The Top Gun House In Oceanside California

If you are a fan of real-life movie houses, this one should tickle your fancy.

The Top Gun House is a historic landmark located in Oceanside, California known for being the location of a scene in the 1986 film Top Gun, starring Tom Cruise

You may recall that this house was the beachfront home of Maverick’s (Tom Cruise) love interest Charlie (Kelly McGillis) in the 1986 film. Maverick rides up to the home on his snazzy bike during a steamy California sunset to the sultry tune of “Take My Breath Away.”

It was one of those perfect movie moments that seared the image of this historic home into our collective memories.

The charming Folk Victorian house dates back to 1888. At present day, it is owned by the Mission Pacific Hotel and contains… a pie shop

Here’s a little background history of this beloved Oceanside home.

In 1886 Dr. Henry Graves of Riverside, CA came to Oceanside and bought three lots on North Pacific Street. The lots were intended to be the site of a new summer home for Graves and his wife Sarah.

Construction of the vacation cottage was completed in 1888.

Below is a historic photo depicting the home shortly after its completion.

Compare that photo to how the home looks today:

But it hasn’t always looked this way…

The Graves sold their Oceanside home in March of 1905 for $1,800 to Charles and Lillian Burlock. Dr. Henry Graves died on October 20, 1905, in Riverside at the age of 78.

The home passed through several owners during the early 20th century, but locals continued to refer to it as “The Graves House”.

Here is how the home looked by the year 1940:

You’ll notice that in the old photos, the home’s exterior was painted a darker brown color rather than the beachy blue it has become known for in modern times.

The Graves cottage was added onto in 1928 and was used over the following decades as a rental.

In time, the rental home became dilapidated. Eventually, a couple named Lynn and William Rego purchased the house in December of 1975 for $75,000. They fixed it up and similar to Dr. and Mrs. Graves, the Regos spent their summers in Oceanside and rented out the cottage for the remainder of the year.

It was actually the Regos who painted the house a light blue color with white trim and a punchy red front door.

It was that charming color combination, combined with its seaside location that caught Hollywood’s eye.

In June of 1985, Paramount Pictures rented the house for two weeks of filming. The crew prepped the exterior of the property by removing street signs and covering the curbs with sand.

Top Gun made Tom Cruise a megastar and made the little seaside house a favorite among Oceanside locals.

Over time, fans of the movie from all over the world began making the pilgrimage to the little cottage to have their photo taken in front of the iconic house.

Unfortunately, 102 North Pacific Street started to become a little worse for wear.

A fence was erected to keep lookiloos out.

In 2001 the City of Oceanside acquired the Graves house through eminent domain to control future development of the oceanfront block.

The cottage was moved one block north of its original location and plunked down in front of the new Mission Pacific Hotel.

Restoration work was completed to revive the aging home.

Fortunately, the historic cottage is still situated on North Pacific Street, facing the ocean. It’s just surrounded by newer highrises so it kinda sticks out like a pretty sore thumb.

The famous “Top Gun” House had its highly anticipated grand opening on May 20, 2022, as the new home of the High-Pie Shop. It’s not only a place to purchase delectable pies, but is also filled with memorabilia from the hit movie.

The icing on the cake is the replica motorcycle – a refurbished Kawasaki Ninja ZX900 – like the one Maverick rode in his iconic scene in Oceanside, which is placed in front of the house. Fans and guests of the pie shop are allowed to actually sit on the bike for a fun photo-op.