history of being used as the backdrop for Westerns. Some of the biggest Hollywood stars, like John Wayne, Gene Autry, and Kirk Douglas have filmed movies in the area. The first exhibits that we encountered involved filming equipment.
I had not heard of many of the the movies filmed in Lone Pine, but the posters are fabulous. I wish we still created movie posters with a flair for the dramatic!
I was delighted to see so many nods to my favorite horse: Trigger!
A bit of back story, when I was in elementary school, my grandparents moved to Victorville, California and I would spend summers visiting them. There wasn’t much to do in the high desert community of Victorville. We went to the Victor Valley Mall and to Scandia, the local mini-golf/fun center. But hands down, the best attraction in Victorville was The Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum.
Even from a young age, I’ve loved museums. All museums. Truly, I can find an interest in pretty much anything, but I reserve a special level of affection for museums that cater to the off-beat or slightly tacky. OMG…The Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum was a weird and wonderful place.
It was absolutely filled with taxidermy, including Roger’s beloved horse and co-star, Trigger. Also “stuffed” was their dog, Bullet, and Evan’s horse, Buttermilk, along with a menagerie of non-celebrity dead pets. The taxidermy was overwhelming, but even more bizarre was the sheer volume of crap housed in the museum. It was as if every single possession; meaningful and meaningless, from the entirety of their lives was on display. Zero filter. It was amazing.
I used to beg my grandparents to take me to the museum and often, we would see Roy Rogers himself. I shook his hand! I was born in the late 70’s, so Roy Roger’s was culturally from a different generation, but I was obsessed with his museum. I didn’t much care who he was, just that his museum was endlessly fascinating. Unfortunately, the museum closed in Victorville and was moved to Branson, Missouri, where is closed for good in 2009. I would have loved to have experienced the museum as an adult to see how it held up against my childhood memories.
Here is some of the Rogers and Trigger memorabilia at The Museum of Western Film History.
We saw fancy saddles, 1950’s era children’s toys, and general old-west stuff.
And this…I’m still scratching my head, trying to figure it out! Thoughts?
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
The biggest surprise was the small section dedicated to Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 film, Django Unchained. The museum had Dr. King Schultz’s dentist wagon, used as a cover by Christoph Waltz’s character in the film.
A few non-western films shot in or near Lone Pine, including mega-hits Iron Man and Star Wars.
And finally, the best of the Kevin Bacon films: Tremors!!! Tremors was one of my favorite childhood movies. So silly and so much fun.
if you’re traveling through Lone Pine, The Museum of Western Film History is worth a quick visit. Growing up near Hollywood, we always imagine that everything is filmed on the backlots, but this is a great reminder that many of California’s natural settings have also been used to create movie magic.