Bronson Canyon, or Bronson Caves, is a section of

Griffith Park Griffith Park is a large municipal park at the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains, in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The park includes popular attractions such as the Los Angeles Zoo, the Autry Museum of the Amer ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

that has become known as a

filming location A filming location is a place where some or all of a film or television series is produced, instead of or in addition to using sets constructed on a movie studio backlot or soundstage. In filmmaking, a location is any place where a film crew wi ...

for many

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

s and

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

, especially

Westerns The Western is a genre of fiction typically set in the American frontier (commonly referred to as the "Old West" or the "Wild West") between the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the closing of the frontier in 1890, and commonly associated wit ...

and

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

, from the early days of motion pictures to the present.

Location and history

Bronson Canyon is located in the southwest section of

near the north end of Canyon Drive, which is an extension of Bronson Avenue. In 1903, the Union Rock Company founded a

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mining, open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock (geology), rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some juri ...

, originally named Brush Canyon, for excavation of crushed rock used in the construction of city streets–carried out of the quarry by electric train on the Brush Canyon Line. The quarry ceased operation in the late 1920s, leaving the caves behind. The caves became known as the Bronson Caves after the nearby avenue and a hill of that name, giving the area its more popular name of Bronson Canyon. The same street may have indirectly provided the stage name for actor

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. He was known for his roles in action films and his "granite features and brawny physique". Bronson was born into extreme poverty in ...

, as the former Charles Buchinsky is believed to have chosen that name in 1954 after seeing it on a street sign in Hollywood. The craggy quarry remains are pockmarked by what appear to be cave openings, and therefore create an ideal backdrop for filming scenes meant to take place in a lonely southwestern wilderness. Scenes of the main cave entrance are normally filmed in a manner that shows the entrance at an angle because the cave is actually a very short tunnel through the hill, with the rear opening easily visible in a direct shot. The most well-known appearance of the tunnel entrance is likely its use as the entrance to the

Batcave The Batcave is a subterranean location appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is the headquarters of the superhero Batman, whose secret identity is Bruce Wayne and his partners, consisting of caves beneath his personal r ...

in the 1966–68 ''

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

'' television series."Supermobile" '' Face Off'', Season 3, Episode 5. Syfy, September 18, 2012. Because so many films, in practically every genre, have had scenes filmed there over the last 100 years, the impression of a wide mountainous area has been created in film viewers' minds. In fact the canyon is a rather small v-shaped area with the caves in the middle apex.

Media with scenes filmed or set in the canyon

Films

* '' Lightning Bryce'' (1919) * ''

Riders of the Purple Sage ''Riders of the Purple Sage'' is a Western novel by Zane Grey, first published by Harper & Brothers in 1912. Considered by scholars to have played a significant role in shaping the formula of the popular Western genre, the novel has been calle ...

'' (1925) * '' The Lightning Warrior'' (1931) * '' The Hurricane Express'' (1932) * ''

I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang ''I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang'' is a 1932 American pre-Code crime tragedy film directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Paul Muni as a convicted man on a chain gang who escapes to Chicago. It was released on November 10, 1932. The film r ...

'' (1932) * '' White Zombie'' (1932) * '' Sagebrush Trail'' (1933) * ''

The Three Musketeers ''The Three Musketeers'' () is a French historical adventure novel written and published in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is the first of the author's three d'Artagnan Romances. As with some of his other works, he wrote it in col ...

'' (1933) * '' The Vampire Bat'' (1933) * '' Mystery Mountain'' (1934) * ''

The Phantom Empire ''The Phantom Empire'' is a 1935 American Western (genre), Western serial film directed by Otto Brower and B. Reeves Eason and starring Gene Autry, Frankie Darro, and Betsy King Ross.Magers 2007, p. 21. This 12-chapter Mascot Pictures serial ...

'' (1935) * ''

Flash Gordon Flash Gordon is the protagonist of a space adventure comic strip created and originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by, and created to compete with, the already established ''Buck Rogers'' ...

'' (1936) * '' Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island'' (1936) * '' Zorro Rides Again'' (1937) * '' Dick Tracy Returns'' (1938) * ''

Hawk of the Wilderness ''Hawk of the Wilderness'' (1938) is a Republic Pictures, Republic movie serial based on the ''Kioga'' adventure novels written by Pulp magazine, pulp writer William L. Chester (1907–1971). Kioga was a Tarzanesque white child raised on a lost ...

'' (1938) * '' The Lone Ranger Rides Again'' (1939) * '' Adventures of Captain Marvel'' (1941) * '' Call of the Canyon'' (1942) * '' Pirates of Monterey'' (1947) * '' Silver River'' (1948) * '' Atom Man vs. Superman'' (1949) * '' Flame of Araby'' (1951) * '' Unknown World'' (1951) * ''

Carson City Carson City, officially the Carson City Consolidated Municipality, is an independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the 6th most populous city in the state. The m ...

'' (1952) * ''

Robot Monster ''Robot Monster'' (or ''Monster from Mars'')

'' (1953) * '' Captain John Smith and Pocahontas'' (1953) * '' Killers from Space'' (1954) * '' Massacre Canyon'' (1954) * '' Day the World Ended'' (1955) * '' Crashout'' (1955) * ''

Invasion of the Body Snatchers ''Invasion of the Body Snatchers'' is a 1956 American science-fiction horror film produced by Walter Wanger, directed by Don Siegel, and starring Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter. The black-and-white film was shot in 2.00:1 Superscope and in t ...

'' (1956) * ''

The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in a ...

'' (1956) * '' It Conquered the World'' (1956) * ''

The Searchers ''The Searchers'' is a 1956 American epic Western film directed by John Ford and written by Frank S. Nugent, based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May. It is set during the Texas–Indian wars, and stars John Wayne as a middle-aged Civil War v ...

'' (1956) * ''

Men in War ''Men in War'' is a 1957 black-and-white American war film about the Korean War directed by Anthony Mann and starring Robert Ryan and Aldo Ray as the leaders of a small detachment of American soldiers cut off and desperately trying to rejoin th ...

'' (1957) * '' The Brain from Planet Arous'' (1957) * '' The Cyclops'' (1957) * '' Attack of the Crab Monsters'' (1957) * '' The Bride and the Beast'' (1958) * '' Earth vs. the Spider'' (1958) * '' Monster from Green Hell'' (1958) * '' The Return of Dracula'' (1958) * '' Teenage Caveman'' (1958) * '' Night of the Blood Beast'' (1958) * '' The Jayhawkers!'' (1959) * '' Invisible Invaders'' (1959) * '' Teenagers from Outer Space'' (1959) * '' The Cape Canaveral Monsters'' (1960) * ''

Eegah ''Eegah'' (sometimes stylized as ''Eegah!'' and also known as ''Eegah: The Name Written in Blood'') is a 1962 American horror film directed by Arch Hall Sr. (as Nicholas Merriwether) and starring Arch Hall Jr., Marilyn Manning and Richard Kiel ...

'' (1962) * '' Invasion of the Star Creatures'' (1962) * '' The Magic Sword'' (1962) * ''

Ride the High Country ''Ride the High Country'' (released internationally as ''Guns in the Afternoon'') is a 1962 American CinemaScope Western film directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Randolph Scott, Joel McCrea, and Mariette Hartley. The supporting cast includes ...

'' (1962) * '' The Gun Hawk'' (1963) * '' They Saved Hitler's Brain'' (''Madmen of Mandoras'') (1963) * '' The Human Duplicators'' (1965) * '' Batman: The Movie'' (1966) * ''

Mondo Bizarro ''Mondo Bizarro'' (a misspelled version of "Mondo Bizzarro", meaning "Weird World" in Italian) is the twelfth studio album by American punk rock band Ramones, released on September 1, 1992, by Radioactive Records. It is the first studio album to ...

'' (1966) * '' Flaming Frontier'' (1968) * ''

Head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

'' (1968) * '' The Mighty Gorga'' (1969) * ''

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'' (1970) * '' Octaman'' (1971) * '' Lost Horizon'' (1973) * ''

Flesh Gordon ''Flesh Gordon'' is a 1974 American superhero sex comedy feature film which is a spoof of Universal Pictures first (of three) '' Flash Gordon'' serial films from the 1930s. The film was produced by Walter R. Cichy, Bill Osco, and Howard Z ...

'' (1974) * ''

The Human Tornado ''The Human Tornado'' is a 1976 American blaxploitation film directed by Cliff Roquemore. The film is a sequel to ''Dolemite''. In the film, a sheriff's wife has an extramarital affair with Dolemite. Her husband orders one of his subordinates ...

'' (1976) * '' The Choirboys'' (1977) * '' The White Buffalo'' (1977) * '' Raise the Titanic'' (1980) * '' The Return'' (1980) * '' The Legend of the Lone Ranger'' (1981) * ''

The Sword and the Sorcerer ''The Sword and the Sorcerer'' is a 1982 American sword and sorcery fantasy film co-written and directed by Albert Pyun, and starring Lee Horsley, Kathleen Beller, Simon MacCorkindale, George Maharis, Richard Lynch, and Richard Moll. The plot ...

'' (1982) * '' Dreamscape'' (1984) * '' The Evil That Men Do'' (1984) * '' Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives'' (1986) * '' Thrashin''' (1986) * '' Munchies'' (1987) * '' Blood Diner'' (1987) * '' The Wizard of Speed and Time'' (1989) * '' Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country'' (1991) * '' The Roller Blade Seven'' (1991) * ''

Army of Darkness ''Army of Darkness'' is a 1992 American dark fantasy comedy film directed, co-written, and co-edited by Sam Raimi. The film is the third installment in the Evil Dead, ''Evil Dead'' film series and the sequel to ''Evil Dead II'' (1987). Starring ...

'' (1992) * '' Guns of El Chupacabra'' (1997) * ''

La Cucaracha La Cucaracha (, "The Cockroach") is a popular folk song about a cockroach who cannot walk. The song's origins are Spanish, but it became popular in the 1910s during the Mexican Revolution. The modern song has been adapted using the Mexican genr ...

'' (1998) * ''

George of the Jungle ''George of the Jungle'' is an American animated television series produced and created by Jay Ward and Bill Scott, who also created '' The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends''. The character George was inspired by the story of ...

'' (1997) * ''

The End of Violence ''The End of Violence'' is a 1997 American drama film by the German director Wim Wenders. The film's cast includes Bill Pullman, Andie MacDowell, Gabriel Byrne, Traci Lind, Rosalind Chao, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Udo Kier, and Loren Dean, among ...

'' (1997) * ''

The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra ''The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra'' is a 2001 American independent science-fiction parody film directed by Larry Blamire. The film is a spoof of B movies released during the 1950s. The film was videotaped on a budget of less than US$100,000, and ...

'' (2001) * ''

Cabin Fever Cabin fever is the distressing irritability or restlessness experienced when a person, or group, is stuck at an isolated location or in confined quarters for an extended time. A person may be referred to as stir-crazy, derived from the use of ''s ...

'' (2002) * ''

Fangs A fang is a long, pointed tooth. In mammals, a fang is a modified maxillary tooth, used for biting and tearing flesh. In snakes, it is a specialized tooth that is associated with a venom gland (see snake venom). Spiders also have external Chelic ...

'' (2002) * ''

The Scorpion King ''The Scorpion King'' is a 2002 action adventure film directed by Chuck Russell. The film stars Dwayne Johnson (credited as The Rock) as the lead, with Steven Brand, Kelly Hu, Grant Heslov, and Michael Clarke Duncan in supporting roles. It ...

'' (2002) * '' Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt'' (2003) * '' Tremors 4: The Legend Begins'' (2004) * '' Vampire Blvd.'' (2004) * '' Diabolical Tales'' (2007) * '' D-War'' (2007) * '' Princess of Mars'' (2009) * '' Mega Python vs. Gatoroid'' (2010) * ''

Mega Shark Versus Crocosaurus ''Mega Shark Versus Crocosaurus'' is a 2010 disaster film, disaster horror film by The Asylum, released on December 21, 2010, in the United States. The film stars Jaleel White, Gary Stretch, Robert Picardo, Dylan Vox, Hannah Cowley (artist), Hannah ...

'' (2010) * ''

The Whisperer in Darkness ''The Whisperer in Darkness'' is a 26,000-word novella by American writer H. P. Lovecraft. Written February–September 1930, it was first published in ''Weird Tales'', August 1931. Similar to '' The Colour Out of Space'' (1927), it is a blen ...

'' (2011) * '' Baseball's Last Hero: 21 Clemente Stories'' (2013) * '' B.C. Butcher'' (2016) * ''

Hail, Caesar! ''Hail, Caesar!'' is a 2016 black comedy mystery film written, produced, edited, and directed by the brothers Joel and Ethan Coen. An American-British co-production, the film stars Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Alden Ehrenreich, Ralph Fiennes, Jo ...

'' (2016) * '' Time Trap'' (2017) * '' Under the Silver Lake'' (2018) * ''

Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

'' (2020)

TV series

* ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American Action television, action television series that ran on NBC from January 23, 1983, to March 8, 1987, about a fictional team of former United States Army Special Forces who work as mercenaries while on the run from ...

'' * ''

The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. ''The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.'', often referred to as just ''Brisco'' or ''Brisco County'', is an American weird western television series created by Jeffrey Boam and Carlton Cuse. It ran for 27 episodes on Fox from August 27, 199 ...

'' * '' The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin'' * ''

Alias Smith and Jones ''Alias Smith and Jones'' is an American Western television series that originally aired on ABC from January 1971 to January 1973. The show initially starred Pete Duel (and, after Duel's death, Roger Davis) as Hannibal Heyes and Ben Murphy ...

'' * ''

Bat Masterson Bartholemew William Barclay "Bat" Masterson (November 26, 1853 – October 25, 1921) was a U.S. Army scout, lawman, professional gambler, and journalist known for his exploits in the late 19th and early 20th-century American Old West. He was bo ...

'' * ''

Beauty and the Geek ''Beauty and the Geek'' is a reality television franchise that first aired in the United States. The show follows groups of "Beauties" (people — almost always women — who rely on their attractiveness and outgoing personalities but typicall ...

'' * ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 431 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running Western, the second-longest-running Western series on ...

'' * ''

Cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

'' ("The Set Up" E92) * ''

Combat! ''Combat!'' is an American television drama that originally aired on ABC from 1962 until 1967. The exclamation point in ''Combat!'' was depicted on-screen as a stylized bayonet. The show covered the grim lives of a squad of American soldiers ...

'' * ''

Crazy like a fox Insanity, madness, lunacy, and craziness are behaviors caused by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity can manifest as violations of societal norms, including a person or persons becoming a danger to themselves or to other ...

'' ("fox in wonderland") * ''

The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy television series created by Gy Waldron that aired on CBS from January 26, 1979, to February 8, 1985, with a total of seven seasons consisting of List of The Dukes of Hazzard episodes, 147 ...

'' ("Hazzard Connection") * ''

Falcon Crest ''Falcon Crest'' is an American prime time television soap opera created by Earl Hamner Jr. that aired for nine seasons on CBS from December 4, 1981, to May 17, 1990. The series revolves around the feuding factions of the wealthy Gioberti/Cha ...

'' * ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centered on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central charact ...

'' * ''

Have Gun – Will Travel ''Have Gun – Will Travel'' is an American Westerns on television, Western television series that was produced and originally broadcast by CBS on both television and radio from 1957 through 1963. The television version of the series starring Ri ...

'' * '' Iron Horse'' ("The Man from New Chicago" S01E10) * '' The Last Ship'' * ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books comprise a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adulthood in the Midwestern United States, Americ ...

'' * ''

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ''Mighty Power Rangers'' (''MMPR'') is an American superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, and became a 1990s popular culture, ...

'' * '' Mission: Impossible'' (1960s) * ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

'' (1980s) * ''

The Monkees The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...

'' * '' The Old Man'' * '' The Outer Limits'' (1960s) * ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and four short stories, all of which involve a ...

'' (1960s) * ''

Rawhide Rawhide may refer to: *Rawhide (material), a hide or animal skin that has not been tanned * Whip made from rawhide Entertainment * ''Rawhide'' (1926 film), a Western directed by Richard Thorpe * ''Rawhide'' (1938 film), a Western starring baseball ...

'' * '' Salute Your Shorts'' ("Clan of the Cavegirls" S02E11) * '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' * '' Star Trek: Enterprise'' * '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' * '' Star Trek: The Original Series'' * '' Star Trek: Voyager'' * ''

Tombstone Territory ''Tombstone Territory'' is an American Western television series starring Pat Conway and Richard Eastham. The first two seasons aired on ABC from 1957 to 1959. The first season was sponsored by Bristol-Myers (consumer products) and the seco ...

'' * ''

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'' * '' V'' * '' The Virginian'' * ''

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'' ("Night of the Returning Dead" S02E05) * ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

Novels

* '' Lost Light'' by

Michael Connelly Michael Joseph Connelly (born July 21, 1956) is an American author of Detective fiction, detective novels and other crime fiction, notably those featuring Los Angeles Police Department, LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, Hieronymus "Harry" Bosch and cr ...

References

External links

Bronson Canyon in the Movies
{{Geographic Location , Center = Bronson Canyon , North =

- , Northeast =

, East =

, Southeast =

, Southwest =

Hollywood Hills The Hollywood Hills is a residential neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. It borders Studio City, Universal City and Burbank on the north, Griffith Park on the north and east, Los Feliz on the southeast, Hollyw ...

, South =

, West = Hollywood Reservoir , Northwest =

Canyons and gorges of California Landmarks in Los Angeles Griffith Park Landforms of Los Angeles County, California

Location and history

Media with scenes filmed or set in the canyon

Films

TV series

Novels

See also

References

External links