ALEXANDER RUBINOW, ACE


JOHN HUGHES SHOOTING LOCATIONS





This is a comprehensive listing of all the locations at which John Hughes filmed (which we were able to locate). The directions to each of the filming locations are as specific as possible. I hope you take as much enjoyment in visiting these historic landmarks as we do.



THE BREAKFAST CLUB (1985)



  1. Illinois State Police Station ( formerly Maine North High School ), 1/2 mile North of Golf Road off of Dee Road in Des Plaines, Illinois. The exact address is as follows: 9511 Harrison Street Des Plaines, Illinois 60016-1563.


CURLY SUE (1991)



  1. Haven Middle School 2417 Prairie Avenue, (near Lincoln and Green Bay) in Evanston, Illinois.


DENNIS THE MENACE (1993)



  1. The Hotel Dennis’ mother stays in (and gazes out the window of) is the Travelodge Chicago-O’Hare at 3003 Manheim Road in Des Plaines, Illinois. It is at the intersection of Manheim and Higgins Roads. ( this information provided by a resident of Rosemont, Illinois )
  2. Dennis’ House and Mr. Wilson’s house are next door to each other on the 1600 block of Ashland in Evanston, Illinois. Dennis’ House is at 1624.
  3. Mr. Wilson searches for Dennis outside the Lincolnwood Elementary School at 2600 Colfax Street, Evanston, IL (info provided by an Evanston resident at the time of filming)
  4. Mr. Wilson’s House is at 1618 Ashland in Evanston, Illinois.
  5. A scene at the end where kids are chasing the police car was shot on Maple Street in Evanston, IL. This is off of Dempster. (info provided by the grandmother of the girl in the purple shirt (an extra in the scene))


FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF (1986)



  1. Glenbrook North High School 2300 Shermer Road Northbrook, Illinois 60062.
  2. Blue “Save Ferris” water tower, Off of Cedar Road next to the Northbrook Public Library, Northbrook, Illinois.
  3. Glencoe Beach, at the end of Park Street on Lake Michigan in Glencoe, Illinois.
  4. Cameron’s House and Ferrari Garage ( also known as the Ben Rose Auto Museum ) are located at 370 Beech Street in Highland Park, Illinois. The Ferrari Garage is detached from the house and behind it. The path to it is around the house on the Beech Street side, and through some trees. It is very narrow and difficult to drive cars down. (details of the path provided by a visitor to the Ben Rose Auto Museum)
  5. The Bueller House is at 4160 Country Club Drive in Long Beach, CA.T
  6. he interior of Shermer High School is shot in the former Maine North High School (same as The Breakfast Club). Also some shots are inside Glenbrook North High School.
  7. Ferris running through backyards at the ends...some backyards are on Blackthorn Lane in Northbrook, Illinois. (unconfirmed) --- One of the driving scenes when everyone is getting back to the Bueller House is on Mallard Dr. behind Glenbrook North H.S.
  8. Ferris running through houses at the end: one of the houses is confirmed to be in Winnetka, Illinois. (confirmed by an extra in the scene with the BBQ in the backyard. The specific location is not known yet. The extra was carrying a punch bowl during her short screen time. )
  9. Ferris runs through a backyard with two girls laying on lawn chairs. The backyard as well as some of the houses in the “running home” scenes are on Butternut Lane in Northbrook, Illinois. ( just North of Glenbrook North High School ) This location was confirmed by the younger brother of one of the girls laying on the lawn chairs in the film.
  10. A House Ferris runs through is located at 2067 Butternut.
  11. Filmed at The Chicago Mercantile Exchange - The 4th floor viewing platform used in the filming was closed shortly after 9/11/01...it has not yet re-opened.
  12. The Art Institute of Chicago 111 S. Michigan Ave Chicago, IL.
  13. The German Day Parade Route, that Ferris participates in, runs down Dearborn Street crossing Adams in Chicago, IL.
  14. Katie Bueller’s Real Estate Office is the Koenig and Strey Office located at 538 Chestnut Street in Winnetka, IL.
  15. The orange sculpture Cameron and Sloan walk by is located at the corner of Dearborn and Adams in Chicago, Illinois.
  16. The Sears Tower 233 S. Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL.
  17. The Parking Garage where Ferris parks the Ferrari is located at the corner of Wells & Adams in Chicago (on Adams), near the ‘L’ Tracks. Another report states that parking garage is actually on Madison and Wells.
  18. Wrigley Field 1060 West Addison Chicago, IL
  19. The Restaurant exterior of Chez Quiz (a play on Shakey’s Pizza of LA) is at 22 W. Schiller Street in Chicago, IL (the interior was probably in Los Angeles and looks like the same restaurant as in Some Kind of Wonderful)The Pizza Parlor (with Pepsi spit on Rooney) exterior is near 530 Chestnut in Winnetka, IL (the interior is believed to be in Los Angeles, CA)


home alone (1990)



  1. Home Alone House is at 671 Lincoln Avenue in Winnetka, Illinois.
  2. Home Alone Pharmacy (originally The Hubbard Woods Pharmacy, formerly The St. Louis Bread Company -- currently Panera Bread), on Green Bay Road and Gage Street in the Hubbard Woods section of Winnetka, Illinois (this was exteriors only). The interiors were filmed at Blann’s Pharmacy in Kenilworth, IL at the corner of Green Bay & Park Dr. (it is now a financial planning office).
  3. Home Alone Railroad Track Bridge, Behind the Hubbard Woods Metra Station in Winnetka, Illinois.
  4. Home Alone Park/Gazebo ( ice skating rink ), Green Bay Road & Gage Street in the Hubbard Woods Section of Winnetka, Illinois. ( directly across Green Bay from the Home Alone pharmacy )
  5. Home Alone Church, on Lake Avenue and 11th Street near Downtown Wilmette in Wilmette, Illinois.....The interiors of the Church (with the choir scene) were shot at Grace Church on Lake Street in Oak Park, IL.
  6. Mitch Murphy’s House is at 656 Lincoln Blvd. in Winnetka, Illinois. ( It is right across the street from the Home Alone house. )A Scene with Kevin and Santa Claus is at Hubbard Place on Chestnut Court in Winnetka, Illinois just west of the Village Hall at 510 Green Bay Rd.
  7. The Christmas Choir Scene, Haven Middle School, 2417 Prairie Avenue, ( near Lincoln and Green Bay ) in Evanston, Illinois.
  8. O’Hare Airport American Terminal, Chicago, Illinois.
  9. The scene where Kevin goes grocery shopping is at Happy Food 606 Green Bay Rd, Winnetka, IL.
  10. The scene where John Candy meets Kevin’s mom on the runway is at Megs Field in Chicago, IL.


HOME ALONE 2: LOST IN NEW YORK (1992)



  1. Home Alone House ( same as Home Alone 1).
  2. Central Park & The Plaza Hotel in New York, New York.
  3. Duncan’s Toy Chest - Rookery Building on LaSalle St, just North of the Board of Trade. + Kevin’s Limo ride is down The Lasalle Street Financial District area, Kevin outside of Duncan’s is across from Bank of America on Lasalle. - Chicago, Illinois - the interior was The Uptown Theater - 4816 N. Broadway in Chicago, IL.
  4. Kevin’s Mom (Catherine O’Hara) speaks to a Police Officer outside a Tourist Site - SW corner of State and Washington across from Marshall Field & Company (formerly Karoll’s Mens Shop) - Chicago, Illinois.


HOME ALONE 3 (1997)



  1. Hughes's soundstage was immediately west of Klein Tools in an abandoned tennis club (Touhy Tennis Club) and an adjacent warehouse owned by Fel-Pro (now Federal Mogul) Gasket. It is now the home of Chicago Cycle with an address of 3450 W. Touhy Ave, Skokie, Il 60077. ( also used for Home Alone 2 and Dennis the Menace ) [info provided by a crew member]
  2. The Home Alone 3 House: 3026 Normandy in Evanston, Illinois.
  3. The Old Lady’s House is at 3025 Normandy in Evanston, Illinois.
  4. Home Alone 3's bank scene exterior was at the Southeast corner of Skokie and Dempster. It is currently a LaSalle Bank.
  5. the taxi driver beating scene took place behind a small manufacturing facility on Touhy, west of the soundstage. [info provided by a crew member]


national lampoon's vacation (1983)



  1. Wally World is Six Flags Magic Mountain: 26101 Magic Mountain Parkway Valencia, California 91355.
  2. The Entrance to Wally World is an overpass for the Westfield Mall near 649 Huntington Dr. in Arcadia, CA. (info provided by Owen Lockwood)
  3. Clark Pulls into a Gas Station to buy the gun: Intersection of Santa Monica & Ocean Santa Monica, CA ( End of Route 66 ) [ The Gas Station and Sporting Goods Store no longer stand on that intersection ]
  4. The Car Dealership where Clark buys the Family Truckster from Eugene Levy is Star Ford at 900 S. Brand Blvd Glendale, CA 91204
  5. Parking lot for Walley World ( with Chariots of Fire running Scene ): Santa Anita Race Track 285 West Huntington Drive Arcadia, CA.
  6. The Griswold homestead is located at 2310 North Vermont Avenue in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, CA. (information provided by Owen Lockwood)


national lampoon's christmas vacation (1989)



  1. Marshall Field & Co. - main store on State Street in Chicago, Illinois.


NEW PORT SOUTH (2001)



  1. Libertyville High School 708 W. Park Avenue in Libertyville, Illinois.


ONLY THE LONELY (1991)

  1. The Old Comiskey Park Chicago, Illinois.
  2. The railroad station in the final scene Amtrak Depot in Niles, Michigan @ 598 Dey Street. Most easily spotted from the grade Crossing on North Fifth Street.
  3. The Church is St. John Cantius Parish - 825 N. Carpenter Street Chicago, IL. (info provided by a parishioner)
  4. The house that John Candy lives at is 930 W Roscoe. It is really close to the Clark intersection under the “L” (in Chicago, IL)At that Clark intersection (under the “L”) is the O'Neill's bar. Of course you won't find O'Neill's there now and also the interior is not O'Neill's. There is a possibility that it could have been, but it is divided inside currently.
  5. The place they go to eat with Danny's mother and then she makes Theresa feel bad is the Hotel Ambassador East which is located on 1301 N. State Parkway in Chicago, IL. The Hitchcock classic, North by Northwest, was also filmed there.
  6. The bakery that Danny and Theresa's wedding cake was in. This location is 3329 S. Morgan St. in Chicago, IL.
  7. Just across the street from the bakery, and about three doors down (South or to the right) is the outside of the funeral home that Theresa lived and worked at. Of course the funeral sign is no longer there as it probably wasn't a real funeral home. This is also on Morgan St. in Chicago, IL.
  8. The corner building where they are trying to lower a body out a window with the rope snapping at the body falling was shot at Hotel Roosevelt - 1152 S. Wabash Ave, Chicago, IL - SW Corner of Wabash & Roosevelt. They pull up to the building going South down Wabash.
  9. The Restaurant at the beginning of the film, Diana’s - now Althea’s, is at 212 S. Halsted Street in Chicago, IL.


PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES (1987)



  1. The Braidwood Inn where the kid stole their wallets and also which featured the “they’re not pillows” scene is at the former Braidwood Inn - now Days Inn in Braidwood, Illinois about 50 miles South of Chicago. (This place no longer exists, it was torn down around 2002/2003)..Some sources say it still exists as the Sun Motel off of I-55. - 140 S Hickory St in Braidwood, IL (Sun Motel image provided by Melissa S. - the deskman told her that they used to sell souvenirs and it is the hotel, but has been repainted since 1987)
  2. The place where Martin and Candy are picked up by a semi-truck is in downtown Woodstock, Illinois. ( the same location as Groundhog Day ) Woodstock is on Illinois 47, 20 miles from the Wisconsin border.
  3. The “El Rancho Motel” is on IL Route 41 in Wadsworth, Illinois. It is about 10 to 15 minutes North of Lake Forest, Illinois on the East side of 41. ( The Hotel is where Neil paid for the room with his watch and then ended up backing the car into it. )
  4. The "L" station at La Salle & Van Buren is where John Candy thinks he parts ways with Steve Martin towards the end of Planes, Trains, & Automobiles. Martin gets on the train and has flashbacks of his time with Candy's character and goes back.
  5. Neil Page's (Steve Martin’s) house in Planes, Trains and Automobiles is located at 230 Oxford in Kenilworth, IL.


PRETTY IN PINK (1986)



  1. John Marshall High School, used for exterior shots, 4000 block of Tracy Street, Los Angeles, California.
  2. The record store, TRAX, is at the northwest corner of Broadway and 3rd Street in Santa Monica, CA.
  3. Andie Walsh’s house is at 1010 Hope Street (& Meridian) in South Pasadena, CA. It is on the North side of Hope Street next to the alley.


reach the rock (1998)



  1. All the Main Street scenes were shot in West Chicago, IL (Dupage) on Main St. Also the Tastee Freeze used was near downtown West Chicago, IL.


SHE'S HAVING A BABY (1988)



  1. The Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Illinois.
  2. The Night Club scenes with Kevin Bacon ( where he encounters a girl in the bathroom ) were shot at Excalibur ( formerly The Limelight ) located at 632 N. Dearborn Street in Chicago, Illinois. ( this information provided by an extra from the film )
  3. Sunset Foods Northbrook, on Cherry Lane in “downtown” Northbrook, Illinois. ( In Fall of 2002 it moved to the east side of Cherry Lane ) - The old Sunset Foods exterior and interior were remodeled since the film was shot.
  4. The SHAB house is at 56 Salem Lane in the New England Village neighborhood of Evanston, Illinois. (although technically within Skokie, IL’s city limits)
  5. The Winnetka Congregational Church is at 725 Pine Street in Winnetka, Illinois.
  6. The Glencoe Metra Station is at Park and Green Bay in Glencoe, Illinois.


sixteen candles (1984)



  1. Glencoe Union Church, Park Street, Across from the Glencoe Metra Station in Glencoe, Illinois.
  2. A School Bus Scene, across from the Northbrook Village Hall on Cedar Lane in Northbrook, Illinois. The bus is heading east on Center Ave. then turns North onto Cedar Lane.
  3. Niles East High School ( interior and exterior ) was located at 7700 Lincoln Ave. in Skokie, Illinois. ( it was torn down around 1992 ) A small portion of the building still remains, but not the main entrance. Oakton Community College now stands there. Niles East High School was also used in the film Risky Business.
  4. The scene where a car pulls out of the dance en route to Jake Ryan’s Party takes place at the Skokie Public Library Parking Lot ( 5215 Oakton Street Skokie, Illinois ). Then the car drives past the Skokie Historical Society ( 8031 Floral Ave. Skokie, Illinois ).
  5. Jake Ryan’s House is at 1407 Waverly in Highland Park, Illinois. (unconfirmed -- looks like right place )
  6. Some opening scenes of students scrambling to get to class in front of the school were filmed at New Trier High School 385 Winnetka Ave. in Winnetka, Illinois.
  7. Samantha Baker’s House is at 3022 Payne St.in Evanston, IL 60201.
  8. The Gym Dance takes place in the Niles East High School Gym. The hallway where Samantha Baker runs into and cries in was the hallway that lead to the boy’s locker room. ( this information was provided by a 1975 graduate of Niles East High School )
  9. Anthony Michael Hall ( the nerd ) driving the Rolls Royce with the Blonde is on Central Street in Evanston, Illinois.
  10. This is the location house that Farmer Ted ( Anthony Michael-Hall) knocks on the window to wake up Cliff "Wease" (played by actor Darren Harris) and Bryce (played by actor John Cusack). Stumbling to the window wearing "headgear", Farmer Ted has the two come outside to take a picture of the Prom Queen and the Rolls. This house is located at 1411 Sycamore Lane in Northbrook. Interesting side note...The tree to the right of the house is the tree that was used to film Long-Duck Dong jumping out of the tree onto Jake yelling "banzai!", which in the movie takes place at Jake Ryan's house. The magic of editing. This was confirmed by a resident at the time who watched these two scenes filmed. Remember these are private residences so please respect them as such.


SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL (1987)



  1. The Hollywood Bowl 2301 N. Highland Ave Hollywood, CA 90078
  2. The High School is San Pedro High School at 1001 W. 15th Street in San Pedro, California. ( about 30 minutes south of Los Angeles )
  3. Keith’s ( Eric Stoltz’s ) house is in Wilmington, California.


UNCLE BUCK (1989)



  1. The Uncle Buck House is at 2602 Lincoln Street in Evanston, Illinois. (A back addition and side addition to the house have been built since the shooting of the film )
  2. Tia Russell walks as Uncle Buck tails her in his car...they go past The Winnetka Bank. It is located on the northwest corner of Elm Street and Green Bay Road in Winnetka, Illinois. ( info provided by a former Glencoe resident )
  3. The forest preserve with the Tia and Bug scenes was Dam # 1 Woods in Wheeling, Illinois. The stone shelter still stands there. [info provided by a crew member]
  4. The ‘Party House’ where “Bust-a-Move” is playing and where John Candy gets a drill and catches Bug with another girl...It is North of Cherry and East of Western a few blocks from Greenbriar Elementary School at 2224 Crabtree Lane in the Highlands Neighborhood of Northbrook, Illinois. There is a sunroom in the back now, and it has changed owners since the film was shot. This was confirmed by a local resident whose house was directly across from where John Candy’s ‘haircut trailer’ was parked on Briarwood in Northbrook, Illinois.
  5. The elementary school scene ( with Gaby Hoffman’s character in the classroom and Uncle Buck in the principal’s office ) was shot at Romona Elementary School 600 Romona Road in Wilmette, Illinois.
  6. New Trier West High School (or New Trier High School - West Campus ), 7 Happ Road, off of Willow Road next to the Edens Expressway in Northfield, Illinois. ( Tia’s High School )
  7. The Windy City Bowling Alley Cicero, Illinois. (unconfirmed)
  8. The auto service facility in Uncle Buck stands at the Northeast corner of Dempster St. and Skokie Blvd (US RT. 41) in Skokie, IL. It remains in operation as a Firestone retailer, as it was at the time of the filming. [info provided by a crew member] ( scenes were also filmed in Chicago, Glencoe, and Riverwoods, Illinois. )
  9. The Bar where Buck meets Amy Madigan’s character (Buck’s girlfriend) is presently Emmit’s but was known as O’Sullivan’s at the time of the movie (it has been remodeled since). It can be found at: 495 N. Milwaukee in Chicago, IL.


WEIRD SCIENCE (1985)



  1. The Sports Car Chase in the end runs through Central Street in Downtown Highland Park, Illinois.
  2. Northbrook Court Shopping Center ( remodeled since the film was shot ), on Lake-Cook Road just west of Skokie Blvd. in Northbrook, Illinois.
  3. Niles East High School ( formerly ), 7700 Lincoln Ave in Skokie, Illinois. It is the same exact shot from the opening of Sixteen Candles.
  4. Chet & Wyatt Donnelly House - 420 Cedar Ave, Highland Park, IL (torn down since filming - info provided by Owen Lockwood)
  5. Deb’s House - 1150 Linden Ave., Highland Park, IL (info provided by Owen Lockwood)
  6. Hilly’s House - 1445 Sheridan Road, Highland Park, IL (torn down since filming - info provided by Owen Lockwood)
  7. Gary Wallace House - 1200 Linden Ave, Highland Park, IL (SE corner of Beach St. - info provided by Owen Lockwood)


At this moment in time these are all of the locations which I am able to recall. If you have any more John Hughes locations which you know of, please e-mail them to me at: alexander@arubinow.com


This page was created: 08 MARCH 1998

LAST UPDATED: 09 MARCH 2021