Category: Movie Locations

Mr. and Mrs. Homewrecker

It’s no secret that I am a HUGE Jen Aniston fan and so NOT a fan of Brangelina – but my boyfriend did manage to drag me to see Mr. and Mrs. Smith while it was in theaters. So when I found the address of the house from the movie in my fave stalking book, I just had to stalk it. In the movie, Brad and Angie live in a really pretty white clapboard residence that reminds me a lot of the house from the movie Father of the Bride. And it just so happens that both houses are located in Pasadena.

The restaurant where Brad and Angelina dance in Mr. and Mrs. Smith is called Cicada and can be found in Downtown LA. Cicada is actually an oft used filming location – it was the very same restaurant where Julia Roberts flung an escargot across the room in the movie Pretty Woman. At the time it was known as Rex II Ristorante. Cicada was also featured in Bruce Almighty, Final Analysis and Indecent Proposal. While I have never dined there, I’ve heard that it is absolutely amazing!

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The Mr. and Mrs. Smith house is located at 1565 San Pasqual Street in Pasadena. The restaurant from the movie can be found in the Oviatt Building in Downtown Los Angeles at 617 South Olive Street.

April 30, 2008
The Princess Diaries

This weekend while doing some San Francisco Stalking, I dragged my boyfriend and my friend Nat to the “Grove High School” filming location from the movie The Princess Diaries, which I must confess I was a big fan of. 🙂 I am a total sucker for any teeny bopper movie! When we arrived at Grove High School, I recognized it immediately by its large circular staircase, and was shocked to learn that in reality it is not a school at all, but actually a private residence! The house is incredible in person and way huge!! I can’t even imagine living there!

The home is in a beautiful neighborhood that borders the Presidio of San Francisco. The Presidio is San Francisco’s former Army base and is now a park. The picture to the left is one of “Grove High School’s” neighboring homes. I definitely recommend a drive-by of this location, even for those non-stalkers out there, as the neighborhood is definitely a sight to see! Anne Hathaway’s house in the film is also located in San Francisco, and while I didn’t get a chance to stalk it on this trip, it’s definitely on my list for next time!

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Grove High School is located at 2601 Lyon Street, at the intersection of Lyon and Green Street, in San Francisco. Mia and her mom’s home can be found at 724 Brazil Avenue. It is actually a real life former San Francisco fire house that was built in 1911.

April 24, 2008
Police Doubt Fire . . .

One of my favorite movie lines of all time is “It was a run-by fruiting!” from Mrs. Doubtfire – Robin William says the line to Pierce Brosnan after throwing a piece of fruit at his head at the local pool. LOL So, this weekend, the Mrs. Doubtfire house was on my must-see list of San Francisco stalking locations. The home looks pretty much exactly as it did back in 1993 when the movie was filmed and I recognized it immediately. This location was a snap to find as it is actually referenced in the movie – Miranda gives Mrs. Doubtfire the real address of the home when she tells him where to go for his nanny interview.

The next stop on our SF stalking tour was Robin William’s house, located in the Sea Cliff area of San Francisco. Robin purchased the home in 1991 and lived there with his wife, Marsha, and their children, for the past 17 years. Apparently the house was the site of numerous fund raisers and events hosted by Robin and his wife over the years and was THE place to trick-or-treat in San Francisco. Sadly, Marsha filed for divorce from Robin this past March. You can’t feel too bad for Robin, though, as he pulled a Jude Law back in 1988, when he left his then wife for Marsha, who was his son’s nanny!

Robin’s house is a HUGE pink palace (according to Zillow the place is a whopping 9,310 square feet!) complete with a dinosaur topiary. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a pic of the dinosaur, though, as most of it is hidden behind a large wall. Robin also has an ornate depiction of the comedy/tragedy mask above his front door, which, being an actress, I thought was very cool! I might need to get me one of those for good luck! 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The Mrs. Doubtfire house is located at 2640 Steiner Street, at the corner of Steiner and Broadway, in San Francisco. Robin Williams’ home is located at 540 El Camino Del Mar in the Sea Cliff neighborhood of San Francisco.

April 23, 2008
Santa Monica Cop

This weekend I dragged my boyfriend to stalk the mansion that Eddie Murphy and his new cop buddies storm at the end of the movie Beverly Hills Cop. The house is not actually located in Beverly Hills, but a good 20 minutes in Santa Monica. The home is absolutely ginormous – I mean the guard shack at the front of the property is easily bigger than my whole house!! 🙂

While stalking the house, we met the man who lives in the home across the street and he told us some really good gossip. During the filming of Beverly Hills Cop, the man came home to find his car had been towed and his mailbox had been torn out and replaced with a new one – apparently neither his car nor his mailbox fit in with the image the producers were trying to portray in the movie! LOL According to the neighbor, the mansion is an oft used filming location and has appeared in several commercials, TV shows and movies. He told us the home is currently owned by director Herny Jaglom, but his ex wife lives there while Henry lives in a home up the street.

Sadly, you can’t see very much of the home from the street. But you will immediately recognize the gates and the guard shack from the scenes in Beverly Hills Cop when Eddie Murphy stakes the place out. You can see better views of the house by cyber-stalking it on Zillow.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The Beverly Hills Cop mansion is located at 609 E. Channel Road in Santa Monica. After stalking the mansion, head over to the nearby Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica – one of my favorite shopping destinations. The Promenade is a large outdoor retail area with tons of cute shops, kiosks and restaurants. It’s also where Pee Wee Herman’s bike was stolen in the movie Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.

April 16, 2008
The “You, Me and Dupree” House

A couple of years ago, long before I had a blog to write, I set out to find the You, Me and Dupree house. While I was a big fan of You, Me and Dupree, the real reason behind my mission actually had nothing to do with that movie. What I was actually hoping to find was Jenna Rink’s pink dream house from the final scene of 13 Going On 30, which according to the trivia section on IMDB, was the exact same house used in You, Me and Dupree.

Unfortunately, upon stalking the Dupree house, it became obvious that it was not the same location used in 13 Going On 30. Even so, the Dupree house is adorable and in a really cute neighborhood. It is also another fine example of that Craftsman architecture that filmmakers love so much. I must give props to Kerry, a fellow stalker, for getting the address of the Dupree house for me. I stalked this location so long ago (and failed to write down the address) that I couldn’t remember its exact location. Armed with only the picture I took of the house, which showed the house number, and knowing its general vicinity, she cyber-stalked the home and got the address for me! Thanks, Kerry! 🙂

Side note – I still have yet to find the 13 Going On 30 house – if anyone happens to know where it is – Help me! Please!! 🙂

UPDATE – Mike, from MovieShotsLA, found the 13 Going On 30 house for me a while back. You can read the post I wrote on it here and you can see interior pictures of the house here.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The You, Me and Dupree house can be found at 2406 Gramercy Park in the historic West Adams district of Los Angeles, not far from the location of the Numb3rs house. Even if you are not a fan of the film, I highly recommend stalking the house, as it is located on an adorable street in a neighborhood chock full of beautiful, historic homes. As always, take care not to disturb the residents.

April 14, 2008
As If!

Last weekend, while doing some stalking in the Valley, I about had a heart attack when we drove by a small liquor store in North Hollywood because I immediately recognized it as the liquor store where Alicia Silverstone gets robbed in one of my fave movies of all time – Clueless. I made my boyfriend swerve through several lanes of traffic to pull into the liquor store parking lot where I promtly ran inside to ask the cashier if Clueless was filmed there. He told me that indeed it was!

In the movie, Cher’s friend Elton ditches her in the parking lot of the liquor store and she is immediately robbed at gunpoint for her purse and cell phone. After she is forced to lay down in her Alaia dress, the thief takes off and Cher uses a payphone to call her stepbrother Josh to come rescue her. Sadly, the payphone Cher uses was torn down long ago. 🙁 But the exterior of the liquor store looks almost exactly as it did during the filming of Clueless and the large neon clown sign is still standing at the entrance to the parking lot.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Circus Liquors is located at 5600 Vineland Avenue in North Hollywood. Similar to how it was portrayed in Clueless, the liquor store is not in the greatest of neighborhoods, so exercise caution. It is perfectly safe to visit the store in the daytime, but I wouldn’t recommend stalking it at night.

April 6, 2008
The 40 Year Old Virgin

This weekend, while stalking in Studio City, I dragged my boyfriend to the apartment complex used in the movie The 40 Year Old Virgin. In the movie, the main character Andy Stitzer lives in Apartment #5 of a white clapboard and brick apartment building that can be found in Studio City. This is another movie I have yet to see, but since the location was featured in my fave stalking book, I figured I just had to stalk it. You know I have a problem when I am stalking the locations of movies I haven’t even seen! 🙂

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In The 40 Year Old Virgin, Andy meets a girl named Beth at a bookstore near where he works. The interior of that bookstore is located in Pasadena. It is called Vroman’s Bookstore and it is one of my favorite places in the entire world!! It is the most charming, adorable bookstore I have ever set foot in. A Pasadena landmark since 1894 (yes, you read that right!), Vroman’s is so much more than just a bookstore. Filled with candles, fine stationary, scrap-booking supplies, gifts and cards, I can literally spend whole afternoons roaming the many aisles. Vroman’s has an incredible selection of well-known and best-selling authors who come to give readings on a daily basis. Last March, my very favorite author Sophie Kinsella made Vroman’s the sole California stop on her Shopaholic and Baby book tour and she signed autographs and took pictures with every single fan who showed up, including me. 🙂 Yes, I stalk authors, too. 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The 40 Year Old Virgin lived in Studio City at 12016 Moorpark Street, in Apartment#5. Vroman’s Bookstore is located at 695 E. Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena. After some Vroman’s stalking, head over to Lovebird’s Cafe and Bakery at 921 E. Colorado Blvd. for some espresso and a bite to eat – the restaurant is a favorite of Charlie Sheen’s.

April 3, 2008
Charlie’s Angels

Although I am not a big fan of Charlie’s Angels 2: Full Throttle – it was just a bit too over the top for me! – when I found the address of Cameron Diaz’s house from the movie on my fave stalking website – and since I just happened to be in the neighborhood this weekend – I just had to stalk it!

In Charlie’s Angels 2, Cameron Diaz’s character, Natalie, moves into a new beachfront home with her boyfriend, Pete. That house is located in Hermosa Beach and it is absolutely adorable!! The home was actually built in 1905, as stated on a plaque located on the front of the house. It’s not very hard to see why the producers chose to use this house for filming – it is extremely charming and cute, much like Cameron’s character in the movie. I highly recommend stalking it, even if you are not a Full Throttle fan!

Stalk It: Natalie’s house is located at 2028 The Strand in Hermosa Beach. You can park on Hermosa Avenue and hit up the shops (and Starbucks!) before making your way down Pier Avenue towards The Strand – a walkway that runs along the beach. The house is located near where The Strand meets 20th Street.

March 11, 2008
The Lethal Weapon 2 House

Since I am constantly dragging my boyfriend on my stalking adventures every single weekend, I decided to finally stalk a place he would enjoy – the house on stilts from Lethal Weapon 2. This is the same house that Mel Gibson attaches to his pick-up truck via cables, drives away, and pulls right down the hill. In real life, the producers built a replica house on a studio lot for Mel to pull down and the real house is still standing on Mulholland Drive in Beverly Hills.

The Lethal Weapon 2 house was designed by John Lautner – the famous architect who also designed Courtney Cox’s House.

Stalk It: The Garcia House is located at 7436 Mulholland Drive in Hollywood Hills West. If would like to spend the night in a John Lautner home, the Elrod/Lautner home in Palm Springs – which was immortalized in the James Bond movie Diamonds are Forever – is available for rentals. You can learn more about it here.

February 28, 2008
The Poise Magazine Office from “13 Going On 30”

First, let me just say how happy I am that Britney apparently survived Starbucks three hour closure today! It’s truly a minor miracle!!

Anyway, on with the post . . .

This past December while on vacation in New York, I happened to walk by a building that I immediately recognized as the “Poise” offices from 13 Going On 30. I am not sure if it was the gold-framed revolving door that gave it away, or just the fact that I have seen 13 Going On 30 way too many times, but nevertheless I knew the building was used as Jenna Rink’s office the moment I spotted it. The “Poise” office building was actually built in 1931 and used to house Newsweek Magazine. It is now home to New York Magazine.

The store where Jenna shops in the movie and forgets her credit card is Henri Bendel and it is located just a few blocks away at 712 Fifth Avenue.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The “Poise” offices are located at 444 Madison Avenue in New York City, between 49th and 50th Streets. Just a half a block down from the office building is the New York Palace Hotel, where much of the TV show Gossip Girl is filmed. On the show, Serena lives at the Palace with her parents and often hangs out in the Gilt bar, which can be found just off the hotel’s courtyard.

February 26, 2008