Colonial Street is one of the backlot street sets at the Universal Studios Lot in Universal City, California. The street set has a long history, spanning over 60 years of movies and television. From 2004 to 2012, it was used in the filming of the TV seriesDesperate Housewives, in which the street was known as Wisteria Lane. After the production of Desperate Housewives ended, the street underwent a small makeover to remove the essence of Wisteria Lane, so that it could be used in other productions., most of the iconic white fencing and wisteria has been removed. Colonial Street has since been used for the NBC comedy About a Boy and the NBC series Telenovela, featuring Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria.
History
Colonial Street has its origins in 1946 when a few homes were built at Stage 12 at Universal Studios for the motion-picture So Goes My Love. After the movie, the sets were placed in storage. In 1950, the homes along with other sets built from stock units were moved outdoors to the north edge of the backlot, and was named Colonial Street after "Colonial Mansion", the first home on the street. The year 1964 saw the opening of Universal Studios Hollywood and Colonial Street was a popular attraction. In 1981, Colonial Street was moved to its current location at the other side of the backlot. Not all of the buildings were moved to the new Colonial Street, with some of them becoming part of Industrial Street, now known as Elm Street. In 1988, Colonial Street was overhauled for Tom Hanks comedy The 'Burbs. The old Leave It to Beaver home was removed, as large homes were required for the movie. Following the movie, the homes were rearranged again so Circle Drive was connected once again. In 1996, a new Leave it to Beaver house was built for the 1997 movie, replacing homes that were built for The 'Burbs movie. Also during this time, the Providence home was built. Colonial Street remained unchanged until 2004, when Desperate Housewives used the street for its series production, giving it the name Wisteria Lane. The homes were freshly painted with bright pastel colors and refurbished. The house where the Desperate Housewives character Betty Applewhite lived during the second season was strictly avoided by the Desperate Housewivesfilm crew during season one. This was due to the fact that it was considered to be too recognizable as the main setting of The Munsters. Following the decision to introduce the Applewhites, and having them live in the Munster home, the house was completely remodeled. In 2005, for the second season of Desperate Housewives, the street went through some heavy changes. During the first season only one part of the street had been seen on the show — the cul-de-sac at the end of the street, known as 'Circle Drive' among film crews, had been left out. Now, the majority of the buildings and facades in this part of the street was either heavily remodeled or removed. Among the most noticeable changes were the removals of a church facade, seen on Murder She Wrote, in order to make room for Edie's house, and of the so-called Colonial Mansion, which was replaced by a park.
Wisteria Lane
Wisteria Lane is a fictional street, appearing in the American television seriesDesperate Housewives. The street is located in the city of Fairview, in the fictional Eagle State. Its appearance reflects the stereotypical view of American suburbia: perfectly manicured lawns, rows of comfortable houses and white picket fences. It is the main setting of the show, and it includes the homes of its four leading women - Bree, Gabrielle, Susan, and Lynette - as well as most of the show's other main characters. As of the sixth season, the residents of eleven houses on Wisteria Lane have been established in the show.
Buildings
Productions
Several TV series and motion pictures have been filmed on Colonial Street, including:
