OCThen reader Sean writes asking if anyone had more information about it, and offers up some of his memories...
I was looking for some info on Movieworld - Cars of the Stars in Buena Park on your site, but noticed it was not on the list of Attractions. I went there when it first opened and all of the exhibits (movie props and celebrity/movie cars) were just laid out on the floor in a large warehouse in rows. It was not the fanciest why to display them (it looked like a flea market), but it was still really cool, especially if you were a movie buff.Click on "Post a Comment" and let us know if know you anything.
I remember hand painted signs describing some of the props and what movie they came from.
Years later, I went again and it had been transformed more into a museum with false walls which led visitors on a specific path (like Movieland Wax Museum), more dramatic lighting, and a snack bar in the middle of the museum. I also remember TV commercials which featured Billy Barty promoting the museum and sliding down a tube slide which was also in the middle snack bar area.
I have not seen much about this museum on the Internet although it seemed to be a decent attraction in Buena Park at the time. Is there any other information on it and what happened to the collection? I think I saw some of the cars at the Peterson Museum in L.A. but the movie props were the most interesting part of it for me and I often wonder what happened to them. Some of them included movie miniatures like ships, trains, and submarines. The most memorable prop was the miniature of King Kong shackled on display (near the end of the 1933 movie) which Willis O'Brien used in the stop motion animation.
When the Von Dutch clothing and hats were popular a few years ago, I did see something mentioned in an article about Von Dutch living in the parking lot of this museum in a bus. Other than that, I have not seen or heard anything else and I am wondering if anyone else has any memory about this place.
Keep up the great work. I just found your site and have a lot of exploring to do still on it!
Cheers,
Sean
P.s. I wonder if you remember the religious wax museum that was connected to Movieland Wax Museum too? It had a replica of Michelango's Statue of David in front of the entrance.
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22 comments:
Movieworld was owned by the Brucker brothers during the late 60s-70s. When the museum closed the items were placed in a warehouse/airplane hanger for years. Portions of the collection have been sold over the years but there was a major auction in May of 06 put on by RM Auctions in California. I believe most of the collection was sold at this time including; cars, props, airplanes, original artwork by Robert Williams, Von Dutch, Ed Roth and portions of the late Steve McQueen's estate. All the items went for 2-3 times the estimated bid amount! I think the entire collection is in private hands now but you might still be able to buy an illustrated catalog from RM Auctions to see many of the items. You can also buy a book called Kustom Kulture which has information and pictures of the museum.
Josh
We have a few brochure type items from this museum and will try to post something on our blog this week - check us out by Friday. Deal? Outsidetheberm.blogspot.com
Here's a link to the auction with pictures....
http://www.rmauctions.com/AuctionResults.cfm?SaleCode=BC06&SortBy=LN&View=Normal&Category=Memorabilia#
In the mid 70s I went to the Movieworld, and thought it was the best museum I had ever been to, and saw the treasures of a lifetime. Was really an awesome place. Thanks Bruce Donaldson
I remember going to that place with my Dad when I was a kid. They started a horror section with a alien dentist (sick) and an exhibit of who was seated at the Devil's dinner table, like Hitler, etc.
Lots of cools cars like the bat mobile and Robby the Robot on display.
Pretty wild stuff, just outside of Disneyland.
I lived in Buena Park in 1977-1979 and went with a friend one night to see a really loud band play there, Today they call them VanHalen, It was Loud ! I wish I knew what I was seeing back then I would have got some Pic's I tell people and they say, "Yeah Right" But it happened for real
Henry
As a kid Movieworld was great to walk through but now, anything similar I fear, wouldn't hold the magic it did for me then.
There was a glass blowing artist there who would teach you how if you had the time.
Great memories of Movieworld, Movieland Wax Museum, and the area across from Knott's with the jungle island, row boats, mule ride, carousel, and live steam train.
In the early 70's I was ten years old and allowed to walk to the museum and spend all day there.
After paying to get in several days in a row they finally just let me walk in for free. I spent all my time there. Ed Roth and his son Charlie were there a lot, at the time I had no idea how cool that was. Roth painted a lot of those signs that explained the displays. I too have seen some of the pieces on display at the Peterson. Some of the signs have ended up on Ebay. That was a great experience.
I used to take the bus from Huntington Beach as a young teen and spent hours hanging out in that museum. I'm a huge film buff and it was like magic being so close to the props and cars used in films. There was a cable controlled vulture I remember playing with and seeing the cars from The Great Race and miniatures from Tora Tora Tora and King Kong were a huge highlight. Everytime I went back, something always changed. I remember a very creepy wax museum of torture which was cool but very disturbing. I have fond memories of the place and wish there was a similar place around.
I met Ed Roth in the lobby of the museum. The Rat Fink was sitting in the lobby and displays were still unfinished.
I so remember cars of the stars and planes of fame. I was a young impressionable girl who liked fast cars and motorcycles. I LOVED this place and frequented it often and was just fondly remembering what happened one day. They contacted my father because we owned several collectible cars including one they were interested in.. Audie Murphy's Lincoln Continental...a '64 ? It had gold metal flake paint, suicide doors, mirrored opera windows, bullet proof glass, and black leather interior with a 4/8 track player. This car was so cool...my dad surprised my mom with it as a gift for his being in the doghouse. When we would go shopping we always came out to a crowd gathered around it. It was a real beauty. Cars Of The Stars wanted it but my dad eventually sold it ot one of his bartenders and she filled it with whiskey dents and such. Too Bad. Wish I had it today but only photos are left for the memories of this fine ride. Had mags too. I loved growing up in LaPalma...it is rocked to be form O.C.
Wow, the memories. I lived nearby beginning in 1971 and went to the museum a number of times, mostly to the car side (east of lobby/ gift shop) and only once to the plane side (west side). The tickets were sold separately. One time the ticket taker for the car side was Ed Roth, who was in good humor and quite friendly.
Let's see... there was John Lennon's psychedelically painted Rolls Royce. A recording of Beatles songs (including "It's only Love) cycled endlessly on a nearby speaker. A BMW Isetta grabbed my attention (I owned and restored one a short time later). Herbie the Love Bug was a major exhibit, as the movie was fairly recent. There was a full size manikin of Rod Steiger as The Illustrated Man. As I recall, one of those hand painted signs explained that the manikin served to help the makeup artists properly illustrate Steiger for each day's filming. There were many Roth and (I believe) Barris custom cars like the Munsters car and the Batmobile. I should remember more specifics as the place was huge inside and it took at least a half hour to walk around and see everything.
On my single visit to the plane side, I was impressed by the original VW Kubelwagen on display; the fiberglass bodied, Mexican built "The Thing" homage had just debuted in VW showrooms at the time. Could there have been a Schwimmwagen amphibious vehicle as well? Maybe, or perhaps I had just read about it at during the same time period. There were lots of neat planes on display, but they were not really my area of interest.
Museums full of truly wonderful stuff like custom hot rods tend to be ephemeral, as few of them are self-sustaining. Not many people will pay enough ticket money to keep a roof on a place that houses someone's collection of fantastic yet hyper-specialized stuff. Governments will forever pay to house dusty stuffed animals or Etruscan artifacts, but, in general, will not pony up for anything really worthwhile or interesting. When something magical like Cars of the Stars manages to hover above the tedium of a Buena Park dairy lot, one must seize upon the opportunity like there is no tomorrow. Usually, there isn't!
Useless trivia: In early 1974 I bought a leftover new 1973 Mazda RX-2 coupe for $2925 from Buena Park Mazda, around the corner on Knott Avenue from the museum. The first of the 1970s gas shortages was in full swing and 17 MPG small Japanese cars were a tough sell; they had a lot full. The young dudes with the lowered Hondas these days have no idea how uninspired and derivative their cars are compared to the fire breathing, seven grand redline Mazda rotary engined "family cars" of the 1970s. Jeez, I wish I still had mine!
It was right next to Hufs Hut. I remember they had the miniature of the boardwalk/Ferris wheel from the movie 1941, also a big round spinning disk on the floor with day glow paint. I went quite a few times, it was always pretty empty and the place was huge, I am sure it couldn't sustain itself.. Timing is everything, it would probably do very well now since the custom car scene has become so huge. Dammit, someone find me a time machine!
My husband played in the band that opened for Van Halen on opening night. The band was called channel 3, does anyone have any photos from that day?
contact : srodgers@mdsla.com
I grew up in Buena Park and remember Movieworld. I was a kid at the time. I also was a huge movie buff, so I was more into the “Cars o’ the Stars” side of the house as opposed to the “Planes of Fame”. Aside from the truly wonderful vehicles, I absolutely loved the movie memorabilia. I remember they had a set of Mr. Spock’s pointed ear tips from “Star Trek TOS”. There was an actual model of King Kong used in the 1933 classic movie (the scene where Kong is chained in NYC; the display contained info on the inner skeletal mechanics of the model). I also recall the heavily tattooed mannequin of Rod Steiger as Carl, his role from the “Illustrated Man” (probably because it freaked me out).
I loved looking at all the cars, but my favorite was the exhibit from Blake Edwards’ “The Great Race” (I LOVE that flick). Of course, there was “The Leslie Special” (a beautiful “auto-mo-beel”), but Professor Fate’s Hannibal 8 was the BEST (if I remember correctly, Movieworld had two Hannibal 8’s; one was on of the versions that was “uplifted” via its classic lazy tong mechanism). They also had the Professor Fate submarine set---schweet.
Another fun memory I have from Movieworld is that they had a special event where they were promoting this new TV show called “Happy Days”. The show was in its infancy and I was a fan, so I went down to meet the cast. It was a blast. Everyone got a chance to personally meet and spend a few minutes chatting with the actors.
I remember the Museum quite well ...
I grew up just on the other side of the 91 Freeway on Blackhawk circle ... It was a favorite haunt of my brother and I .... We'd spend hours there during the summer ... I bought a few models from the hobby shop that was in the lobby area as well ...
I went there many, many, times in the mid 70's. Never thought to look for Ed Roth, and I was & still am a huge Roth fan. I probably walked right by him or Von Dutch, as I do remember seeing someone painting signs there. Anyone remember the Ed Roth tombstone in the museum, there on display? It was polished black granite with the Ed "Big daddy" Roth name on top and the Rat Fink in the middle, with the inscription "Won a few, lost a few" and his birth date. When he died his family didn't use it as I have seen his quite plain tombstone where he is buried. I did buy quite a few Rat Fink key chains from their gift shop then, in all the colors, and still have them today along with a few Rat Fink slot cars unbuilt that are worth quite a bit now. Sure miss the Big Daddy and Movieland....
I used to go to that place often. My late wife used to work in the little outdoor restaurant area. She learned to make a great guacamole there, must have beeen about '74.
Just back from the Portland Roadster show, where they had a hand painted Von Dutch van from Movie World... The one he slept in? Looks lime it might fit the bill... 15" clear glass eyeball graphic on the front, tons of tasty hand done type.
Enjoyed reading the memories of this special and fleeting place....!
Jelly Helm
This is so very cool. I bought a 1955 Studebaker President State Sedan from a woman in 1983. She said that its claim to fame was that it had been owned by Cars of the Stars in California. She drove it daily. After sitting in fields, barns and an extra garage for 27 years I am getting around to making it into a weekend driver.
I was looking through the paperwork that she gave me and it was registered to a gentleman in Buena Park, CA in 1974 and 1975. A certificate of compliance - motor vehicle pollution control dated 11-1-75 for the car shows the name of the registered owner to be Cars of Stars.
The fact it was at Cars of the Stars mean it was formerly owned by a star? What color is the car? Very cool!
Its original color is Sonora Beige over Saginaw Green. It had been completely reupholstered in maroon velour. Headliner, carpet, seats, door panels – everything! I did not like the green exterior with the maroon interior so am in the process of changing the green (so far the underside of the hood and the engine compartment) to Tilden Gray which I think goes with the interior so much better.
The gentleman whose name is on the ’74 &’75 registration is Mitchell Anthony Patrick, 6920 Orangethorpe, Buena Park, CA. I doubt if there is anyway I can fill in the 1954 to 1974 period unless the state of California has registration paperwork going back that far.
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