Piru, California
Encyclopedia
Piru is a small unincorporated
census-designated
town located in eastern Ventura County, California
, in the Santa Clara River Valley
near the Santa Clara River
and Highway 126
, about seven miles (11 km) east of Fillmore
and about 13 miles (20.9 km) west of Interstate 5. The population was 2,063 at the 2010 census, up from 1,196 when the 2000 census was enumerated. Lake Piru
, in the Los Padres National Forest
, is the main recreational attraction.
Indians
. They left information about themselves chiseled into and painted on rocky overhangs and secreted caves throughout the local mountains. By all accounts a peaceful tribe, the Tataviam were christianized
under the San Fernando Mission
. Later they worked on large Spanish rancho
s such as Rancho Camulos
.
The name Piru (originally pronounced "Pea-roo" by the Indians) comes from the Tataviam
word for the tule
reeds
growing along Piru Creek
that were used in making baskets.
The town was founded in 1887 by David C. Cook
, a wealthy publisher
of Sunday School
tracts
and supplies from Elgin, Illinois
, who bought the Rancho Temescal
Mexican land grant from the sons of Ygnacio del Valle
. Wanting to establish a "Second Garden of Eden" in this part of the Santa Clara River Valley, Cook specified, tradition says, that the acreage be planted with fruits identified with the Biblical garden—apricots, dates, figs, grapes, olives and pomegranates. That same year, he built his first home, a Colonial Revival
structure, at the southwest corner of Main and Center Streets.
The U.S. Post Office Department
established the Piru Post Office on June 14, 1888. Legend has it that change in pronunciation was brought about by conductors of Southern Pacific Railroad
trains, who would shout out, "Pie-roo!" when pulling into town. Another story tells of a Piru restaurant known for good pies. The owner hung a sign proclaiming, "We Put The Pie In Piru."
In 1890, Cook built a lavish Queen Anne Style
home a few blocks northwest of his original home, which came to be known as the Piru Mansion
. A strict Methodist
, he provided for construction of a church on the north side of Center Street, just west of Main. His home at Main and Center became the Piru Hotel.
For her novel
Ramona
(1884
), Helen Hunt Jackson
had used nearby Rancho Camulos
as one of the settings. Portions of the 1910
silent movie
, Ramona
, starring Mary Pickford
were shot there. During the production, Pickford, D.W. Griffith
and others of the cast and crew, stayed at the Piru Hotel. The hotel later became known as the Mountain View Hotel. The name was later changed to the Round Rock Hotel, because of a large, round boulder located in the northeast corner of the front yard.
Juan José Fustero (b. ca. 1836), who called himself "the last full-blooded Piru Indian," died on June 30, 1921. In 1961, a plaque to honor him was placed in Piru Canyon near the place where he lived most of his life.
On December 17, 1922, Jenks Harris, a would-be cowboy actor, and a gang of partners in crime, robbed the bank in Piru of $11,000. He said, when later caught in Los Angeles
, that he conceived of the idea while on location at Piru with the film company Universal
.
In the 1950s, the Round Rock Hotel became the Round Rock Rest Home for elderly tenants, which it remained until 1989. It is now the Heritage Valley Inn.
(1947
) starring Lizabeth Scott
, John Hodiak
and Burt Lancaster
, with Mary Astor
and Wendell Corey
. Location scenes were shot with the northwest side of Center Street, at Main, used as the exterior of Fritzi Haller's saloon and casino; the Piru Mansion was used as the Haller home and the historic Piru bridge, crossing Piru Creek
on the east side of town, was used as the locale of the car crash. Piru was also used in the scene in A Star Is Born
(1954
) starring Judy Garland
and James Mason
where Jack Carson
's character, Libby, finds them after they are married.
Piru stood in for Clarksburg, California
, in the 1974
TV movie
, The California Kid
. It was used for exterior shots in the 1975
Filmation
children's series The Ghost Busters
. Scenes in The Dukes of Hazzard
were sometimes filmed on location in Piru, as were scenes in Murder, She Wrote
.
In Twilight Zone: The Movie
(1983
), the scenes of the rest home in the "Kick the Can" segment were filmed at the historic building that is now the Heritage Valley Inn. Dolly Parton
and Sylvester Stallone
filmed scenes for their movie, Rhinestone
(1984
), in Piru. With the exception of a few scenes, the entire comedy Happy, Texas
(1999
) was filmed in Piru. Scenes of Bubble Boy (2001
), the chase scene in Enough
(2002
) starring Jennifer Lopez
, scenes from Torque
(2004
) and the final scene for Van Helsing
(2004) were shot in Piru. The 2005
movie The Amateurs
starring Jeff Bridges
was largely filmed in Piru. The town has also served for some of the scenes on TV's Reno 911!
and for scenes set in the fictional town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, in True Blood
.
In the Disney
movie Race to Witch Mountain
(2009
) starring Dwayne Johnson, "The Rock," scenes where he and the alien boy and girl go into a small town, Stoney Creek, where they have repairs done on his taxi
and go to a restaurant/country music club, were actually shot in Piru, which continues to be a popular location with film companies.
Most recently, Piru Mansion was used as the home of Ellis Wyatt in the movie version of Atlas Shrugged
by Ayn Rand
.
, to the east in Los Angeles County
, broke, sending a torrent of water through the Santa Clara River Valley and causing the deaths of 400 people, many in Piru. The Northridge earthquake
of January 17, 1994, destroyed several buildings in the historic downtown area.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the CDP has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.3 km²), of which 99.45% of it is land and 0.55% is water.
Elevation: 692 feet (210.9 m).
Piru is located in Santa Clara River Valley
.
was 727.6 people per square mile (280.9/km²). The racial makeup of Piru was 1,063 (51.5%) White, 16 (0.8%) African American, 43 (2.1%) Native American, 11 (0.5%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 830 (40.2%) from other races
, and 100 (4.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,748 persons (84.7%).
The Census reported that 2,063 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 523 households, out of which 292 (55.8%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 329 (62.9%) were opposite-sex married couples
living together, 69 (13.2%) had a female householder with no husband present, 39 (7.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 29 (5.5%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
, and 2 (0.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 67 households (12.8%) were made up of individuals and 25 (4.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.94. There were 437 families
(83.6% of all households); the average family size was 4.34.
The population was spread out with 676 people (32.8%) under the age of 18, 243 people (11.8%) aged 18 to 24, 569 people (27.6%) aged 25 to 44, 420 people (20.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 155 people (7.5%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29.4 years. For every 100 females there were 106.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.2 males.
There were 561 housing units at an average density of 197.9 per square mile (76.4/km²), of which 302 (57.7%) were owner-occupied, and 221 (42.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.3%. 1,202 people (58.3% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 861 people (41.7%) lived in rental housing units.
of 2000, there were 1,196 people, 308 households, and 263 families residing in the CDP. The population density
was 514.5 people per square mile (199.0/km²). There were 328 housing units at an average density of 141.1 per square mile (54.6/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 53.51% White, 0.25% African American, 3.01% Native American, 1.67% Asian, 38.38% from other races
, and 3.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 67.89% of the population.
There were 308 households out of which 52.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.2% were married couples
living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.3% were non-families. 9.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.88 and the average family size was 4.11.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 35.1% under the age of 18, 11.3% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 17.5% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $41,490, and the median income for a family was $40,703. Males had a median income of $32,303 versus $17,159 for females. The per capita income
for the CDP was $14,337. About 16.4% of families and 27.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.5% of those under age 18 and 16.1% of those age 65 or over.
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
census-designated
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
town located in eastern Ventura County, California
Ventura County, California
Ventura County is a county in the southern part of the U.S. state of California. It is located on California's Pacific coast. It is often referred to as the Gold Coast, and has a reputation of being one of the safest populated places and one of the most affluent places in the country...
, in the Santa Clara River Valley
Santa Clara River Valley
The Santa Clara River Valley is a valley that runs from east to west through Ventura County and northwest Los Angeles County, California...
near the Santa Clara River
Santa Clara River (California)
The Santa Clara River is approximately long, located in southern California in the United States. It drains an area of the coastal mountains north of Los Angeles. The Santa Clara is one of the largest river systems along the coast of Southern California and one of only a few remaining river...
and Highway 126
California State Route 126
State Route 126 is a highway in Ventura and Los Angeles counties, California. The route runs from U.S. Route 101 in Ventura to Interstate 5 in Santa Clarita...
, about seven miles (11 km) east of Fillmore
Fillmore, California
Fillmore is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. The population was 15,002 at the 2010 census, up from 13,643 at the 2000 census.- History :...
and about 13 miles (20.9 km) west of Interstate 5. The population was 2,063 at the 2010 census, up from 1,196 when the 2000 census was enumerated. Lake Piru
Lake Piru
Lake Piru is an artificial lake located in Los Padres National Forest of Ventura County, California, created by the construction in 1955 of the Santa Felicia Dam on Piru Creek which is a tributary of the Santa Clara River. It is situated downstream from Pyramid Lake and can be accessed from Piru...
, in the Los Padres National Forest
Los Padres National Forest
Los Padres National Forest is a forest located in southern and central California, which includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Monterey, extending inland...
, is the main recreational attraction.
History
The area was originally inhabited by the TataviamTataviam
The Tataviam , were called the Alliklik by their neighbors the Chumash , are a Native American group in southern California...
Indians
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
. They left information about themselves chiseled into and painted on rocky overhangs and secreted caves throughout the local mountains. By all accounts a peaceful tribe, the Tataviam were christianized
Christianization
The historical phenomenon of Christianization is the conversion of individuals to Christianity or the conversion of entire peoples at once...
under the San Fernando Mission
Mission San Fernando Rey de España
Mission San Fernando Rey de España was founded on "The Feast of the Birth of Mary" , 1797. The settlement is located on the former Encino Rancho in the Mission Hills community of northern Los Angeles, near the site of the first gold discovery in Alta California.-History:Mission San Fernando Rey de...
. Later they worked on large Spanish rancho
Rancho
Rancho may refer to:*Alta California land grants in the 19th century; see Ranchos of California*Rancho High School, a North Las Vegas high school*Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center**Rancho Los Amigos Scale...
s such as Rancho Camulos
Rancho Camulos
Rancho Camulos, now known as Rancho Camulos Museum, is a ranch located in the Santa Clara River Valley east of Piru, California and just north of the Santa Clara River, in present day Ventura County, California. It was the home of Ygnacio del Valle, an alcalde of the Pueblo de Los Angeles and...
.
The name Piru (originally pronounced "Pea-roo" by the Indians) comes from the Tataviam
Tataviam language
The Tataviam language was spoken by the Tataviam people of the upper Santa Clara River basin, Santa Susana Mountains, and Sierra Pelona Mountains in southern California. It had become extinct by 1916 and is known only from a few early records, notably a word list collected by the linguist John P...
word for the tule
Tule
Schoenoplectus acutus , called tule , common tule, hardstem tule, tule rush, hardstem bulrush, or viscid bulrush, is a giant species of sedge in the plant family Cyperaceae, native to freshwater marshes all over North America...
reeds
Phragmites
Phragmites, the Common reed, is a large perennial grass found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world. Phragmites australis is sometimes regarded as the sole species of the genus Phragmites, though some botanists divide Phragmites australis into three or four species...
growing along Piru Creek
Piru Creek
Piru Creek is a large stream in northern Los Angeles County and eastern Ventura County, California. It is a tributary of the Santa Clara River, the largest stream system in Southern California that is still relatively natural. It drains an area of about and is about long. The creek is the Santa...
that were used in making baskets.
The town was founded in 1887 by David C. Cook
David C. Cook
David C. Cook is a nonprofit Christian publisher based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was established in 1875 and publishes fiction and nonfiction. It uses its profits for global ministry. For many years, it published a Christian comic book, Sunday Pix, with stories about the adventures of...
, a wealthy publisher
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
of Sunday School
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
tracts
Tract (literature)
A tract is a literary work, and in current usage, usually religious in nature. The notion of what constitutes a tract has changed over time. By the early part of the 21st century, these meant small pamphlets used for religious and political purposes, though far more often the former. They are...
and supplies from Elgin, Illinois
Elgin, Illinois
Elgin is a city in northern Illinois located roughly northwest of Chicago on the Fox River. Most of Elgin lies within Kane County, Illinois, with a portion in Cook County, Illinois...
, who bought the Rancho Temescal
Rancho Temescal
Rancho Temescal was a Mexican land grant in present day Ventura County and Los Angeles County, California given in 1843 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to Francisco Lopez and José Arellanes...
Mexican land grant from the sons of Ygnacio del Valle
Ygnacio del Valle
Ygnacio Ramón de Jesus del Valle was a rancher and landowner in the eastern Santa Clara River Valley, California, United States, as well as an alcalde of Los Angeles. His estate, Rancho Camulos, is registered as a National Historic Landmark.- Early life :Del Valle was born in Jalisco, Mexico...
. Wanting to establish a "Second Garden of Eden" in this part of the Santa Clara River Valley, Cook specified, tradition says, that the acreage be planted with fruits identified with the Biblical garden—apricots, dates, figs, grapes, olives and pomegranates. That same year, he built his first home, a Colonial Revival
Colonial Revival architecture
The Colonial Revival was a nationalistic architectural style, garden design, and interior design movement in the United States which sought to revive elements of Georgian architecture, part of a broader Colonial Revival Movement in the arts. In the early 1890s Americans began to value their own...
structure, at the southwest corner of Main and Center Streets.
The U.S. Post Office Department
United States Post Office Department
The Post Office Department was the name of the United States Postal Service when it was a Cabinet department. It was headed by the Postmaster General....
established the Piru Post Office on June 14, 1888. Legend has it that change in pronunciation was brought about by conductors of Southern Pacific Railroad
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
trains, who would shout out, "Pie-roo!" when pulling into town. Another story tells of a Piru restaurant known for good pies. The owner hung a sign proclaiming, "We Put The Pie In Piru."
In 1890, Cook built a lavish Queen Anne Style
Queen Anne Style architecture
The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...
home a few blocks northwest of his original home, which came to be known as the Piru Mansion
Piru Mansion
The Piru Mansion is a Queen Anne Style home located in Piru, California.-History:The Piru Mansion was completed by 1890. It was created by Piru's founder, David C...
. A strict Methodist
Methodism
Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...
, he provided for construction of a church on the north side of Center Street, just west of Main. His home at Main and Center became the Piru Hotel.
For her novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
Ramona
Ramona
Ramona is a 1884 United States historical novel written by Helen Hunt Jackson. It is the story of a Scots-Native American orphan girl in Southern California, who suffers racial discrimination and hardship. Originally serialized in the Christian Union on a weekly basis, the novel became immensely...
(1884
1884 in literature
The year 1884 in literature involved some significant new books.-New books:*Edwin Abbott Abbott - Flatland*Henry Brooks Adams - Esther*Aluísio de Azevedo - Casa de Pensão*Richard Doddridge Blackmore - Tommy Upmore...
), Helen Hunt Jackson
Helen Hunt Jackson
Helen Maria Hunt Jackson, born Helen Fiske , was a United States writer who became an activist on behalf of improved treatment of Native Americans by the U.S. government. She detailed the adverse effects of government actions in her history A Century of Dishonor...
had used nearby Rancho Camulos
Rancho Camulos
Rancho Camulos, now known as Rancho Camulos Museum, is a ranch located in the Santa Clara River Valley east of Piru, California and just north of the Santa Clara River, in present day Ventura County, California. It was the home of Ygnacio del Valle, an alcalde of the Pueblo de Los Angeles and...
as one of the settings. Portions of the 1910
1910 in film
The year 1910 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*The newsreel footage of the funeral of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom is shot in Kinemacolor, making it the first color newsreel....
silent movie
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
, Ramona
Ramona (1910 film)
Ramona is a 1910 short drama film directed by D. W. Griffith based on Helen Hunt Jackson's 1884 novel Ramona. A copy of the print survives in the Library of Congress film archive.-Cast:* Mary Pickford - Ramona* Henry B. Walthall - Alessandro...
, starring Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
were shot there. During the production, Pickford, D.W. Griffith
D. W. Griffith
David Llewelyn Wark Griffith was a premier pioneering American film director. He is best known as the director of the controversial and groundbreaking 1915 film The Birth of a Nation and the subsequent film Intolerance .Griffith's film The Birth of a Nation made pioneering use of advanced camera...
and others of the cast and crew, stayed at the Piru Hotel. The hotel later became known as the Mountain View Hotel. The name was later changed to the Round Rock Hotel, because of a large, round boulder located in the northeast corner of the front yard.
Juan José Fustero (b. ca. 1836), who called himself "the last full-blooded Piru Indian," died on June 30, 1921. In 1961, a plaque to honor him was placed in Piru Canyon near the place where he lived most of his life.
On December 17, 1922, Jenks Harris, a would-be cowboy actor, and a gang of partners in crime, robbed the bank in Piru of $11,000. He said, when later caught in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, that he conceived of the idea while on location at Piru with the film company Universal
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
.
In the 1950s, the Round Rock Hotel became the Round Rock Rest Home for elderly tenants, which it remained until 1989. It is now the Heritage Valley Inn.
Filming location
Piru has been used for shooting countless film and television productions over the years, including Desert FuryDesert Fury
Desert Fury is a 1947 Paramount Pictures color film noir drama film starring Lizabeth Scott, John Hodiak and Burt Lancaster, with Mary Astor and Wendell Corey....
(1947
1947 in film
The year 1947 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 22 - Great Expectations is premiered in New York.*November 24 : The United States House of Representatives of the 80th Congress voted 346 to 17 to approve citations for contempt of Congress against the "Hollywood Ten".*November 25...
) starring Lizabeth Scott
Lizabeth Scott
Lizabeth Scott is an American actress and singer widely known for her film noir roles.-Early life:She was born Emma Matzo in the Pine Brook section of Scranton, Pennsylvania, one of six children, to Ruthenian parents who had emigrated from Uzhgorod, in what is now Ukraine...
, John Hodiak
John Hodiak
John Hodiak was an American actor who worked in radio and film.-Early life:He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of Walter Hodiak and Anna Pogorzelec . He was of Ukrainian and Polish descent...
and Burt Lancaster
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
, with Mary Astor
Mary Astor
Mary Astor was an American actress. Most remembered for her role as Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon with Humphrey Bogart, Astor began her long motion picture career as a teenager in the silent movies of the early 1920s.She eventually made a successful transition to talkies, but almost...
and Wendell Corey
Wendell Corey
Wendell Reid Corey was an American actor and politician.He was born in Dracut, Massachusetts, the son of Milton Rothwell Corey and Julia Etta McKenney . His father was a Congregationalist clergyman...
. Location scenes were shot with the northwest side of Center Street, at Main, used as the exterior of Fritzi Haller's saloon and casino; the Piru Mansion was used as the Haller home and the historic Piru bridge, crossing Piru Creek
Piru Creek
Piru Creek is a large stream in northern Los Angeles County and eastern Ventura County, California. It is a tributary of the Santa Clara River, the largest stream system in Southern California that is still relatively natural. It drains an area of about and is about long. The creek is the Santa...
on the east side of town, was used as the locale of the car crash. Piru was also used in the scene in A Star Is Born
A Star Is Born (1954 film)
A Star Is Born is a 1954 American musical film directed by George Cukor. The screenplay written by Moss Hart was an adaptation of the original 1937 film, which was based on the original screenplay by Robert Carson, Dorothy Parker, and Alan Campbell...
(1954
1954 in film
The year 1954 in film involved some significant events and memorable ones.-Events:*May 12 - The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces wife Marion Benda...
) starring Judy Garland
Judy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
and James Mason
James Mason
James Neville Mason was an English actor who attained stardom in both British and American films. Mason remained a powerful figure in the industry throughout his career and was nominated for three Academy Awards as well as three Golden Globes .- Early life :Mason was born in Huddersfield, in the...
where Jack Carson
Jack Carson
John Elmer "Jack" Carson was a Canadian-born U.S.-based film actor.Jack Carson was one of the most popular character actors during the 'golden age of Hollywood', with a film career spanning the 1930s, '40s and '50s...
's character, Libby, finds them after they are married.
Piru stood in for Clarksburg, California
Clarksburg, California
Clarksburg is a census-designated place in Yolo County, California. It is located on the Sacramento River, in the extreme southeastern corner of the county...
, in the 1974
1974 in television
The year 1974 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1974.For the American TV schedule, see: 1974-75 American network television schedule.-Events:...
TV movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
, The California Kid
The California Kid
The California Kid is a 1974 TV Movie starring Martin Sheen, Vic Morrow, Nick Nolte, Michelle Phillips, Gary Morgan, and Janit Baldwin.-Plot:...
. It was used for exterior shots in the 1975
1975 in television
The year 1975 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1975.For the American TV schedule, see: 1975-76 United States network television schedule.-Events:...
Filmation
Filmation
Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1963...
children's series The Ghost Busters
The Ghost Busters
The Ghost Busters was a live-action children's television series that ran from 1975, about a team of bumbling detectives who would investigate ghostly occurrences. Only 15 episodes were created....
. Scenes in The Dukes of Hazzard
The Dukes of Hazzard
The Dukes of Hazzard is an American television series that aired on the CBS television network from 1979 to 1985.The series was inspired by the 1975 film Moonrunners, which was also created by Gy Waldron and had many identical or similar character names and concepts.- Overview :The Dukes of Hazzard...
were sometimes filmed on location in Piru, as were scenes in Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
.
In Twilight Zone: The Movie
Twilight Zone: The Movie
Twilight Zone: The Movie is a 1983 science fiction horror film produced by Steven Spielberg and John Landis as a theatrical version of The Twilight Zone, a 1959 and '60s TV series created by Rod Serling. Those starring in the film are: Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow, Scatman Crothers,...
(1983
1983 in film
-Events:*February 11 - The Rolling Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together opens in New York*May 25 - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, the final film in the original Star Wars trilogy, is released. Like the previous films, it goes on to become the top grossing picture of...
), the scenes of the rest home in the "Kick the Can" segment were filmed at the historic building that is now the Heritage Valley Inn. Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
and Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
filmed scenes for their movie, Rhinestone
Rhinestone (film)
Rhinestone is a 1984 comedy film directed by Bob Clark with a screenplay by Sylvester Stallone and Phil Alden Robinson; the film stars Stallone and Dolly Parton.-Plot:...
(1984
1984 in film
-Events:* The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name.* Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film....
), in Piru. With the exception of a few scenes, the entire comedy Happy, Texas
Happy, Texas (film)
Happy, Texas is a comedy film released in 1999 directed by Mark Illsley, and starring Steve Zahn, Jeremy Northam and William H. Macy.- Plot :...
(1999
1999 in film
The year 1999 in film involved several noteworthy events and has been called "The Year That Changed Movies". Several significant feature films, including Stanley Kubrick's final film Eyes Wide Shut, Pedro Almodóvar's first Oscar-winning film All About My Mother, science fiction The Matrix, Deep...
) was filmed in Piru. Scenes of Bubble Boy (2001
2001 in film
The year 2001 in film involved some significant events, including the first of the Harry Potter series and also the first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy...
), the chase scene in Enough
Enough
The score for Enough, composed by David Arnold, was released on June 4, 2002.#"Give Me a Sign"#"F.B.I.?"#"New Leaf"#"Slim and Joe"#"Get Out of the House"#"Goodbye Gracie"#"Training Day"#"Breaking In"#"Setting the Trap"#"Fight Club"...
(2002
2002 in film
The year 2002 in film involved some significant events. The first significant releases of sequels took place between The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, Men in Black II, Analyze That, Spy Kids 2: The Island of...
) starring Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lynn Lopez is an American actress, singer, record producer, dancer, television personality, and fashion designer. Lopez began her career as a dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color. Subsequently venturing into acting, she gained recognition in the 1995 action-thriller...
, scenes from Torque
Torque (film)
-Similarities to The Fast and the Furious:The film has often been called "The Fast and the Furious on Motorcycles", referring to the use of many of the same thematic elements between the two films...
(2004
2004 in film
The year 2004 in film involved some significant events. Major releases of sequels took place. It included blockbuster films like Shrek 2, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, The Passion of the Christ, Meet the Fockers, Blade: Trinity, Spider-Man 2, Alien vs. Predator, Kill Bill Vol...
) and the final scene for Van Helsing
Van Helsing (film)
Van Helsing is a 2004 American action horror film directed by Stephen Sommers. It stars Hugh Jackman as vigilante monster hunter Gabriel Van Helsing, and Kate Beckinsale...
(2004) were shot in Piru. The 2005
2005 in film
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2005...
movie The Amateurs
The Amateurs
The Amateurs, originally called The Moguls, is a 2005 comedy film written and directed by Michael Traeger and starring Jeff Bridges. Its story revolves around six friends in a small town in the US who decide to make a full length amateur adult film.The film was released under the title The Moguls...
starring Jeff Bridges
Jeff Bridges
Jeffrey Leon "Jeff" Bridges is an American actor and musician. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Otis "Bad" Blake in the 2009 film Crazy Heart....
was largely filmed in Piru. The town has also served for some of the scenes on TV's Reno 911!
Reno 911!
Reno 911! is an American comedy television series on Comedy Central that ran from 2003 to 2009. It is a mockumentary-style parody of law enforcement documentary shows, specifically COPS, with comic actors playing the police officers. Most of the material is improvised, using a broad outline, and...
and for scenes set in the fictional town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, in True Blood
True Blood
True Blood is an American television series created and produced by Alan Ball. It is based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries series of novels by Charlaine Harris, detailing the co-existence of vampires and humans in Bon Temps, a fictional, small town in the state of Louisiana...
.
In the Disney
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
movie Race to Witch Mountain
Race to Witch Mountain
Race to Witch Mountain is a 2009 science fiction/thriller film and a remake of the original 1975 fantasy film, Escape to Witch Mountain. Both versions of the film are based on the 1968 novel Escape to Witch Mountain by Alexander Key...
(2009
2009 in film
The year 2009 saw the release of many films. Seven made the top 50 list of highest-grossing films, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that as of this year, their Best Picture category would consist of ten nominees, rather than five .- Highest-grossing films :Please note...
) starring Dwayne Johnson, "The Rock," scenes where he and the alien boy and girl go into a small town, Stoney Creek, where they have repairs done on his taxi
Taxicab
A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice...
and go to a restaurant/country music club, were actually shot in Piru, which continues to be a popular location with film companies.
Most recently, Piru Mansion was used as the home of Ellis Wyatt in the movie version of Atlas Shrugged
Atlas Shrugged
Atlas Shrugged is a novel by Ayn Rand, first published in 1957 in the United States. Rand's fourth and last novel, it was also her longest, and the one she considered to be her magnum opus in the realm of fiction writing...
by Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand was a Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwright, and screenwriter. She is known for her two best-selling novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and for developing a philosophical system she called Objectivism....
.
Disasters
Piru was struck by two major disasters in the 20th century. On the night of March 12, 1928, the St. Francis DamSt. Francis Dam
The St. Francis Dam was a concrete gravity-arch dam, designed to create a reservoir as a storage point of the Los Angeles Aqueduct. It was located 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles, California, near the present city of Santa Clarita....
, to the east in Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
, broke, sending a torrent of water through the Santa Clara River Valley and causing the deaths of 400 people, many in Piru. The Northridge earthquake
Northridge earthquake
The Northridge earthquake was a massive earthquake that occurred on January 17, 1994, at 04:31 Pacific Standard Time in Reseda, a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, lasting for about 10–20 seconds...
of January 17, 1994, destroyed several buildings in the historic downtown area.
Geography
Piru is located at 34°24′26"N 118°47′59"W (34.407297, -118.799675).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the CDP has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.3 km²), of which 99.45% of it is land and 0.55% is water.
Elevation: 692 feet (210.9 m).
Piru is located in Santa Clara River Valley
Santa Clara River Valley
The Santa Clara River Valley is a valley that runs from east to west through Ventura County and northwest Los Angeles County, California...
.
2010
The 2010 United States Census reported that Piru had a population of 2,063. The population densityPopulation density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 727.6 people per square mile (280.9/km²). The racial makeup of Piru was 1,063 (51.5%) White, 16 (0.8%) African American, 43 (2.1%) Native American, 11 (0.5%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 830 (40.2%) from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 100 (4.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,748 persons (84.7%).
The Census reported that 2,063 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 523 households, out of which 292 (55.8%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 329 (62.9%) were opposite-sex married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 69 (13.2%) had a female householder with no husband present, 39 (7.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 29 (5.5%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
POSSLQ
POSSLQ is an abbreviation for "Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters," a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of cohabitation in American households....
, and 2 (0.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 67 households (12.8%) were made up of individuals and 25 (4.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.94. There were 437 families
Family (U.S. Census)
A family or family household is defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes as "a householder and one or more other people related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. They do not include same-sex married couples even if the marriage was performed in a state...
(83.6% of all households); the average family size was 4.34.
The population was spread out with 676 people (32.8%) under the age of 18, 243 people (11.8%) aged 18 to 24, 569 people (27.6%) aged 25 to 44, 420 people (20.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 155 people (7.5%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29.4 years. For every 100 females there were 106.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.2 males.
There were 561 housing units at an average density of 197.9 per square mile (76.4/km²), of which 302 (57.7%) were owner-occupied, and 221 (42.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.3%. 1,202 people (58.3% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 861 people (41.7%) lived in rental housing units.
2000
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 1,196 people, 308 households, and 263 families residing in the CDP. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 514.5 people per square mile (199.0/km²). There were 328 housing units at an average density of 141.1 per square mile (54.6/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 53.51% White, 0.25% African American, 3.01% Native American, 1.67% Asian, 38.38% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 3.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 67.89% of the population.
There were 308 households out of which 52.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.2% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.3% were non-families. 9.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.88 and the average family size was 4.11.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 35.1% under the age of 18, 11.3% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 17.5% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $41,490, and the median income for a family was $40,703. Males had a median income of $32,303 versus $17,159 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the CDP was $14,337. About 16.4% of families and 27.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.5% of those under age 18 and 16.1% of those age 65 or over.