Sixty years ago, Orson Welles gave us Citizen Kane, which some people insist on calling the greatest film ever made, despite the manifest existence of Die Hard. Very near the beginning of the film, we are treated to a newsreel obituary for the film's protagonist, Charles Foster Kane. The obituary opens with a consideration of Xanadu - both Kane's home and his monument to himself. It's a great bit of exposition - check it out and come on back when you're through. (Newsreel starts right around 3:00.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuZ6fm5F7bE

ANYWAY, a while back, Mr. Marks made some remark about all the spots around Balboa Park that were used as stand-ins for Kane's Xanadu. What follows is the result of a particularly warm July afternoon spent stumbling around our civic jewel, trying to replicate those images IN LIVING COLOR. Hoo!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4xmcuzNsaI

Good times, though I apologize for showing up at the end there.

Sharp-eyed viewers will no doubt notice that I had to use an old photo for the Scripps Aviary - what's there now isn't quite the same. And there were one or two spots I couldn't find at all. Special Big Screen shout-out no-prize to anyone who knows just exactly where these are: