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Rockford Files - Universal Prop Department

Rockford Files - Universal Prop Department

By Pat McKinney, Brett Papworth & Jim Suva

Yesterday my friend's Pat McKinney and Brett Papworth had the opportunity to vist the Prop Department at Universal Studios.  Their plan was to locate props used on "The Rockford Files".  They managed to locate the items pictured below.

This is Jim Rockford's desk from the first three seasons per Rob Howe.  Rob runs The Official James Garner Fan page on Facebook.

     


     

Here is the couch that were used in Jim Rockford's trailer.  Picture here are two identical couches.

 

Here are two cabinets that were on either side of Rockford's front door in the last season.

Pictured her is one of the Lambrini statues from the episode "Italian Bird Fiasco".

   

Here two pictures of a horse statue that was also in Rockford's trailer.

 

 

I would like to thank Pat and Brett for letting us post these pictures and sharing their story. 

MeTV Rockford Files Ad

Yesterday MeTV sent me a letter that states they used my Firebird's picture for their ad. They also sent me this photo framed of the ad. Please watch "The Rockford Files" on MeTV.

 

Here is the letter that MeTV sent me. I have to thank Jim Roche for this.

The Garner's Christmas Cake.

Crazy Christmas Cake tonight at the Garner’s!

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM MY SUGAR COMA

This is from Gigi Garner's tumbler blog.

Happy Holiday's from the Garner's

Gigi Garner sent me this to me to post on this Blog.

Happy Holidays from the Garner's

to all of you!

  

My Dad is currently in very good spirits and I  believe part of that may have something to do with the wonderful reception that the book has been getting so far

  

Predictably, he is somewhat surprised but, pleased that people seem to be enjoying it!

 

I wanted to say a personal "Thank You" to his friends and fans for all your support ;) 

 

Please keep up the good work.... because it is definitely working!

 

Sincerely,

 Gigi Garner

Gigi Garner Trubute site to James Garner

Here is a link to a story about Gigi Garner's tribute site for her Father.

Daily Call Sheet: New James Garner Tribute Site, The Truth About ...

I check it out everyday to see what Gigi has posted.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

ME TV Ad

Here is my Firebird as it appears in the ME TV ad promoting "The Rockford Files".  James Garner looks great in the picture.

 

Here is the origninal picture used for their ad. 

 

Jim Rockford's Trailer

Jim Rockford’s Trailer

 By Jim Suva

 

The trailer used as Jim Rockford’s mobile home is a 1959 Nashua House Trailer. They used one trailerfor exterior shots, mostly at Paradise Cove, Malibu. According to Rob Howe the interiors of the trailer were built on Stage 23 at Universal Studios.  It had the exterior trailer skin on one side(the front), but not the full length of the front side.  It was a set.  The fourth wall was removable, since most of the shots were shooting from behind Rockford's desk toward the door.  When Jim sat behind the desk and the camera was on him, the fourth wall would be set up behind him with the pictures on it.  Picture above is from The Official James Garner Facebook Fan Page.

Here is an add for the trailer from 1959.

 Pat Mc Kinney is probably the most die-hard fan of the show The Rockford File. Pat owns three original screen-used Firebirds from the TV series, plus crew jackets and other props from the show.

 

This past spring Pat came across a 1959 Nashua trailer, very close to the original that was used on the TV series. It belonged to a customer that Pat was working for at the time. Pat saw it out of the corner of his eye and asked the owner if he realize he had a trailer identical to Jim Rockford’s. The owner asked Pat if he would like to look inside. Of course Pat said yes! The owner’s daughter was living in the trailer at the time. Once he looked inside he could not believe his eyes! It was set up just like Rockford’s trailer! Pat gave him his business card and told him if he ever wanted to sell it, he would be interested.

Two months later the owner called up Pat and told him his daughter was getting married and moving out. He wanted to get a new trailer for his back yard. He told Pat the trailer has been in the back yard since it was practically new. Needless to say Pat jumped at the opportunity.

In June 2011, Pat had the trailer moved to a storage facility near his home. It arrived there in perfect time to be part of the 1^st Annual Rockford File Fest. Below are some pictures of the trailer, taken at the Fest. It was so cool to actually walk inside this trailer and feel like you were in Jim Rockford’s home!

    

Pat’s plans at the time were to repaint the trailer and redo the interior to look exactly like the trailer used on the series. Pat believes the front door and windows were actually moved forward, to make the trailer on the show more accessible.  Pat’s trailer has the extra window near the front of the trailer, which needs to be relocated to the kitchen area.  Pat has been collecting items that matched those used on the show. Pat met with Robert Zilliox, the set designer from the series and the movies. Robert is currently looking for his pictures from the actual set to help recreate the trailer. Pat’s intentions are to use the trailer at all future Rockford events. 

However, Pat is currently at a crossroads. He wants to complete the restoration of his 1977 Firebird, and has two more Firebirds to go. Since the economy is not doing well, Pat would like to see if any Rockford/James Garner fans would be interested in donating funds to help keep the trailer in storage, or to help with the cost of recreating the Rockford Trailer.

Please contact Pat at pemckinney@hotmail.com if you would like to donate to the restoration fund, or would be able to help recreate this trailer.

This could be a great opportunity for the fan’s of The Rockford Files to help recreate a piece of television history!

1976 Pontiac Firebird 400 1/24th Scale Model

1976 Pontiac Firebird 400 1/24th Scale Model

By Jim Suva

Back in 1976 I purchased this Pontiac Firebird Formula model.  At that time I painted it orange with a black interior.  I purchased this model at the time because for some reason no one ever made a Rockford Files Firebird.

   

Fast forward to this past Thanksgiving Day weekend.  I decided to take a part this model and repaint it and make it a Rockford Files Firebird.  The interior color is buckskin like the interior of my 77 Firebird.  The exterior is gold color by Testor's.

 

The completed model is now located in a nice plastic case on my desk.  Hope you like it.

Here is the final touch.  My wife Julie made me the license plates.  It can not be Jim Rockford's Firebird with out the correct license plates.

 

My Review of "The Garner Files"

My Review of “The Garner Files”

By Jim Suva

 

I finished reading The Garner Files last night.  I highly recommend this book to everyone.  Jon Winokur has done an excellent job with James Garner in writing one of the best memoirs I have ever read.

It tells a wonderful story of Mr. Garner’s life, that shows a man who lives by a basic code of what is right.  He is just a regular guy doing what he feels is best and fair for himself and other people.  It is so nice to read about a person who is honest about his life and does not sugarcoat anything.  His honesty is refreshing in our world of non-responsibility.  Through this book you can see why James Garner is loved by so many people all over the world.

My favorite chapter is “Act-ing”.  It gives you a great insight into the man, and Jon Winokur has done an excellent job getting Mr. Garner to open up about his private life.  I felt badly that one of our great actors felt he had lost his anonymity, so he can no longer do some of the simple things in life that we take for granted.  I have a number of items s he has autographed for me over the years, and I now feel guilty for bothering him for them, although I will treasure them forever.

I thank Jon Winokur for giving me a new perspective on this wonderful man, James Garner.  I will reread this book many times I am sure.