Friends of Carrillo Ranch, Inc.

03/25/2023

11/09/2021

Holiday at the Rancho is back!

05/21/2021

We love this story!

A life-sized fiberglass horse was donated by a 95-year old park docent.

03/30/2021

Travel back in time to view the Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park as it looked in the past through historic photos. Enjoy Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park Then & Now, a new virtual interactive experience that shows what this treasure of California history looked like in the early days and what it looks like now.

Virtual tour of the Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park in Carlsbad, CA.

02/12/2021

Today is the first day of the Great Backyard Bird Count!
Our friends at the Buena Vista Audubon created this awesome video showcasing the birds you might see at and around Leo Carrillo Ranch.

For information on how to participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count this weekend check out www.birdcount.org

February 12-15, 2021 is the Great Backyard Bird Count. This year we take a virtual look at some of the birds seen at Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park and the...

02/03/2021

Some excellent programs coming up in March, as a reminder we strictly adhere to all city, county, and state public health guidelines.

Sign up at: www.carlsbadconnect.org

01/29/2021

We're rained out again today. In the meantime enjoy this from the archives..

If you enjoy jazz, dance, and boisterous Hollywood classics, then you would love What’s Cookin’ (1942). This movie stars big names from Hollywood's golden age such as The Andrews Sisters and Donald O' Connor, as well as music by Woody Herman.

Below is the film poster (retrieved from CineMaterial.com), as well as an original movie still (which is housed in the archives).

In this film, Leo plays the role of Marvo the Great, who is a magician popular among the group of poor young performers seen around him. Throughout the film, Marvo helps the youngsters navigate their way to gaining performance work, and the story is told through lively dance numbers and exuberant jazz music.

With jazz being a dominant theme in this film, it’s worth noting that American jazz emerged in the 1910s, developed by African Americans in New Orleans, Louisiana. In the 1920s America experienced the Jazz Age, which truly popularized this style, and has since been incorporated into much traditional and pop-music alike.

Shifting focus back to Leo, did you know that he starred in about 90 films, not including the Cisco Kid television series?

01/26/2021

You'll have to excuse us while we dry our feathers.

The Ranch is closed today while we dry out and clean up from the stormy weather last night.

01/19/2021

From the archives:

In the photograph below taken in 1946 for Universal Pictures, we see from left to right Leo Carrillo, Roy Rogers, Yvonne de Carlo, Preston Foster, and Governor Earl Warren. (Rogers and Foster were popular actors at the time, and de Carlo was an actress who famously starred in the The Munsters, among other 60's hit films.)

Focusing on Carrillo and Warren, in 1942 Warren ran for governor of California and Carrillo actively campaigned for him. Warren won governorship and served from 1943 to 1953 (he was a three-term governor). Warren also served as Chief Justice of the United States from 1953 to 1969. Warren has been regarded as one of the most influential judicial and political leaders among United States history, and he is well-known for his work among landmark cases such as Brown v. Board of Education (1954), and leading the Warren Commission (1963), which was an investigation of President John F. Kennedy's assassination. Hence, Carrillo's friendship with this esteemed man was nothing short of impressive.

You may also know that Warren appointed Carrillo to the State Parks Commission since Carrillo was a passionate environmentalist, in which he served from 1943 to 1961.

Furthermore, being the friends that they were, Warren involved Carrillo with many other affairs as well, like within the Earl Warren Sports Committee for example. In the photograph below, we see Carrillo aside Warren who smiles at Evelyn Hall Adams, an American hurdler and Olympic star. Warren presents the plaque which Adams designed for the Women's Track and Field 1952 Olympic games.