Not meaning to confuse you too much, but maybe a little, because I sure was confused when I drove on to the King Gillette Ranch parkland yesterday. Yes, it is a park, but it seems to have been completely taken over by the cast and crew of the TV series, the “Biggest Loser.” I visited King Gillette a few years ago and the “Biggest Loser” filming was going on then, but in a less obtrusive way. To further complicate the park, the main entrance off Mulholland Highway is closed, due to the construction of a visitors’ center for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA).
I turned in to the temporary entrance, further to the east on Mulholland, and my first real look at the park’s interior, was of a huge parking lot in the distance, filled with large white vehicles of a film or TV crew. Driving on, on a winding road, I passed a large pond, where I remembered having seen swans swimming. Instead, it was half filled with algae, with no swans – only ducks. Rounding the bend, I passed the old single story building that Soka University had used for offices, with a lot of cars parked there.
Then, I pulled to a stop to take photos, because the “Biggest Loser” gym building was in view, and immediately, a friendly man dressed in black with a security identification on his shirt, approached me. I said I was driving around, looking at the land, and he said that was fine, but not to take photos of any of the “Biggest Loser” contestants.
So, I took these bunch of photos I am sharing with you. I just have to say, that it does not feel like our park! It feels like a movie or TV shoot! Since when, does a security person come up to talk to you, as soon as you enter a SMMNRA unit? Besides the issue of the land takeover by the TV filming crew and contestants, the buildings and pond did not seem to be well-maintained.
I think we have to ask ourselves…”Is this what we want for our local state/national park?”
Editor: Please read Part II for more details on park ownership, and the construction of the National Park Visitors Center, and Part III for more on features and buildings of the park. Please see previous post on “Biggest Loser,” filming, written before I had a chance to revisit the site www.conejopost.com/archives/9076
Jeanne Cope // Nov 4, 2011 at 8:22 PM
Years ago my daughter and I drove by the parcel and saw about a half dozen dear lounging in the shade right on the corner of Mulholland and Las Virgenes. This is a stunning parcel. To have it taken over my a film crew that would disrupt the lives of the deer frosts me.
I wonder if the park services is getting a lot of money for the filming?
Eco-nerd // Nov 4, 2011 at 9:06 PM
I see Tragedy in Commons here. We all want what is best for our own interests in this public park but the bottom line is that this park will not support itself without outside interests contributing to the cost of running it. You didn’t expect the state to foot the bill did you?
You can get married at King Gillette but it will set you back to the tune of $7500 or so. Im sure that the public isn’t invited to those services either. This park doesn’t run for free.
King Gillette has a history and I’m sure that Biggest Loser will add to the lore. As a summer camp attendant, we rode horses on the seminary property only to be chased by the bull. Later it was run by the Inner Retreat and Elizabeth Clare Prophet as a place to prepare for nuclear disaster.
Let the Biggest Loser producers pay for some of the costs involved in keeping our state parks open for all.
Ted // Nov 4, 2011 at 9:12 PM
First of all….swans love to eat algae based on my experience at Malibou Lake (plus I just checked google and it agrees)….so I don’t think the algae in the lake is that big a problem. Plus, I doubt eco-nerd would like the chemicals they would have to use to keep the water clear in the dry season (like we have to do at Malibou Lake….yes we have a permit)
However, I couldn’t agree more with the take over of the ranch. The occasional film shoot is one thing…..years of semi-permanent occupancy is another. It is about the money though….I doubt in these leans times the park service will do anything to interrupt the cash flow. I would be interested to see an accounting of the income Gillette generates.
And I’ve never thought Gillette was a good location for a huge headquarters development. I generally thought the purpose of park land was no development.
On a similar note, has anyone noticed the old abandoned building being converted to wine tasting along PCH near the Malibu Feed bin on what I thought was part of Topanga State Park…..? what’s next a hotel at Malibu Creek State Park?
Mary Wiesbrock // Nov 4, 2011 at 9:23 PM
No, this is not what we fought for and envisioned for the “Heart” of our national park. The Gillette Ranch parkland full of natural and cultural resourses was to become the Yosemite of our park.
Unfortunately, this parkland is deteriorating from lack of proper maintenance and incompatible commerical use. The parkland should be being restored to its former natural landscape of oak savanna. The unique historic Gillette mansion should be restored.
The Biggest Loser, its set, its trucks,its film crews, etc. should move back to Calamigos Ranch where this large scale filming enterprise is compatible.
Park Supporter // Nov 5, 2011 at 6:30 AM
Thank you for raising this important issue!! I too visited the park (??) a few days ago and was shocked by the condition of the lake; it was covered in a thick green slime and was filthy. Movie trucks had beaten the fields & meadows flat and there were spots where large trucks had been parking next to the creek. This is definitely NOT what my family envisioned when we donated $1000 to buy the property from Soka. The fact that you did not feel welcome in a park that was paid for by the tax payers bothers us greatly.
Steve Hess // Nov 8, 2011 at 4:01 PM
I drove by on Sunday. It looks like they are building a landing strip on King Gillette Ranch grounds along Mulholland. Any idea what is going on there?
Editor // Nov 8, 2011 at 4:10 PM
I’ll have to check that out! What could it be?
Mary Mary // Nov 9, 2011 at 8:24 AM
Joe (Edmiston) must go, yet he manages to not only entrench himself deeper. He receives more and more monies, which I call a serious abuse of the public trust that he is expected to uphold to the highest degree of scrutiny. While you’re digging to see what’s going on there with the new construction, be sure to check out the audits performed by the State that point to strange goings on, and how the head of the SMMC reacts to being told he’s not managing the public funds entrusted to him properly. Joe Must Go!!!
tortoise lover // Nov 9, 2011 at 8:53 AM
It’s just like the parcel SMMC (Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy) owns in Ramirez Canyon. It’s supposed to be a public park donated by Streisand to Joe Edmiston’s fiefdom, but instead, the gates stay locked and you cannot even see under them. Joe is probably working on his next plan to get money from the state (check out the pork bill supposedly for watershed, http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-cap-water-20111107,0,5904988.column) – see how much is padded for SMMC. I asked at a meeting why his offices were not at Soka and was told none was big enough. PS – he has no boss in the state – accept the challenge and try to find one.
Editor: Slightly edited.
Dean // Nov 9, 2011 at 6:47 PM
Like most people, I have not visited Gillette Ranch. Unlike most of the people here, I am not too perturbed by the current situation. Examples of similar circumstances abound yet their impact is long covered over and practically forgotten. Want to know what impact Biggest Loser will have? Just look how a couple of the longest running TV shows have destroyed the parks: MASH in what is now Malibu Creek State Park and Gunsmoke in what is now Wildwood Park. Truly terrible places to visit!
danwat1234 // May 12, 2012 at 2:35 AM
In 1993 or 1994, the movie ‘Confessions of a sorority girl’ was filmed at this location !! A shiny red corvette went through there.
JayKay // Sep 19, 2012 at 9:28 AM
I think we can all agree that, in our best of all possible worlds, we could leave all natural space as just that, natural. However, we have to face the harsh reality that exists. It costs money to sustain and operate a park. It costs money to maintain it and pay staff. Our state does not have the ability to foot this bill so agencies are forced to look for other sources of revenue in order to simply keep the parks open for the public. That’s where filming comes in.
Like it or not, filming provides a great revenue source that enables agencies to keep parkland open. The Biggest Loser is a very successful show and has no doubt enabled the gates of KGR to stay open over the years. While there may be some interferences with entering certain areas of the park at certain times of the day due to filming, there are a whole slew of other days throughout the year that it is open thanks to the filming revenue. I don’t think this is anyone’s ideal, but it is a means of survival in these lean times.