AB&Me Travels: Paramount Studios Tour

03.22.15

Because Alvin wasn’t able to join us in the Warner Bros. Studio Tours, we decided to do another tour. This time, we went to Paramount Studios. 

We arrived a little early than our scheduled tour so we went inside the souvenir shop for a bit (used the loo and what not). When we got out, the rest of our group just arrived and we started the tour. Our guide, Delanie, handed out earphones so we can hear her beautiful voice guiding us through the tour. 😀

Our first stop was a storage / warehouse type room where they had some props on display. I just watched Interstellar a few weeks before so this hatch got me really excited. Do you recognize it? 

Everything is tagged so they know where it was used but there are some items that were not labeled for some reason. Probably got lost during transit or something. There’s over a century of Hollywood history in this studio and most of the commentary went past over my head. LOL.

But we were excited for the fact that some of our favorite TV shows are still shooting on the lot! Here’s a list of the current shows filming at Paramount Studios when we visited:

• Blacklist
• Dr. Phil
• The Doctors
• Extant
• Glee (they finished filming months ago, I just want to include them lol)
• Hawaii Five – O
• Rizzoli and Isles
• NCIS: LA

It was a weekend when we had the tour so the lot was empty. No shoot. But its ok, we still got the feels! Glee just aired its last episode so they were definitely off the list but look! This is where they shot the New York subway scene… actually, they use this for any “subway” shot. It does not lead to anywhere. Actors will go down the stairs, change their outfit a little, then go up again as if a different person. That’s how they make the illusion that the subway is busy. cool!

And this … this is Boston Police Department when used for Rizzoli and Isles. They leave it bare when not used for anything. 

Most buildings are just facades.  It leads nowhere but you get the illusion of the actor going in or coming out from the building. The rest of the shoot is done inside a studio.

Remember the parting of the Red Sea in the movie The Ten Commandments? They shot that here, at the Paramount Studio back lot. This Sky Tank is filled with water when they need “water view”. 

Here are some classic movies filmed in Paramount Studios:

• The Godfather
• Forrest Gump
• Titanic
• Raiders of the Lost Arc
• Breakfast at Tiffany’s
• King Kong
• Braveheart
• StarTrek

This is the original bench from the movie Forrest Gump. They say that Tom Hanks sat on this bench one day and started handing chocolates to the tourists. 

 

The tour lasted 2 hours covering most of the backlot. On a regular day, they say that you can bump into actors within the vicinity and they advise tourists to act “normal” … LOL. 

Tour Details
• 2-hour Tours Seven Days a Week (except some holidays)
• Tour Times – Every Half Hour from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm (weekend schedule may vary)
• Advance Reservations Required
• $55 per Person

Guests 10 years and over are welcome.

Paramount Pictures
5515 Melrose Avenue
Paramount Pictures Studio Tour Entrance
Hollywood, CA 90038