Where was The Goonies filmed? The House & all the Locations in Astoria

Posted by

Born in the VHS era, The Goonies is one of the most beloved films of the ’80s. The story revolves around a bunch of adventurous kids looking for a buried pirate treasure while running away from a gang of criminals, all seasoned with Cyndi Lauper's music.

Although a lot of the footage of this unforgettable adventure comedy was lensed on various soundstages in California, The Goonies was primarily filmed in Astoria, Oregon.

The Goonies Astoria

The film was based on an idea by producer Steven Spielberg. The story is set in a coastal town in the Pacific Northwest where the picturesque neighborhood of the Goondocks is threatened by real estate speculation.

Welcome to the Goon Docks and our comprehensive guide to all the filming locations of The Goonies.


The Goonies in Astoria

Where was The Goonies filmed
The movie opens with the jailbreak scene in the prison where one of the Fratelli brothers was convicted.

The historic Clatsop County Jail, in use from 1914 to 1976, is today the Oregon Film Museum, where memorabilia and some artifacts from the movie are on display.
(You can open all the locations on Google Maps by clicking on the links below in the captions ↴)
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment and Google Maps


The Goonies location
As Nick P Was Here pointed out, the chase scene with the iconic black Jeep Cherokee goes through several spots is in Astoria, including 7th Street with Duane Street and 8th Street between Exchange and Franklin Avenue.
Image courtesy of Warner Bros. - Map


 
Truffle Shuffle
The high-school athletic field where Andy and the cheerleaders are training was the John Warren Field, located at Exchange with 18th Streets.

However, this location doesn't exist anymore, as it was demolished in 2016, becoming the parking lot of the expanding Columbia Memorial Hospital.
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment and Google Maps


The Goonies City
The spot where the housekeeper Rosalita tries to cross the street is opposite the Astoria Coffee Company building at Leif Erikson Drive with 37th Street.
Image courtesy of Warner Bros. and Google Maps


Sloth in Astoria
With the opening credits still rolling out, at the next turn we are a bit far away from Rosalita's scene, in a house at 32 Skyline Avenue.

This property also served to film the short scene inside Mouth's house (Corey Feldman).
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment and Google Maps


East Astoria Mooring Basin Dock
The pier where Stef (Martha Plimpton) put her head underwater was filmed at East Astoria Mooring Basin Dock.

There's no way the chase could have passed through here as the pier is a dead-end.
Image courtesy of Warner Bros. - Map


Chunk window scene
"Oh, wow, a police chase!" Chunk, the clumsy comic relief of the gang, smudges the window of the Lower Columbia Bowling Alley at 826 Marine Drive.

According to IMDb, the junkyard where Data tests his James-Bond-inspired invention was filmed at the Warner Brothers Burbank Studios backlot.
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment and Google Maps


The Goonies beach
The Fratellis arrive just on time to blend into the other cars participating in the Annual ORV Rally, taking place at Cannon Beach. The access point to the beach is on Ecola Court.

The Haystack Rock, a 235 feet (72 meters) landmark (or seamark?) also appeared in Steven Spielberg's 1979 movie, 1941.
Image courtesy of Warner Bros. - Map


The Goonies house

The Goonies house
The Goonies house is located at 368 38th Street in Astoria. Most of the interior was also filmed here, although the attic was a set built on a soundstage at the Warner Brothers Burbank Studios in California.

This is a private residence - if you are visiting, please be considerate of the residents.

In 2015, the house was closed to the public as the owners were getting too many tourists, but it has been reopened with a donation box to compensate for the hassle of having hundreds of visitors coming and going every day.
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment - Map


The Goondocks
Data's house is also still standing opposite the Walsh family house.

Data, played by Jonathan Ke Huy Quan, was already a famous actor at the time. He starred the year before in the 1984 blockbuster hit Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, which was a big inspiration for The Goonies.
Image courtesy of Warner Bros. - Map


Astoria Goon docks
Fortunately, today the Goondocks neighborhood looks almost the same.

The kids call themselves "The Goonies" because the neighborhood in the poorer part of Astoria where they hang out is called the "goon docks".


Astoria Historical Museum
On their way cycling to the coast, the kids pass through Astoria Historical Museum where Mikey’s dad works, at 441 8th Street, which is located across the street from the jail.

Built in 1885, this mansion is home to the Captain George Flavel House Museum.

The manor is one of the best-preserved examples of Queen Anne architecture on the west side of the Rockies. It was about to be torn down several times to make way for a parking lot.
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment and Kristina D.C. Hoeppner - Map


One-Eyed Willy
The Goonies arrive at a hill where the 1632 doubloon shape matches the landscape, helping to find clues about the location of One-Eyed Willy's treasure.

These scenes were filmed at the Ecola State Park situated just three miles north of Cannon Beach, featuring spectacular views of Haystack Rock.
Image courtesy of Warner Bros. - Map


Lighthouse Lounge
The Lighthouse Lounge, the abandoned restaurant which serves as a hideout of the Fratelli family, was temporarily built here at Ecola Point.
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment - Map


The sequel set
The rest of the movie, including the tunnel scenes, the pipe room, the cannonball chamber, the skeleton organ chamber, etc., was mainly filmed at the studios in Burbank.

The short scene at the tennis court was recorded at the Astoria Country Club.


Inferno pirate ship
In the Behind The Scenes video, director Richard Donner explains that the filmmakers didn't show the pirate boat set to the kids until the day of filming.

So when the Goonies come out of the slide and hit the water, they turn and see the Inferno pirate ship for the very first time.

Actor Josh Brolin (who played Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies and starred in Outer Range) ruined the moment when he exclaimed "Holy shit!", so the filmmakers had to reshoot the scene.


The Goonies pirate ship
The 105 feet long boat (32 meters) took about six months to build on the largest stage of the Warner Bros lot.

After the shoot, Donner called every amusement park in the United States to try to save the massive ship, but it would be costly to move and no one was ready to pay the cost at the time.

Nobody predicted how successful the film would be, so Willy's ship had to be dismantled and destroyed.

Some of the boat's rigging ended up at the Pirates of the Caribbean ship at Disneyland, which was being renovated at the time.


Cauldron Point
The last scene at Cauldron Point, where the kids are reunited with their parents, was filmed on both sides of the Goat Rock State Beach near Bodega Bay in Jenner, California.

Director Richard Donner made a cameo as one of the police officers driving a quad.
Image courtesy of Amblin Entertainment - Map

Can you help to improve this article about the filming locations of The Goonies? To complete and correct this report, any feedback, info, or images that you may have are more than welcome, thank you!

NOTICE: If you’re using this information on your website, please credit and link to this page as a source.
*****

1 comment:

1- Anonymous - Sep 24, 2022, 3:15 PM
Thanks for the info!


0 comments

All comments are reviewed prior to publication