kids encyclopedia robot

Bronson Canyon facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
BronsonCave eastportal
The East Portal

Bronson Canyon, also known as Bronson Caves, is a cool spot in Griffith Park in Los Angeles. It's famous because lots of movies and TV shows have been filmed there. Filmmakers love it for its rocky, wild look. Even though it looks remote, it's actually easy to get to. This makes it a top choice for movies, especially Westerns and science fiction films.

Location and History of Bronson Canyon

Bronson Canyon is located in the southwest part of Griffith Park. This means it's super easy to reach from Hollywood.

In 1903, a company called Union Rock started a quarry here. A quarry is a place where rocks are dug out of the ground. They called it Brush Canyon back then. Workers dug out crushed rock to build city streets. Electric trains carried the rocks away.

The quarry stopped working in the late 1920s. This left behind the cool caves you see today. The caves became known as the Bronson Caves. This name came from a nearby street called Bronson Avenue. The whole area is now called Bronson Canyon. Fun fact: The actor Charles Bronson even got his stage name from Bronson Avenue!

One of the most famous parts of Bronson Canyon is a cave entrance. This cave is actually a short tunnel through a hill. Filmmakers usually shoot it from an angle. This way, you can't see the other side of the tunnel. The most well-known use of this tunnel was as the entrance to the Batcave! This was in the 1966–68 Batman TV series. Because it was a tunnel, they could film the Batmobile zooming out at high speed.

Movies Filmed in Bronson Canyon

Many different movies have used Bronson Canyon for their scenes. Its unique look makes it perfect for all kinds of stories.

  • Lightning Bryce (1919)
  • Riders of the Purple Sage (1925)
  • The Lightning Warrior (1931)
  • The Hurricane Express (1932)
  • I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932)
  • White Zombie (1932)
  • Sagebrush Trail (1933)
  • The Three Musketeers (1933)
  • The Vampire Bat (1933)
  • Mystery Mountain (1934)
  • The Phantom Empire (1935)
  • Flash Gordon (1936)
  • Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island (1936)
  • Zorro Rides Again (1937)
  • Dick Tracy Returns (1938)
  • Hawk of the Wilderness (1938)
  • The Lone Ranger Rides Again (1939)
  • Adventures of Captain Marvel (1941)
  • Call of the Canyon (1942)
  • Pirates of Monterey (1947)
  • Silver River (1948)
  • Atom Man vs. Superman (1949)
  • Flame of Araby (1951)
  • Unknown World (1951)
  • Carson City (1952)
  • Robot Monster (1953)
  • Captain John Smith and Pocahontas (1953)
  • Killers from Space (1954)
  • Day the World Ended (1955)
  • Crashout (1955)
  • Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
  • The Lone Ranger (1956)
  • It Conquered the World (1956)
  • The Searchers (1956)
  • Men in War (1957)
  • Night of the Blood Beast (1957)
  • The Brain from Planet Arous (1957)
  • The Cyclops (1957)
  • Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)
  • The Bride and the Beast (1958)
  • Earth vs. the Spider (1958)
  • Monster from Green Hell (1958)
  • The Return of Dracula (1958)
  • Teenage Caveman (1958)
  • The Jayhawkers! (1959)
  • Invisible Invaders (1959)
  • Teenagers from Outer Space (1959)
  • The Cape Canaveral Monsters (1960)
  • Eegah (1962)
  • Invasion of the Star Creatures (1962)
  • The Magic Sword (1962)
  • Ride the High Country (1962)
  • The Gun Hawk (1963)
  • They Saved Hitler's Brain (Madmen of Mandoras) (1963)
  • The Human Duplicators (1965)
  • Batman: The Movie (1966)
  • Mondo Bizarro (1966)
  • Flaming Frontier (1968)
  • Head (1968)
  • The Mighty Gorga (1969)
  • Equinox (1970)
  • Octaman (1971)
  • Lost Horizon (1973)
  • Flesh Gordon (1974)
  • The Human Tornado (1976)
  • The Choirboys (1977)
  • The White Buffalo (1977)
  • Raise the Titanic (1980)
  • The Return (1980)
  • The Legend of the Lone Ranger (1981)
  • The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982)
  • Dreamscape (1984)
  • The Evil That Men Do (1984)
  • Thrashin' (1986)
  • Munchies (1987)
  • The Wizard of Speed and Time (1989)
  • Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)
  • The Roller Blade Seven (1991)
  • Army of Darkness (1992)
  • Guns of El Chupacabra (1997)
  • La Cucaracha (1998)
  • George of the Jungle (film) (1997)
  • The End of Violence (1997)
  • The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (2001)
  • Cabin Fever (2002)
  • Fangs (2002)
  • The Scorpion King (2002)
  • Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt (2003)
  • Tremors 4: The Legend Begins (2004)
  • Vampire Blvd. (2004)
  • Diabolical Tales (2007)
  • D-War (2007)
  • Princess of Mars (2009)
  • Mega Python vs. Gatoroid (2010)
  • Mega Shark Versus Crocosaurus (2010)
  • The Whisperer in Darkness (2011)
  • Baseball's Last Hero: 21 Clemente Stories (2013)
  • B.C. Butcher (2016)
  • Hail, Caesar! (2016)
  • Time Trap (2017)
  • Under the Silver Lake (2018)
BronsonCave westportal
The West Portal that was used as the entrance to the Batcave in the 1960s TV series Batman

TV Shows Filmed in Bronson Canyon

Bronson Canyon has also been a popular spot for many TV series.

kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
Bronson Canyon Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.