Where Was The Kitchen Supposed To Be?

[Bill Dilks]

I'm wondering if it's the kitchen in the real Southfork prior to refurbishing.

More than you probably wanted to know...

Good question. As I understand it, JR Duncan, who owned the ranch at the time, would not permit interior filming at Southfork #2, the one we all know and love.

Here's what I've learned from the LOCATIONS thread doing research and from others who are seriously into the show's locations.

S01 (5 pilots) was filmed at the Cloyce Box Ranch, now known as the Brinkmann Ranch, in Frisco TX. Most interiors were filmed at 5500 Swiss Ave, Dallas. JR/Swellen's "...don't make love any mowah" scenes were shot in one of the little houses behind the main house at the Box Ranch.

S02e01-e07 - exteriors were filmed at Southfork Ranch. Interior scenes except for the den were filmed at 4800 Park Lane, Dallas. I'm assuming this would include the kitchen, where we see Gary and Bobby, and a couple of other scenes early on. The den scenes were filmed at 5020 Swiss avenue, Dallas, which had a sliding door. No other interior locations have been noted here or on other sites.

I didn't know about the den until a couple of weeks ago. The producers wanted to give the impression of the den with slider opening to the breakfast patio. Note the den difference in REUNION vs ELECTION.

S02e08 - beyond - ranch interiors were filmed at the Culver City studio, now Sony.

The historic section of the two Swiss Ave locations is northeast of downtown Dallas. The exclusive Park Lane section is in Preston Hollow, north of downtown Dallas.

Den s02e01-e07 - 5020 Swiss Ave, Dallas

Den s02e08-beyond - Culver City studio

Fascinating stuff to learn what the producers were doing with rooms and scenes as they are filmed out of sequence. This makes tracking rooms and entrances and other things difficult, as we've seen above relating to Southfork interiors vs exteriors.

 

[Sarah]

This was one of those things that changed depending on what season it was and how the scenes were cut. Below are three examples, from the outside at certain points in the show you could see the interior of the kitchen and it would make sense that the character walks through the sliding door from the patio and into the kitchen, which does happen, but at other times doesn't. It's a case of editing and not actually being in a real home so sometimes things just conveniently make no sense.

1. JR walks into the kitchen but it's not shown in the interior clips

Oh My God what a beautiful man. First time I've felt good today. Thank you.

 

[Barbara Fan]

I'm wondering if it's the kitchen in the real Southfork prior to refurbishing.

Its not, different style and shape and none of the interiors of SF were used for filming

When I got on the Dallas set in 1983, Steve Kanaly told me that BBG was instumental in getting a Kitchen built for SF scenes and said that was where she spent most of her time at (real) home - / talking to daughters etc. I think she asked for quite a while before she got her wish

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Its not, different style and shape and none of the interiors of SF were used for filming

When I got on the Dallas set in 1983, Steve Kanaly told me that BBG was instrumental in getting a Kitchen built for SF scenes and said that was where she spent most of her time at (real) home - / talking to daughters etc. I think she asked for quite a while before she got her wish

I recall her quoted as saying it was the kitchen she'd always wanted. And it sort of looks like her, but then, as I've said, my maternal grandmother and her kitchen remind me a great deal of Miss Ellie and her kitchen.

 

[Grant Jennings]

More than you probably wanted to know...

As I understand it, JR Duncan, who owned the ranch at the time, would not permit interior filming at Southfork #2, the one we all know and love.

I thought they chose to film the interiors at the Park Lane house because they thought the exterior of the Duncan ranch was suitable for exteriors but the interior room sizes and layout weren't suitable. Even gussied up as a tourist attraction, the interior isn't all that impressive.

The den layout, though it's from another house, makes sense to me. I can imagine the den and living room fireplaces sharing a chimney; the door into the den is off the hallway that runs from the siding glass doors we most often see the Ewings use to enter the house to the door under the staircase in the foryer.

 

[lbf522]

So it would be hard for HGTV to do with Southfork mansion what they did with the Brady Bunch House.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

So it would be hard for HGTV to do with Southfork mansion what they did with the Brady Bunch House.

It would probably be easier. The Brady Bunch house didn't really fit the trapezoid studio sets terribly well, yet HGTV made it work. But the Southfork rooms are possible -- if only you make those rooms a bit smaller than they were on the show (although the living room, foyer and dining room could be just as lengthy).

 

[lbf522]

I love your analysis. Eventhough Larry Hagman, Barbara Bel Geddes, and Ken Kercheval are gone the rest of the cast are still alive so if they plan on doing a HGTV Southfork Mansion renovation, they should do it now with most of the actors still alive.

I wonder how many bedrooms would this house have?

 

[Miss Texas 1967]

I love your analysis. Eventhough Larry Hagman, Barbara Bel Geddes, and Ken Kercheval are gone the rest of the cast are still alive so if they plan on doing a HGTV Southfork Mansion renovation, they should do it now with most of the actors still alive.

I wonder how many bedrooms would this house have?

I'm really bad at visualising things from drawings but I see a couple of people have made versions using the Sims (one is just exterior of the ranch grounds and the other is an interior). I think the biggest problem is the upper floor of the real house is small, it's limited by being only 1/3-1/4 of the lower floor in length (I think? From the videos it looks to be). I'd like someone more creative to plot it out from a clean slate, the outer dimensions stay the same to keep the exterior the same, but internally walls can be moved around to try to create something similar to the show.

Credit below

https://www.thesimsresource.com/dow...residential/title/southfork-ranch/id/1178319/

3.40-6.50 is upstairs

 

[Miss Texas 1967]

Actually, looking at the house from another angle it looks bigger on the top from the outside than I originally thought. Inside you probably could start afresh and wipe the entire floor plan to build a hallway with bedrooms off it if you made the rooms at a percentage of the size they would have been "in real life". 57x38 isn't a huge space, but it's not absolutely tiny either. Starting anew and scaling may work.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Although I think those measurements are slightly inflated.

For example, the 57.21 feet depth for the main section would be more like 49 feet once one subtracted the front porch (which would be included in this number). But I think the interior is closer to 42 or 43 feet, not 49.

Also, I think the main center section is not 39 feet wide but closer to about 32 to 34, tops.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

If only...

 

[Miss Texas 1967]

If only...

I have to disagree, this reminds me of a cave. I much prefer the classic look the Park Lane home has, it's bright and airy (in most places) without feeling like it's sterile and too modern or too different to the exterior of the home.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4800-Park-Ln-Dallas-TX-75220/26759596_zpid/

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I have to disagree, this reminds me of a cave. I much prefer the classic look the Park Lane home has, it's bright and airy (in most places) without feeling like it's sterile and too modern or too different to the exterior of the home.

But mancaves are so primal -- I wish they'd had something like this in nuDALLAS.

And they ruined the Park Lane house by removing/painting over the paneling in the living room!

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

If only...

I like it, but with that many apples sitting around, I fear Dr. Danvers might not be as readily available to pop up on demand and administer sedatives

 

[Miss Texas 1967]

But mancaves are so primal -- I wish they'd had something like this in nuDALLAS.

And they ruined the Park Lane house by removing/painting over the paneling in the living room!

We'll have to agree to disagree

 

[Sarah]

I like it but I love it more because @Snarky's Ghost added Sue Ellen's picture