View Full Version : Nick’s “Hey Dude” ranch is still around.


TMC
04-17-2014, 02:32 AM
http://www.avclub.com/article/ranch-hey-dude-still-out-desert-gathering-dust-203410

By Joseph Blevins Apr 14, 2014 10:53 AM

It’s debatable whether Hey Dude (1989-1991), one of Nickelodeon's earliest live-action efforts, has withstood the test of time (http://www.avclub.com/article/ihey-dudei-58990). The jokes may now seem rather corny, the plots somewhat thin, the characters a bit underdeveloped. But what has unquestionably endured after a quarter century is the Bar None Ranch, the fictional locale where the bulk of the series took place. Constructed on the grounds of the Tanque Verde Guest Ranch (http://www.tanqueverderanch.com/), an actual, functioning tourist destination outside Tucson, the sets for the tween-focused sitcom still stand (after a fashion) in the lonely Arizona desert, desiccated but still quite recognizable. A YouTuber and self-styled adventurer called Adam The Woo (http://adamthewoo.tumblr.com/) recently made a pilgrimage to the holy site and filmd a brief, haunting video report (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZoirUpwCQc). (The Woo's Gen X-friendly travels have also taken him to the filming locations for UHF, Beetlejuice, Back To The Future, and Ghostbusters, among other spots.)

Although intended as lighthearted, mildly Jackass-esque amateur reportage, Adam The Woo's videos frequently have a spooky, haunted quality that makes them feel like miniature "found footage" horror movies, minus the violence. That's certainly true of his Hey Dude travelogue, in which the still-cheerful-looking facades barely conceal devastated interiors. Even more sinister is Adam's visit to a nighmarish Flintstones-themed roadside attraction, which gives off a definite Chernobyl/post-apocalyptic vibe. (Those poor goats!) Even Adam The Woo's uptempo, punky theme song doesn't detract from the gloom at the heart of these videos. Enjoy them at your peril.