Groceteria.com

The Former Safeway used in the movie "Go" is a gable in the city of Los Angeles, on Central Ave and Adams Bl.

Here is the store today

I totally forgot about that store till you mentioned it. I dont know what it is today, but the address would be 2500 or 2600 south Central. I want to say it was a Vallarita Market.

If I remember correctly from the audio commentary to the movie, they paid the owners of the market (a mexican chain at the time) to film in the store and to keep the colors the way they were, only to their dismay that they painted the store before filming, which led to the film makers to repaint the store the original colors.

Jeff wrote:The Former Safeway used in the movie "Go" is a gable in the city of Los Angeles, on Central Ave and Adams Bl.

Here is the store today

I totally forgot about that store till you mentioned it. I dont know what it is today, but the address would be 2500 or 2600 south Central. I want to say it was a Vallarita Market.

The Live Local photo shows it to be a Jons, just as our humble host suspected. Though I don't know if it still is that...

TheStranger wrote:The Live Local photo shows it to be a Jons, just as our humble host suspected. Though I don't know if it still is that...

Nope. There's a Jons store listing at http://jonsmarketplace.com/locations.aspx and it's not listed. But the store in question isn't listed on Vallarta's store list either.

There's a screen shot with the hideous interior in the background at http://imdb.com/gallery/ss/0139239/8.html
And if you look closely at this shot you can identify the Springfield label on the apple juice: http://imdb.com/gallery/ss/0139239/Ss/0139239/1.html

Doing a Google Search, I came up with an Amigo Discount Store at 2501 S. Central Ave, Los Angeles. I think tomorrow its time to take the camera around!

The store is located at 1011 E. Adams Blvd on the corner of Adams and Central. Safeway opened it on March 8, 1961. It was vacant about 6 months ago having been occupied by Jons before they closed it. Not sure if it's still closed.

Groceteria wrote: Video capture from "Go":

I have sad news to report. I drove by this store today on Central Ave coming home from work, and it has been leveled recently and is now what LA needs more of: an empty lot.

The cul-de-sac used on KNOTS LANDING is actually a street near the Knollwood County Golf Course in the Granada Hills section of Los Angeles. Not near the beach, as the TV shots depicted! There is a market near the area (probably Balboa & Rinaldi) that was used periodically. Think it was ALPHA BETA.

Not a market, but in the original BACK TO THE FUTURE movie, the mall scenes when the car is being chased and takes off...that is the Puente Hills Mall in City of Industry CA.

TV show ONE DAY AT A TIME used ALPHA BETA branded products in their kitchen.

Here's something I just spotted on Youtube: a 1970 Safeway commercial with the circle S logo!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JON9BcoGmI4

Phil53 wrote:

Daniel wrote: The movie "My Blue Heaven" has a grocery store scene in it, but I haven't been able to figure out what store it was supposed to be.

I just found out from a local newspaper that the grocery store and plaza was filmed in Laguna Lake Plaza, San Luis Obispo, CA on 1314 Madonna Road.

They said it used to be a "Williams Brothers" Supermarket. But I can't Google what Williams Brothers was and when it became a now remodeled Albertsons.

Can anybody tell me what Wiliams Brothers was and when did they merge?

I posted the following within the SPECIFIC CHAINS thread:

Williams Brothers had eighteen (18) stores. The locations stretched from Santa Barbara to Paso Robles. They were ultimately acquired by VONS in 1991.

I went to Cal Poly...and remember their ANNOYING television/radio commericals "What a Difference...What a Difference...What a Difference Williams Brothers Markets can make!"

Their former location @ 1314 Los Osos Valley Road was used in the 1990 Steve Martin movie MY BLUE HEAVEN. The actors walked through the store and filmed some shots. Parking lot as well I believe. This location is now an Albertsons.

This site became VONS after the purchase of the chain. SAFEWAY then purchased VONS. I believe a replacement store was built...and then this site became the current Albertsons.

The site is down the street from the famous MADONNA INN hotel & restaurant. Featured on various TV/travel channels. I believe MTV visited the site comically "looking for [singer] Madonna".

Other grocery store tie-ins:

The movie MR MOM has Michael Keaton's character going to the grocery store. Comically, I believe he was purchasing sanitary pads for his wife, and the clerk needed a price check on the product. The clerk states this need through the PA system. Michael Keaton's character is mortified. It has been YEARS since I have seen the movie...any idea what store was used?

On the TV show MAMA'S FAMILY...the character NAOMI (Dorothy Lyman) is a checker @ FOOD CIRCUS. It is obviously a set...yet, jokes often take place around Naomi's life @ FOOD CIRCUS.

Dean wrote:...On the TV show MAMA'S FAMILY...the character NAOMI (Dorothy Lyman) is a checker @ FOOD CIRCUS. It is obviously a set...yet, jokes often take place around Naomi's life @ FOOD CIRCUS.

There was a local Food Circus chain in Richmond at one time. Life imitates art (or maybe vice versa; the Food Circus chain predated "Mama's Family" by a few years).

Dave wrote:There was a local Food Circus chain in Richmond at one time.

Ditto San Francisco, albeit a small one. It's a fairly common name nationwide, actually, up there with Food Town and Food City.

I found out it was filmed in Fairfield, Ct. Martha Stewart shopped there before she became "Martha Stewart"

kg4peq wrote:I can't remember what movie I was watching, but about a year ago I was sitting in front of the TV and there was a supermarket scene in a movie. Well, I realized my passion for supermarket history and architecture might be going a bit far when I mumbled, "I bet that's a Safeway" upon seeing the electric rotary checkstands and brown & beige color scheme. I paused the DVR, flipped through it frame by frame, and sure enough, there were Lucerne brand products on the counter!

LOL...!!! I thought I was the only person who did that!!!

Apparently, this Sunday's "Desperate Housewives" (probably a re-run) centers around a hostage situation in a supermarket. I guess I'll be watching (or more likely fast-forwarding through) this show for the first time just to see if there's anything interesting.

Yeah, this one is a rerun, and I didn't spot anything chain-like when it was on the first time. However, your eyes may very well pick up something I missed!