Sunday, February 19, 2012

Twilight Zone - "You Drive"

My wife and I are in the midst of watching every episode of the classic television series, Twilight Zone. I was excited to see images of Carlson Park in the 1964 episode, "You Drive". "You Drive" stars Edward Andrews as Oliver Pope, a misguided man who fails to report a hit and run accident that kills a paperboy. His lapse in judgement causes him to be haunted by his car. Carlson Park and the Carlson Park neighborhood are clearly visible in many of the scenes. I was amazed to see how similair the neighborhood looks in 1964 and today. I took the following series of photographs showing the neighborhood then and now. Below is a look at the paperboy riding down Braddock headed for his fateful collision, followed by a shot from the same location today. You can see the dining building and lamp post are visible in the background in both.
Here is a look across Motor to Carlson Park. The ficus trees must have been newly planted in 1964. They are huge now. And, of course, the phone booth is now gone.
Below is a look at Carlson Park, as a woman tries to save the paperboy, followed by the park as it appears today.
Below is a shot down Motor both then and now:
Below is another shot down Motor. The trees are way taller, but the houses are mostly the same.
Below is a shot from inside the pay phone. The houses on the corner of Motor and Braddock are clearly visible. I tried to recreate the same view.
Below is another shot across Motor and Braddock with the police on the scene.
The main characters live at 4183 Keystone Ave in Culver City. The house looks almost identical now as it did in 1964, including the same house number sign. When I was taking the photos, I talked to the owner of 4183 Keystone who claims that western movie star, Gabby Hayes, once lived in the house several decades ago. Gabby was in many movies in 30s, 40s and 50s, and has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame. Below is a look at the house then and now. Unfortunately, a truck was parked in front of the house, so the new photo is not that great. I am going to try to go back and take a better photo in the future.
Here is Oliver Pope leaving his home on Keystone and walking down the street towards Braddock, followed by a shot from today.
In the final scene, Oliver Pope walks down Jasmine where he is confronted by his haunted car. Below is Oliver walking down Jasmine, followed by a shot from today.
Here is a shot from inside the haunted car looking out at a house on Jasmine. The house looks almost the same today as it did in 1964.
Below is a shot of Oliver Pope making a run for it in between two houses on Jasmine. The homes are almost identical then and now.
Finally, here is a shot of Rod Serling. From the looks of the palm trees in the background, I believe this was shot in Carlson Park.
If you live in the Carlson Park area, I highly recommend watching "You Drive". It is available for streaming on Netflix, as is the entire Twilight Zone series.

4 comments:

  1. Hi, John! I lived on Motor and was a kid when this episode was filmed. Thanks for the trip down memory lane! Yes, the trees have grown, a lot, but my favorite climbing tree is still there in the park. :)

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    1. This is cool! I love stuff like this. I am watching this episode right now on tv (WHY the air it at 1-2am, I have NO idea,) but I love the look of this episode, & the very-California look! :-)

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  2. I am a young writer and have a deep respect and admiration for Rod Serling. I have been looking for some locations in Southern California that are associated with him and Twilight Zone. It would be awesome to be somewhere he once was. I know I may sound weird but he has really changed my writing and in such a positive way. Thank You!

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