Columbia Ranch

Columbia Ranch is located in Burbank, California and is now called Warner Ranch (owned and operated by Warner Bros. Studios).

It was the backdrop for many of the Columbia Pictures movies and Screen Gems television shows, including Dennis the Menace, The Donna Reed Show, High Noon, The Wild One, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, The Three Stooges, The Monkees, Bewitched, Here Come the Brides, The Partridge Family and Hazel, just to name of a few.

The Ranch started in 1934, as a 40-acre (160,000 m²) plot purchased by Harry Cohn, head of Columbia Pictures Corporation. The Studio, with its headquarters located at Sunset & Gower, in Hollywood, made numerous movies, but had to rent neighboring movie studios 'Back-lots' for outdoor shooting due to the lack of space at the Sunset lot. By the end of 1934 this problem was solved as Columbia had acquired a 40-acre (160,000 m²) lot on the other side of the Hollywood Hills in Burbank, at the corner of Hollywood Way and Oak Street, on what is said to have been the Burbank Motion Pictures Stables. It was the perfect "Back-Lot" as it was still rural enough to be landscaped as the studio needed it to be.

A view of Brownstone Street on the former Columbia Ranch, Burbank.

From the start, Columbia Pictures used the Ranch as a backdrop for almost all their outdoor scenes required. Many serials such as the original "Batman", "Superman", "Captain Midnight", "Blondie" and "The Three Stooges" were filmed right there on the lot.

In the 1960s, the Ranch was booming with business. Not only were movies being filmed on a regular basis, but with the new dawn of Television sets in almost every home by now, more and more shows were being shot on the Ranch as well. Shows like "Father Knows Best", The Donna Reed Show", "Dennis the Menace", "Here Come The Brides", "Hazel", "The Farmers Daughter", "Our Man Higgins", "Gidget", "Bewitched", "I Dream of Jeannie", "The Flying Nun", "The Monkees", "Route 66" and many others were part of the daily order at the Ranch.

In 1970, a catastrophic fire destroyed a quarter of the lot. Half of the Western set, the Colonial/European set and parts of Blondie street burned down, including Blondie house itself. Although quickly rebuilt, another fire in April, in the same area, and another fire in August of that year, destroyed much of what was original to the Ranch.

By mid 1971, Columbia and Warner Bros studios decided to combine their forces in order to combat the financial troubles either one encountered and formed a merger under the name The Burbank Studios. In doing so, the Ranch became a true "Back-back Lot" as Warner Bros already had a massive backlot.

In 1990, Columbia Pictures separated itself from Warner Bros, and left Burbank, leaving the Ranch completely. Warner Bros. gained ownership of the lot and renamed it Warner Ranch. The ranch, which now contains additional soundstages, is still in active use. Its permanent fountain was seen in the opening credits of Friends.

For a complete overview and more detailed explanation, please go to The Unofficial Columbia Ranch site

Coordinates: 34°09′32″N 118°20′44″W / 34.15889°N 118.34556°W / 34.15889; -118.34556