Movie Magic at Bass Lake and The Pines Resort

With sweeping lake views framed by pine trees and a beautiful lodge with a rich history, it’s no wonder that Bass Lake and The Pines Resort have been a hit with Hollywood since the early 1930’s.

Bass Lake is a popular background for shooting commercials. It’s been used as a setting for a number of auto commercials for Cadillac, Honda, Chrysler, and Isuzu, as well as two Coors commercials starring Mark Harmon. But while the area is popular for commercials, it has also been the filming location for numerous movies over the years.

The resort itself was actually built by an actor by the name of William Day, who, along with his land developer partner William Haskell, came to the area in 1901 and saw the potential that it had.

[If you’re interesting in learning more about the history of Bass Lake and The Pines Resort, click here.]

While the lodge has been rebuilt since, it still catches the eye of actors and directors from time to time.

Carnival Boat (1932)

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The first movie filmed at The Pines Resort and Bass Lake was the action-melodrama Carnival Boat. Filmed and released in 1932, this black and white, music-filled romance starred William Boyd, Fred Kohler, and the popular starlet Ginger Rogers, who at one time was Hollywood’s highest paid actress. The film told the story of Honey, played by Rogers, who was a young entertainer on a carnival boat. She falls in love with a dashing young man named Buck, but the star-crossed lovers must face Buck’s father’s objections.

Leave Her To Heaven (1945)

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This technicolor-film won an Oscar for Best Color Cinematography and was nominated for two more, for Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration in Color and for Best Sound, Recording. The film’s star, Gene Tierney, was also nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Leave Her To Heaven was released in 1945, and told the story of a writer and a young socialite who meet on a train and fall in love. After getting married a short time later, the young bride’s obsessive love for her husband becomes a force that threatens to undo them and the people around them.

Hiawatha (1952)

This dashing tale of two Native Americans from opposing tribes who meet and fall in love and must endure a war between their people captured the American spirit for adventure and westerns during the 1950s. Hiawatha starred Vince Edwards, Yvette Duguay, and Keith Larsen, and was filmed on the shores of Bass Lake before being released in 1952.

The Great Outdoors (1988)

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In 1987, the cast and crew of this comedy hit spent six weeks at Bass Lake filming. Starring Dan Aykoyd, John Candy, and Stephanie Faracy, the film tells the story of a Chicago man who’s dream of a peaceful family getaway in the woods goes awry when his in-laws show up. The Great Outdoors even has a scene in which Aykoyd and Candy’s characters visit the Pines Bar.

The Giant of Thunder Mountain (1991)

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Co-written and starred in by Bass Lake area native Richard Kiel, The Giant of Thunder Mountain was filmed in various locations in and around Yosemite. In this family drama, a mountain man is accused of murdering his parents, though he is actually innocent. Other stars in the film include Cloris Leachman and Lynne Seus.

Meatballs 4 (1992)

A lakeshore scene in the fourth adult comedy in this popular series was filmed on Bass Lake. Starring Corey Feldman, Jack Nance, and Sarah Douglas, Meatballs 4 follows an attractive water-ski instructor who has been rehired by his former employer in a plot to boost attendance. But the camp is going under and is set to be bought out by a neighboring camp until a competition is begun to settle the rivalry once and for all.

Mouse Hunt (1997)

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A large white house was constructed near Bass Lake and used as the filming location for a number of scenes in this 1997 family comedy. Mouse Hunt starred Nathan Lane, Lee Evans, and Vicki Lewis, and told the story of two people looking to get rid of a mouse in a home they recently inherited. The cast and crew of this film stayed in the nearby Bonnie B Ranch during filming. This film was produced by Disney, who has been rumored to have reused parts of its plot in their popular animated film, Ratatouille.