I was developed by a real rancher at a real ranch near Santa Barbara, California.
In the late '50s and early '60s, Steve and Gayle Henson's 120-acre spread was a dude ranch favored by weekend visitors, among them boisterous University of California at Santa Barbara students who flocked to the ranch for parties. In those days I was lively and loud, described by a former ranch hand as part nightclub, part motel and part dude ranch. Guests brought with them huge appetites and Gayle often cooked up to 300 steaks an evening.
