The Fresh Prince of Bel Air was a sitcom that ran on NBC from 1990 to 1996. It starred Will Smith as Will Smith, who’s sent to live with his family in a upscale neighbourhood of Bel Air. The series also starred James Avery, Alfonso Ribeiro, Karyn Parsons, Tatyana Ali, and Joseph Marcel. Janet Hubert-Whitten and Daphne Mazwell Reid shared the role of Aunt Vivian.
The show was set in Bel Air, which is an section of the Greater Los Angeles area well known for it’s wealthy residents and large mansions.
The Banks House
If you take a tour of Hollywood homes, you’ve probably been told that a certain house is from Fresh Prince of Bel Air. The house they are identifying is located at 417 Amapola Lane in Bel Air. I’m not sure why the guides claim this, as it is definitely the wrong house. Other than the white paint, there is really no resemblance. It’s possible they are trying to just make the tour seem more interesting. This happens a lot with the Friends fountain in New York City as well. Visitors are often told they are looking at the fountain, with no clue that it’s actually located at the Warner Bros. Ranch in Burbank.
The house that was used for establishing shots is not in Bel Air at all, but actually located in Brentwood. Located at 251 North Bristol Avenue, the house is surrounded by a fence and trees. It’s quite tough to see the whole house, but there are a couple spots where you can peak through, just enough to see the front of the house. It has not changed at all over the years. Remember to just look from public areas, and not to trespass or bother the owners.



West Philadelphia Basketball Court
In the opening credits of the show, we see Will Smith playing basketball in West Philadelphia, before moving to Bel Air. These scenes were filmed at Roberto Clemente Playground in Philadelphia. While not West Philly, per se, it was a lot closer than if they’d filmed at a basketball court in Hollywood.




Filming Studios
The first season of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air was filmed at Hollywood Center Studios, now known as Sunset Las Palmas Studios. Seasons two and three were filmed at Sunset Gower Studios. The remainder of the series used NBC Studios in Burbank.
Much of the info I found on the Fresh Prince of Bel Air house came from Lindsay over at iamnotastalker.com so please go check her page out. She runs a great site. You can find her site and many more in the links section of my site.
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