Posted 24 July 10 We are back from Wyoming! It was an exhausting trip, but we saw and did some wonderful and amazing things. In the coming months we will be adding hundreds of new photos to our “Entering Wyoming” pages. For a preview, look at our panorama of the Salt River Pass in “McMurtry’s Brokeback” Area here. Posted 10 July 10 Today some of us are off to visit Wyoming. We hope to gather more material for our “Entering Wyoming” pages. Wish us luck! Posted 1 April 10 Some of the most challenging Brokeback Mountain sites have been those with few visual “clues.” Among the tough ones was the spot where Jack dozed against a twisted tree stump as his blue heeler sat vigilantly and the sheep grazed. It must have been very difficult for the filmmakers to get the sheep, the dog, and possibly even Jack, in position and posed for this shot. Finding this site was also tough, but our own Bob Sohomuch figured it out in July 2009. Since then, it has been a popular place for admirers of Jack and his dog. See what we mean here. Some of our friends at EnnisJack.com will be visiting various places in Wyoming this summer. If you are planning your own trip to Wyoming, you may find our “Entering Wyoming” PDF to be a helpful guide. The 2nd PDF edition is now available in Downloads. We have begun work on the 5th PDF edition of this website. We expect it will be available by the end of April. If you are planning a trip to Alberta this summer, consider taking a copy with you. Posted 15 August 09 During our recent trip to Alberta, we were thrilled to find where the Wyoming and Texas highway scenes were filmed. To see what we found, look here and here. Posted 2 August 09 We’re back from Alberta and we had a great time as usual, meeting with old friends, making new ones, revisiting Brokeback locations, hiking, and riding horseback. We finally found exactly where the Wyoming and Texas highways are, and we even found a new location “up on Brokeback.” Look for new pictures, updates for current sites, new travel suggestions, and more in the coming weeks and months. Posted 20 May 09 Will you be in Alberta this July? Some of us will be revisiting Brokeback locations in Alberta between July 21 and 31. If you would like to meet, join us for a hike, or just compare notes, send us an email! Some of our friends from the forum at BetterMost.net will also be in Alberta at about the same time. To learn more about their plans, check their “Alberta July 24 through August 2,” and “Alberta Pilgrims! Tentative Schedule July ’09,” threads under “BetterMost Social Events.” You will have to register first to see and read these threads. Posted 30 March 09 Frequent visitors to this website may have noticed a flurry of recent updates. That's because we have been busy preparing a new PDF version of FindingBrokeback.com. The 4th PDF edition of FindingBrokeback.com is now available in Downloads. This latest version includes all the updates accumulated since the previous edition, including revised directions and additional maps. If you are planning to visit Brokeback locations in 2009, this is the version to take with you! Posted 29 October 08 Although his epic film was made over 800 miles away, Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain has been widely praised for artfully capturing much of the essence and visual imagery of Wyoming. Eager to see for ourselves, FindingBrokeback.com decided to visit locations in Wyoming which are pertinent to the Brokeback story. The result is “Entering Wyoming,” our newest feature which highlights Wyoming places that are part of the story and film, as well as other locations of interest to Brokeback fans. Look for “Entering Wyoming” in the Site Directory. Posted 22 August 08 Of the many creative people who labored to make Brokeback Mountain the important film that it is, no one is more highly regarded by her colleagues than writer and producer Diana Ossana. Her role was central to the development of the screenplay, the selection of the cast, and the actual making of the film. After a recent screening at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, California, Ossana answered lots of questions about the making of the film, many for the first time. We are happy to share a transcription of her important remarks. Look for it under “Transcripts” in Interviews. Posted 15 August 08 The Lonesome Ranch: although Alma was anxious to get out of there, pronto, Brokeback enthusiasts can't seem to get enough of this isolated place. In July 2007, its owner, Kerry Hart, generously allowed us to take many detailed photographs inside the ranch house. We have today posted some of those photos together with an interactive floor plan; you will find them here (DVD Chapter 9, 00 46 38). Take a close look at what we found taped to the floor! A visitor to this website, Monika (Buffymon), from Sweden, recently spent four days in Alberta, Canada. She has written a delightful account of her experiences touring various BBM movie locations. You can read about them in her blog at http://buffymonmon.livejournal.com/114483.html. Posted 20 July 08 During their own Brokeback pilgrimage in August 2007, Judy Kaiser and Gail Roulet were able to meet the owner of the Calgary building that the world knows as “Monroe’s House.” Judy and Gail have graciously agreed to share their stories and photos from this visit. To learn about the Brokeback filming that took place there, look for “Monroe’s House” in Interviews. Posted 28 June 08 Many visitors to this site have enjoyed the March 2006 interview with Pierre Tremblay, the film’s first assistant director. It is an important resource for those who want to know about the making of the film. Quite naturally, we were anxious to know more, and when we asked, i.e. begged, Tremblay graciously consented to sit for a second, lengthier interview about the making of Brokeback Mountain. Look for “Pierre Tremblay July 2007” in Interviews. Posted 23 June 08 Of all the Brokeback locations, the filmmakers deemed the Twist Ranch to be the most worthy. More time and money were spent preparing it than on any other structure seen in the film. Production designer Judy Becker, and a team of expert carpenters and set dressers, rose to the challenge. Starting with a virtual ruin, they delivered to Ang Lee an amazing building that was entirely worthy of the climactic scenes that he shot there. You can see the remarkable transformation that took place at the Twist Ranch in a rare set of 2004 photos. Look for “Twist Ranch” in the Pre-Production section of Albums. Before the team of carpenters and set dressers could prepare the Twist Ranch for the cherished scenes that were to be shot there, careful architectural drawings were made of the structure showing the kitchen, the dining room, the steps, Jack’s room, and, of course, Jack’s closet. Expert craftspeople used these drawings to transform a dilapidated prairie mansion, which had been vacant for almost 25 years, into the captivating, unforgettable Twist Ranch. You won’t find these drawings elsewhere, but thanks to a generous Canadian contributor, we are able to share these important documents with you on FindingBrokeback.com. Look for the “dimensioned” link in “Floor Plan” in DVD Chapter 18, 01 55 55 and 01 59 05, or here and here, and in Downloads (Twist Ranch House Drawings). Posted 16 June 08 We have today posted photos taken during Day 3 of our horse rides up Moose Mountain. Look for 26 July 2007 under “Horse Rides” in Albums. Posted 30 May 08 The 51st Annual Rockyford Rodeo will be held on 25-27 July 2008. Anyone planning to be in Alberta around then should check it out; it’s well worth the time, plus there’s a bunch of important BBM locations in Rockyford. If you want to take a look at what last year’s rodeo was like, see our “Rockyford, AB 2007 Rodeo” photos in Albums. Posted 20 May 08 We have today posted photos taken during Day 2 of our horse rides up Moose Mountain. Look for 25 July 2007 under “Horse Rides” in Albums. Posted 8 May 08 In July of 2007, some particularly adventuresome people satisfied their dream of visiting the Brokeback Mountain movie sites in Canyon Creek and up Moose Mountain on horseback. You can find some of their photos, taken on Day 1 of their ride, in our Albums. Look for “Horse Rides.” We will be posting more photos taken on Day 2 and Day 3 of these rides in the coming weeks! Posted 24 April 08 The beloved Basque! We knew he had some stories to tell about landing the role, his deleted scenes, and his work with Lee, Ledger, and Gyllenhaal. Lauren Gurney tracked him down, not in the Pyrenees Mountains, nor in the Big Horns, but at his Calgary, Alberta, home. Look for her fascinating interview with David Trimble in Interviews. In July of 2007, more than 30 members of the BetterMost.net forum, representing more than 5 countries, visited BBM movie locations in Alberta, Canada. You can find some of their photos, and others, in our Albums; look for the 2007 photos in Brokeback Found. Posted 7 April 08 In July of 2007, a group of seven individuals, from the Ultimate Brokeback Forum and BetterMost.net, gathered at the Sawmill Day Use Area in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park to climb the western ridge of Mt. Inflexible, the mountain known to visitors to this website as Jack Ascending. They thought they would be able to reach the peak; a long day perhaps, but definitely doable. After all, Jack was up there herding all those sheep, right? How hard could it be? They soon found out! To read about their experience, and see the views that Jack saw, look for “Jack Ascending” in Albums. Posted 2 April 08 The Laundry Apartment in Fort Macleod, Alberta, is high on every Brokeback fan’s list of favorite locations. The building is owned by Cindy and Harley Brown, who together operate an electronics store in the space where the film’s “liquor store” was. Since 2005, hoards of Brokeback tourists have made the pilgrimage to their building, photographed it from every angle imaginable, climbed its steps, and even stolen a kiss or two when no one was looking! In an interview posted today, Cindy Brown graciously agreed to recall their encounter with the Brokeback filmmakers, and the story of what happened at the Laundry Apartment during the summer of 2004. Look for “Cindy Brown” in Interviews. Posted 17 February 08 Anytime a Hollywood film is made, money flows freely. Locals get paid to be extras. Motel rooms fill up with cast, crew, and contractors. The bars are packed. Of course, the subsequent tourism implications are enormous. The producers of Brokeback Mountain were all too happy to pay $4 each for firewood logs, $750 for morning donuts, and thousands for a lavish Chinese buffet, anything to keep the film on schedule! Charming Fort Macleod, Alberta, and its savvy economic development executive Gordon MacIvor, expertly wooed Ang Lee by offering the “perfect” Laundry Apartment, coffee shop, Cassie’s Bar, Fireworks Area, and Courtroom. You can read what Gordon had to say, about the intricate artistic and business relationship between the filmmakers and the town which claims to be home to Brokeback Mountain, in our interview with him. Look for “Gordon MacIvor” in Interviews. Posted 24 January 08 The Lonesome Ranch and the Divorce Cabin are both prominent Brokeback houses. In a recent interview, Kerry Hart recalled negotiations with the filmmakers, the preparations that were made to the buildings, and the actual filming that took place at both houses in June 2004. Look for “Kerry Hart” in Interviews for this latest addition! Posted 10 January 08 Finally! The 3rd PDF Edition of FindingBrokeback.com is now available in Downloads! We have put a huge amount of work into making this the best PDF version of this website yet. The 3rd Edition has more pages, more pictures, and more movie locations, including the sites of ten deleted scenes. With more of everything, we have also added new maps, as well as two indexes that should help in finding things by either location or site name. Of course, this new edition also includes all the corrections and updates that we have accumulated since the previous edition. In the coming weeks and months we will continue to add pictures, albums, interviews, and videos to FindingBrokeback.com. Please check our Site History for information about these updates as we make them. Infrequent visitors may wish to use our Search link to check for updates by their revision date. (See “Search” in How to Navigate for more information.) Announcements
Archive #1 Announcements created 7 September 2006 |