Twilight Zone, Death Valley And Highway 395

I recall as a youngster a re-run of a Twilight Zone episode about a father from a pioneer wagon train who sets off to find something for his sick son and finds himself transported from 1847 into modern times. Of course modern times was actually 1961, the year that particular Twilight Zone episode actually aired. I hadn't thought of that show in years until one day and friend and I were driving through southern Arizona, taking a "GPS short-cut", to Chiricahua National Park. The area was so undeveloped and rugged we half-way expected to see a pioneer wagon train, being chased by Indians, moving across the horizon off in the distance.

So you might be wondering what a drive in southern Arizona has to do with Death Valley and Highway 395, both of which are mentioned in the title of this post. Well, as it turns out, after researching that Twilight Zone episode, quite a lot.

The Twilight Zone episode name was "A Hundred Yards Over The Rim" and I thought it was filmed in Death Valley National Park (declared a National Monument in 1933, and a National Park in 1994). Actually, it was shot around the town named Olancha, located on Highway 395. If you subscribe to Netflix, you can watch this episode which is listed at season 2, episode 23 (#59 in the list).

If you watch this episode, one of the first things you'll notice are the familiar faces of the actors and actresses in this episode. Cliff Robertson (Charlie Parker's Grandfather in Spider Man), Edward Platt (Get Smart), John Astin (played Gomez in the Addams Family) and others. Of course you can find out more about the famous people on Internet Movie Database website (www.imdb.com). Surprisingly, what you can't find on the IMDB website is information about shooting locations.

As I recently re-watched this Twilight Zone episode on Netflix, I found myself thinking I'd been to those filming locations. The second I saw the sand dunes, I  would have bet money it was filmed in Death Valley somewhere around the Stovepipe Wells sand dunes. As it turns out, I would have lost the bet! Anyway, when Mr. Horn looks on the other side of the rim and sees power lines and a road, I knew it had to be Highway 395 and the Sierra Nevada mountains. Of course, that is just an "area" identification and I wanted to know more specifics.

To get more specifics I do what everyone does these days, Google search to see what is on the web. As with most things these days, it's amazing just how much is available with just a few clicks.

Craig Beam, a self-admitted Twilight Zone addict, has a great site with lots of great information about this episode and filming locations. At his site (MyLifeInTheShadowsOfTheTwilightZone.blogspot.com), he also references an awesome video by Paul Giammarco called, Twilight Zone: On Location 2010, which I've embedded here:

So before I continue, just let me say, the video is awesome and two thumbs up goes to the team for doing such a cool project.

According to the video above, two episodes of the Twilight Zone were filmed on location in Death Valley National Park. "The Lonely" (season 1, episode 7 on Netflix) and "I Shot An Arrow In The Air" (season 1, episode 15 on Netflix). However,  "A Hundred Yards Over The Rim" was not actually in Death Valley, but around the town of Olancha, CA. The sand dunes are the Olancha Sand Dunes (find directions to them here) and they are impressive. Several scenes used in "Iron Man" (2008 Marvel Enterprises-Paramount Pictures) were filmed in the area of Trona and the Olancha Sand Dunes.

Soon, I plan to dedicate a whole post to trip itineraries based on movie film locations!

I guess I'll close by suggesting that if you like travel and you like history, try to do what Paul Giammarco did and find the exact spots of interesting locations shown in Hollywood productions. Who knows where you might find yourself, Hawaii, Alaska, Florida, Maine or anyplace in between! A website called "The WorldWide Guide To Movie Locations" is a great place to get started. Why just travel when you can trip!

Angel's Share, Devil's Cut and Jim Beam Bourbon

For those of you not familiar with the unique culture and language found in bourbon country, let me introduce you to some of the more entertaining phrases. It just so happens I live very near the Jim Beam distillery, which is just down the road from the bourbon capital of the world, Bardstown Kentucky.

Each year many people travel the Kentucky Bourbon Trail through scenic country back roads and experience the small town charm of Kentucky. Of course in between all that, frequent stops are made to the many bourbon distilleries dotted on the trail map. Each distillery offers something different and special in it's own right, but being a neighbor to Jim Beam, I guess it's OK for me to show a little favoritism.

Not long ago, while going through my daily mail, I noticed a postcard with a Jim Beam bourbon barrel and the phrase White Dog Smokers in bold white type. The postcard was an invitation stating "Come As Friends - Leave As Family". They wouldn't have had to twist my arm too much anyway, but the promise of amazing smoked BBQ and a little taste of bourbon was irresistible.

So back to the purpose of this post, bourbon country culture and language. After reading the invitation I was left with the question - what is a White Dog Smoker? As it turns out, the phrase "White Dog" refers to bourbon at a particular stage, before it's placed in the barrels, and the liquid is still clear . . . or white. Many people know White Dog by it's other commonly used name . . . Moonshine. You really should visit Jim Beam distillery (or others) and learn about the fascinating process of making bourbon. Their yeast strain is over 200 years old!

So then what is a White Dog Smoker? Now we know what White Dog is and the "Smoker" part I guess is just a good ole fashion BBQ get together.

Moving on, let's talk about the phrase "Angel's Share". When I first learned about this one it really cracked me up! Once white dog is placed in the wooden barrels, during it's aging process of 4 to 8 years, some of the bourbon will evaporate through the barrel. Apparently it is enough to be noticeable so that when the full barrels have finished their aging process are opened, their not as full anymore. What evaporates into the air is called the "Angel's Share". Now what is even more amazing is that when you visit Jim Beam distillery, or any other distillery for that matter, you will notice the growth of a pitch black fungus, Baudoinia compniacensis, on the exterior surfaces of buildings, trees and other vegetation, and anything else that happens to be nearby.

This is a really freaky thing to see with your own eyes! The tree colors of Spring and Fall can especially make for some amazing photo opportunities.

Too keep this post as short as possible, I'll close with the mention of "Devil's Cut" which is kind of the opposite of "Angel's Share". after aging, when the bourbon is dumped out of the barrels, some of the bourbon was absorbed by the wood of the barrel. So in the end, bourbon barrels are really full, and they aren't really empty. Old timers and locals have known about this for a long time. In fact, bourbon lovers living close to distilleries used to do their best to get hold of the empty barrels and could manage to squeeze out the remaining bourbon. Although it's really not literally a squeezing process and is probably time consuming, complicated work, those with the know how were rewarded with some of the tastiest bourbon available.

Recently Jim Beam has introduced a new product named "Devil's Cut" they describe as, "A distinctly bold bourbon with rich flavor unleashed from deep inside the barrel wood".

So, let me know if you enjoyed my bourbon post and if you think I should dive down this rabbit hole a little deeper.