Showing posts with label Panorama City. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Panorama City. Show all posts
Saturday, August 31, 2013

Automotive Filming Needs Fulfilled in the San Fernando Valley

Image courtesy Bornrich.com
One of the best things about the SFV is watching television shows and movies that specifically feature or use the SFV as a filming location(s). I am such a big fan of it that I have a page dedicated for Filming Locations used in popular movies and TV shows which is a constantly growing list. 

So every movie or TV show obviously needs a filming location or studio to complete its story. But what about automotive needs? Almost every TV show or film uses a vehicle whether its completely customized like the Batmobile from the 1960's Batman TV show series to a modern day police squad car used in CSI. 

So guess what? Most of those cars whether customized or standard vehicles are sourced right in the SFV. So not only is the SFV a major source for filming location needs (in addition to the many Studios) but the SFV is also a major source for all those vehicle you see on the big screen. 

The list below shows where many of the vehicles you have seen on TV or film are housed including the customization shops. Its possible I may have missed one, so please let me know and I will update. 

1. Barris Kustom Industries 10811 Riverside Drive North Hollywood California 91602. Lets start with the one and only George Barris who I believe invented car customizing and is a legend, if not a god when it comes this category. Consider that he customized the Batmobile, The Munster Koach, The Beverly Hillbillies "1928 Porter", an updated version of KITT for Knight Rider, Black Beauty from Green Hornet, and The General Lee from Dukes of Hazard to name a few. Another car Barris customized that I talked about on this site is "Navin Johnson's" Pontiac Firebird from The Jerk here.  Barris has also customized cars for celebrities including Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Elton John, John Wayne, Sonny and Cher, and Elvis Presley. The shop is still open and George Barris is still doing his thing after more than 50 years. Simply amazing!
Image courtesy sixpacktech.com
Image courtesy Knightrideronline.com
Image courtesy OC Register
Image courtesy Deviant Art
Image courtesy CGLFC
2. Cinema Vehicle Services 12580 Saticoy St # A North Hollywood CA 91605. CVS was first started in October 1975 by Ray Claridge in a 2500 sqft Van Nuys shop and eventually moved to a 7.5 acre lot in NoHo with approximately 1000 vehicles available to rent. CVS also provides a state of the art facility for studio prep work. They claim to be the "oldest and only picture car company in the industry." Some of their well known vehicles they developed include Eleanor from Gone in 60 Seconds, Torino from Starsky and Hutch, Ecto1 from Ghostbuster, and the Charger from The Fast and The Furious. They also have an interactive website that lets you view their inventory so I definitely recommend viewing their website if you have time to look at 1000 vehicles. On a related note, CVS was recently featured in LA Times for the renewal of their lease which allowed them to continue call North Hollywood home. 

Image courtesy Ganzomag.com
Image courtesy Cinema Vehicle Services
Image courtesy Cinema Vehicle Services
Image courtesy therpf.com 
Image courtesy autoholics.com 
Image courtesy Cinema Vehicle Services
Image courtesy Cinema Vehicle Services
Image courtesy Google Maps
3. Unknown. Approximately 14589 Titus Street Panorama City 91402. This next location I am not sure who operates it and the address but it definitely appears to be a movie car rental business. Its possible that this is an overflow parking lot for Cinema Vehicle Services. I am listing it separately just in case it is not operated by CVS. On a separate note, this is also the old parking lot for the now abandoned The Valley Federal Savings Building (see postcard here). If anyone has any information on this location, please do share. 


Above images courtesy Google Maps
4. Picture Car Warehouse 8400 Reseda Blvd Northridge CA 91324 (former Rydell and Neill Lehr Cadillac). Picture Car Warehouse was started by Ted Moser who has been a transportation and picture car coordinator since 1990. He has worked on numerous films including 2 fast 2 furious, Rush Hour 2 and 3, and The Great Debaters to name a few. PCW is similar to CVS mentioned above in that they provide a wide array of vehicles for rent as well as provide customization work. This location was also used for the 2011 movie, Drive, which was discussed on this site. They also have an interactive website that lets you view their inventory so I definitely recommend viewing their website if you have time to look at 100's of vehicles.


Above images courtesy PCW
5. Galpin Studio Rentals Hollywood 8353 Sepulveda Blvd North Hills CA 91343 (locations also in Hollywood, La Cienga, and Santa Clarita). From the man who made the Galpin Ford Dealership a huge success, Bert Boeckmann started Galpin Ford Rentals in May 1974 and later expanded to the Studio Rental business in November 1981. The rest they say is history as this department exploded for Galpin providing an inventory of vehicles greater than 600 that were used in movies like E.T., Back To The Future, and Nightmare on Elm Street. This company is a large provider of Ford vehicles, so if you are ever watching a TV show or movie and see a bunch of Fords, it most likely came from Galpin. Galpin also operates Galpin Auto Sports (GAS) which customizes cars and provide aftermarket products that was featured in MTV's Pimp My Ride hosted by Xzibit (Woodland Hills resident). 

Image courtesy Galpin Studio Rentals
Image courtesy About.com
6. Studio Picture Vehicles 7502 Wheatland Avenue Sun Valley CA 91352. Ken Fritz started Fritz Custom Cars forty-two years ago. He then started H.K. Custom Cars. Owning the two businesses and building cars for the Motion Picture Industry, he decided to start Studio Picture Vehicles, which the City of Los Angeles awards for being "The oldest Picture Car Supplier in the Movie Industry".

Image courtesy Google Maps
Image courtesy Google Maps
Image courtesy Studio Picture Vehicles
You can view more SFV Filming Locations here

You can view more SFV history here
Thursday, July 25, 2013

BTTF# 19: The Tragic Death of Child Actress Judith Barsi in Canoga Park Remembered 25 Years Later

 Image courtesy Suaviterinmodo Flickr page.
Los Angeles Herald Examiner 1988 article. Image courtesy Suaviterinmodo Flickr page.
Hello Magazine 1988 article showing Judith's corpse being carried out while two police officers on the left weep in sorrow. Image courtesy Suaviterinmodo Flickr page.
Welcome aboard the Delorean! 

Marty McFly here to take you on a journey to the former Judith Barsi family home at 22100 Michale Street Canoga Park (West Hills). The Delorean has the required plutonium plus some random garbage in the Mr. Fusion reactor ready for this trip. The time circuits are set to August 25, 1988 (25 years ago today) and the flux capacitor is......fluxxing. The engine is running (not stalled this time) so we need to hurry. Hang on, as the ride can be a little bumpy as we travel back in time.

Let me start off by saying that this is a tragic story to tell which was just as difficult for me to write as when my father passed away in May 2013 but yet I never knew Judith Barsi. I apologize for starting off your day on a sad note but history cannot be ignored and the more we learn, the better off we theoretically should be. 

The name Judith Barsi might not ring a bell but in the mid to late 80's she was an up and coming child actress starring in 72 commercials,  4 TV movies, six big screen film including two animated movies, and made several TV guest appearances. She had appeared in Jaws IV: The Revenege, The Land Before Time, All Dogs Go To Heaven, Punky Brewster, Growing Pains and Fatal Vision where she played a daughter murdered by her father which would eerily foreshadow her future.

Barsi was born to Hungarian parents, József "Arizona Joe" and Maria (Virovacz) Barsi. The real-life-villains.wikia.com site describes Judith's father best: 
Joe was a Hungarian-American plumbing contractor and banjo/fiddle musician who was best known as the father of child actress Judith Barsi. Burdened by low self-esteem, stemming from mockery over his Hungarian accent and the social rejection he suffered in Hungary, József developed a drinking problem and a paranoid personality which was to torment him throughout his life, culminating in him murdering his wife and daughter before taking his own life.
Joe was born on November 26, 1932 in a "[rough] industrial" area of Hungary, during the reign of Admiral Horthy. An illegitimate child, József never knew his father, and suffered from social rejection and bullying by other children and from his own school teachers. His first daughter, Ági, later speculated that József resented his mother for allowing his father to abandon him, and consequently viewed all women as "whores".
Joe Barsi. Image courtesy Real Life Villians.com.
Joe was originally married to Klara (maiden name unknown) sometime in the late 50's in France after escaping the 1956 Soviet occupation of Hungary. He had two children, a son named Barna (1957 - 1995) and a daugther named Ági (1958 - 2008). Joe developed a drinking problem and began to physically abuse his wife. The family moved to New York in 1964 where Joe began to abuse his son, Barna, which prompted Klara to divorce and move to Arizona sometime in 1969. Barna would later commit suicide in 1995. 

Joe, Klara, Agi, and Barna. Image courtesy Real Life Villians.com.
Joe moved to California where he worked as a plumber and met Maria, a waitress, in a Los Angeles bar known as a meeting place for immigrants. Maria was also a Hungarian immigrant that fled after the Soviet occupation and suffered from pyschological and physical abuse from her father. Joe would pay for his drinks with $100 bills which caught the attention of Maria as she sought security at that time. 

Joe and Maria. Image courtesy Real Life Villians.com.
Joe and Maria would later marry sometime in the 70's and their only daughter, Judith, was born on June 6, 1978. Maria was an aspiring actress but never caught a break so she began grooming her daughter to become an actress which was a 1 in 10,000 success rate and would eventually be discovered at a San Fernando Valley skating rink (not sure which one but I would like to speculate that is was Skateland in Northridge but dont quote me). 
Joe and Judith. Image courtesy Real Life Villians.com.
The judith-barsi.com memorial site described Judith when first meeting an agent as:
She was mistaken for a three-year-old child. Judith was cute, precocious, intelligent and a lot of fun to work with. They signed her on immediately. 
Afterwards, Judith Barsi's career took off as she earned an estimated $100,000 per year (or roughly $200,000 in 2013 dollars) by her fourth grade year. This extra income helped the family purchase a modest suburban ranch style home in Canoga Park bordering on West Hills. The home was located at 22100 Michale Street which measures 3 Beds/2 Baths on 1,663 sqft on a total lot size of 0.26 acres built in 1960. The home was purchased sometime in 1985 for an unknown price as the property records dont go that far back but if  I had to speculate, it would be somewhere around $120,000 to $150,000 which Judith's salary could pay for in almost one year. Judith attended Nevada Elementary School but would miss school so much because of her acting schedule. 

After the home was purchased, Joe was so paranoid that he had a wrought iron fence with spikes built around the property.  When talking with neighbors, he would keep the conversation to a minimum and was very secretive. However Maria would talk to the neighbors and some of the other stage moms who would hear the horrible stories of Joe. 

The pictures below are from a recent home listing where the current owners unsuccessfully tried to sell the home for $699,000 on November 13, 2007 through May 15, 2010. These pictures should not be interpreted as when the Barsi's were living in the home as it has most likely been upgraded since 1988. 










Images courtesy Number1Expert
And this is when the story gets depressing and sad according to Wikipedia:
As Judith's career success increased, József became increasingly abusive, jealous and paranoid, and would routinely threaten to kill himself, his wife, and daughter. His alcoholism worsened, and resulted in three separate arrests for drunk driving. In December 1986, Maria reported his threats and physical violence toward her to the police. After police found no physical signs of abuse, Maria eventually decided not to press charges against József.
After the incident, József reportedly stopped drinking, but continued to threaten his wife and daughter, which included threats of cutting their throats as well as burning down the house. He reportedly hid a telegram informing Maria that a relative in Hungary had died, in an attempt to prevent her and Judith from leaving America. Physical violence also continued, with Judith telling a friend about her father throwing pots and pans at her resulting in a nosebleed. Due to her father's abuse, Judith began putting on weight and exhibited disturbing behavior, which included plucking out all her eyelashes and pulling out her cat's whiskers. After breaking down in front of her agent during a singing audition for All Dogs Go to Heaven, Judith was taken by Maria to a child psychologist, who identified severe physical and emotional abuse and reported her findings to Child Protective Services (CPS).
The investigation was dropped after Maria assured the case worker that she intended to begin divorce proceedings against József and that she and Judith were going to move into a Panorama City apartment she had recently rented as a daytime haven away from József. Friends urged Maria to follow through with the plan, but she resisted, reportedly because she did not want to lose the family home and belongings.
According to a National Enquirer article, Maria had rented a $700 apartment at the Regency Premier located at 8525 Tobias Avenue #314 Panorama City, CA 91402 which is directly across the street from the Panorama Mall. I am not sure why she had picked this location but it wasnt far enough from Joe as he had suspected that Maria was moving out and followed her one day. He noticed her carrying moving boxes into the apartment and asked her about it where Maria replied that she was giving away some items to some friends. Maria suspected that Joe didnt believe her and sensed things were getting worse. She even tried to make the house look like a pigsty to force Joe out as he was a neat freak. But she wanted to maintain her home and belongings and didnt want to lose it including her child's acting career. She had also been waiting on a $12,000 tax refund check that she didnt want Joe to get his hands on and probably needed the proceeds to support Judith and herself living on their own. Judith's co-star from Growing Pains, Tracey Gold, even tried to help out but Maria resisted. On Monday July 25, 1988, Judith had an appointment with Hanna-Barbera which she missed. 
Regency Premier Apartment Building 8525 Tobias Avenue Panorma City. Image courtesy Hotpad.com
The paragraph below from Wikipedia describes the horrifying final day for Judith and Maria:
Judith was last seen riding her bike on the morning of Monday, July 25, 1988. That evening, József shot Judith in the head while she was asleep in her room, and then shot his wife, Maria. József spent the next two days wandering around the house, and said during a phone call with Judith's agent on Tuesday night that he intended to move out for good, and just needed time to "say goodbye to [my] little girl."He then poured gasoline on the bodies and set them on fire. After incinerating the bodies, József went into the garage and shot himself in the head with a .32 caliber pistol. On August 9, 1988, Barsi and her mother were interred in unmarked graves at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
Judith Barsi Death Certificate. Image courtesy Find A Death.com
Roughly two months after the Barsis death, the LA Times reported on September 7, 1988 that the CPS was scolded by a county advisory panel for dropping its investigation of threats of violence against Judith and Maria Barsi. The outcome of the investigation was that more funds be allocated so that social workers are not overburdened and that before a case is closed, the home should be visited and/or the child interviewed. 

The same organization that was setup to prevent and fight against such abuse failed miserably and they still continue to do so. Obviously hindsight is 20/20, but there are stories still reported today where women and children face constant threats and abuse. Take for instance, the story of Michelle Kane who was hiding at a friend's house in West Hills from her abusive husband, Michael Kane. On Saturday June 15, 2013, Michael stormed the West Hills house and stabbed Michelle to death in the front lawn. Luckily, the two children were not hurt in this tragedy. Michelle had sought help from the LAPD the previous day but no luck. In a strange "this is a small world" thinking, the Kane family townhome is located a few blocks from the former Barsi home. 

In 2004, thanks to the fundraising efforts led by Nancy Kelly and with the gratitude of many fans, headstones were purchased for Maria and Judith which can be seen below. 

Judith Barsi grave at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills. Image courtesy Find A Grave.com 
Maria and Judith Barsi grave at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills. Image courtesy Find A Grave.com
One side note, there is supposedly a head shot of Judith Barsi showing the gunshot to the head but that can be possible because her body was literally incinerated. For those that are curious, you can view the photo at findadeath.com. If anyone can confirm that the image is legitimate, please let me know. 

Now its time to fire up the Delorean and go back to the future.  The Barsi home was sold by the survivors of the Barsi family for $124,000 on September 14, 1989 which was 13 months after their deaths. The home changed hands a couple of times where it was last sold on July 12, 2001 to Francisco and Ruth Bernal for $272,000. The property records are shown below which show Maria Barsi at the very bottom. As mentioned earlier, the Bernal family tried to sell this home from 2007 through 2010 and we will keep our eyes and ears open if the listing pops up again. I wonder if there are any ghost stories from this home. 

Lastly, if this story has touched you in some way, you can support the Judith Fund at judith-barsi.com and/or the Child Help USA Organization which is for the prevention and treatment of child abuse. 

At the very bottom, the name Maria Barsi can be seen for the sales transaction of their Canoga Park home. Image courtesy Propertyshark.com
The 10 minute new story below is a must watch which captures all the details of this story. I am not sure of the original source but I believe its from one of those crime shows. 



And the home as it looks today:




You can view more SFV history and BTTF posts here

Sources:

Three Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide by Gabe Fuentes. Los Angeles Times, July 28, 1988.

A Script of Fear: Repeated Threats by Father of Child Actress Carried to Tragic End by John Johnson and Gabe Fuentes. Los Angeles Times, August 7, 1988.

Barsi Probe: Judge Asked to Reveal Files on Slain Child by John Johnson. Los Angeles Times, August 17, 1988.

Local News in Brief: Child-Abuse Files Ordered Opened. Los Angeles Times, August 23, 1988.

Panel Scolds Agency in Girl's Death by Gabe Fuentes. Los Angeles Times, September 7, 1988.

A Lesson Learned from Family Tragedy by Sherry Barger. Los Angeles Times, September 18, 1988.

Local News in Brief: New Unit Urged for Child Welfare Cases. Los Angeles Times, November 5, 1988.

Child Actress Judith Barsi: A Life Cut Tragically Short by Denis Noe. TruTV.com, December 2, 2012.

Judith Barsi Photo Gallery -- Fanpix.net

Judith Barsi -- Find a Grave

Judith Barsi -- Find a Death

József Barsi -- Real Life Villains

Judith Barsi -- Wikipedia

Judith Barsi -- Suaviterinmodo Flickr Page

Judith Barsi -- Memorial Site (www.judith-barsi.com)

Judith Barsi -- Memorial Site (judithbarsi.dc-lundberg.net)

Death of a Family - Judith Barsi's Story. Youtube video uploaded on September 13, 2009.

Canoga Park Home Redfin Lisitng

Canoga Park Home Blockshopper Listing

Judith Barsi Home - Propertyshark
Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Filming Locations: The Office (NBC U.S. TV Show: 2005 - 2013)

Image courtesy Fanpop.com
Image courtesy Barnes & Noble 
Image courtesy Spoiler TV
Image courtesy Stuffpoint.com
Image courtesy Insidetv
After 9 hilarious seasons, The Office (U.S.) will air its last episode this Thursday on May 16, 2013 with a special 75 minute show. To celebrate the success of this series, I thought it would be appropriate to discuss some of the show's filming locations in the SFV which are well known by now. A majority of the show was filmed in Van Nuys to fill in as Scranton, Pennsylvania which is discussed below.
The Office is an American comedy television series broadcast by the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). It is an adaptation of the BBC series of the same name. The Office was adapted for American audiences by Greg Daniels, a veteran writer for Saturday Night LiveKing of the Hill, and The Simpsons. It is co-produced by Daniels' Deedle-Dee Productions, and Shine America, in association with Universal Television. The original executive producers were Daniels, Howard Klein, Ben Silverman, Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, with numerous others being promoted in later seasons.
The series depicts the everyday lives of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. To simulate the look of an actual documentary, it is filmed in a single-camera setup, without a studio audience or a laugh track. The show debuted on NBC as a mid-season replacement on March 24, 2005, and features Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, B. J. Novak and Ed Helms among the main cast. Series star Carell, who portrayed Michael Scott, left the series near the end of the seventh season. Since its debut, the show has aired 199 episodes and is currently airing its ninth season, which has been confirmed to be the series' last. The series is scheduled to conclude with a one-hour finale on May 16, 2013.
The first five seasons of The Office received critical acclaim, were included on several top TV series lists, and won several awards including four Primetime Emmy Awards, one of which was for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2006. The series initially debuted to low ratings, but during its second season it became the highest-rated scripted series on NBC and was eventually chosen to follow Super Bowl XLIII. Off-network syndication of The Office began in late 2007 on TBS and Fox-owned stations in the United States (Wikipedia).

The filming locations from The Office were originally found by IAMNOTASTALKER.com so big props to that site for posting. All images shown below courtesy IAMNOTASTALKER.com unless noted.

The Office was primarily filmed at the Chandler Valley Center Studios located at 13927 Saticoy Street Van Nuys. This location is behind the former GM Plant as well across the train tracks from the former Schlitz Brewery site that I discussed in the Tower of Wooden Pallets post. According to a Yahoo article published on February 25, 2009, the author provided a list of recognizable items that could be seen from the street level at the time the article was published. Today, no references to the show can be found. You can also see more at IAMNOTASTALKER.com.
  1. The entrance to Dunder Mifflin 
  2. The Dunder Mifflin Parking Lot 
  3. Various "Dunder Mifflin" and "Vance Refrigeration" signs 
  4. Michael Scott's office window that looks out over the parking lot. (In reality, the interior of his office is a set located in the soundstage next door.) 
  5. Michael Scott's parking sign 
  6. Prop cars belonging to various characters in the parking lot. (Complete with prop "Pennsylvania" license plates.) 
  7. The location of Michael Scott's "staged suicide attempt" from the episode "Safety Training" 
  8. And more! (The better you know the series, the more you will recognize!)


Above images courtesy BTTFtour.com
Dwight Schrutes car can be seen from the street.
In addition to Dwight's car, Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly's car can be seen followed by Andy's Prius and Meredith's mini-van.
Props from the show stored in a nearby parking lot state Jim Kit, Elevator, and Vance Refrigeration. The above images courtesy Living In A Television Show.
The next images show the location today which unfortunately has no references or props from The Office as in the previous pictures above. 





The Chili's Grill & Bar from Season 2, Episode 1, "The Dundies" and Episode 7, "The Client" was actually filmed at the former Black Angus Steakhouse (now demolished) at 14640 Roscoe Blvd in Panorama City. You can see more at IAMNOTSTALKER regarding this location.


Above images from "The Dundies."

Above images from "The Client." 

Michael Scott's condo was located at 7303 Bonnie Place Reseda and was purchased in Season 2, Episode 3, "Office Olympics". The condo which Michael mistakes as his was filmed in Season 6, Episode 22, "Dream Team" is located at 7302 Bonnie Place Reseda. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER  regarding this location.







Oscar Martinez's house which was revealed in Season 2, Episode 13, "The Secret", was filmed at 5232 Longridge Avenue Van Nuys not too far from the location above. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.




Pam and Dwight meet at Paty's Restaurant in Season 3, Episode 3 ,"The Coup" which is located at 10001 Riverside Drive in Toluca Lake. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 




Phyllis Vance's Wedding from Season 3, Episode 15, "Phyllis' Wedding", was filmed at the First Church of North Hollywood at 4390 Colfax Avenue Studio City which has also been used for other TV shows, commercials, and films. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.



Pickwicks Pub was used in Season 3, Episode 18, "Cocktails" and in Season 4, Episode 9,"Local Ad." Pickwicks is located at 21010 Ventura Blvd in Woodland Hills. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 








Also used in Season 3, Episode 18, "Cocktails" was David Wallace and his wife, Rachel's, home used to throw a party for all of the Dunder Mifflin managers. This home is located at 5133 Louise Avenue in Encino. and is the original home of the Adohr Milk Farm. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 




In Season 3, Episode 19, "The Negotation", The Hungry Fox Restaurant was used which is located at 13359 Sherman Way in North Hollywood. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 



The Westfield Fashion Square Mall was used as Steamtown Mall in Season 3, Episode 22, "Womens Appreciation." This mall is located at 14006 Riverside Drive Sherman Oaks. You can see more at IAMNOTSTALKER regarding this location.






Pam buys the lamp from the estate sale during Michael Scott's Dunder Mifflin Scranton Meredith Palmer Celebrity Rabies Awareness Pro-Am Fun Run Race for the Cure was from Season 4, Episode 1, "Fun Run", is located at 5306 Longridge Avenue Van Nuys. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.



Jim and Pam's house was filmed in Season 5, Episode 8, "Frame Toby" and Season 7, Episode 21, "Michael's Last Dundies" at 13831 Calvert Street Van Nuys. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.

From "Frame Toby". 
From "Michael's Last Dundies". 

Darryl Philbin's house is located at 14152 Emelita Avenue in Van Nuys. This location was used for Season 6, Episode 2, "The Meeting." You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.





The Smokehouse Restaurant was used in Season 6, Episode 4/5, "Niagara" which is located at 4420 West Lakeside Drive in Burbank. With this restaurant located across the street from Warner Brothers, it has become the popular hangout for Hollywood folks going back to 1946. This location is also popular for film shoots and was recently used in the 2012 film, Argo. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.




Also used in Season 6, Episode 4/5, "Niagara" was the location of the church for Pam and Jim's wedding which was the Congregational Church of the Chimes located at 14115 Magnolia Blvd in Sherman Oaks.  You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 




Also used in Season 6, Episode 4/5, "Niagara" was the location for Pam and Jim's wedding hotel which was the Sportsmen's Lodge located at 12825 Ventura Blvd in Studio City. This hotel has been popular with Hollywood folks and has also been used for a variety of film shoots. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 




In Season 6, Episode 21, "Happy Hour", Jillian's was used as Sid & Dexter's Sports Bar which is located at 1000 Universal Studios Blvd in Universal CityWalk in Universal City. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 



Larry's Chili Dog was used in Season 7, Episode 14, "The Search" which is located at 3122 W. Burbank Blvd Burbank. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.



In Season 7, Episode 15, "The Search", Kung Pao Ching Bistro was used as Mr. Choo's Food Restaurant which is located at 11838 Ventura Blvd in Studio City. Also the Civic Center Gas Station and Mini Mart were also used in this episode which is located at 6171 Van Nuys Blvd in Van Nuys. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.




Barone's Famous Italian Restaurant was used in Season 7, Episode 21, "Michael's Last Dundies" which is located at 13726 Oxnard Street in Valley Glen. You can see more at IAMNOTSTALKER regarding this location. This location was also used in the 1982 film, Fast Times at Ridgemont High


Meredith Palmer's house was located at 14142 Emelita Street in Van Nuys. This home was used in Season 7, Episode 21, "Michael's Last Dundies" which is also next door to Darryl's house mentioned above. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location.



Toby Flenderson's house is located at 5752 Calhoun Avenue in Van Nuys. This home was used in Season 7, Episode 21, "Michael's Last Dundies" which is a couple blocks northeast from Jim and Pam's house mentioned above. You can see more at IAMNOTASTALKER regarding this location. 




Kelly Erin Hannon's Florida house from Season 8, Episode 18, "Last Day in Florida" and Episode 19, "Get the Girl" was filmed at 7777 Cherrystone Avenue Panorama City which is directly behind the Chandler Valley Center Studios mentioned above. You can see more at IAMNOTSTALKER for finding this location.




Its possible that other episodes were also filmed in the SFV but I have not had the opportunity to review all 9 seasons to find them so enjoy the above mentioned locations. I remember watching one episode where Burbank Blvd in the Sepulveda Dam was used for a driving scene to re-create the look of a bucolic Pennsylvania. Also, Hansen Dam was used as Lake Scranton while Dwight's farm was filmed in Simi Valley. If you know of any other scenes filmed in the SFV, please do share. 

On a separate note, a majority of the cast lives in the SFV including Jenna Fischer (Pam) who purchased the Casey Stengel estate in Glendale in November 2012 (before Glendale, was living in Studio City),  Steve Carell (Michael) lives in Toluca Lake with a prior home in Studio City, Rainn Wilson (Dwight) used to live in Van Nuys on Hamlin street which was from 1999 to 2002 but now currently resides in Agoura Hills, Rashida Jones (daughter of Quincy Jones) attended The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks along with Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian, and Angela Kinsey (Angela) lives in Valley Glen to name a few.

You can view more SFV Filming Locations here.