Autumn Adventures

"Plunge boldly into the thick of life,

 and seize it where you will, it is always interesting."

~Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

I moved to Stockton, California, in 2015. It wasn't by choice. I have never been a fan of the Central Valley, with it's miles and miles of farm land, and heat, but thrust into the valley I was nonetheless!  The Bay Area has Karl the Fog to cool things down, but the Central Valley has nothing but dust, cows and heat. So moving here made me a little depressed to say the least. I am coming out of it, and beginning to feel the roots take hold, but God I miss my former home! The Bay Area has everything you want, within a 20 minute drive. Stockton has plenty right here in town, but it's not... well... terribly exciting! It's definitely come a long way since I moved here in 2015, and especially since Mayor Michael Tubbs was elected in 2016, but it's the Central Valley, and at the end of the day, it is what it is. Farmland. Miles and miles of farmland.

Farmland all the way to Sacramento.

Farmland.

But Stockton does have a couple other unique things going for it. It is not only home to the wonderful Bob Hope Theater, but it has a lot of California history to it, and it is also the hometown of Stan Lee's The Fantastic Four! But what's even cooler than that, it's the home of Indiana Jones! Now, the Fantastic Four being residents of Stockton is non-disputed history, and with the passing of Stan Lee a couple days ago, I thought it would be fitting to do an upcoming post about his tribute to my city, but lets keep things a little more lighthearted in the mean time, shall we?

While the Wiki for Raider's Of The Lost Ark  states Dr. Jones, works as a professor of Archeology at Marshall College, the exterior of the college shown in the movies was shot at the University of the Pacific, right here in Stockton! And in the very first movie of the Indiana Jones franchise, Dr. Jones is seen leaving for his quest to find the ark, from an airport that takes him on his flight path, directly under the Golden Gate Bridge. Therefore, there is only one conclusion that can be arrived at, Marshall College, is a cute nickname for the University of the Pacific, that just never caught on!

Dr. Henry (Indy) Jones jr, hails from Stockton, California!

Now, I ask you, how fucking cool is that?

It's the one exciting thing the Bay Area can't claim

Indiana Jones!

And there you have it!

:)

I admit, I posted a similar musing about this a couple years ago, but still, it's worth repeating every once in a while, especially since we seem to be fighting Nazi's again! By the way, has PUNCH A NAZI DAY come around yet? God, I love that holiday! Just kidding!

Actually... NO, NOT KIDDING! ;)

 #54 Leaf Of The Day

November 14th 2018

Photographed October 21st

Cull Canyon California

~Mood: Happy
~Me

Off To The Movies... #1. Raiders Of The Lost Ark

"What makes movies magical is not that incredible things happen in them. Incredible things happen in real life.

 No, what makes movies magical is they end right after the incredible thing happens."

~Matteson Perry

When I lived in the Bay Area, I liked to grab my camera and visit the locations of where movies, set in the area, were filmed. It was fun to feel like I was kinda stepping into the worlds of the characters I loved to watch on film. I did a few posts around those photo jaunt adventures, but I didn't really have a specific name for that series, so I am starting over with that project and it's official name will be Off To The Movies. 

I am starting my new series off with one of my very favorite movies, Raiders Of The Lost Ark. While only a small part of the movie was shot in Stockton, a simple cameo if you will, did feature one of the most beautiful buildings in town, Faye Spanos Concert Hall, on the grounds of the University of the Pacific, was used as the outside of the college Dr. Indiana Jones taught at! And if you pay close attention to that scene, and the one where he leaves to begin his adventure, you will see he flies out of what I think might be the Oakland Airport, and right over of the Golden Gate Bridge! So, one could maybe deduce that Indiana Jones was from my new hometown, Stockton! LOL.

While doing some research into that film, I found out that Spanos Concert Hall was also featured in the Robin Williams film, Flubber! It's such a pretty building, I can see why film makers would feature it. It's in California, but it kind of reminds me of the some of the buildings on the campases of Harvard and Princeton! Making it economical, and yet versatile to setting a tone. So it sets a certain vibe, and filming the buildings on the campus during certain times of the year, like autumn, gives it an especially warm and beautiful feel!

I began photographing movie locations because of how many films had been set in San Francisco. Foul Play. Basic Instinct. Vertigo. And many, many others! So, I thought that our move to the Central Valley was going to make that endeavor really difficult, but to my delight I found that there have been many films shot right here in the Stockton, and the small towns nearby! Among them Cool Hand Luke, American Graffiti, and The Candidate! Recently, when I was visiting El Dorado County, I picked up a visitor's guide, which detailed over 20 different filming locations as well, so I think it's going to be a blast to hunt them all down with my camera!

Stay Tuned!

Leaf Of The Day

November 6th 2016

Mood: Happy

~Me :)