Here's Where You Can Visit The Conners House In Real Life
As studios, networks, and streaming services continue to reboot, re-visit, or re-imagine properties from every era, it's clear no IP is safe from reboot-fever. As it happens, one of the more unexpected small screen revivals of late continues to be one of the most consistently solid. That series is "The Conners," which was initially rebooted from the hit 1990s sitcom "Roseanne." Of course, once series star Roseanne Barr earned a cancellation for her own show after posting racist tweets, the rest of the cast infamously soldiered on under the new moniker. While that casting shake-up dramatically altered the dynamics of the show, it's remained a refreshingly grounded — if sometimes narratively lacking — look at life in middle America.
Still, as much as things have changed for Dan Conner (as played by movie legend John Goodman), and his quibbling, yet tight-knit family, the one constant in their lives has been the Lanford, Illinois house they call home. And that house has served as ground zero for most of the action on both "Roseanne" and "The Conners." While the home's interiors are obviously filmed on a soundstage in sunny California, it seems the actual Conner home as fans have come to know it, via countless scene transitions, is very much a real place. And yes, you can go visit it if you're so inclined.
The Conners famed Illinois abode is actually located in Indiana
Before you go and book a flight to Chicago in hopes of getting a coveted selfie in front of "The Conners" house, you should know that house is actually not located in Illinois.
Per a recent article from Courier & Press, it seems none of the locales used in the scene transitions for "Roseanne" and "The Conners" are. Rather, those not quite Norman Rockwellesque shots from the beloved shows (including exteriors of Lanford landmarks like The Lobo Lounge, and the Conner family's church) were taken in the town of Evansville, Indiana.
If you're wondering how those locations found their way onto network airwaves, according to the newspaper, it's because Evansville is where veteran producer Matt Williams (who co-created "Roseanne" and produced the show through part of its first season) spent the bulk of his own childhood. Though Williams' own "Roseanne" tenure lasted a mere 13-episodes (per the The Los Angeles Times), his mark on the show has been indelible, if only because those transitional shots of the show's fictional small town have become an integral stylistic element in the "Roseanne-verse," and he was clearly responsible for putting them into the editing mix.
As for the house itself, the classic Craftsman has apparently resided at 619 Runnymeade Avenue on the Southside of Evansville since 1925. And yes, the famous structure is still adorned with that instantly-identifiable pale yellow paint job. As noted in the piece, if one were interested in owning such a unique piece of television history, "The Conners" house could potentially be purchase for a song, with the Vanderburgh County Assessor's office reportedly listing its value in 2018 at very reasonable $131,000.