{"id":420697,"date":"2026-08-01T10:09:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T10:09:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/420697\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T10:09:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T10:09:20","slug":"the-weirdest-los-angeles-travel-itinerary-youll-encounter-this-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/420697\/","title":{"rendered":"The weirdest Los Angeles travel itinerary you\u2019ll encounter this year"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to the weirdest Los Angeles travel itinerary you\u2019ll encounter this year.<\/p>\n

This is David Lynch\u2019s LA \u2014 a field guide to some of the spots he used in his films and his TV series \u201cTwin Peaks.\u201d If you think this is a bizarre travel itinerary, know that there are legions of people (maybe it\u2019s a cult) out there who hunt down filming locations, particularly for Lynch\u2019s work. And this is by no means a comprehensive list \u2014 and not just because my LA-based friend couldn\u2019t be persuaded to drive me to Sunset Ranch Hollywood, the spot perched above Mulholland Drive where the famous \u201cCowboy\u201d scene<\/a> in \u201cMulholland Dr.\u201d was filmed. No, it\u2019s because LA is as much a character as the humans are in some of the surrealist\u2019s movies, and there are simply too many filming locations to point out.<\/p>\n

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With that, your tour begins. It starts at the southern end of LA and heads north, and you could do it all in one long day. Beware: Movie spoilers ahead.<\/p>\n

\"EatEat at Rudy\u2019s \u2013 558 East Anaheim St., WilmingtonSteve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Eat at Rudy\u2019s \u2013 558 East Anaheim St., Wilmington<\/p>\n

In the final episode of the 18-part \u201cTwin Peaks: The Return,\u201d FBI Agent Dale Cooper stops at a diner in Odessa, Texas, called Eat at Judy\u2019s and has a violent encounter with three locals. The diner is actually Eat at Rudy\u2019s in LA\u2019s Wilmington neighborhood.<\/p>\n

The place is bustling on a Sunday morning, with customers filling nearly every seat, a family celebrating a milestone with karaoke, and waitresses cheerfully topping off mugs. Rudy\u2019s serves up a huge array of omelettes, waffles, and breakfast burritos, and the kind of \u201cdamn fine coffee\u201d that would please Agent Cooper.<\/p>\n

\"Caesar’sCaesar\u2019s Restaurant \u2013 1016 El Segundo Blvd., GardenaSteve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Caesar\u2019s Restaurant \u2013 1016 El Segundo Blvd., Gardena<\/p>\n

Here is the setting of the famous \u201cWinkie\u2019s\u201d scene<\/a> in \u201cMulholland Dr.,\u201d in which a man named Dan describes a nightmare to a guy who may be his therapist. \u201cI just wanted to come here,\u201d Dan says. \u201cTo Winkie\u2019s?\u201d his companion asks. \u201cThis Winkie\u2019s,\u201d Dan replies.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis Winkie\u2019s\u201d is, in fact, an old Caesar\u2019s Restaurant (and, before that, a Denny\u2019s) that was shuttered a decade ago and now sits neglected. I couldn\u2019t resist the temptation to walk down the steps behind the restaurant in search of \u201cthe man in back of this place \u2026 the one who\u2019s doing it.\u201d Alas, only a clean alley is there now.<\/p>\n

\"DohenyDoheny Mansion \u2013 10 Chester PlaceSteve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Doheny Mansion \u2013 10 Chester Place<\/p>\n

The Doheny Mansion, which served as the opulent home of Laura Dern\u2019s fictional actress Nikki Grace in the film \u201cInland Empire,\u201d is on the campus of Mount Saint Mary\u2019s University, which is all but impossible to get onto unless you belong there. Built in 1899, the mansion is open for limited tours, which you can book online<\/a>. The mansion features in the film a few times, most notably for an extended, disquieting scene<\/a> in which a neighbor played by Grace Zabriskie visits Nikki and starts spouting what appears to be nonsense but later takes on greater meaning.<\/p>\n

\"TowerTower Theatre \u2013 802 South BroadwaySteve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Tower Theatre \u2013 802 South Broadway<\/p>\n

The historic Tower Theatre opened in 1927 and hosted the premiere of \u201cThe Jazz Singer,\u201d the first \u201ctalking picture.\u201d That history probably explains why Lynch used the theater\u2019s lush interior in \u201cMulholland Dr.,\u201d \u201cInland Empire,\u201d and \u201cTwin Peaks: The Return.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alas, today the theater is \u2014 what fresh heresy \u2014 an Apple store. Apple did preserve the beautiful interior, including the balcony, where visitors can sit and soak in the building\u2019s majesty, as long as they don\u2019t mind watching an employee demonstrating the iPhone 58\u2019s new features on a giant screen.<\/p>\n

\"Banks-HuntleyBanks-Huntley Building \u2013 634 East Spring St.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Banks-Huntley Building \u2013 634 East Spring St.<\/p>\n

This office building \u2014 supposedly the first in LA with central air conditioning \u2014 served as the exterior of Ryan Entertainment, the fictional firm involved in fictional director Adam Kesher\u2019s fictional movie in \u201cMulholland Dr.\u201d The parking lot to its right is where Kesher used a golf club to destroy the windshield of a limo<\/a> owned by his nemeses.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Palace Theatre at 633 East Spring St.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Palace Theatre (rear) \u2013 633 East Spring St.<\/p>\n

Just across the street is the rear entrance of the Palace Theatre, which opened in 1911 and hosted such performers as Harry Houdini. Fitting, because Lynch used it for the exterior of Club Silencio, a late-night spot in \u201cMulholland Dr.\u201d whose illusions were part<\/a> of the film\u2019s climax.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe MacArthur \u2013 607 South Park View St.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

The MacArthur \u2013 607 South Park View St.<\/p>\n

This 1920s building, long the Park Plaza Hotel, was originally an Elks lodge and has more recently been used as an event space. Rock musicians performed and shot videos there, and the interior and exterior have been featured in dozens of TV shows and movies, including Lynch\u2019s \u201cWild at Heart.\u201d The infamous gruesome opening scene<\/a> of that film depicts Nicolas Cage beating a man to a bloody pulp in the lobby.<\/p>\n

\"AllAll Season Brewing \u2013 800 South La Brea Ave.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

All Season Brewing \u2013 800 South La Brea Ave.<\/p>\n

Now the site of a craft brewery, this building was a Firestone tire and auto repair shop when it stood in for Arnie\u2019s garage in the film \u201cLost Highway.\u201d It figured prominently in the film as the workplace of mechanic Pete Dayton. Though it\u2019s now a brewery and taproom, it still has the look and feel of an auto repair shop, so you can easily picture Balthazar Getty and Richard Pryor bantering<\/a> while you sip your hazy IPA and munch on an organic taco.<\/p>\n

\"IlIl Borghese \u2013 450 North Sycamore Ave.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Il Borghese \u2013 450 North Sycamore Ave.<\/p>\n

The entrance to this apartment complex will be familiar to fans of \u201cMulholland Dr.\u201d In the movie, it\u2019s 1612 Havenhurst, where Aunt Ruth lives and lends her apartment to Betty. Peering past the gate, you can imagine rental manager Coco Lenoix (played by Golden Age actress Ann Miller) yelling at a tenant named Wilkins because of what his dog has dropped in the courtyard.<\/p>\n

\"Pink’sPink\u2019s Hot Dogs \u2013 709 North La Brea Ave.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Pink\u2019s Hot Dogs \u2013 709 North La Brea Ave.<\/p>\n

A line 30 people deep snakes down the sidewalk as lunchtime customers line up outside this LA landmark for dozens of varieties of dogs and burgers, including a \u201cMulholland Dr. Dog\u201d that comes with onions, mushroom, bacon and nacho cheese. The spot figured in another seemingly out-of-place scene in Lynch\u2019s impenetrable but critically popular movie<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"ParamountParamount Pictures \u2013 5515 Melrose Ave.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Paramount Pictures \u2013 5515 Melrose Ave.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t get inside this giant complex of sound stages where some of Hollywood\u2019s most famous movies have been produced unless you book a $71 tour or you work there. But all you really need to see today is the entrance, which figured into \u201cMulholland Dr.\u201d in a scene that is an ode to \u201cSunset Boulevard,\u201d one of Lynch\u2019s favorite films.<\/p>\n

\"DorothyDorothy Lamour star \u2014 6332 Hollywood Blvd.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Dorothy Lamour star \u2014 6332 Hollywood Blvd.<\/p>\n

The Hollywood Walk of Fame star of actress and singer Dorothy Lamour is the spot where Laura Dern\u2019s character Nikki Grace is stabbed with a screwdriver toward the end of \u201cInland Empire.\u201d Nikki pulls the screwdriver out of her side and drops it on Lamour\u2019s star. This is likely a reference to Lynch\u2019s obsession with Judy Garland, who played Dorothy in \u201cThe Wizard of Oz\u201d and was abused and exploited by the Hollywood machine.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Hollywood & Vine<\/p>\n

The historically significant intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street is synonymous with the entertainment industry. Movie and music businesses \u2014 including the iconic Capitol Records building \u2014 began concentrating there in the 1920s, and the Walk of Fame crisscrosses there. After being stabbed in \u201cInland Empire,\u201d Nikki Grace stumbles through the intersection and then collapses in front of a shuttered storefront on the Walk of Fame. Metaphors abound.<\/p>\n

\"DavidDavid Lynch\u2019s house \u2013 7035 Senalda RoadSteve Greenlee<\/p>\n

David Lynch\u2019s house \u2013 7035 Senalda Road<\/p>\n

This gray, Brutalist house just off Mulholland Drive is itself a star of \u201cLost Highway.\u201d It also happens to be part of the three-house compound in the Hollywood Hills where Lynch lived and worked until his death in 2025. The compound, which sold for $13 million this year, has recently been scrubbed from Google Street View, perhaps because of people like me who want to view it online before walking by. And walking by this creepy home is a surreal experience. I was tempted to walk up to the door, press the intercom and say, \u201cDick Laurent is dead,\u201d but I imagine that\u2019s been done 60,000 times since \u201cLost Highway\u201d came out in 1997.<\/p>\n

\"SnowSnow White Cottages \u2013 2900 Griffith Park Blvd.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Snow White Cottages \u2013 2900 Griffith Park Blvd.<\/p>\n

The so-called Snow White Cottages \u2014 a complex of eight little homes \u2014 was designed to look like fairy houses. In \u201cMulholland Dr.,\u201d the property becomes the Sierra Bonita apartments, where Betty and Rita (or whoever they are) find a dead body rotting in a bed. If you stop by, don\u2019t disturb the residents by walking onto the property; you can see it easily enough from the road.<\/p>\n

\"LosLos Angeles Police Museum \u2013 6045 York Blvd.Steve Greenlee<\/p>\n

Los Angeles Police Museum \u2013 6045 York Blvd.<\/p>\n

This quiet building in the hip Highland Park neighborhood served as the exterior of the police station in Buckhorn, S.D., in \u201cTwin Peaks: The Return.\u201d The museum is open to the public for a $10 admission fee but happened to be closed the week we visited. Maybe next time.<\/p>\n

Steve Greenlee, a former Globe editor, is a journalism professor at Boston University. He can be reached at greenlee@bu.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome to the weirdest Los Angeles travel itinerary you\u2019ll encounter this year. This is David Lynch\u2019s LA \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":420698,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[48,52,51,47,50,49],"class_list":["post-420697","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=420697"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420697\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/420698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=420697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=420697"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=420697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}