Hollywood at the Arboretum

In the 1930s even before the Arboretum existed, the exotic, wild and natural environment of the land was a favorite location site for Hollywood movies, TV shows, film locations and videos. The property was a stand-in for the deepest Africa, a tropical island, South America, or the wild west. The earliest movies included Tarzan Escapes (1936) wth Johnny Weissmuller, Road to Singapore (1939) with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby, and Notorious (1945 with Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant.

Later Lee Wray Turner, the first executive secretary of the Foundation, was in charge of arranging film locations on the grounds. Over the years, a dozen Tarzan movies were filmed at the Arboretum. James Earl Jones motored down the Baldwin Lake in search of the village of Kunta Kinte in the TV series “Roots II.” The Queen Anne Cottage is familiar to viewers around the world as the Fantasy Island home for Ricardo Montalban. Remember Katy Perry’s hit Roar music video? Bridesmaids is ever more popular. The movies final scene was filmed at the Bauer Lawn & Fountains.