NBC's West Coast production center was opened in 1955 as the first television facility equipped for color broadcasting and was responsible for many of the classic game and variety shows of the time, including You Bet Your Life/The Groucho Show, The Nat King Cole Show, The Dean Martin Show, and Hollywood Squares. Though most of its most well-known programs are filmed in other locations, the studio still produces some of today's most popular variety and interview shows, such as Ellen DeGeneres, Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, as well as the long-running soap opera Days of Our Lives.
NBC Studios offers tours where visitors may get a behind-the-scenes peek at wardrobe rooms, soundstages, and other facilities of this sprawling studio. For a more exciting close-up view of what goes into a live taping, visitors should plan ahead and request the free tickets that are available for most of the programs.
