In 1965, comedian and actor Bob Hope bought Corriganville, a 212-acre former Hollywood movie ranch in Simi Valley, California. The property had spent decades serving the film industry, providing locations for thousands of films, television programmes and commercials. It also operated as a tourist attraction, where visitors could explore Western-style sets and watch stunt performances. Hope renamed the property Hopetown, and plans later emerged to develop much of the land. However, the former movie ranch took a different path. Fires destroyed many of its remaining structures during the 1970s, but much of the property remained undeveloped. In 1988, the City of Simi Valley purchased 190 acres and converted the land into Corriganville Park, preserving part of a site that had played a major role in Hollywood's Western filmmaking history.
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