Meanwhile back at the ranch -- Bulldog Bluff

'Meanwhile back at the ranch' is a continuing series about "rock stars" (landscape features) on the old Iverson Movie Location Ranch in Chatsworth, California.  For more information about the Iverson Movie Ranch see: http://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2011/10/iverson-movie-location-ranch-chatsworth.html

Bill Rock (center) at south end of Bulldog Bluff from Ride 'Em Cowboy (1942)

We all remember those thrilling Western chase scenes that culminated with our cowboy hero: a) bulldogging a bad guy off his horse; b) roping a bad guy off his horse; or c) shooting a bad guy off his horse (the last resort reserved for the baddest of the bad).

Have you ever noticed that the ground they land on in bulldogging scenes is usually soft sand?  And,  did you notice you can't see your hero's face until they've rolled to a stop?  This dangerous work was reserved for the second unit.

The Iverson Ranch had the perfect place to capture the bad guys… Bulldog Bluff.  It was a sandy slope on the west side of an north-south trail that ran between Zorro's Cave and Bill Rock.  The cave never showed up in bulldog scenes, but Bill Rock (center of photo above) often showed up in the scene.

Today Bulldog Bluff and its anchor Bill Rock are located at the extreme east end of the Cal-West Townhomes (private property) off Sun Ranch Court, in Chatsworth.  The bluff is a landscaped slope (photo above) that has trees planted on it, and its companion Bill Rock (on neighboring property) is mostly hidden behind a block wall (photo below).

Looking at Bulldog Bluff or Bill Rock in film:

Bandits of Dark Canyon (1947) starring Allan Lane and Bob Steele (photo of Bill Rock top left) Republic

The Blazing Trail (1949) starring Charles Starrett (photo of Bill Rock behind left) (Iverson Range) (Corriganville) Columbia

Land Beyond the Law (1937) starring Dick Foran - Warner Bros.

Mountain Rhythm (1939) starring Gene Autry and Smiley Burnette (photo of bad guy roped off his horse at Bulldog Bluff) (Iverson Ranch) Republic

Rancho Grande (1940) starring Gene Autry and Smiley Burnette(photo of bad guy bulldogged off his horse at Bulldog Bluff) (Iverson Ranch) Republic

Red River Renegades (1946) starring Sunset Carson (photo of bad guy shot off his horse at Bulldog Bluff) Republic

Ride 'Em Cowboy (1942) starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello (photo of Bill Rock at end of chase along Bulldog Bluff) (Iverson Ranch) Universal

Shadow Valley (1947) starring Eddie Dean (photo of Bill Rock-top left center) (Iverson Ranch) PRC

Sheriff of Sundown (1944) starring Allan Lane (Iverson Ranch) Republic

Silver City Kid (1944) starring Allan Lane (Iverson Ranch) Republic