Inspired by Oscar as well as a post our Oak Cliff editor published last week about movies with Oak Cliff connections, I looked, this past weekend, for movies with scenes shot in or near Lake Highlands.
A few things I knew and a few I didn’t …
Cotton Candy — A made-for-TV movie about high school teens and a rock-band competition by eventual Oscar-winner Ron Howard was filmed at Lake Highlands High School in the 1970s.
Bottle Rocket — Wes Anderson (nominated this year for the fantastic Moonrise Kingdom) made his first major movie — which is awesome and stars Dallasites Owen and Luke Wilson — in Texas. Closest to Lake Highlands was the bookstore scene, which Anderson and the boys shot at NorthPark, at a store that no longer exists. The school in the movie is St. Marks in Preston Hollow.
Dr. T and the Women — This Robert Altman joint, which isn’t one of his best, features Farrah Fawcett frolicking and disrobing in the fountain near Dillard’s at NorthPark Center.
My Dog Buddy — According to the blog where I found the next three movies (a fascinating read by a Bryan Adams High School ’66 alumnus), My Dog Buddy was bad. So bad that kids made fun of it and called it “My Hog Muddy”. It was produced by former Casa Linda Theater owner Gordon McLendon and had its premiere at the Casa Linda Theater.
Zontar the thing from Venus — This 1966 B movie is full of scenes filmed at Casa Linda Plaza and includes a shot of soldiers searching the woods, which actually are clumps of trees along White Rock Creek, according to the fun-to-read blog. The movie features Neil Fletcher, who invented the corny dog.
Mars Needs Women — Another 1966 B Movie, also featuring the corny dog inventor, includes scenes of Martians chasing women around White Rock Lake, as well as up or down Greenville Avenue.
Know of more? Tell us in comments.
