This Property is Condemned

The House on Bourbon Street where the New Orleans scenes of the movie were filmed belongs to a fellow MAFCA "New Orleans As" chapter member and avid Model A enthusiast.
 
Terry said:
I've got a thing for "Nawlins" too. Especially the French Quarter! Love that ironwork. The only place that comes close is Quebec, not Montreal and I guess Paris itself, although I've never been there.
Terry
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I'm from New Orleans and the old section of Zurich looked so much like the French Quarter to me that I thought I was home.

Especially one evening while there I was sitting on my balcony and a provocatively clad young woman on the street shouted up to me "Hey Amerikaner! Zrow down your key!"
 
The Stude was a '32/33 Rockne if I remember correctly. I don't remember if it was red or not. Long time ago.
 
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Skeezixx said:
The House on Bourbon Street where the New Orleans scenes of the movie were filmed belongs to a fellow MAFCA "New Orleans As" chapter member and avid Model A enthusiast.
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Some years ago we stayed in the Audubon Cottages at Hotel Maison de Ville on Tolouse St. They say Tennessee Williams stayed there often and wrote much of "Streetcar...." there. The cottages are old slave quarters on a courtyard with a beautiful cast iron fountain and look very similar to Redford's place in the movie.
 
The courtyard and slave quarters depicted in the movie were indeed my friends. His uncle owned and lived in the house at the time of the filming (Actually it was two houses, both subtending each other at the corner of St. Anne and Bourbon Streets). It was chosen as the location as his uncle was a close personal friend of Tennessee Williams who did indeed live and work in the quarter.
After his uncle died I was privileged to assist going through his estate. One of the things I was told to be on the lookout for was his autographed copy of "This Property Is Condemned" Script.
 
I like reading all this pertinent info about movie locations. Wherever I was stateside or overseas, any movies that I remember as a kid that are classics today, I visited. While working in NO, I went to all the plantation homes that was in the TV movie, the Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman and then some, the Long Hot Summer, both original and remake (remake was far better), Mandingo with also parts filmed on NO. I got private tours where few people went like the Ashland-Belle Helene Plantation, was took up into the high attic to see how the whole structure was put together with pegs and wedges, not a nail anywhere. I went to one and was taken into the old barn, filled with all the family carriages and cars. Back in the early 80s, many of the homes still in family hands. Went back to NO in 2007, Interstates going everywhere, kinda got mis-orientated. Many of the Plantation homes are now really big tourist draws. Chalmette hadn't changed though. I once talked to the great great grandson of Pakenham while in Ireland, he was on a local radio talk show and he was criticizing the conduct of the 2nd Gulf War, that this should have been done and that also!!!!! I called in and started criticizing his GGGrandfather at the Battle of New Orleans. That was the last I heard him on the radio.

If I had known then about This Property is Condemned, I would have sought out the locations.

Don't forget...King Creole.

The next year...Katrina hit. Made me real sad.
 
31 Model A
If you are ever around especially with your Model A, you are welcome to join our chapter on it's annual tour to the Destrehan Plantation every November where we meet with two other local chapters.
About 37 miles for us uptown guys and most of it straight up the River Road. Always a great tour.
 
Skeezixx said:
31 Model A If you are ever around especially with your Model A, you are welcome to join our chapter on it's annual tour to the Destrehan Plantation every November. About 37 miles for us uptown guys and most of it straight up the River Road. Always a great tour.
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Destrehan!!! Was there too!!!! I'm sure you've been by San Francisco Plantation....it didn't look like that back in the early 70s. Oak Ally, Rosedown, Madewood, Pralange, etc etc. I had publicity photos taken with one of the owners of Houmas House (Whatever Happened to Baby Jane). I use to have a huge book, out of print now, Ghost Along the Mississippi, lost it in a divorce.

When I went back on 07, I couldn't get off the Interstate to catch the river road off the Huey P Long Bridge where I use to and I missed half the plantations I had visited before many times.

Doubt if I will ever get back down, would love too, great food, great music and a whole lot of History. I'm sure a line of As driving up the old River Road is quite a site.

BTW, a more recent movie filmed in NO and about was the Skeleton Key.
 
Too bad you lost that Laughlin book. Had you and I known each other in the late 70s and early 80s I could have introduced you to the author. Old by then, he was a friend of mine and a movie buff. We used to meet at the Prytania or Sena Mall Theater about once a week.

I think "Ghosts Along The Mississippi" is still in print. Sadly though, most of it's subjects he captured images of in the 40s have vanished forever.

Anytime my friend Geoff and I do a shakedown after repairs or feel the itch to drive our A's and need a destination we head up the River Road to Destrehan where we have become friendly with the staff. Next time I am there I'm going to ask if I might take a pic of my Roadster parked in the driveway.

It has occurred to me that with all those live oaks it might be a nice spot for a Model A Club picnic too..............Period garb of course!
 
Skeezixx said:
Too bad you lost that Laughlin book. Had you and I known each other in the late 70s and early 80s I could have introduced you to the author. Old by then, he was a friend of mine and a movie buff. We used to meet at the Prytania or Sena Mall Theater about once a week.

I think "Ghosts Along The Mississippi" is still in print. Sadly though, most of it's subjects he captured images of in the 40s have vanished forever.

Anytime my friend Geoff and I do a shakedown after repairs or feel the itch to drive our A's and need a destination we head up the River Road to Destrehan where we have become friendly with the staff. Next time I am there I'm going to ask if I might take a pic of my Roadster parked in the driveway.

It has occurred to me that with all those live oaks it might be a nice spot for a Model A Club picnic too..............Period garb of course!
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A great shot would be all the As on both the left and right of the entrance from the Mississippi to Oak Alley Plantation House.

Destrehan was under restoration when I visited it, floor were torn up and it was a mess but it sure turned out well.

Great memories...................

The reason why I got so many behind the scenes tours, coffee and lunch with the owners back then was, the wife I had at that time :rolleyes: was also in the Army, we were both on temporary duty to NO for the recruiting command from Ft Leonard Wood.

When we were out and about to schools, colleges, radio shows, lying out our arses about how great army life was :D , we would detour to this plantation and that plantation, in uniform and that gave us an invite in. Man!!! listening to the stories, the History of the family and house was fantastic.

Yip!!! She not only got the book, she got all the colored slides of everyplace we went. We had our 1st Anniversary dinner at one of the River Plantations, I think it has burned down. I can't find it listed. BTW, it wasn't Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, it was, Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte.

If I thought Sarah could make it, I'd come on down....again but.....

Thanks for the invite.
 
Skeezixx said:
Elmwood Plantation is the one which burned down. It was less than two miles from where I now sit. The gazebo alone survived and is now at Lafitte's Landing in Rivertown in Kenner.

You probably ordered from this menu:
http://cdm16313.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15140coll58/id/4435

If you and Sarah ever decide to take a vacation from the Land O Lincoln, c'mon down.
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BINGO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That was the place. Had a table right in front of one of the windows.

Shame it burned down, a lot of the plantation homes went that way.
 
Who needs Valet Parking in Louisiana..............:D

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My DVD arrived today. Made up a bowl of onion dip, got iced tea and have let all my lady friends know to stay home with their husbands tonight that I have the measles.

My evening is planned. :D
 
This Property is Condemned will have to wait until tomorrow night because when I went to turn on the TV another movie that I had seen some time ago was just coming on, a much better movie in certain ways and had far more As in it than Condemned. Tudors and sedans, a real nice Roadster and a couple of nice Coups. Most all were 31s from what I could see, there was a Chevy and a Dodge with suicide doors too. Trucks, a lot of trucks. Set in 1935 Waxahachie Texas and actually filmed there also, movie was made in 1984 with Sally Field who also won best actress, Ed Harris and Amy Madigan. It was Danny Glover's first movie. "Places in the Heart".....really good movie. Maybe a 1933/4 Dodge was the newest auto shown and it was owned by the banker. Sally's sister in her shop was playing music on a 1933 Silvertone radio not much different from the mine. Dances, clothing and music were great too.

Compared to the amount of As, this movie had far more.

At the very end Sarah's double was passing by......................
 
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