Walk of Western Stars moseys away from festival

City arts and events manager says city wants to make annual ceremony more prominent

Fans of the city of Santa Clarita’s Walk of Western Stars can rest assured the longtime local attraction isn’t going away just because it got the boot, so to speak, from the multiday festivities surrounding the annual Cowboy Festival.

Phil Lantis, arts and events manager for the city of Santa Clarita, said the city actually wants to be able to make a bigger deal about the annual ceremony, an homage to the region’s rich history in westerns film, music and culture.

Past honorees include everyone from Tom Mix (1981) and William S. Hart (1981), stars of the silent era who were part of the first induction posthumously, to more recent stars like Bo Hopkins (2017) and Rick Schroder (2022).

The idea of moving the event to the late summer or early fall gives the event flexibility, which comes with a few potential benefits, Lantis said.

“One of the challenges that we’ve had in the past, is when we’re trying to reach out to working professionals, ‘Hey, are you available this third Friday of April,’ and that’s our window basically,” he said, referring to the day before the weekend-long Cowboy Festival at William S. Hart Park begins.

Lantis said the city was still waiting to hear back on the scheduling dates of potential honorees, but he was hoping to have an announcement available by mid-may, regarding who will be recognized and when that will happen.

Another benefit of the potential move, which also has a degree of flexibility in terms of scheduling, is the Friends of Hart Park’s Silents under the Stars, Lantis said.

The event, an annual showcase for some of the local films produced during the silent era, is a fundraiser for the park — which also happens to be named after a silent film star — that takes place around the dates being eyed for the Walk of Western Stars, Lantis said.

“And so we’re hoping that all things worked out, that it can align with that,” Lantis said, mentioning a potential unveiling before a gala reception for the film event.

“That won’t necessarily work out every year, but that’s kind of our thinking to go into it, to make a weekend of it,” Lantis added.