The Master (2012)

July 24, 2018July 24, 2026 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2012 film “The Master” was shot primarily around Northern California, with a few scenes also being filmed in Southern California, Hawaii and Nevada. Early in the film, Freddie Quell, played by Joaquin Phoenix, is seen serving in the military, stationed somewhere in Hawaii. These scenes were filmed at Papa‘Iloa Beach on the North Shore of Oahu, as identified by Reel News Hawaii.

LOCATION: Papa‘Iloa Beach, Haleiwa, HI 96712

Here is another photo of the same location, kindly provided to us by Christian Hernandez at Boogie Sights.

Freddie is seen working aboard a Navy vessel. These interior scenes were filmed aboard the USS Hornet in Alameda. Public tours are available for those interested. There is actually an exterior shot of the aircraft carrier, but only in the “Back Beyond” deleted scenes and outtakes feature. These photos of the USS Hornet were also provided to us by Christian Hernandez at Boogie Sights.

LOCATION: USS Hornet – Sea, Air and Space Museum, 707 W Hornet Ave, Alameda, CA 94501

Freddie meets Lancaster Dodd, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, as he sneaks aboard Dodd’s yacht as a stowaway. That yacht is the USS Potomac, which is docked in Oakland, California. The boat is most famous for having once belonged to former U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

LOCATION: 540 Water St, Oakland, CA 94607

A view of the back of the yacht. The production added a canopy to the upper deck, where guests were seen dancing when Freddie first approaches.

Another, wider view of the USS Potomac, where it regularly docks.

There are tours available inside the USS Potomac, where you can see additional interiors featured in the film. This area is where Lancaster delivers a speech after his daughter’s wedding. While the majority of the tour is focused on Franklin Roosevelt and the history of the yacht, they do mention this film.

This bar area, which is only seen briefly in the background of a couple shots, was added by the production. The association which owns the yacht liked it and decided to keep it after the production ended.

Freddie is seen visiting his sweetheart, Doris, at this house in Crockett, California. The house has since received a paint job.

LOCATION: 619 Winslow St, Crockett, CA 94525

A full view of the home, though it is never seen from this angle in the film. It sits perched on a steep hilltop of a very narrow, one way road overlooking a lake.

Freddie and Doris sit on this park bench. These park shots are provided courtesy of Christian Hernandez at Boogie Sights, who also identified the location. It can be found almost directly across the street from the Lancaster Dodd house, past the concrete structures and to the left. We’ve provided GPS coordinates below.

LOCATION: Alden Park, 8th St, Vallejo, CA 94592 (GPS coordinates: 38°05’51.6″N, 122°16’15.4″W)

Supposedly located in Philadelphia, the home of Helen Sullivan, played by Luara Dern, can found on Mare Island in Vallejo, California. The property, known as the Captain’s Mansion, is a former event space and can be a bit tricky to find. The first challenge is that many houses spanning several blocks on this street look almost identical and are used for similar purposes. There are subtle differences from house to house, however, be it minor architectural variations, trees and shrubs, views in the background, etc. To located this house, make sure you arrive at the intersection of Walnut Ave and 8th St on Mare Island and you’ll see the house, which has the number “822” on the front steps.

LOCATION: 1075 Walnut Ave, Vallejo, CA 94592 (near Walnut Ave and 8th St, GPS coordinates: 38°05’49.9″N, 122°16’18.2″W)

The theater where Freddy and Clark, played by Rami Malek, hand out flyers in front of the ticket booth is the Los Angeles Theatre (615 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90014) in Downtown L.A.

The Causes’s first congress, celebrating the release of Lancaster Dodd’s second book, was supposedly located in Phoenix, Arizona. The building is actually located in Norwalk, California. The same street has appeared in many films, such as “Another Day In Paradise” and “Frailty.” In some of the teaser trailers, alternate shots can be seen of some of the buildings across the street.

LOCATION: 12124 Front St, Norwalk, CA 90650

Fantasy Island

July 19, 2018August 20, 2023 / filmoblivion / 3 Comments

The famous cottage featured in the intro to the 1970s television series “Fantasy Island,” while set on a fictional island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, can actually be found in Arcadia, California. Ricardo Montalban walks down the front steps, while Hervé Villechaize famously rings from the bell tower. The house is known as the Queen Anne Cottage and can be found inside the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden. While the house is perched beside a lake, it’s nowhere near any island. The same property was featured in the film “Meet the Fockers.”

LOCATION: 301 N Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007

A closer look at the bell tower, where Tatoo famously shouted, “The plane! The plane!”

Liar Liar (1997)

July 12, 2018February 21, 2025 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

The house from the 1997 Jim Carrey film “Liar Liar” can be found in South Pasadena, California. It’s actually located right next door to the house from “Space Jam.” It’s also on the same street as a scene in the original “Halloween” film, where Laurie and Lynda are walking home from school and being followed by a strange figure in a car.

LOCATION: 1004 Highland St, South Pasadena, CA 91030

Fletcher Reede, played by Jim Carrey, has a court case as the Los Angeles City Hall. The iconic building has been featured in endless films, such as “L.A. Confidential,” “Ray,” “The Nice Guys,” “Fracture,” “Gangster Squad,” “Impulse,” “Blind Rage,” “Big Man on Campus” and “L.A. Bounty,” as well as such TV series as “American Crime Story.”

LOCATION: 200 N Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Boyz N The Hood (1991)

July 6, 2018January 24, 2024 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

The house where Furious Styles, played by Laurence Fishburne, and his son Tre, played by Cuba Gooding Jr., live in the 1991 film “Boyz N The Hood” can be found in Los Angeles, California. The same home appears in the spoof film “Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood.”

LOCATION: 5918 Cimarron St, Los Angeles, CA 90047

Boy Meets World

June 9, 2018December 13, 2022 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

While set in Philadelphia, the house from the TV series “Boy Meets World” can actually be found in Studio City, California. The house is obscured by a lot of greens and overgrowth along fencing surrounding the property and it’s not easily visible from the street. This is the view if you make your way up to the front gate.

LOCATION: 4196 Colfax Ave, Studio City, CA 91604

The high school seen in the show is John Marshall High School. A regular location in film and television, it has also appeared in such movies as “Rebel Without A Cause,” “A Nightmare On Elm Street,” “Pretty In Pink,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Bachelor Party,” “Grosse Pointe Blank,” “Grease” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” as well as such TV shows as “Growing Pains,” “Boston Public” and many more. It was even used in the Van Halen music video for “Hot For Teacher.”

LOCATION: 3939 Tracy St, Los Angeles, CA 90027

Catch Me If You Can (2002)

May 23, 2018June 18, 2026 / filmoblivion / 2 Comments

In Steven Spielberg’s “Catch Me If You Can,” Frank Abagnale Jr., played by Leonardo DiCaprio, lives at this home early in the film. Supposedly located in New York, the real home can be found in Studio City, California. It is located next door to the house from “My Stepmother Is An Alien.”

LOCATION: 12075 Valleyheart Dr, Studio City, CA 91604

Frank and his family are forced to move into a smaller apartment at this building, which can be found in Yonkers, New York.

LOCATION: 110 Buena Vista Ave, Yonkers, NY 10701

Frank Abagnale Sr, played by Christopher Walken, reads a letter from his son as he walks into the Abagnale Stationers store, which can be found in San Pedro.

LOCATION: 421 W 6th St, San Pedro, CA 90731

After posing as an airline pilot, Frank begins forging payroll checks at the former Ambassador Hotel. The hotel was a staple of film and television, appearing in such films as “The Graduate,” “Forrest Gump,” “Seven,” “Bobby,” “True Lies,” “L.A. Story,” “True Romance,” “The Mask,” “Calendar Girl” and dozens more. The hotel has since been demolished, with only this post and statue from the original building remaining.

LOCATION: 3400 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90010 (now demolished)

Carl, played by Tom Hanks, is on the hunt for Frank, who stays at the Tropicana Motel in Hollywood. While the Tropicana was a real motel at one time, it was demolished in 1988. Instead, the Hollywood Roosevelt was used. It’s actually the rear of the Roosevelt building that is seen in the film.

LOCATION: 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028 (rear of the building on Hawthorn Ave)

Carl eats at a diner, where a waitress tips him off that the alias Frank has been using is the name of “The Flash” in the comic books, cluing him in that his suspect may be younger than he originally thought.

This was filmed at the former Quality Cafe in downtown Los Angeles. The diner was a one-time staple of films, appearing in “Seven” “Training Day,” “Ghost World,” “Another Day In Paradise,” “(500) Days Of Summer” “Million Dollar Baby,” “The Rules Of Attraction,” “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” “The Heartbreak Kid” and dozens more. However, it was not an actual restaurant open to the public. Instead it was used solely for filming. Sadly, it ceased to function as a filming location and was completely renovated in 2014. The interior of the property no longer bears any resemblance inside to how it appeared in so many films.

LOCATION: 1238 W 7th St, Los Angeles, CA 90017 (since closed and remodeled)

The Miami Airport where Frank slips past the FBI by surrounding himself with attractive flight attendants was actually filmed at the Ontario Airport in Ontario, California. This particular terminal is not in active use and has popped up in countless other films, including “Saving Mr. Banks,” “Zodiac,” “Blow,” “Argo” and many more.

LOCATION: 1940 Moore Way, Ontario, CA 91761

Another view of the same airport, depicted as the baggage claim terminal in the film.

Later in the film, Frank takes his father to an upscale restaurant, where he tells him he bought him a Cadillac. The actual location is not a restaurant at all. It’s the famous “Pompeian Room” of the Doheny Mansion, located on the campus of Mount Saint Mary’s University in Los Angeles. While the mansion does offer occasional tours to the public, some of the guides can be strict about allowing photos inside. Many films have shot at the mansion, including “The Princess Diaries,” “Drag Me To Hell,” “Flowers In The Attic,” “Spider-Man 3,” “The Three Amigos” and more.

LOCATION: 10 Chester Pl, Los Angeles, CA 90007

The bank scenes were filmed at Union Station, a train station in downtown Los Angeles. It has featured in many films as well, such as “Blade Runner,” “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Species,” “Bugsy,” “Pearl Harbor” and more.

LOCATION: 800 N Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Frank strikes up a romance with Brenda, played by Amy Adams, who brings him to the house of her father, played by Martin Sheen. Frank has to make an abrupt departure with the FBI hot on his heels. The house used in the film can be found in Pasadena. The address is on E Crary St, but the back of the house faces that direction and the perimeter is surrounded by a wall, so you won’t see much from there. The front side of the house is actually around the block on Layton St, which dead-ends into the driveway of the home. The same house has also been seen in the films “Matilda,” “Hocus Pocus,” “Scream 2” and “The Midnight Hour.” Unfortunately, the property owners have since posted no trespassing signs near the end of Ladyton St, making it much more difficult for pedestrians to see the house anymore.

LOCATION: 2186 E Crary St, Pasadena, CA 91104 (front of the home faces Ladyton St)

Frank is arrested in front of his mother’s house, which can be found in Pasadena. The same location appears in the film “Disturbia.”

LOCATION: 3077 E California Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91107

Late in the film, Frank passes this store and stops as he sees a pilot’s uniform on display. This can be found just a few buildings up from the Abagnale Stationers store seen early in the film.

LOCATION: 446 W 6th St, San Pedro, CA 90731

Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)

May 17, 2018October 28, 2022 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

The house from the 2007 action film Mr. & Mrs. Smith, starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, can be found in Pasadena, California. The same house was featured in the film “Yours, Mine & Ours.”

LOCATION: 1565 San Pasqual St, Pasadena, CA 91106

American Horror Story

May 12, 2018December 13, 2022 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

The murder house from season 1 of the TV series “American Horror Story” can be found in Los Angeles, California. The house attracts such a high volume of fans from the show that when it was sold in 2015, the new owners, who claimed they were unaware of the home’s connection to the show, sued the previous owners and their realtor for allegedly failing to divulge the house’s pop culture notoriety and the influx of visitors it would attract.

LOCATION: 1120 Westchester Pl, Los Angeles, CA 90019

Briarcliff Manor, one of the main locations of Season 2, “Asylum,” can be found in Santa Ana, California. The same building has appeared in the films “Legally Blonde” and “Catch Me If You Can.”

LOCATION: 211 W Santa Ana Blvd, Santa Ana, CA 92701

Saved By The Bell

May 6, 2018January 10, 2025 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

The original “Saved By the Bell” show taped at Sunset-Gower Studios in Hollywood, California. Those sets are long since gone, but that didn’t stop the next best thing from happening; a full blown, pop-up restaurant, inspired by the show. Recreating many of the classic sets, Saved By the Max was created with participation and support from NBC and first opened in Chicago, Illinois (1941 W North Ave, Chicago, IL 60622), where it ran for a year, before relocating to Los Angeles, California, where it is also currently slated to run for one year.

LOCATION: 7100 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90046

The restaurant is well designed, capturing many of the little details of The Max. It is a full service restaurant, serving burgers, shakes and many other foods. Occasionally cast members from the show even make appearances.

Not an actual, functioning door. In fact, even the window is not real.

The classic jukebox from the show.

And of course the arcade machines.

A DJ station for KKTY Bayside.

Some oversized heads of the cast for visitors to use for photo ops.

A look at the kitchen.

The merch area, where you can buy hoodies, t-shirts, slap bracelets and more.

Visitors can also choose to dine in Mr. Belding’s office.

Sections of the restaurant even tried to recreate portions of Bayside High.

Here we see the lockers of all of the cast. Zack, Slater, Kelly, Screech, Jessie, Lisa and even Tori.

There’s even a “Belding stinks” sticker on the bathroom door, a nice touch.

Some props and merchandise from the original show, including menus for The Max, dolls, the Saved By the Bell board game, a copy of the Bayside Breeze newspaper and much more.

There are a few locations in the real world that were used for the show, but these were limited to the TV movies, which came after the original show and could no longer utilize the former sets. In “Saved By the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas,” this Pacific Palisades home is shown the be the house of Zack Morris. Throughout the main run of the show, Zack’s house was always a set. This same house was also seen in the films “Bye Bye Love” and “Ghost In The Machine.”

LOCATION: 510 Frontera Dr, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272

There is also a shot in the movie showing Palisades High School as the famous Bayside High School. This is the only time, aside from a couple establishing shots during Season 1, an exterior high school shot was ever used. Again, in the original show, it was always a set. The same school was used in the original 1976 “Carrie,” “Spawn of the Slithis” the 2003 remake of “Freaky Friday” and many more films. The school was destroyed by a wildfire in 2025.

LOCATION: 15777 Bowdoin St, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272

For those wondering, the Malibu Sands Resort was filmed at the Annenberg Community Beach House at 415 Pacific Coast Hwy, Santa Monica, CA 90402. It has since been heavily remodeled and looks nothing like it did on the show.