'Big Sky Ranch' is a

movie ranch A movie ranch is a ranch that is at least partially dedicated for use as a set in the creation and production of motion pictures and television shows. These were developed in the United States in southern California, because of the climate. The fir ...

Simi Valley Simi Valley (; Chumash: ''Shimiyi'') is a city in the valley of the same name in the southeast region of Ventura County, California, United States. Simi Valley is from Downtown Los Angeles, making it part of the Greater Los Angeles Area. The ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, that is used for the filming of

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

television series and motion pictures, among other projects. The Ventura County Cultural Heritage Board designated several of these buildings County Landmark #71 in July 1981. The ranch is within the Los Angeles Studio Zone.

History

The site is part of the (19.5 sq.mi.) ranch purchased by the Patterson Ranch Co. in 1903 to raise grain, cattle, hogs and sheep. J. Paul Getty bought the ranch in the 1930s. After purchasing the ranch in 1981, Watt Enterprises named it Big Sky Ranch. Many of the sets were destroyed by a wildfire in 2003.

Productions

Television episodes and productions filmed there include: '' Rawhide'', ''

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

'', ''

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

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Highway to Heaven ''Highway to Heaven'' is an American fantasy Drama (film and television), drama television series that ran on NBC from September 19, 1984, to August 4, 1989. The series starred Michael Landon as Jonathan Smith, an angel sent to Earth in order t ...

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Father Murphy ''Father Murphy'' is an American western drama television series that aired on the NBC network from November 3, 1981, to September 18, 1983. Michael Landon created the series, was the executive producer, and directed the show in partnership wi ...

'', ''

Carnivàle ''Carnivàle'' () is an American television series set in the United States Dust Bowl during the Great Depression of the 1930s. The series, created by Daniel Knauf, ran for two seasons between 2003 and 2005. In tracing the lives of disparate ...

'', ''

The Thorn Birds ''The Thorn Birds'' is a 1977 novel by Australian author Colleen McCullough. Set primarily on Drogheda – a fictional sheep station in the Australian Outback named after Drogheda, Ireland, the story focuses on the Cleary family and spans 1 ...

'', ''

The Yellow Rose ''The Yellow Rose'' is an American soap opera television series that was broadcast on NBC from October 2, 1983 until May 12, 1984. It was produced by Paul Freeman. The series was at least partly inspired by the more coltish elements of the soap o ...

'', ''

Tales from the Crypt Tales from the Crypt may refer to: * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (album), by American rapper C-Bo * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (comics), published by EC Comics during the 1950s ** ''Tales from the Crypt'' (film), a 1972 Amicus film starring Ralph Ric ...

'' and ''

Westworld ''Westworld'' is an American science fiction-thriller media franchise that began with the 1973 film ''Westworld'', written and directed by Michael Crichton. The film depicts a technologically advanced Wild-West-themed amusement park populate ...

''. Other films shot here include ''

Coming to America ''Coming to America'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film directed by John Landis and based on a story originally created by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the lead role. The film also co-stars Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones, Shari Head ...

'' (1988) starring

Eddie Murphy Edward Regan Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and singer. He rose to fame on the sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'', for which he was a regular cast member from 1980 to 1984. Murphy has als ...

, '' Sidekicks'' (1974), '' The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw'' (1991), '' Siringo'' (1996), and Annabelle: Creation'' (2017).Schneider, Jerry L. (2015). ''Western Filming Locations Book 1''. CP Entertainment Books. Pages 100-105. .

References

External links

Big Sky Ranch at The Internet Movie Database
Movie ranches Economy of Simi Valley, California Buildings and structures in Simi Valley, California Companies based in Ventura County, California {{film-org-stub