“Mentalist,” “Luck” at Santa Anita

An episode of the CBS series “The Mentalist” that was filmed at Santa Anita Park in early September was broadcast last week (Oct. 21). And HBO’s new high-profile series “Luck” will film nine episodes starting Sunday for the first season of shows to begin running next fall.

Recent episode of "The Mentalist" filmed at Santa Anita Park. Click on link in story at left to see video.

Click here to view 3-min. – 4-min. clips from “The Mentalist” under the names of “Off to the Races” and, the one with most scenes of Santa Anita: “A Hundred to One Shot.”

The pilot for the HBO series “Luck,” starring Dustin Hoffman, Nick Nolte, local jockey Gary Stevens, and many others was shot last April. Jockey Chantal Sutherland is also expected to appear in a number of episodes of the series produced by film director Michael Mann and acclaimed writer David Milch.

The first episode of season-one will be shot at Santa Anita and at Rod’s Diner, a nearby coffee shop on Huntington Drive. Filming will also take place at the 100 to One Club, a cocktail bar just east of Santa Anita’s Gate 5.

Action in the first episode includes interaction at Santa Anita’s Clockers’ Corner, box seat area, winner’s circle, paddock and barn area. Action will also emanate from Santa Anita’s press box, and Racing and Operations offices. Filming will shift to Santa Anita’s main track as soon as the all-natural dirt surface project that is currently underway is completed and it is deemed safe for horses to compete. Production for season-one of “Luck” is scheduled to continue throughout Santa Anita’s upcoming winter/spring meeting, which runs from Dec. 26 through April 17.

“Touch wood, I think it’s going to be an incredible series,” said Stevens, who made his highly acclaimed debut as an actor in 2003’s blockbuster hit movie “Seabiscuit.” “I’m very excited about production resuming. This is going to be a very candid and very vivid look at our sport. ‘Luck’ has every right to be a winner on every level—from the acting to production, directing and writing, I really think this series is going to blow people away.”

“David (Milch) has a heart-felt passion for racing and he’s going to present the sport in a way that it never has,” said Pete Siberell, Santa Anita Community and Events Coordinator, who has been closely involved with “Luck” from its inception.”He’s going to be developing characters and plot lines that people can identify with and embrace. Although he’s going to be exploring some dark areas on occasion, we believe very strongly that he’s going to be able to connect with a wide-ranging audience, perhaps in a way similar to ‘The Sopranos,’ which also aired on HBO.”

— By Scott Hettrick