The Pasadena Main Branch of Bank of the West from “Falcon Crest”

Bank of the West Pasadena (2 of 6)

For years now, I have been trying to track down the bank where Terry Dolittle (Whoopi Goldberg) worked in the 1986 comedy Jumpin’ Jack Flash.  It is one of those locations that always sits fixed at the back of my mind, images of it constantly floating around in my head.  So when I came across photographs of the Pasadena Main Branch of Bank of the West, which bears a striking resemble to the bank where Terry worked, on a Noirish Los Angeles forum, my heart caught in my throat!  I was on vacation at the time and, unfortunately, did not have my Jumpin’ Jack Flash DVD on hand to make comparisons, but was fairly certain I had found the right spot.  My parade was rained on as soon as I got home, though, when I popped in my DVD and fairly quickly realized the two banks were not one and the same.  I decided to stalk Bank of the West anyway in the hopes that researching it might help me to eventually locate the Jumpin’ Jack Flash bank.  So far, my quest has not been fruitful.  Hence this post.  I am now putting it out there to my fellow stalkers.  If any of you happen to recognize the place or want to get in on the hunt, please let me know!

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  In the Noirish Los Angeles thread, a commenter named T.J.P. had asked for help in identifying a bank that had appeared in the Season 6 episode of Falcon Crest titled “Perilous Charm” (screen captures from the episode, in which the property masked as San Francisco Merchant Bank, are pictured below).  Forum member Tovangar2 quickly recognized the place as the former First Trust Bank Building, now Bank of the West, located at 587 East Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena.  Another commenter named HossC then posted a link to photos of the interior of the building and it was those photos that had me so intrigued.

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In Jumpin’ Jack Flash, Terry works at First National Bank in Manhattan.  Now, I should start off by saying that I am unsure if the bank used in the movie is in New York or Los Angeles, being that filming took place in both cities.  I am leaning towards L.A., though – at least for the interior scenes.  I am also leaning towards the idea that two different locations might have been utilized as Terry’s bank – one for exteriors and another for interiors.  But that is just a guess.  Sadly, with this one, I am just not sure about anything.

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While I am fairly certain that the bullpen where Terry worked was a set (as evidenced by the fact that it got shot up at the end of the movie) . . .

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. . . I believe that the interior of First National Bank is a real location.

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The photo of Bank of the West that HossC posted that originally caught my eye was of a large stone staircase, one that I thought was a match to the staircase shown in Jumpin’ Jack Flash.  Upon closer inspection, though, I realized the two had some differences.  I am not used to seeing staircases in banks, so the one featured in JJF always stuck out to me.  What I wouldn’t give to see it in person!  If it, or the interior of the bank looks familiar to anyone, please let me know!

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In the meantime, the Pasadena Main Branch of Bank of the West is a pretty spectacular property in and of itself.  The eight-story Italian Renaissance-style building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, was designed in 1927 by architects Cyril Bennett and Fitch Haskell.

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While the cast stone and stucco exterior makes for a stately and imposing site, it belies nothing of the bank’s stunning interior.  The inside of the building is marked by tall walnut wood paneling, travertine walls, and towering stone columns.  The gorgeous gilt coffered ceiling was painted by John Smeraldi, the same artist who painted much of the interior of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.   The Sicilian-born painter, who is likewise known for his work at the Vatican and The White House, is so synonymous with the Biltmore, in fact, that the property named its signature restaurant “Smeraldi’s” in his honor.  Bank of the West also boasts four murals created by American Impressionist painter Alson S. Clark.  Because the property is a working bank, I felt a little odd about taking photographs of the interior, but if you are in the area, I highly recommend stopping by for a peek.  It is absolutely gorgeous!

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Besides being featured in Falcon Crest, Bank of the West also appeared in the pilot episode of Undercovers as the bank where Samantha (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) and Steven Bloom (Boris Kodjoe) attempted to steal security footage.  I apologize for the subpar screen captures pictured below – I could not find a copy of the episode anywhere and had to take snaps from a preview of it on YouTube.

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The super-nice teller that I spoke with while I was stalking the place informed me that a movie starring John Travolta was also lensed on the premises about twenty years ago, but she was unsure of the name of the film or what it was about.

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For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

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Until next time, Happy Stalking!  Smile

Stalk It: The Pasadena Main Branch of Bank of the West, from the “Law and Ardor” episode of Falcon Crest, is located at 587 East Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena.

The Hyatt Huntington Beach from “90210”

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One location that I have been absolutely DYING to stalk for over a year and a half now is the Hyatt Huntington Beach Hotel, the spot which stands in for the Beverly Hills Beach Club, the regular hangout of Liam Court (aka cutie Matt Lanter – sigh!), Annie Wilson (aka Shenae Grimes), Naomi Clark (aka AnnaLynne McCord) and the rest of the West Bev gang, each week on fave show 90210.  So when the Grim Cheaper and I were discussing where to spend his upcoming birthday weekend a couple of weeks back, I casually mentioned the Hyatt as a possible destination and, amazingly enough, despite the hotel’s hefty nightly room cost, he readily agreed!  Yay!  So the two of us, along with my parents, headed down there bright and early this past Saturday morning.  And, let me tell you, I could NOT have been more excited!  I was literally bouncing out of my seat the entire drive from Pasadena down to the South Bay.

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Thankfully the hotel did not disappoint!  The Hyatt Huntington Beach is absolutely HUGE – I honestly don’t think I have ever in my life seen a hotel even remotely that big! – and features a retail plaza complete with a grocery store and coffee bar, spa grottos with 3 tucked away spa pools, 6 different on-site restaurants, a water playground for kids, over 100,000 square feet of meeting and event space;

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517 guest rooms (ours is pictured above);

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a large lagoon-style swimming pool;

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lush grounds with meandering koi ponds;

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several sparkling fountains;

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and a 20,000 square foot spa.

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For all of its grandiosity, though, there were a lot of small touches, as well, that gave the hotel an intimate feel; my personal favorite being the mini-outdoor living room that was tucked away in an alcove near our room.

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And on Sunday morning when it rained, the hotel put out umbrellas for guests to use.  Love it!

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The area of the hotel that I was most excited about seeing was the front entrance, which is used in establishing shots of the Beach Club each week.

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Pictured above is what the entry-way columns look like when not sporting the “Beverly Hills Beach Club” signs that are shown on the series. 

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Besides appearing weekly in establishing shots, filming has also taken place on location at the hotel on two different occasions.  The Hyatt was first used in the Season 2 episode of 90210  titled “New Beginnings”.  In that episode, filming took place at the front entrance of the hotel;

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in the main fountain area;

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and by the pool.

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And in the Season 3 episode titled ”Mother Dearest” filming took place once again at the hotel’s front entrance; 

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by the pool;

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outside of the spa;

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in one of the exterior courtyards;

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on the bridge that connects the hotel to the beach;

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and in the beach parking lot located directly across the street from the hotel.

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None of the interior filming of the Beverly Hills Beach Club takes place at the hotel, though.  Sadly, the interior of the Club is just a set that exists only on a soundstage at Manhattan Beach Studios where the series is lensed.

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But I was very excited to see some similarities between the interior of the Hyatt hotel and the Beach Club set.  As you can see in the above screen captures and photographs, the Hyatt has a set of three surfboards hanging on the wall behind the concierge desk, much like is the case with the check-in desk at the Beach Club!  I cannot tell you how excited I was to spot those surfboards!

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There is also an outdoor fire pit located in the patio area of Mankota’s Grill, the hotel’s poolside restaurant, that looks very similar to the Beach Club’s outdoor fire pit.

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A SUPER nice concierge that we spoke with while checking out also let us know that in the Season 3 episode of Chuck titled “Chuck Versus the Beard” the Hyatt stood in for the Malibu Vista Hotel where Devon Woodcomb (aka Ryan McPartlin) and Ellie Bartowski (aka Sarah Lancaster) vacationed . . .

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. . . and where Sarah Walker (aka Yvonne Strahovski) and Daniel Shaw (aka Brandon Roth) were sent to track down a spy.

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The Hyatt Huntington Beach also stood in for the Turks & Caicos hotel where married CIA agents Steven and Samantha Bloom (aka Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw respectively) conducted a sting operation in the Season 1 episode of Undercovers titled “Instructions”. 

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According to a column on the Surf City News website, a large green screen was set up at the north end of the pool during the filming of Undercovers so that it could be made to look as if the hotel was located on the beach.  In reality, the Hyatt is located across the street from the beach.

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The hotel’s Red Chair Lounge also stood in for a Caracas bar in the “Instructions” episode.

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And one of its exterior hallways and courtyards were also used.

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The Hyatt was also featured in an Orbitz commercial in which the Orbitz hovercraft is shown landing in a hotel pool.

Orbitz Commercial filmed at the Hyatt Huntington Hotel

You can watch that commercial by clicking above.

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The concierge also told us that the Hyatt was featured in the Season 3 episode of My Fair Wedding titled “Monopoly Bride” in which wedding planner David Tutera coordinates a Monopoly-themed wedding for a board-game obsessed bride and groom.  And she informed us that a production with Hills star Audrina Patridge was filmed by the hotel’s pool, but she was not sure exactly what production it was.  And finally she told us that the hotel will be featured as a venue in an upcoming episode of Tori & Dean: sTORIbook Weddings, which is set to premiere on the Oxygen Channel on April 6th.

Until next time, Happy Stalking!  Smile

Stalk It: The Hyatt Huntington Beach, aka the Beverly Hills Beach Club from 90210, is located at 21500 Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach.  You can visit the hotel’s official website here.