Ultimate LITB Research Questions! (Answer What You Know!)

[Jack1000]

Guys,

If you have books, research inforomation about the show, or any other tidbit questions, feel free to post them. Here are a few that I have:

1.) Where was the town of Bellport? Is this a fictional or a real town?

2.) Was the entire series filmed at Universal Studios in California?

3.) In Episodes where they go on location:

a.) Beaver going with Wally and his friends to the amusement park at Bellport in "Beaver's Fear."

b.) Wally taking Julie Foster to The White Fox in "Wally's Dinner Date."

c.) Wally and Beaver going to the aligator farm in "Captain Jack"

Do you think that these were legitimate places or just made up sets and soundstages for the show? If legit places, what was the actual name of the places of the above locations where the episodes were shot?

Also, were the grammar schools and high school buildings used for the series legit schools, if so, what were their names and where were they located?

Finally, were the Cleaver homes real houses or house sets? Was the second floor of the houses legit or a part of the set?

Jack

[Mark B.]

Originally Posted by Jack1000

Guys,

If you have books, research inforomation about the show, or any other tidbit questions, feel free to post them. Here are a few that I have:

1.) Where was the town of Bellport? Is this a fictional or a real town?

2.) Was the entire series filmed at Universal Studios in California?

3.) In Episodes where they go on location:

a.) Beaver going with Wally and his friends to the amusement park at Bellport in "Beaver's Fear."

b.) Wally taking Julie Foster to The White Fox in "Wally's Dinner Date."

c.) Wally and Beaver going to the aligator farm in "Captain Jack"

Do you think that these were legitimate places or just made up sets and soundstages for the show? If legit places, what was the actual name of the places of the above locations where the episodes were shot?

Also, were the grammar schools and high school buildings used for the series legit schools, if so, what were their names and where were they located?

Finally, were the Cleaver homes real houses or house sets? Was the second floor of the houses legit or a part of the set?

Jack

1) Bellport was as fictional as 'Mayfield'- meant to be anytown USA, but there are real places in the US named both Mayfield and Bellport

2) season 1 and 2 of the series was based out of Republic Studios (now CBS Studio Center). The Cleaver's house in those two years was on the backlot of that studio. Seasons 3-5 were based at Universal and the Cleaver house (211 Pine Street) was on the Universal backlot.

3) The series was filmed almost entirely at the studios' (Universal or Republic) soundstages (Interior sets) and backlot (exterior sets, shops, streets, etc.) When they would need something specific like the Bellport Amusement Park or Alligator farm, they would need to do a location shoot someplace else, or use stock footage of generic buildings, etc. The establishing shot of Ward's office building was stock footage of a realy building. Other stock shots that come to mind are grocery stores, etc.

a) I don't remember what was shown for the White Fox- it could have been a Universal Backlot location.


The grammer and high schools also used 'stock' shots of some real schools as establishing shots and then the inside of the classroom/hallways were sets in a soundstage. There were a few exceptions though- in one episode Wally, Eddie and others are seen exiting Mayfield high, comming down a set of stairs. This was a backlot set at Universal- specifically the same courthouse facade used in Back to the Future. I'm not sure about the school exterior used for 'The School Picture'- it didn't look to me like something from the Universal backlot so it may have been a realy location.


As for the Cleaver house(s), they both used an empty shell set on a backlot street for the outside of the house and street, and sets on a soundstage for the insides of the rooms, etc. Second floors were a seperate set from the first floor. Actors would walk up the stairs to a platform, and then there would be a cut to the actors on the seperate 2nd floor set. Sometimes seconf floor sets would be built a couple of feet off the soundstage floor to allow actors to have a couple of steps to come up as if climbing a full staircase from the first floor- I know this was the case in the 2nd Cleaver house (season 3-5) upstairs set.

The exterior house sets for both houses existed on the studio backlots before LITB was made, whereas the interior Cleaver house sets were built specifically for the series.

For a more detailed look at the (exterior) Cleaver house histories, look at my old post here:

http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/...ad.php?t=77766

[Jack1000]

Originally Posted by Mark B.

1) Bellport was as fictional as 'Mayfield'- meant to be anytown USA, but there are real places in the US named both Mayfield and Bellport

2) season 1 and 2 of the series was based out of Republic Studios (now CBS Studio Center). The Cleaver's house in those two years was on the backlot of that studio. Seasons 3-5 were based at Universal and the Cleaver house (211 Pine Street) was on the Universal backlot.

3) The series was filmed almost entirely at the studios' (Universal or Republic) soundstages (Interior sets) and backlot (exterior sets, shops, streets, etc.) When they would need something specific like the Bellport Amusement Park or Alligator farm, they would need to do a location shoot someplace else, or use stock footage of generic buildings, etc. The establishing shot of Ward's office building was stock footage of a realy building. Other stock shots that come to mind are grocery stores, etc.

a) I don't remember what was shown for the White Fox- it could have been a Universal Backlot location.


The grammer and high schools also used 'stock' shots of some real schools as establishing shots and then the inside of the classroom/hallways were sets in a soundstage. There were a few exceptions though- in one episode Wally, Eddie and others are seen exiting Mayfield high, comming down a set of stairs. This was a backlot set at Universal- specifically the same courthouse facade used in Back to the Future. I'm not sure about the school exterior used for 'The School Picture'- it didn't look to me like something from the Universal backlot so it may have been a realy location.


As for the Cleaver house(s), they both used an empty shell set on a backlot street for the outside of the house and street, and sets on a soundstage for the insides of the rooms, etc. Second floors were a seperate set from the first floor. Actors would walk up the stairs to a platform, and then there would be a cut to the actors on the seperate 2nd floor set. Sometimes seconf floor sets would be built a couple of feet off the soundstage floor to allow actors to have a couple of steps to come up as if climbing a full staircase from the first floor- I know this was the case in the 2nd Cleaver house (season 3-5) upstairs set.

The exterior house sets for both houses existed on the studio backlots before LITB was made, whereas the interior Cleaver house sets were built specifically for the series.

For a more detailed look at the (exterior) Cleaver house histories, look at my old post here:

http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/...ad.php?t=77766

Thanks Mark!!!

But what about Season 6 with regards to the house and stuff? (You had mentioned only 5 seasons.)

Jack

[Mark B.]

Originally Posted by Jack1000

Thanks Mark!!!

But what about Season 6 with regards to the house and stuff? (You had mentioned only 5 seasons.)

Jack

Oops- my bad! Change all 5s to 6s! Yes, they continued at Universal and the same house right through the 6th season (as well as throughout the run of the New Leave it to Beaver in the 80s).

[Courtnee]

1.) Where was the town of Bellport? Is this a fictional or a real town?
fictonal
2.) Was the entire series filmed at Universal Studios in California?
Isn't US is FL?
3.) In Episodes where they go on location:

a.) Beaver going with Wally and his friends to the amusement park at Bellport in "Beaver's Fear."

b.) Wally taking Julie Foster to The White Fox in "Wally's Dinner Date."

c.) Wally and Beaver going to the aligator farm in "Captain Jack"

Do you think that these were legitimate places or just made up sets and soundstages for the show? If legit places, what was the actual name of the places of the above locations where the episodes were shot?
made up places
Also, were the grammar schools and high school buildings used for the series legit schools, if so, what were their names and where were they located?

Finally, were the Cleaver homes real houses or house sets? Was the second floor of the houses legit or a part of the set? f ls

[TripperFan]

Not sure about the answers to your questions, but a little interesting side trivia about the Cleaver home.

Did you know that its now one of the homes they use on Desperate Housewives?

I saw an article in a People mag a few weeks back and there's a lot of interesting homes on the street - the biggest one being "1313 Mockingbird Lane" - that's right - the Munster's house is also on that street, but because it stands out so much, they don't feature it in a lot of scenes - its seen more in the background.

If you get a chance, watch DH and look for the old Cleaver place!

[Mark B.]

Originally Posted by TripperFan

Not sure about the answers to your questions, but a little interesting side trivia about the Cleaver home.

Did you know that its now one of the homes they use on Desperate Housewives?

There is a lot of dis-information floating around about that house. The 'Cleaver' house that is now on Universal's Colonial Street (featured in DH) is actually an all-new house built for the 1997 Leave it to Beaver movie- and it is in no way the original house facade from the TV series. This info has somehow been 'simplified' nowadays and even most people inside Universal don't know that it's not the original house. This movie house has similar features to the original Cleaver house (3 dormer windows, front door in the middle, bay and den windows), but it is otherwise very different.

I don't mean to shoot down your post- I just like to clarify. The irony of any Cleaver house being used on Desperate Housewives is still there though.

[JudgeGarth]

Reportedly the second Cleaver house was the same one used in "Marcus Welby, M.D." I don't remember "Marcus Welby" well enough to agree or disagree.

[Mark B.]

Originally Posted by JudgeGarth

Reportedly the second Cleaver house was the same one used in "Marcus Welby, M.D." I don't remember "Marcus Welby" well enough to agree or disagree.

Yes it was the same house, but there was addition added over the front on the first floor. The second story with the 3 dormer windows stayed the same.

[Tweety]

I've also read that "The Munsters" house is near the "Cleaver" house, and it apparently appears in the episode in which Richard breaks a window, and gives Beaver's name to the policeman...

I don't know if the Munster's house was the one the boys were throwing rocks at, or if it just appears in the backgound in that (and perhaps other) episode...

[Mark B.]

Originally Posted by Tweety

I've also read that "The Munsters" house is near the "Cleaver" house, and it apparently appears in the episode in which Richard breaks a window, and gives Beaver's name to the policeman...

I don't know if the Munster's house was the one the boys were throwing rocks at, or if it just appears in the backgound in that (and perhaps other) episode...

The Munster house was just 3 doors down from the Cleaver house, although when it was featured in a episode, it was meant to be elsewhere in Mayfield. You can sometimes see it in the background too. The house had yet to become the Munster home- that would come just a few years later.

And yes, it was the Munster house that the boys were throwing rocks at. It was also featured as an old lady's house in 'Community Chest'.

Mark

[Tweety]

Originally Posted by Mark B.

The Munster house was just 3 doors down from the Cleaver house, although when it was featured in a episode, it was meant to be elsewhere in Mayfield. You can sometimes see it in the background too. The house had yet to become the Munster home- that would come just a few years later.

And yes, it was the Munster house that the boys were throwing rocks at. It was also featured as an old lady's house in 'Community Chest'.

Mark

Yeah, LITB went off the air in 1962 I believe... and the Munsters would move in around 1965... sounds like either the Cleavers actually lived in Mockingbird Heights, or the Munsters lived in Mayfield... they each must have lived right on the border

Thanks Mark! Great info...that's pretty cool

[Jack1000]

Originally Posted by Tweety

Yeah, LITB went off the air in 1962 I believe... and the Munsters would move in around 1965... sounds like either the Cleavers actually lived in Mockingbird Heights, or the Munsters lived in Mayfield... they each must have lived right on the border

Thanks Mark! Great info...that's pretty cool

Actually first run episodes of LITB finished in mid June 1963.

Jack

[Tweety]

Originally Posted by Jack1000

Actually first run episodes of LITB finished in mid June 1963.

Jack

You're right....after I posted I couldn't remember if it ended in 62 or ended after the 62-63 season... but it did start in 57-58 season, and ran for six years.

[nanook]

Most of the answers have worked themselves out to be correct.

Yes, the 1st two seasons were shot at Republic Studios in Studio City, California. And as the series was shot in that section of the San Fernando Valley (in Los Angeles), many exterior shots were photographed not far afield. Ferinstance, the exterior of Grant Avenue Elementary School was in reality Colfax Avenue Elementary School (11724 Addison St. North Hollywood, CA), built in 1951, and still going strong. Also, the supermarket used in "Beaver Plays Hooky", I'm fairly certain was located on Moorpark Street, literally just around the corner from Republic Studios.

In "Beaver's Fear" the exterior shots at the amusement park seem to be a hodgepodge of studio backlot sets, Griffith Park and the Pike in Long Beach. The roller coaster shots show a dual-track coaster in some scenes, so that most likely would mean it's the Cyclone Racer at the Pike (or Nu-Pike) in Long Beach, California. If (when) the series is released on DVD, it may be a bit easier to study the fleeting location exterior shots and actually be able to identify them.

Back when LITB was shot, it was unlikely exterior locations off the lot would be used as the studio lots had much to offer and location shooting hadn't been as refined as it is today - where actual location shooting is not that uncommon.

Steve