Above, Mayor of Jackson Hole Mark Barron poses with the cast
The sounds of Hollywood have replaced peace and quiet on Jackson Hole’s Lost Creek Ranch.”And action,” yelled a director. The change of scenery is also a change of pace for the actors of ABC’s “Modern Family.””Rico, we’re not in California anymore,” said Nolan Gould to his TV-cousin.
The Emmy-award winning cast and crew are enjoying a break from Los Angeles to shoot their season three première. A sneak peek of the set on Thursday revealed the new talk of the town, “Lily,” getting a touch up before a scene with middle Dunphy child, “Alex.”As well as some fun at the pool for all the kids, on screen and off.
“Alex … not Alex,” joked actress Ariel Winters, putting on and taking off her “prop” glasses. Despite the cameras and cargo, Lost Creek is still a ranch, and booked solid.
But guests don’t seem to mind the chaos too much.” We’ve seen a lot of characters and got autographs,” said 9-year-old Kate, vacationing from New York.” They’re all really nice,” said 12-year-old Eloise, from San Fransisco. Many tourists got their 15 minutes of fame as extras, along with some very excited staff.”I got to sit at the fence at the team penning scene,” said Karen Johnson, a temporary staff member for the week and huge fan of the show.
More than 25 scenes are being shot on the ranch, which means long and very hot days. But the young stars said when they’re not on the clock, it’s all about exploring the old West.
“So much to do and I want to do it all,” said Rodriguez, a.k.a. “Manny.”Gould and Rodriguez said the Alpine slide has been the biggest hit, but only with some family style competition.”We had a race,” said Rodriguez. “I won the tournament.””That made me really angry,” said Gould. But at the end of the day, they’re still family, and a very modern one on TV.
The ‘Modern Family” season premiere airs Sept. 21 on ABC.