The beauty of the North Coast draws visitors from all over the world. So, it’s no surprise that Holly has been using the natural sets of the area as a a backdrop for some memorable blockbusters.

Get a copy of the tour book of movie locations from the Astoria-Warrenton Area Chamber of Commerce, 111 W. Marine Drive, (503) 325-6311 or (800) 875-6807.

The Goonies – 1985

Mention Astoria to a generation of folks who grew up during the 1980s, and often they?ll have one response: ?The Goonies!?

The much-loved kids? adventure movie, with its treasure maps, villainous counterfeiters, pirate ships and booby traps, was set and filmed in Astoria and Cannon Beach.

Visitors can still see the house where heroes Mikey and Brand lived, at 368 38th St., as well as the county jail and John Warren Field. While Ecola State Park provided the setting for the nefarious Fratellis? restaurant, movie-lovers searching for the run-down building are out of luck ? a facade was constructed for the movie, then torn down.

The Goonies and around 1,000 fans came back to Astoria for a Chamber of Commerce-sponsored 20th anniversary celebration in June of 2005. Sean Astin, who played Mikey, stopped by the Goonies? House to say hi; Jeff Cohen, who played Chunk, met fans and talked about what it was like ?Growing up Goonie?; and Curtis Hanson, who was Mr. Perkins, mingled with fans as well.

In August 2005, the Austin, Texas-based Rolling Roadshow made a stop in Astoria to show ?The Goonies? on a giant inflatable screen on John Warren Field. Corey Feldman, who played Mouth, returned to Astoria for the screening and to answer questions.

Although rumors of a sequel frequently pop up, as of early 2009, none is in the works. But remember: ?Goonies never say die.?

The Ring Two – 2005

DreamWorks filmed the sequel to ?The Ring? using Astoria as a backdrop. ?The Ring Two,? with cheap thrills, a creepy climax and a few good shots of Astoria, opened in 2005. The movie picks up with Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) and her son, Aidan (David Dorfman), in their new home in Astoria.

The Daily Astorian?s name was used, but the film company used the Pacific Coast Medical Supply site at 1210 Marine Drive, for the newspaper?s office set.

The thrill of seeing Astoria streets and area landmarks, bolstered by some well-timed scare tactics, is what saves the movie from being just another B production.

Come See the Paradise – 1990

Only Hollywood would attempt to fly a kite while running on the mud flats of Youngs Bay the way Dennis Quaid did in the 1990 film ?Come See the Paradise.? The neat thing is we don?t have to pay admission to see paradise here on the North Coast. We?re already there.

Kindergarten Cop – 1990

John Jacob Astor Elementary School, 3550 Franklin Ave., was the main location for ?Kindergarten Cop,? but other scenes were shot at the West End Mooring Basin where the Astoria Red Lion Hotel, 400 Industry St., was the setting for a romantic dinner with Arnold Schwarzenegger and his co-star, Penelope Ann Miller. During filming, the Bayview Cottages, 783 W. Marine Drive, was home to Schwarzenegger?s character and his partner, Phoebe O?Hara, played by actress Pamela Reed. In the movie, Schwarzenegger stayed in room 5 and Reed in room 6. The interior of the motel rooms were replicated in a Hollywood movie studio.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III – 1993

One of the hangars at North Tongue Point was made into a sound stage for this movie, and except for some filming done in New York, the entire film was shot here on the North Coast. A Japanese village was built in a clearing near Saddle Mountain, and Fort Stevens State Park was used for some filming.

Free Willy – 1993

In 1992, the feature film ?Free Willy,? made use of some of the North Coast?s locales. The 14th Street dock in Astoria was turned into a fish market, complete with fish tossers imported from Seattle?s Pike Place Market. And the breakwater at the Hammond Marina was the site where Willy?s leap to freedom was filmed.

Short Circuit – 1986

A few robots jumped off the Astoria Bridge in ?Short Circuit? and although the house at 197 Hume St. was the home for star Ally Sheedy?s character, the majority of the film was shot in The Dalles.

Cthulhu – 2007

Filmmakers from Arkham Productions in Seattle invaded Astoria in October 2005 to shoot scenes for an independent horror move, ?Cthulhu? (ka-THOOL-hoo). The story was inspired by H.P. Lovecraft?s writings in the early 20th century that spawned the horror fiction genre.

Tori Spelling stars in the production. The crew used an art studio, known locally as the ?red barn,? an old net loft that looms on pilings over the Columbia River at the east end of town.

About 30 local residents were cast, and some were seen emerging as sea creatures along the beach. The film was released in 2007. View the trailer at: www.cthulhuthemovie.com

Into the Wild – 2007

In the summer of 2006, a film crew headed by director Sean Penn came to Astoria to film ?Into the Wild,? which Penn adapted from a best-selling novel by Jon Krakauer about a top Emory University graduate who abandons his privileged life and hitchhikes to Alaska, where his soul-searching journey into nature ends in death.

The old-fashioned Olney General Store, 89523 Oregon Highway 202, became the ?Orick General Store.? Williamsport Road in Astoria was used for a scene in which a Humboldt County, Calif., sheriff stops the story?s star for creating hazards by hitchhiking. Additional filming happened on state Highway 4.

The film (www.intothewild.com), with a cast that includes names like Vince Vaughn, Catherine Keener, Emile Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden and William Hurt, was released in 2007.