The Real Life "Up" House
A post I made last year about the real life locations of the Hundred Acre Woods, Neverland and Agrabah has done exceptionally well, and I figured it only made sense to continue with other places in the world that you can visit that are based around Disney movies. This next one is undoubtedly the most accurate representation of a real life Disney location ever. If you’ve ever wanted to see that quaint house that traveled all the way to Paradise Falls with Carl and Russell, now you can: The Real Life Up House.
The Whitewood Cottage - Seattle
There are two ways of looking at this: the house Up was inspired by and the house that is an exact replica of Carl and Ellie’s home; they are not the same. Up was written by Pete Docter when he began to develop the idea for the story in 2004. 2 years later, Edith Macefield appeared in the news for her charming home, nestled between two commercial buildings owned by the Ballard Blocks in Seattle. She rejected a $1 million dollar offer from the developers to buy her land, and her home famously stayed put amongst the businesses from 1952 to the present day. The ownership of the home had been tossed around by a few people after she passed away at the age of 86, but for the most part it has remained a treasure to many.
Edith called it the Whitewood Cottage, and it was originally built in 1900. It became associated with the movie Up after Disney/Pixar used it as a way to market their upcoming movie in 2009, and now people leave balloons in honor of Edith every year. Although Carl wasn’t directly based off of Edith and her story, they coincide greatly and are now forever linked.
Where you can visit the Whitewood Cottage: 1438 N.W. 46th St. in Seattle
Edith Macefield’s home in Seattle. Image from: https://www.theworldisfun.org/full-blog/2015/5/23/seattles-up-house-the-story-of-edith-macefield
The Colorful Up Home - Utah
Our other option for visiting a home based around Up is on a corner of a street in Herriman, Utah. The Hamblin family live in their dream home as well as made the dreams of many Pixar fans come true. The house was originally built by Blair Bangerter for open house tours and for people to visit and it wasn’t listed for sale. But when Clint Hamblin went there to check it out one day while visiting his mother in Utah, he knew purchasing the home would be a great adventure. On his way home at the airport, straight ahead of him was Fenton’s creamery; there were too many signs to just ignore it.
His wife Lynette and their two kids Coral and Gunnar all felt personally connected to the film and eventually, Blair sold it to the family. Lynette and Clint had suffered miscarriages much like Carl and Ellie did, which made them feel connected even further. Their son Gunnar was diagnosed with autism at a young age, and he began opening up as soon as they moved into the home.
The “Up” themed house in Utah. Image from: https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Attraction_Review-g1598496-d8134770-Reviews-The_Real_UP_House-Herriman_Utah.html
Not only was the exterior the same as the film, but the interior is an exact replica of the home in the movie. All of Carl’s belongings, the two famous chairs in the front room, pictures of Ellie on the mantle, and completed with the murals in the nursery and above the fireplace of the home on top of Paradise Falls. It is perfection to a tee.
The interior of the real life “Up” home in Utah. Image from: http://www.therealuphouse.com/gallery/
The nursery in the real life “Up” home. Image from: http://www.therealuphouse.com/gallery/
Carl in the film ”Up”. Image from: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/374713631499458642/
The nursery scene in the film “Up”. Image from: http://www.adoptionlcsw.com/2013/10/adoption-movie-guide-up.html
Lynette writes about Disney on her own blog, and she graciously books anyone to come have a photoshoot outside or inside of their home for anyone who would like it. Sometimes it’s booked for engagement shoots, wedding photos, birthday photos, or just to have a fun memory of visiting it. You can email her for a personal rate for a photoshoot.
Where you can visit the Up house: 13218 S Herriman Rose Blvd, Herriman, UT 84096, United States
References:
https://www.goodthingsguy.com/people/house-inspired-disney/
