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Some Came Running Filming Locations
39February 22, 2009
by Jennifer
in Filming Locations
Some Came Running is the story of US Army veteran and two-time author, Dave Hirsh (Frank Sinatra). Bitter from being sent to a boys’ home by his brother at age 12, Dave’s return to his hometown after 16 years shakes up the small town of Parkman, Indiana.
US 421, Milton, Kentucky
In the film’s opening scene, Dave is on a bus heading to the fictional town of Parkman, Indiana. Drunk, he was put on a bus in Chicago. Through the bus windows, the “Long View Inn” is barely visible.
In reality, the bus was heading down US 421 in Milton, Kentucky, heading toward the Milton-Madison Bridge. This building appears to be a private home, located on the bend.
Along US 421 in Milton, Kentucky.
Approaching the Milton-Madison Bridge.
Main Street (SR 56) – Madison, Indiana
In this scene, the bus is traveling through “Parkman, Indiana.”
It was filmed along Main Street (State Road 56) in Madison. The corner building above, to the right of the bus driver, seems to have been a pharmacy. It is now a nightclub/bar called The Electric Lady.
Courthouse – Madison, Indiana
In this scene, Dave is surprised to find he has a traveling companion, a lovable floozy named Ginny, played by Shirley MacLaine.
The scene was filmed on the east side of Madison, with the courthouse in the background. Through the bus windows in the photo above, the building that now houses a Dollar General, is visible.
The Central Hotel – Madison, Indiana
Dave arrives in town, and immediately finds lodging at the “Parkman Hotel.”
This probably was a hotel at one time. I “think” it currently isn’t, I have seen no listings for it as a hotel, just a bar/tavern, called the Central Hotel.
Main Street (SR 56) – Madison, Indiana
Dave’s brother Frank is quite shook up about Dave’s arrival in town. Feeling somewhat guilty about placing his younger brother in a boys’ home (yet all the while completely justifying doing so), Frank fears that Dave’s presence will break down the prominent social status he and his wife Agnes have worked so hard to attain. Frank is the owner of a jewelry store bearing his name, which he inherited from his father-in-law.
The location for Hirsh Jewelers was along Main Street in Madison. It is now a bookstore called Village Lights.
Madison, Indiana
Dave also wastes no time finding the local drinking establishment, hanging out with people more of his own social status. He heads to Smitty’s Bar.
You won’t be bellying up to the bar now, just a massage table. This appears to be a place called Complementary Health.
Dave wastes no time in causing trouble, getting into a fight outside Smitty’s Bar.
This scene actually did take place along the side of the building that is now Complementary Health.
Dave is befriended by local professional gambler, Bama Dillert, played by Dean Martin. The house on the left, below, was used for Bama’s house, and exterior and interior scenes were filmed there.
The cool thing about this house, is it is for sale, and on the Century 21 website it shows interior photos (thanks to Pat for the suggestion to check the website). Not a set…the scenes at Bama’s house were filmed inside. We are tempted to go to an open house!
In this scene, Frank Hirsh is spending a little quality time with his secretary, parked down by the river.
They are driving along Vaughn Drive in Madison, following the Ohio River, this one facing east.
And now facing west.
Parker Auditorium, Hanover College, Indiana
In this scene, Ginny, who is madly in love with Dave, is on her way to see her rival for Dave’s affections, Gwen French. Gwen and her father, Robert, are prominent citizens of Parkman. Robert is a professor at the local university and Gwen is a schoolteacher who is a big fan of Dave’s two books. Anxious to meet Dave and discuss his work, Gwen and Dave are immediately smitten with each other. Gwen encourages Dave regarding his third story, and helps to get it published.
Ginny is on her way to (nicely) confront Gwen about her intentions with Dave and to back out if Gwen wants Dave. Gwen, fearing a commitment to Dave due to his lower class associates, drinking, and gambling, falsely assures Ginny she has no interest in Dave, other than professional.
This scene was filmed at Hanover College, just west of Madison in Hanover, Indiana. From the same spot, trees now obscure the Parker Auditorium, visible in the above scene. I have also included a photo of Parker Auditorium, below.
Main Street (SR 56), Madison, Indiana
Bama and Dave are driving through town, while preparation is underway for a local carnival.
The scene was shot on the east side of Madison, along Main Street.
Ohio Theatre, Main Street, Madison, Indiana
Moffett Cemetery, Milton, Kentucky
In the interest of not revealing the ending, I won’t discuss the plot details any further…though it is obviously a funeral scene. It was filmed across the Ohio River in Milton, Kentucky, at the Moffett Cemetery.
It didn’t take us too long to find the area of the cemetery where this was filmed, it was fairly small, we could see it was close to the edge of the cliff, and there was a prominent monument in one scene, though we weren’t sure if it was a prop. There is a monument in the shot with Dean Martin that was a prop.
It was a lot neater, with no overgrowth 51 years ago!
We looked out for this area, unsure of whether this monument was also a movie prop.
It was real!
This view overlooks the Ohio River, with the Madison-Milton Bridge (US 421) to the right.
Pat did the honors of stepping into Frank Sinatra’s role.
The monument behind Dean Martin is a prop.
Main Street (SR 56) – Madison, Indiana
As we headed back into Madison, we noticed this marker commemorating “Some Came Running” and its stars.
And for those looking for some interesting tidbits, I have read where Frank Sinatra dreaded his time in Madison. He was not comfortable or happy with the idea of being stuck in such a small “hick” town. To help him tolerate his time in Madison, Frank wanted his best friend, Dean Martin, to accompany him and play professional gambler, Bama Dillert.
Dean was more than happy to oblige for his friend, and in fact, greatly enjoyed his time in Madison. Hailing from Steubenville, Ohio, Dean felt very much at home in the small, Midwest town of Madison. I have been to Steubenville also, and it is very similar to Madison.
Running to Madison
0November 2, 2008
by Pat
in Road Trips
We had a nice Saturday afternoon trip down to Madison, Indiana for some fudge and burgers. Due to some time constraints, we had to jump on the interstate heading down, but got off onto US 31 in Columbus and took IN-7 into Madison.
Due to the fact the Madison Fudge Factory closed at 5pm, we had less than a half hour to get in and get our fix of sugary goodness. The Factory’s HIGHLY recommended by us, as we’ve tried all the fudge shops in Madison….but we still buy from all of them anyway!
Next up was dinner at Hinkle’s Hamburgers on Main Street, an institution in Madison dating back to 1933. We were taken aback when our order arrived and the burgers were rather on the smallish side, but that did not deter from the quality of the meal. We’ll just know to order TWO each next time, as their prices are more than reasonable. They were maybe a tick larger than a White Castle burger, but without the side effects. 
After our grub at Hinkle’s, we strolled to the east end of Main at US 421, then crossed over to the south side of Main and walked it back to the west end of Main. We took a lot of photos so we can, sometime in the future, compare them to some scenes in the 1958 film “Some Came Running”, with Frank Sinatra & Dean Martin, which was filmed in Madison.
We ended up back at the car near the Broadway Hotel, built in 1834.
The lady behind the front desk was kind enough to give us a key so we could look at the only vacant room of the ten they have, and it was like stepping back in time. It definitely had an 1800’s feel to it….all for $109/night on weekends & $85/night throughout the week.
From there, we loaded in the car and made our way towards the Ohio River for a couple of photos before making the 100 mile journey back home on US 421.
The rest of my pics can be found on my flickr site, and Jennifer’s can be found here on her site.
Some Came Running…for fudge?
2November 1, 2008
by Jennifer
in Road Trips
Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Shirley MacLaine didn’t go running to Madison, Indiana for fudge, but every once in a while, we do.
Madison, Indiana is a neat town in southern Indiana with very nice architecture, shops, and dining. It sits right on the Ohio River and was the filming location for the 1958 film “Some Came Running,” starrring the aforementioned celebrities.
It was a nice day, we felt like getting out, so we drove down to Madison to pick up some fudge at the Madison Fudge Factory & Guest Suites. They have two guest suites upstairs, and the evening turn-down service includes fudge samples. Don’t quote me, but I think a night’s stay includes a half or full pound of fudge, as well. The shop also sells jellies, jams, salsas, and they have a separate area, which serves as a toy shop.
After getting our requisite supply of fudge, we parked on Broadway and walked along Main Street. We passed by the Ohio Theatre, which annually plays “Some Came Running.”
They also had a star embedded in the sidewalk (reminiscent of the “Hollywood Walk of Fame”) paying permanent tribute to the film and its stars.
We went by the Madison Bank and Trust Company, which is a really neat building. The date on the top is “1833.”
We had dinner at Hinkle Hamburgers, and since I was craving a hamburger, I ordered one. To my surprise, they were small, similar to White Castle’s hamburgers. I was starving, so I ordered another! They were very good!
As sunset approached, we walked back to the car and saw the Broadway Hotel. This place looks like an interesting place to stay. It looks very close to its original 1800’s style. The rooms don’t have many modern amenities like phone, television, or internet service, but they do have the modern essentials of air conditioning and indoor plumbing!
They let us see a room, and we walked up the narrow, creaky staircase. Amazingly, the doors have actual keys!
We drove over to the Milton-Madison Bridge, which carries traffic on US 421.
We drove back home and passed by the Moon-Lite Motel in Versailles (which, in Indiana, is pronounced veer-SALES, not to be confused with vehr-SIGH in France). We saw this motel several years ago and thought it was really cute, with a terrific neon sign too. It was dark, so the neon sign was aglow. I prefer photographing neon at dusk, when there is still ambient light and the sky is a perfect indigo, but you have to take what you can get!
Interestingly, last week, we stopped by here as well. We were visiting several apple orchards in Indiana and felt that we wanted to spend the night out, even though we had no luggage and were less than two hours from home! In fact, we were almost back in Indianapolis, when we decided to turn around and head down to spend the night. Of course, Article 7.4.1 of Murphy’s Law clearly stated that the sign would be reading “NO VACANCY.”
This time, we were strictly passing through on the way home (and of course, Article 7.4.2 of Murphy’s Law dictated that this time, the sign read “VACANCY”). We stopped in to speak with the owner, and she gave us a short tour and history of the property.
We continued home and always looking ahead for cool neon (or other retro) signs, I saw some neon glowing down the road. Signaling Pat to slow, down, we saw the Damm Theatre, in Osgood, Indiana. The alternating blinking lights on the bottom were not on, but the neon was. I stepped out of the car with my camera in hand, and as I adjusted my settings, the blinking lights came on, as if on cue!
We then made the rest of the trip back to Indianapolis. For more photos from Madison, Indiana (taken on various dates), visit my Flickr site: Madison, Indiana
