The two Universal Studio locations give visitors studio tours as part of their theme park experiences. The Hollywood location (www.universalstudioshollywood.com) receives 5.0 million annual visitors; the Orlando location (www.universalorlando.com) host 6 million visitors each year.
There are three other Hollywood studio tours, as follows:
• Paramount Pictures Studio T our (www.paramountstudiotour.com)
• Sony Pictures Studio (www.sonypicturesstudiostours.com)
• Warner Bros. Entertainment (http://vipstudiotour.warnerbros.com)
Thousands of movie buffs each year make pilgrimages to the sites where their favorite movies were filmed.
One of the most successful conversions of a film set into a tourist attraction is the Field of Dreams Movie Site (Dyersville, IA; www.fodmoviesite.com). The site has drawn more than 1 million visitors since it opened in 1989.
Movie Studios and Set Locales USA Photo Gallery
The following are other popular movie locales:
New York, New York
• Tours of movie sites (http://gonyc.about.com/od/travelitineraries/a/new york movies.htm) include sailing past the Statue of Liberty like Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl, walking the streets of De Niro’s Little Italy, avoiding King Kong atop the Empire State Building, window-shopping at Tiffany & Co., passing the tenements of West Side Story (West 109th Street) where Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer were star- crossed lovers, and visiting the Cotton Club in Harlem. Armageddon, the apocalyptic film starring Bruce Willis, and Superman: The Movie, among other films, were shot at Grand Central Station. Times Square was a setting in numerous movies including Borat, Hancock, Last Action Hero, and Spiderman.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• The 1978 film Dawn of the Dead takes place in the Monroeville Mall. Events like “Zombie Fest” and “Walk of the Dead” celebrate the filming.
Lists of movie sites are available online at the following websites:
• http://movie-locations.com
• http://movielocationsguide.com
• www.seeing-stars.com/locations
Television Series Settings
Settings for television series are popular stops for tourists, even long after shows are cancelled.
There are generally lines at the door of Gold and Silver Pawn Shop, with fans waiting to visit the setting for The History Channel’s Pawn Stars. A Readers Choice Poll by USA Today ranked the shop the number one attraction in Las Vegas, ahead of the Bellagio fountains, the Canals and Gondolas at Venetian, the Fremont Street Experience, and Wynn’s Lake of Dreams.
The Bull and Finch Pub (www.cheersboston.com), located on Beacon Hill in Boston, where exterior shots for the TV show Cheers were filmed, remains popular.
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