b'o u rh i s t o r yA BRIEF HISTORY OF CORPUS CHRISTI IN FEATURE FILMSSincetheageoffilmproduction dawnedintheearly1900s,Corpus Christi and the Coastal Bend have been chosen as a location for more than 120 movie and television productions. Not all are memorable to many, but a few have served as reflections of real life in South Texas, and others have launched the careers of some of Hollywoods big-gest stars.1944, although a gaff in the film was the appearance of the Harbor Bridge, which was not constructed until 1959. ated the success of the familys Tejano Oneoftwomajorfilmsthatwassetband,Selena y Los Dinosandcreated almostentirelyinCorpusChristiwasfrictionanddrama,especiallywhere 1985s The Legend of Billie Jean, star- Selenas boyfriend, then husband, Chris ringHelenSlaterandherbrother,Perez was concernedalso the bands ChristianSlater,inhisdebutmovieguitarist. Selena was murdered by the role. Flour Bluff siblings, Billie Jean andpresident of her fan club on March 31, Binx Davy, get into a feud with a local1995. Her killer is serving a life prison surf shop owner and his son over dam- sentence and must be guarded against Gregory, Texas, in the 1981 film, Rag- agetoBinxsHondascooter.AfteraassassinationattemptsintheTexas gedyMan.Spacekscharacterfallsinconfrontation at a local drive-in (the oldpenitentiary. Thoughherlifewascut love with a sailor on leave during WorldSonic in Flour Bluff), hostilities escalateshort at just 23, Selena has inspired mil-War II who ends up the target of assaultand the Davys end up on the run fromlions to never give up on their dreams.by two bitter, local men. Sam Sheperdthecops,supportedbythousandsofPearlHarbor(2001)isthehighest played Spaceks estranged husband inlocal kids under the rallying cry, Fair isgrossingfilmtohavebeenfilmedin Heart of the Sunset was one in a seriesa passing role. Eric Roberts portrayedfair! Iconic scenes in the film took placeCorpus Christi. Scenes taking place on a of smash silent film hits by writer Rexthehandsomesailor,andE.T.star-to- atSunriseMall,theSouthern-styleJapanese aircraft carrier were ironically Beach, whose 1918 Western was stagedbe, Henry Thomas, who grew up in Sanmansion at the corner of Ocean Drivefilmed aboard the USS Lexington.in the town of San Antonio, in the des- Antonio,playedSpaceksyoungson.and Doddridge, Magic Isles amusement ert near Eagle Pass, and on the sandyNorth Beach was transformed back intopark (now Funtrackers), and Dockside coastline in Corpus Christi. Surf Shop in Flour Bluff. Eighties Rocker BeforeTheBlueLagoonandEndlessPat Benatar recorded the hit, Invincible, Love, Brooke Shields played a teenagefor the movie, and future Lisa Simpson, pinball wizard who runs away to Cor- Yeardley Smith, debuted in her role as pus Christi with an aspiring Rock singera rambunctious teenager.played by Krull star Ken Marshall. Cli- Just two years after the tragic death of mactic scenes in Tilt (1979) were filmedSelena Quintanilla Lopez in 1995, the on the Bayfront T-Heads, and in a bar onfilm telling her story was released. Jen-North Beach, where Tilt takes on Thenifer Lopez burst onto the entertain-Whale,playedbyCharlesDurning.ment scene in her near-perfect portray-EventualFalcon CrestheartthrobLo- al of the Queen of Tejano, and her rise to renzo Lamas had a small role. international stardom that started in a ComingoffherOscar-winningpor- working class Corpus Christi neighbor-trayalofLorettaLynninCoalMinershood.EdwardJamesOlmosportrays Daughter (1980), Sissy Spaceck starredSelenasfather,AbrahamQuintanilla, as a divorced, single mother living inJr., whose disciplinarian style both cre-84THE COASTAL BEND GUIDE TheCoastalBend.com'