Even though we all know that Southern California is home to Hollywood, the land of film and television, it's still an unexpected treat to see our beautiful state show up on the big screen. Take a look at these pictures and see if you recognize the SoCal locations that appeared in these popular movies.
1. The Hotel Del appeared in the 1959 film "Some Like It Hot." Although the location of the hotel in the movie was Miami Beach, it was actually shot right here in Coronado in SoCal.
2. The distant planet in the 1980s movie "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" isn't that distant after all. It was actually shot about 3 hours from Los Angeles at the Trona Pinnacles in the Mojave Desert.
4. This scene in the movie "Grease" was shot in Venice at Venice High School. Apparently some of the lunch tables that appeared in this movie are still there today. How cool!
5. It may be a no-brainer that "Beverly Hills Cop" was shot in Beverly Hills. What you may not know is that the police station in the movie isn't the actual Beverly Hills police station -- it's the building for Beverly Hills City Hall.
7. Do you recognize this Southern California high school that was filmed in the movie "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"? If you guessed Van Nuys High School you would be correct.
8. The John Hughes flick "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" takes place in Chicago, but the house that was used for the exterior shot of Bueller's home was shot right here in SoCal in Long Beach. Wanna drive by? You can find it at 4160 Country Club Drive.
9. Do you recognize this fountain from the movie "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" with Nick Nolte? This was filmed on Santa Monica Boulevard in Beverly Hills.
10. This house in Glendale, located at 727 W Kenneth Road, was used as the exterior shot for the home of Clark Griswold's boss in "Christmas Vacation." Do you recognize this from the movie? It sure looks a little different covered in Hollywood snow.
I just love the magic of movies! Whether you are a movie buff or not, it's kind of cool to see these Southern California locations show up on the big screen. Did you recognize any of these spots? Any big surprises?
When you think about life in Northern California, you might think of Mediterranean weather, healthy eating, gorgeous sandy beaches, or sky-high Redwood forests – and you’d be right. But we’re not just a bunch of pretty faces. We’re dang smart, too. There were a whole bunch of Northern California inventions, some right here in San Francisco, that might even surprise you. We hate to brag about these inventions from NorCal, but guess what, we’re going to!
Eleven-year-old Frank Epperson invented popsicles in 1905. He left fruit juice out overnight on a very cold night with a stirrer in it at home in San Francisco. Epperson later got a patent on his frozen treats, which were originally called Epsicle. He was quite the frozen-over achiever and went on to invent the twin popsicle, Fudgsicle, Creamsicle and Dreamsicle.
Watch this fun video explaining the history of the popsicle from The History of Stuff:
Tech giant Apple Inc. was founded by the late Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne in April 1976 in Cupertino. The company is the largest publicly traded corporation in the world.
Since we're already talking about Apple, lets share a few facts about another Apple product-: the iPhone. Released June 29, 2007, this phone has over 101 million users in the U.S. alone and over 700 million users worldwide. And, it all began in Northern California!
Levi Strauss and Company was founded in 1853 and began making blue jeans in San Francisco. Strauss designed the first pair of jeans by stitching canvas together to help withstand the wear and tear Gold Rush prospectors put their clothes through.
If you use one of these on your car or house windows, or even in your shower, you have Ettore Steccone from Oakland to thank. The window cleaning aid was invented in 1936 by Italian immigrant and professional window cleaner. His original family-owned factory, Ettore Products Co., is still in operation near the Oakland International Airport.
John Dolbeer (March 12, 1827 – August 17, 1902) was a partner in the Dolbeer & Carson Lumber Co., one of the early major Humboldt County, California lumber operations based in Eureka. While in that business, he invented the logging engine, more commonly known as the steam donkey or donkey engine. This invaluable equipment, especially with regard to difficult terrain and very large trees, revolutionized 19th century logging so significantly that variations of the engine were still used well into the 20th Century.
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Learn more about the Steam Donkey Engine and fun facts about California in this video from CR Museum:
Hugh Bradner, a physicist at the University of California Berkeley, created the first wetsuit in 1952. His invention took awhile to catch on and others created their own brands, but in the 1990s, research confirmed Brander was the inventor of the wetsuit. Whew...
Oakland Coliseum in 1981 was the birthplace of the very first full-stadium wave. It was during a sold out game between the Oakland A's and the New York Yankees. You know you're impressed.
The famous ice cream brand was founded in 1928 in Oakland by William Dreyer and Joseph Edy. Mr. Dreyer was the ice cream maker and Mr. Edy was a candy maker and it was a match made in heaven. Together, in 1929 they invented Rocky Road ice cream.
An Oakland Tribune sports editor, 2 Oakland Raiders employees and a sports reporter returned from a 3-week East Coast road trip with the Raiders in 1962. Following the trip, they started the weekly Greater Oakland Professional Pigskin Prognosticators League -- leading the way for Fantasy Football -- at King's X bar, which is now the Kona Club.
Charles Ginsburg, who had a background in radio engineering, is credited with inventing the first videotape recorder. Born in San Francisco in 1920, he received his bachelor's degree from San Jose State University. He worked as an engineer at AM-radio station KQW (now KCBS). He then joined Ampex in 1951, where he led the group that invented the videotape recorder. This photo here is from an early 80s model and was used at a local TV station. We've come a long way, baby!
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Learn more about the team that invented the video tape recorder in this video from Richard Arsenault:
Perhaps one of the classiest Northern California inventions and one of the most famous drinks in the world. Legend has it that the Martini was originally called the Martinez, after the city of Martinez in the Bay Area. It was the popular drink in the early 1860s at the Occidental Hotel in San Francisco before taking a ferry over to Martinez.
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Admit it. You're impressed by these Northern California inventions.
We could go on and on and on about all the things to come from this golden part of our state. But, hey, we have a lot of class. So, we're going to let you share below all the things YOU know got their start here. Have you heard about interesting things invented in San Francisco?
Have you ever wondered, "Where was I Know What You Did Last Summer filmed?" Here’s some movie trivia for you: The 1997 slasher movie, I Know What You Did Last Summer, was partially filmed in Bodega Bay and surrounding coastal areas. This rocky and often foggy coastline is the perfect backdrop for an action-packed horror movie.
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The teen scream thriller from the 90s, I Know What You Did Last Summer, was filmed in California and North Carolina. The Northern California scenes were filmed in Bodega Bay.
The picturesque and often foggy coastal town is a little over an hour north of San Francisco. Bodega Bay has a population of around 1,000 people. Northern Californians love this area for its harbor, seafood restaurants, and rocky beaches.
Located on the Sonoma Coast, this small town was also the filming location for several other major movies. Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds was filmed in Bodega Bay.
The famous ending scene from The Goonies was filmed on Goat Rock Beach in Bodega Bay.
This R-rated movie tells the story of four teens who get into a fatal accident on a dark road and decide to dump their victim’s body into the sea. Exactly one year later their victim returns with revenge on his mind.
The opening scene when the car accident occurs takes place in Jenner, just 20 minutes north of Bodega Bay. The Kolmer Gulch ravine, north of Jenner, is another location where the opening scenes were filmed.
In addition to Bodega Bay, other California film locations include Nick’s Cove in Marshall, Fort Ross, Carmet, Timber Grove, Campbell Cove, Goat Rock Beach, and Portuguese Beach.
This film kicked off the I Know What You Did Last Summer franchise and was followed by two other films: I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer. Several members of the original I Know What You Did Last Summer cast appeared in the first sequel.
Although Southern California is home to the movie industry, Northern California has been the setting for a number of movies and television shows. The most famous movies filmed in Northern California are Jurassic Park II and Return of the Jedi.
In addition to those blockbusters, other popular movies have been shot in Northern California: Mrs. Doubtfire was shot in San Francisco; Pollyanna was shot in Santa Rosa; and parts of The Parent Trap with Lindsay Lohan were filmed in Napa Valley.
So, if you ever wondered, "Where was I Know What You Did Last Summer filmed?" now you know. Have you visited the enchanting town of Bodega Bay or any of these other filming locations? Tell us in the comments.
How about a getaway to Bodega Bay? Check out the list of the town's available vacation rentals on Vrbo and book your stay!
