LIGHTS, CAMERAS, COWBOYS
3 Western Movie Backdrops That Stun Off-Screen
Check out the sets of City Slickers, Planet of the Apes, and, uh, Back to the Future III.
Monument Valley's buttes in Navajo Nation.
Image: BILL45 / Shutterstock
Monument Valley, Utah/Arizona
The iconic rockscape was director John Ford’s favorite backdrop, but a visit to the buttes within the Navajo Nation is as much American history education as a Stagecoach (or Back to the Future III, nerd) pilgrimage.
Kanab, Utah, aka "Little Hollywood."
Image: J. VELASCO / Shutterstock
Kanab, Utah
The southern Utah town famous for appearing in The Outlaw Josey Wales and Planet of the Apes earned itself the nickname “Little Hollywood,” though its silver screen history museum is currently for sale.
Ghost Ranch remains a popular backdrop.
Ghost Ranch, New Mexico
If you can’t find something that fascinates on these desert acres—City Slickers filming location, Georgia O’Keeffe outdoor studio, and dinosaur fossil dig site—the problem might be you.
