For the realization of the great set of Flagstone
the town of “Once Upon a Time in the West” (1968) the area immediately north of
La Calahorra station was chosen, an open and very photogenic area thanks to the
magnificent background (towards the north) constituted from the Sierra de
Gor-Baza. The land was owned by the Garcia Ruiz family and was rented for ten
years, where there was a farmhouse that is integrated into the complex designed
by Carlo Simi, with the collaboration of Carlo Leva. Famous for the appearance
of the city of Flagstone
in “Once Upon a Time in the West”, where Jill (Claudia Cardinale), leaves the
station building and starts towards the main road. The camera lift rises above
the wooden tiles of the roof of the building to reveal the city, while the
voice of Edda de Orso launches into a crescendo. In a subsequent sequence we
then see Jill in Sam's buggy (Paolo Stoppa) crossing the main street of the
city, which is similar to a construction site: a swarm of men on foot and on
horseback, wagons, a horse-drawn tram loaded with passengers, workers. The town
of Flagstone is a very expensive set, which included about thirty buildings
located on the main road south-north: the station; the large barn where carts
and buggies are also rented: the large hotel-saloon; the bank; shops; the new
theater (under construction); the Chinese laundry; the blacksmith workshop; the
barber's shop; warehouses and, at the end of the built-up area (to the north),
the sawmill. While some buildings of the set consist only of the façade, others
are complete, therefore suitable for internal filming, such as the railway
station, the large barn, the hotel-saloon, and the barber's shop. The
hotel-saloon, the bank and the theater, which have considerable dimensions are of
a solid brick structure, and still survive, even if reduced to skeletons. There
is also some walls of the building of the large stable, built in adobe,
characterized by a high pyramid-shaped chimney, also in adobe and with wooden
armor. The remains of this building was subsequently incorporated into a
structure that includes a complex of sheds that host flocks of sheep and goats.
Today, the former hotel-saloon is part of this structure, which was originally
enriched with a wooden portico on the front and on the west side and a covered
terrace (also in wood) on the first floor. On the brick wall on the front side
and on the west side was the inscription "The Gold Coin Palace Hotel"
and on a wooden sign on the front "Flagstone Saloon". The great set
of the city of Flagstone, with some changes and
enlargements, was then used in the film "The Price of Power" (1969)
by Tonino Valerii, in which it represents the city of Dallas
(Texas), and
then in two western co-productions from Rafran, the movie house created by
Sergio Leone. In the first – “My Name Is Nobody” (1973), directed by Tonino
Valerii - it represents two distinct cities: the one in which Nobody (Terenece
Hill) happens upon during a fair and where he demonstrates his ability to use
the gun to Jack Beauregard (Henry Fonda) and where, subsequently, the two
witness the arrival of the knights of the Wild Bunch. The last part of this
film also uses the nearby station: La Calahorra: and the set for the sequence
in which Terence Hill steals the train on which the soldiers have loaded gold
bars; to the east a warehouse appears (with a curved roof made of sheet metal)
on which there is the inscription "Magazine Golden Plume Limited",
which can still be seen. Also in part of this sequence is the "Public
Urinal" scene shot by Sergio Leone. The successive sequence of the battle
between Henry Fonda and the knights of the wild and filmed along the railway
linking the station of La Calahorra with the mines of Alquife (it is framed on both
towards the Sierra Nevada and towards the Sierra de Gor-Baza) and takes
advantage of the splendid and ample scenery of the Llanos of the Marquesado of
the Cenete.
In the second western by Rafran – “The Genius”
(1975), directed by Damiano Damiani - the set of the city built for “Once Upon
a Time in the West” represents Tucumcari (New Mexico) in the second sequence
(which also includes the opening credits) in which we see the protagonist
arrive, Joe Thanks (Terence Hill), with the diligence and then challenge the
gunslinger Doc (Klaus Kinski) on the "Main Street". For this western,
the saloon building is renovated, with large terraces on the front side, where
the sign "Chaco Canyon Saloon" appears. And the set then represents Phoenix (Arizona)
in another sequence. After this film the set built at the La Calahorra station
is no longer used by the cinema and falls into disrepair. All the useful
material is taken by the inhabitants of neighboring ranches and homes. But a
few years ago its surreal atmosphere, as a phantom city, was rediscovered and
enhanced for commercials: as an example the brick skeletons of the surviving
edifice appear in a commercial for the country music CD "On the
Road", in which you can also see the road that, going through the
buildings themselves, goes towards Churches and the wide surrounding scenery.
“Once Upon a Time in the West” (1968)
“The Price of Power” (1969)
“My Name is Nobody” 1973
“The Genius”
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