Pima County has found a buyer for Old Tucson Studios and is currently negotiating standards for a new operating agreement for the Western-themed attraction.
Old Tucson, the setting of more than 400 feature films and TV shows, closed in August 2020 after the pandemic halted the crowd-based events that draw visitors to the historic location.
The county took over control of the 180 acres of land leased to former owner Old Tucson Co. when it announced it would be terminating its 25-year lease due to financial troubles onset by the pandemic. The company had leased the property since 1973.
County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry, whoโs on leave recovering from a bicycle accident, created a 14-member task force for a โconfidential procurement process.โ Now, the countyโs identified a new potential operator, according to a memo acting County Administrator Jan Lesher wrote to the Board of Supervisors.
The board will review the proposed operating agreement for the new owner in March. The county has not revealed who itโs negotiating with to take over.
According to the memo, the county sent out a solicitation for companies interested in taking over Old Tucson, and two companies responded in February 2021.
An evaluation committee scored the responses, interviewed the companies and moved forward with an intent to negotiate with one of the potential buyers in September.
โOver the decades, Old Tucson has weathered wars, changes in State laws, financial downturns, fires and natural disasters,โ Huckelberry wrote in a memo to the board in September 2020, later adding, โI believe that a beneficial public use of the property will be found that respects both the history and natural environment of the property.โ
Photos: Moviemaking at Old Tucson Studios
Visitors at Old Tucson often have a chance to watch actual movie or television filming. Shown in the foreground, they watch actor Cameron Mitchell at work in July 1977. John Wayne, Paul Newman, Glenn Ford, Clint Eastwood and Kirk Douglas are among the stars that have filmed there.
James Coburn during production of "The Last Hard Man" at Old Tucson on November 6, 1975.
Lee Marvin, right, talks with Jack Palance during a break in the filming of "Monte Walsh" at Old Tucson in 1970. For this film the production company built the town of Harmony 35 miles east of Tucson. The set there is now the Mescal location and still used today.
Old Tucson Studios in 1980.
Night scenes for the John Wayne classic, "Rio Bravo" at Old Tucson on May 24 1958.
Building the soundstage at Old Tucson on June 11, 1968.
The cast of the televsion show "High Chaparral" on set at Old Tucson in May, 1968. From left, Henry Darrow, Leif Erickson and Don Collier, who lived in Tucson and showed up in local TV commercials later in life.
Glenn Ford at Old Tucson on October 1966 during production of "Pistolero" Upper Sabino Canyon was also used for filming. The classic Western actor also appeared as the bad guy in the original "3:10 to Yuma," also filmed at Old Tucson.
Dean Martin hangs on to Ricky Nelson as John Wayne takes a swing with a blanket on the set of Rio Bravo at Old Tucson Studios in 1959.
Actor Max von Sydow gets makeup on the set of "Reward" on June 15, 1964. A section of the Old Tucson in Tucson Mountain Park was remodeled to depict a street in a small Mexican town. Two of the movie's scenes were filmed at Old Tucson.
Actor John Saxon, left, and director John Huston during production of "The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean" at Old Tucson in December, 1971. The film starred Paul Newman.
An Andy Warhol Western? Yep. It was "Lonesome Cowboys" and it was filmed at Old Tucson in 1968.
The streets of Old Tucson transformed for the movie "McLintock!" starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara in December, 1962.
A film camera truck pulls a stagecoach on the set of "The Lone Ranger" near Old Tucson in 1957.
Sidney Poitier with Lilia Skala on the set of "Lilies of the Field" Movie in December 1962. Poitier was the first African American actor to win the Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of Homer Smith in the movie.
On the set of "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" in 1957. It starred Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas and was directed by John Sturges, who directed several other movies at Old Tucson.
Actor Paul Newman has his photo taken by his wife Joanne Woodward during a break in filming of "Hombre" at Old Tucson in 1967. Woodward said, "Being married to Paul is being married to the most considerate, romantic man." Newman died in 2008.
Director John Sturges, left, confers with actor Clint Eastwood during production of "Joe Kidd" at Old Tucson on December 2, 1971. Sturges was a well-known action film director with such hits as "The Great Escape" and "The Eagle Has Landed."
Noah Beery Jr. at Old Tucson on June 5, 1968. He played James Garner's father in the TV series, "Rockford Files."
Walter Brennan snd John Wayne during filming of Rio Bravo in 1958. These ruins are leftover walls from the Mexican Village built for the film "Arizona." John Wayne filmed four movies at Old Tucson.
A building is expanded during set improvements for the movie "El Dorado" starring John Wayne and Robert Mitchum at Old Tucson on September 28, 1965.
The church is changed using adobe bricks during set improvements for the movie "El Dorado" starring John Wayne and Robert Mitchum at Old Tucson on September 28, 1965.
Robert Shelton (left) then president of Old Tucson talks with art director George Chan (right) from 20th Century Fox during building construction in 1964.
A scene from the 1940 film "Arizona" for which Old Tucson was built. The look and feel of the town was more authentic than any Western filmed to that point..
James Arness rides through Old Tucson as Sheriff Matt Dillon in TVs Gunsmoke. Gunsmoke ran from 1955-1975, though most episodes were filmed in Southern California.
Kirk Douglas shows other actors how to draw and whirl during the filming of "Posse" at Old Tucson in October, 1974. Douglas was the star and director of the film.
Actor Josh Brolin, who played Jimmy Hickok in the television show "The Young Riders" on the set at Old Tucson Studios in August, 1989. Brolin is an accomplished actor, with credits like "No Country for Old Men."
Moses Gunn (left) and Merlin Olsen (right), rehearse a scene from one of the many episodes of "Father Murphy" filmed at Old Tucson from 1981-83. Olsen was a Pro Hall of Fame tackle for the Los Angeles Rams.
Actress Michelle Carey (best known for her role in "El Dorado" with John Wayne) on the set of "Scandalous John" at Old Tucson in November, 1970. Carey spent most of her career in supporting TV roles, including three appearances in "The Wild Wild West."
John Wayne, on the set of "Rio Lobo" in Old Tucson in June, 1970, confessed to Tucson Citizen movie critic Micheline Keating that he was nervous about the Academy Awards show the next night. He won Best Actor for "True Grit." Rio Lobo was his last film at Old Tucson.
An extra catching a snooze in the warm sun on the set of "McLintock!" at Old Tucson in 1962.
Writer-director Burt Kennedy, right, on the set of "Young Billy Young," aka "Who Rides with Kane" at Old Tucson in July, 1968. Actor John Anderson is at left. Kennedy, a decorated WWII veteran, also directed "The War Wagon," "Support Your Local Gunfighter," and episodes for several TV show.
