On the western edge of the park, the firehouse, which was the original town hall, got an added cupola and new coat of red paint for the occasion. Hanging Judge Parker’s 3 man gallows were erected in the town’s beautiful park, where trees were planted by school children more than a hundred years ago, and the park was the location for the triple hanging scene. In 6 weeks in 1969, the film crew turned 5 blocks of the center of this old railroad town into 1880’s Fort Smith, Arkansas. Spectacular scenery around our charming Colorado town, at the foot of the San Juan Mountains, caught the attention of the director of the film True Grit, starring John Wayne as the one-eyed U.S. A short walk up Clinton Street, past the Sherbino Theater, leads you to the living quarters of Rooster Cogburn. The jail wagon, which John Wayne brings back from the Indian Territories, now sits in the front yard of the Ouray County Ranch History Museum, the building that was originally the Old Rio Grande Southern Railroad Depot. The firehouse now survives as an artist studio, and the livery stable became the post office. In six weeks in 1968, the film crew turned the center of this old railroad town into the 1880s-style Fort Smith, Arkansas, complete with Hanging Judge Parker’s three-man gallows.
Ouray County was the main film location with key sets in the movie located right in Ridgway. Spectacular scenery around our charming Colorado town caught the attention of the director of the film that was released in 1969. A 2010 remake of the popular movie featured Jeff Bridges in the lead role, but the original continues to have the most devotees, in large part to John Wayne’s iconic personality. True Grit's celebrity-studded cast featured Wayne, Glen Campbell, Kim Darby, Robert Duvall, and Dennis Hopper. He worked with the top stars of his day, including Gary Cooper, Randolph Scott, James Cagney, John Wayne, Shirley Temple, and Marilyn Monrose. The film was directed by Henry Hathaway, Hollywood director famed for his work on a long string of Westerns most notably in the 1950s and '60s. “Like the Mustang in Bull Durham and he has all of Whitney Houston’s gowns in the bodyguard,” Raines said.True Grit was certainly one of the most famous Westerns ever made. With all the walking traffic we have downtown and the small town feel of downtown Hot Springs would be a great place for him to showcase his life in the movies,” Raines said.įrom Field of Dreams to Hidden Figures, Costner plans to exhibit props from some of his biggest blockbusters. “Kevin Costner is wanting to bring his museum,” The Gangster Museum of America owner Robert Raines said.īuild it and they will come, Costner is working with Raines and developer Rick Williams to bring the big screen to this small town.
When you take a trip to the Spa City, there’s a few different spots that probably make the to do the list, but there is a new project on the horizon that is sure to add to the foot traffic. He plans to open a legacy museum in downtown Hot Springs. Soon he will have a footprint right here in the natural state.
– From Bull Durham and the Body Guard, you’ve probably seen Kevin Costner on the big screen.