Melody Ranch Motion Picture Studio

The Melody Ranch Motion Picture Studio has been in operation since 1915 and has been responsible for a variety of shoot-em-up movies that were popular throughout the age of film. Many of the movies were considered B-westerns, but the studio was eventually sold to Gene Autry in 1952, boosting the budget and star power of the theatre. Actors including Gary Cooper, Roy Rogers, Bill Boyd and John Wayne all made movies at the studio until 1962 when fire struck. Autry maintained the rest of the ranch for his horse until it was sold in 1990, after his passing. The ranch has undergone renovation and includes a recreation of a western town. There is a bank, saloon, general store, church, hotel, school, livery stable and theatre, all on the western-style street. There is also a farm hour, ranch house, Victorian home, and Spanish adobe on the property. The studio is set on 22-acres and features a variety of sound stages. The space also includes an art department space with drafting tables and conference rooms that can rented. There are also makeup, wardrobe and hair facilities, as well as cafeteria. Parking is available onsite, making it easy for those participating in movie production to get to and from their workspaces. While it may seem the height of the cowboy western movie has passed, the Melody Ranch provides a studio that allows movies of the golden era to still be created.