Blondie Street
One of the most famous streets on the Ranch, still standing today, is Blondie Street. Although two facades were built before the street got its official name, the street was named after the famous syndicated comic strip character 'Blondie Bumstead', which first appeared in newspapers in September 1930. Columbia Pictures purchased the rights to this cartoon and turned it into a serial called 'Blondie'. The first few chapters were shot on location in Burbank, CA. but eventually the home was recreated on the Ranch for easier shooting schedules.
At least 3 of the structures or 'homes' on Blondie Street, as far as research shows, are original to the Ranch as far back as 1935 – 1937, meaning they did not succumb to fires or have been completely rebuild. These include the Little Egbert house, the Lindsay house and the Oliver House.
Blondie Street has been around almost as long as the Ranch it self has and can be clearly seen in the early serials, movies and TV shows mentioned above as well as many TV commercials, even now. Though some of the structures have changed drastically and some even torn down and replaced with other facades, the street is still recognizable. For example: The Griswold's house from 'National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation' (1989) is one of the newer structures that replaced the large Civic building (aka; the Deeds home, from the 1936 movie, 'Mr. Deeds Goes to Town'. ) that once stood there. The Church on the corner across from the Higgins, aka: Bewitched house which partially burned down in August of 1970, along with the Partridge House, was torn down completely and rebuilt further back in a different configuration a few months later.
Many movies and television shows, even currently, have used this for a suburban backdrop. Some recent shows like 'The Middle' (2009 - 2018)and 'Young Sheldon' (2018 -) are some that have filmed there.
The Deeds Home, (Deeds Mansion)
This structure was built for the Frank Capra movie 'Mr. Deeds Goes to Town' in 1936, although it is not very well seen except for a brief few moments in the movie. It consisted out of 3 seemingly separate structures put together. The original structure was indeed only 2 part, the main building and the 'conservatory' section with the arched Veranda to the right. A few months after the initial completion of the original facade, the left 'wing' was added completing the final structure. It was well used in 'The Three Stooges' serials from 1936 – 1942 and you can also see the structure in the original first 'Batman' & 'Superman' serials. In later years it was used for the High School in both 'Gidget' & 'The Partridge Family' and as a 'Civic' building in 'Bewitched'. The Deeds home was torn down in 1989 and replaced with two separate structures, The Chester House and the Griswold house, for the movie 'National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation'.
The Lindsay house, (The Hazel Home)
Constructed in 1936 and receiving its name from Edward G. Robinson's character of John Lindsay in the film, 'I am the Law (1936), and appearing in 'The Three Stooges' serials from 1936 – 1942, the 'Batman' & 'Superman'serials, as well as almost any other serial of the time, this facade was used as the Baxter’s family home in 'Hazel' from 1961, as well as in 'Father Knows Best', 'Dennis the Menace' and many more, including 'The Monkees', 'Bewitched' & 'Gidget'. The home is currently often referred to as the 'Lethal Weapon' house, the home of Danny Glover's character Captain Murdoch from the same titled movies. The past few years it has been seen on 'Pushing Daisies', 'Without a Trace', 'Jericho', '11th Hour', 'Lie to Me', 'The Middle' and recently it is seen in 'Young Sheldon'.
The Higgins house, (Bewitched House)
Built in late July of 1962, (according to actual Columbia Pictures documentation) for the TV show 'Our Man Higgins' with Stanley Holloway. The facade is originally named after the Holloway character of Higgins. The show only lasted 1 Season. It was predominately used as the home of Darrin & Samantha Stephens for the very popular series 'Bewitched' 1964-1972. It can also be seen in the Tv series 'Gidget' from 1965 as well as the home of Dr. Bellows and his wife in 'I Dream of Jeannie' also in 1965. It appears in episodes of 'Hazel', 'Father Knows Best' and 'Dennis the Menace' and many other shows. The garage at the popular fictional address of 1164 Morning Glory Circle was originally the garage of the Lindsay Home next door and can be clearly seen in many episodes of 'Hazel'. The garage has it’s own rich history as well. During a few years it was a double garage in an 'L' shape, as seen in the movie 'The Fuller Brush Girl' from 1950. It’s roof line, as well as the doors have been changed on several occasions. When the Bewitched home (as it is now called on the Ranch) was built, the garage was incorporated into the structure and another garage was built for the Hazel home.
The Corner Church
Originally located at the corner of Modern Street and Skid Row and constructed around 1943. Sometime late 1953, it was disassembled and relocated to the newly redesigned Blondie Street, next door to The Partridge Family home and across the street from The Bewitched home. It is seen in most of the shows filmed on Blondie Street in the 50's & 60's and occasionally used as a shooting location for some episodes. Used in an episode of 'Hazel', in which Hazel and the Baxter’s go to church, as well as in the movie 'Village of the Giants' (1964). The Church, together with the Partridge Family house burned down in a fire in 1970. Both were rebuild, albeit that the church was moved further back and in a different configuration and smaller. In its place on Blondie street, a generic house was put up, and used in the 1983 film 'Moving' but can be seen as early as in the first season of the 'Partridge Family'.
The Partridge Family House
Constructed in 1953 and modeled after a Sears, Roebuck & Co house plan, the house was used in 'Bewitched' as the Kravitz home for several seasons as well as Mrs. Elkins house in 'Dennis the Menace'. The first time it can be seen is in 'Father Knows Best' in 1955 and then again in the movie 'The Last Hurrah' in 1958. The structure underwent some cosmetic changes in the late 1950’s, had the right front porch enclosed and lost its columns on the front right side.Like some others, this was just a facade. It's back was actually part of the 'Convent' area behind it. In August of 1970, the structure was completely destroyed during a fire and rebuilt with modifications, including its 'widow's peak' and front steps. It also received a full back, meaning it was now fully enclosed. A front door overhang was added in the mid 70's and the house remained pretty much the same for the next few years. It underwent two more transformations in the 80's. One for 'Scarecrow and Mrs. King' back in 1983. The show lasted until 1987 and the house was actually put back to it's original state and can be seen briefly in a scene from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, only to be remodeled for 'Life Goes On' in late 1989. It has remained like it since, with minor alterations to suit several productions. Recently the production of 'Young Sheldon' added a front porch section to the right side.
The Blondie House
Built sometime in 1938 (Research is still pending on that) for the 'Blondie' serials and fashioned after the real home used on Agnes Street in Burbank, CA. This structure became, after some transformation, well known to millions as the home of the Anderson’s in 'Father Knows Best', then the home of Mr. Wilson in 'Dennis the Menace' before becoming the home of Major Nelson and his Jeannie in 'I Dream of Jeannie'. The house can also be seen in episodes of 'Hazel', 'Bewitched', 'The Monkees', 'The Second Hundred Years', 'The Partridge Family' and numerous others. The house is not the original structure build in 1941. Modifications were made throughout the years, including the side wing roofs and casement windows on either side. It had a secondary structure on the backside originally, which is seen in the movie 'None Shall Escape' from 1943 but was removed sometime in the 50's. The house also burned down 2 times in 1970. It was rebuild however according to the, at the time, current blueprints. Today the house is used as the operations office for Warner Bros. Ranch Facilities. The house sports a fake brick façade (put on around early 1974).
The Oliver House
Constructed around early 1935, for the movie 'Party Wire', on the area what became the Water Tank. The name Oliver house comes from the fictional family that lived there in the movie, The Olivers. Between 1936 and 1937 the structure was moved from its original location, to its current place and became famous as the home of Dr. Stone & family for the 'The Donna Reed Show' in 1958. The home was also used for the series 'Dennis the Menace' in 1959, as the Mitchell home where Dennis lived with his parents. His next door neighbor Mr. Wilson lived in the Blondie house to the left. Once again the home can be seen as early as 1936 in 'The Three Stooges' serials and the 'Batman' & 'Superman' serials as well. In the pilot episode of 'The Partridge Family' it is suggested that they originally lived here, and you can see Shirley Partridge park in the driveway between the Blondie house and the Oliver house and walk towards the Reed house as she carries her bags of groceries.
The facade underwent a major change in 1988 for the movie 'Moving' and the entire front porch was removed. After filming was done, some major modifications took place. The front porch was extended further to the left with new steps leading up to it. The front door was moved over to the left and a bay window was added as well. The structure has made a few appearances in here over the years.
The Little Egbert House
Technically speaking, the Little Egbert House is not originally part of Blondie Street but belongs to the side street next to it, originally called Little Egbert Street. The street (now a mere Alleyway) was part of a small English set created in 1935 for the movie 'A Feather in Her Hat' and, along with a dozen other small structures and formed Little Egbert Street. When constructed, it was just a two story facade without a roof. In 1937 a gabled roof was added and extension to the left. It has survived every fire unscathed and is one of three original structures left on the Lot today. It is greatly featured in 'The Three Stooges' short 'Wee Wee Monsieur' and a 'Higher than a Kite'. Between 1943 and 1945, the back end of the street was removed and a wood fence was put in its place. One can see the Little Egbert house, the 'street' and the fence in the movie 'My name is Julia Ross' from 1945. The structure makes numerous appearances throughout the decades in several shows and movies and gets a semi starring role in 'Gidget' as the Shaggy Dog, the Hangout place to be! It was also featured in the movie 'Who's minding the Mint' (1969) although it is merely a background structure. It's last major appearance is for an episode of the TV series 'Search' from 1972, where it gets its windows and door blown out during an explosion. Shortly there after, the entire street gets extended for the musical movie '1776' also in 1972. Today, the Little Egbert house is the only structure remaining of the entire 'street'
