# Normal Places Made Famous by an Arts and Entertainment Thing **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 6, 2023, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803 "2023-03-06T20:37:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/41 "2023-03-07T01:23:07Z")
It’s gone now, and it was a fairly famous restaurant to start with, but [Lee Ho Fooks](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Ho_Fook) became a destination with the Warren Zevon song _Werewolves of London_. I was walking through the streets of Soho in the rain when I came across it, and of course I had to eat there. I did not, however, order beef chow mein. ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/42 "2023-03-07T01:26:46Z")
The Bradbury Building in LA, which was used probably most famously in _Blade Runner,_ along with about a dozen other films. Not bad for something that started out as an ordinary office building. [![](https://www.movie-locations.com/movies/b/Blade-Runner-Bradbury-Building-3.jpg) ](https://www.movie-locations.com/movies/b/Blade-Runner-Bradbury-Building-3.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/43 "2023-03-07T01:34:40Z")
> [@romansperson](#): > > Bradbury Building in LA Is that the building in which Bond, James Bond, is riding up a cast iron elevator, and fights a fellow rider, after an initial period of uncertainty? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/44 "2023-03-07T01:38:44Z")
In _ **Diamonds Are Forever** _? I don’t think so. That part of the movie was set in Amsterdam. Wasn’t the Bradbury Building also featured in an episode of _ **The Outer Limits** _? ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/45 "2023-03-07T01:53:40Z")
The Bull & Finch Pub in Boston which was the bar Cheers was based on. (And it is NOW the Cheers Beacon Hill bar/restaurant) ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/46 "2023-03-07T01:54:48Z")
Not exactly a normal place, but The Dakota was a lot more normal before Rosemary’s Baby was filmed there. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/47 "2023-03-07T01:56:18Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > The Bull & Finch Pub in Boston which was the bar Cheers was based on. And IIRC its exterior awning was the one seen in establishing shots on the show. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/48 "2023-03-07T02:04:44Z")
How about Walden Pond? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/49 "2023-03-07T02:07:51Z")
> [@Author\_Balk](#): > > The steps of the Philadelphia Museum of the Arts from Rocky. Other famous steps include the [ones from the 2019 film The Joker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joker_Stairs) or [the steps up which Laurel & Hardy tried to deliver a piano](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Music_Box). ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/50 "2023-03-07T02:37:57Z")
What I wouldn’t give to be able to take an airship from downtown Toronto direct to the Empire State Building… > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Other famous steps include the [ones from the 2019 film The Joker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joker_Stairs) or [the steps up which Laurel & Hardy tried to deliver a piano](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Music_Box). Also the [Odessa steps](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potemkin_Stairs) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/51 "2023-03-07T02:51:44Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > What I wouldn’t give to be able to take an airship from downtown Toronto direct to the Empire State Building… It’s the _only_ way to fly! 🙂 [![](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/7dcce3a4-fafc-42fe-a232-95a3ff37be7a/d4hussi-2676b984-a4df-492d-8b5d-eb74adad795e.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzdkY2NlM2E0LWZhZmMtNDJmZS1hMjMyLTk1YTNmZjM3YmU3YVwvZDRodXNzaS0yNjc2Yjk4NC1hNGRmLTQ5MmQtOGI1ZC1lYjc0YWRhZDc5NWUuanBnIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.qAfsy3lnwgKP-6ReOyNUzXjmFFyul5N9NeilDGlT8LM) ](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/7dcce3a4-fafc-42fe-a232-95a3ff37be7a/d4hussi-2676b984-a4df-492d-8b5d-eb74adad795e.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzdkY2NlM2E0LWZhZmMtNDJmZS1hMjMyLTk1YTNmZjM3YmU3YVwvZDRodXNzaS0yNjc2Yjk4NC1hNGRmLTQ5MmQtOGI1ZC1lYjc0YWRhZDc5NWUuanBnIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.qAfsy3lnwgKP-6ReOyNUzXjmFFyul5N9NeilDGlT8LM) ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/52 "2023-03-07T02:52:08Z")
> [@Lavender\_Pebble](#): > > I recently drove through Forks, Washington for the first time, and it was probably the most unimpressive thing on the entire peninsula. But there were still remnants of Twilight fandom around. I spent 3 days there. It was a great jumping off point for seeing the Hoh Rain Forest and the north coast beaches. My wife and I did eat at the Bella Italia restaurant in Port Townsend that was actually used in the movie. Drove through Roslyn, Washington once. There was a TV crew filming outdoor scenes for Northern Exposure. My wife and I stumbled across the Pierce Brothers cemetery in LA a few years ago. More dead celebrities in a half acre that anyplace else in the world. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/53 "2023-03-07T02:53:31Z")
… Or Lennon was shot there. 😒 ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/54 "2023-03-07T03:01:56Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > Not exactly a normal place, but The Dakota was a lot more normal before Rosemary’s Baby was filmed there. Of course it gained additional notoriety later on when John Lennon was murdered at the entrance to the building. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/55 "2023-03-07T03:38:43Z")
There’s this pizzeria in Mystic, Connecticut… ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/56 "2023-03-07T03:44:18Z")
For me, that’s actually a bit sad, as there are _much better_ pizzerias about an hour west of Mystic. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/57 "2023-03-07T03:46:37Z")
[Demon with a Glass Hand.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demon_with_a_Glass_Hand) ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/58 "2023-03-07T03:55:45Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Or Lennon was shot there > [@blondebear](#): > > Of course it gained additional notoriety later on when John Lennon was murdered at the entrance to the building Yeah, there’s a ton of history at that building - Leonard Bernstein, Lauren Bacall, Lennon/Ono… ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/59 "2023-03-07T04:36:30Z")
> [@romansperson](#): > > The Bradbury Building in LA, which was used probably most famously in _Blade Runner,_ along with about a dozen other films. Not bad for something that started out as an ordinary office building. I visited there a few years ago when I was in L.A. Someone already mentioned _Demon With a Glass Hand_. The Bradbury is also rather prominent in the American remake of _M_ from 1951. > [@dorvann](#): > > The Bull & Finch Pub in Boston which was the bar Cheers was based on. (And it is NOW the Cheers Beacon Hill bar/restaurant) A few blocks east on Beacon St. is a house that served as Mulholland’s Rare Books and Prints on the TV series _Banacek_. I sometimes wonder if the owners are aware of it. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2023, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803/60 "2023-03-07T06:17:49Z")
US Highway 50 across northern Nevada got written up in some magazine as “the lonliest road”, so now it is supposed to be a thing, to drive it with this little book that you get a stamp in at several towns to show that you drove it. As to being well named, no, not even close. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/normal-places-made-famous-by-an-arts-and-entertainment-thing/980803.md?page=4)