Please keep in mind the article was written in 1991. Some of the facts, while true at that time, may not be true anymore.

Stephen Land

Senior producer of Hey Dude and executive vice-president of Knoxville's Cinetel Productions

Tom Hilderbrand

Tucson's film commissioner

Bob Cote

Owner of the Tanque Verde Guest Ranch

Tim Doyle

Senior camera operator/videographer

John James

Video engineer

• Hey Dude may be a kids' show... (Yeah, yeah, yeah...)

• But the production ramifications are anything but kid stuff

• Cinetel is the series' producer and the largest independent production company in the southeast. They are based in Knoxville, Tennessee.

• Hey Dude is shot with three Sony BVP-50 video cameras.

• Though the show is entirely videotaped using a multi-camera setup, the production strives for a film-style look, using innovative lighting and filtering techniques.

• Each episode is shot in three days. At the end of every show, all of the tape, the script, continuity notes and the director's half-inch cut are quickly shipped back to Cinetel's post facility in Knoxville

• Tucson's heat and dust made shooting a challenge.

• The producers chose to shoot on location to convey a sense of realism that the Knoxville sound stages could not provide.

• In addition to Arizona, other sites considered were California, Colorado, Nevada and Texas.

• Tucson's cooperative film commissioner, Tom Hilderbrand, greatly facilitated the producer's choice of Tucson, which was conveniently close to the talent pools of Los Angeles and Phoenix.

• Tucson's weather was very dependable. Out of 65 episodes, representing 195 days of production, there were only two days of bad weather.

• Hilderbrand considered Tucson and Hey Dude a natural match. The only question was which dude ranch to film on.

• The Tanque Verde is owned by Bob Cote .

• Owner Bob Cote made his screen debut in an Uncle Ben's commercial filmed on the premises.

• Cote considered Hey Dude an asset, and did not charge a high location fee. His guests enjoyed the production.

• The producers could have used Old Tucson Studios, but instead insisted upon an authentic dude ranch location.

• The Bar None Ranch was built down the road from its main lodge and guest quarters. A lodge, guest quarters that double as dressing rooms, and bunkhouses for both boys and girls were also built, alongside pre-existing corrals and a Spanish-style building.

• The producers developed a shooting method to obtain a warmer, film look.

• Producer Stephen Land recalled, "One day on the set, someone got a reading a 122 degrees, and under lights, the boom operator clocked it at 141...Cameras will shut down under heat like that."

• A mobile control room (dubbed "the Beta Bug") was constructed. The Bug is an 18'x10' air-conditioned trailer pulled by a pickup truck.

• A Steadicam was used to shoot scenes in early episodes, but the cables limited operator movement and got twisted. The camera operator preferred using a dolly.

• The camera operator enjoyed shooting a 60' tracking shot of the talent walking down a road. (Anybody know which scene this is?)

• According to the video engineer, "If we were using straight, flat cameras with the usual kind of setup, the show would look like a soap opera. We didn't want that harshness."

• The crew was always watching out for the cables, making sure they didn't get run over by horses.

• To keep the cameras cool in high temperatures, the crew put dry ice in oven mitts on the sides of the cameras.

• The three camera setup was used to get the maximum number of shots in a minimum amount of time, but this strategy posed lighting challenges.

• The article's writer seems to have been present during the series wrap (65th episode).

• The cameraman related a joke. "We've got one trick we'd play on newcomers. We put a rubber snake on a fishing line, and bury it in the sand. Then just to break the ice, we'll pull it out fast and watch the person jump."

• The cameraman also remembers a scene that took place in the lodge interior, when one of the grips was entertaining cast and crew by donning a sombrero and doing impersonations. "Then he took it off, and when he turned it over, a scorpion crawled out. It had been in there when he had it on his head. We learned then to check everything before we pick it up." Authenticity does have its risks.