In 2005, all the Caddys were painted bright pink for breast cancer awareness, and in 2003 the cars were all painted black as a memorial for the passing of one of Ant Farm’s founders, Doug Michels. In 2012 they were painted in rainbow colors to commemorate gay pride and painted black again to commemorate the murder of George Floyd in 2020. At different times the cars have all been painted white, New York taxicab yellow and fire engine red for no particular reason. At one point, the hotel chain Hampton Inn even restored the cars to their original colors for a commercial, but the fresh new paint jobs reportedly lasted less than 24 hours before the graffiti artists started in on them again.
The cars of Cadillac Ranch were painted pink in 2005 to support finding a cure for breast cancer.
Steven Clevenger/Corbis/Getty Images
In 1997, the Cadillacs were even moved from their original location in a wheat field to a site on Marsh’s ranch 2 miles (3 kilometers) to the west because the town was growing up around the installation, and Marsh felt it needed to maintain a more rural feel.
Cadillac Ranch has appeared in commercials, music videos, television shows and movies — in the 2006 Pixar animated film “Cars,” Cadillac Ranch shows up as a distant rock formation. What started out as an “irrelevant and silly proposition” has ended up capturing a part of our collective attention in the long term.
So, stop on by anytime you’re in the neighborhood. Cadillac Ranch is located on I-40, west of Amarillo (Texas), in the direction of Tucumcari-Santa Rosa, off exit 60. The attraction is open 24/7 and is completely free. For GPS purposes, the exact address is: 13651 I-40 Frontage Road, Amarillo, TX, 79124.
Editor’s Note: Stanley Marsh 3 was indicted April 10, 2013, by a Potter County, Texas, grand jury for the alleged sexual assault of two teenagers in 2010 and 2011. He was charged with four counts of sexual assault of a child, eight counts of sexual performance by a child and two counts of indecency with a child. Marsh died in Amarillo June 17, 2014, at the age of 76, before his case could be resolved.
Originally Published: Oct 19, 2022