Old Tucson Studios
According to historian David Leighton, of the Arizona Daily Star, the person most responsible for the creation of Old Tucson was Nick Hall.
Nick C. Hall, a native of Missouri arrived in Tucson in late 1934 to manage the Santa Rita Hotel, in downtown.
By 1936, if not earlier, Hall was taking trips to Hollywood in order to entice film companies to make their movies in the Old Pueblo.
After this, Hall worked behind the scenes to carry out his plan to ensure the film was shot in town, which included trips to Hollywood to meet with executives of Columbia Pictures.
By July 1939, his work had paid off and it was announced that the filming would take place in Tucson and the local newspapers gave full credit to Hall for being responsible for this change in venue Hall would assist the production in many ways, from taking care of the cast and crew of the film at his hotel, to chaperoning Columbia crew members to and from the hotel to the future Old Tucson site as it was constructed as a replica of what Tucson looked like in the 1860s, and even acting as public relations person in dealing with the news media.
Other early movies filmed on this set included The Last Round-Up (1947) with Gene Autry and Winchester '73 (1950) with James Stewart and The Last Outpost (1951) with Ronald Reagan.
Corral (1957), The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958), Cimarron (1960), Last Train from Gun Hill (1959), and Rio Bravo (1959) among others.
In 1959, entrepreneur Robert Shelton leased the property from Pima County and began to restore the aging facility.
(1963) added the McLintock Hotel; El Dorado (1966) brought a renovation of the storefronts on Front Street; and with Rio Lobo (1970) came a cantina, a granite-lined creek, a jail and a ranch house.
The park also began adding tours, rides and shows for the entertainment of visitors, most notably gunfights staged in the "streets" by stunt performers.
Old Tucson served as an ideal location for shooting scenes for TV series like NBC's The High Chaparral (1967–1971) with Leif Erickson and Cameron Mitchell where the ranch house survived the 1995 fire; the 1970s–1980s series Little House on the Prairie with Michael Landon, Kung Fu,[3] and later Father Murphy, featuring Merlin Olsen and Petrocelli (1974–76) used the site.
A partial mirror set exists at Mescal and is featured in The Quick and the Dead (1995), with Sharon Stone and Gene Hackman which filmed all of the town of Redemption scenes at the studios.
This film included rare behind-the-scenes footage of stars such as William Holden, John Wayne, and Angie Dickinson.
The Reno, a steam locomotive from the Virginia and Truckee Railroad on static display in the park, was also badly damaged.
“We started discussions with Bob Shelton several years ago to develop a plan to fill the empty space in Town Square with movie-quality sets that bring the magic back.” The Heritage Square Project, a 5,000-square-foot spread with three new streets lined with 12 new buildings, was completed in November 2011 at an estimated cost of $300,000.
[5][6][7] On Tuesday, September 8, 2020, Old Tucson, the Western-themed attraction that was the filming location of more than 400 feature-films and TV shows, closed indefinitely, with its future to be determined by Pima County.
The decision to close the Arizona landmark "was made with a heavy heart," according to Old Tucson general manager Terry Verhage, who said in a news release that the theme park would have remained in business "if not for the COVID-19 pandemic."
“We did everything possible to keep our loyal fans safe when we were open, but the ongoing COVID-19 public health protocols and restrictions limited park attendance to the point where Old Tucson could no longer stay in business.” Pima County took over responsibility for the theme park on September 14, 2020, and "will seek ideas from potential operators and lessors about what Old Tucson could be in the future," the news release said.
John Harper serves as vice president and Chief Operating Officer of American Heritage Railways and will oversee the property's Executive Team, General Managers, and key employees.
