Movies have the ability to affect opinions and tell us powerful stories. For the Big Bear California area, movies can be a glimpse into the past. One of the great treasures of this alpine mountain valley was the Peter Pan Woodland Club. Three years before it burnt to the ground, Roy Rogers filmed “Don’t Fence Me In.” The film shows the pool area, where Dale pushes Roy into the water, and the interior of the rooms.
Pool at Peter Pan Woodland Club
Roy was considered a local. He was part owner of Grey’s Landing, where many of his friends would gather daily for lunch. It is said that Grey’s Landing served great hamburgers. Some of Roy’s friends included Mel Blanc the well know voice of Bugs Bunny, Humphrey Bogart and Elvis Presley.
Greeting Card from Peter Pan Woodland Club
The Woodland Club was built by built by Guy Maltby, know for his fine craftsmanship and his use of split logs for the exterior. He turned the Peter Pan Woodland Club into a world class stone lodge. Maltby crafted beautiful cabins and the adjacent parcels. Here is a quote from the club brochure, “Each cabin intended for rental is fully equipped for occupancy: rustic furniture, beds, bedding, and linen rugs, decorations, and kitchen utensils from an ice box to a corkscrew.”
Fireplace in Clubhouse
Amenities of the Club included a golf course, horseback riding, hot springs, a boat landing for lake sports, and private hunting reserves in the San Bernardino National Forest, bordering Big Bear City.
The Resort was built in Big Bear City, California. The real estate company responsible for the development was the Bear Valley Development Company. Raymond Reynolds was the real estate agent.
My grand father is Raymond Reynolds and I grew up with many great stories of my grand parents entertaining Roy & Dale Rogers at their home on Pine Knot.
As a kid Mel Blanc came by to speak with my grandmother and I got treated to an impromptu range of voices from his verbal library including Bugs Bunny, Sylvester and Tweetis Bird.
Fun times
Mark
Wow! Thanks for your comment Mark. Roy Rogers and Mel Blanc are legends in Big Bear. We’d love it if you have more to share!
I just heard another bit of lore pertaining to Mel Blanc yesterday from my mother, Barbara Reynolds, who was raised in Big Bear. I mentioned my posting here as well over at the Grizzly site. She mentioned that my grandfather being the rep for the Bear Valley Mutual Water Co had to be the “referree” between opposing interests on the lake. She said there was always a “battle” between the water skiers and the fisherman since the ski boats tended to frighten the fish away. Apparently they set up certain “quiet areas”.
Mel Blanc was a skier. He had a nice house out on a point with a dock and brand new ski boat and wanted to be able to have his kids ski near the house. My mom thought his house was near a “quiet area”.
Maybe that was the reason Mel came to the house on Pine Knot that day I got the performance. Also he gave me his business card with his name on it. Around the edge of the card were pictures of all of the cartoon characters that he voiced. Wish I knew where that card was!
Mark
Thanks for the post Mark. Mel Blanc’s son and daughter-in-law are still up here. I know the sounds of the lake disturbed them also. That’s why Mel Blanc wrote “Big Bear Lake.”