altadenablog

The end of an era: another icon falls.

Yep, fans -- the garage that held Brandon Walsh's basketball hoop on Beverly HIlls 90210 is no more.  Stalkerrific Lindsay gives us the whole story.

"Criminal Minds" at work

Reader Susan H. sent us this notice this morning:

Sorry for late notice, but "Criminal Minds" fans might want to hop over to Palm between Olive and Glenrose.   Must be big scene as took over lots of street parking.  One day only shoot, scheduled to end11 pm.

We heard they were doing some shooting around Chaney Trail today.  Criminal Minds must love Altadena -- their 100th episode is schedule to broadcast this month, and they shot some interiors last month at Webster's Pharmacy.

BTW, let us know if you ever spot film/TV shooting in your neighborhood -- we just love this kind of thing!

The Step Brothers House

Lindsay, that stalker gal, has a piece on the home on Midwick that served as the house of the Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly comedy, Step Brothers.  Reilly, of course, is an Altadena resident, and we've been stalking him for years!

Other 'Denas: Altadena Films

Just discovered this UK film company, which has nothing to do with Altadena but apparently like the name!

Country club goes Hollywood

Stalkeriffic Lindsay Blake, looking for a place for her wedding, looks at the Altadena Town & Country Club thru a location scout's eyes.

The Stalker stalks Farnsworth

Lindsay Blake, that Iamnotastalker gal who finds where everything is filmed, tackles Farnsworth Park today.  She easily demonstrates that the Davies building was NOT the scene of the finale of "Dirty Dancing," but does show it was a location for other films (notably the American Pie franchise). 

Lindsay also has a great December feature on Ronnie's Automotive, scene of over 200 productions.

Altadena-adjacent celebrity wedding

If you were driving down Lake Ave. Saturday, you know traffic was bollixed up around Westminister Presbyterian Church -- we saw a film crew and a lot of booth-tanned, skinny women, so we figured it was some kind of film shoot.  Turns out it was a real wedding ...

The inestimable mighty blogger Susan C sent us a note:

Hi Timothy,
When I was in Pasadena this afternoon, I saw "Spencer Loves Heidi" written in the sky. Then, on the way up north on Lake, I saw the papps out in full force in front of Westminster Pres. It turns out that Heidi and Spencer are Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt from "The Hills."

And it's all over the gossip sites today.  All we remember is, when we got married, we hired a photographer, but did NOT hire a crane that blocked the street ...

“Jackie is to Dena as Barack is to Chi Town. Peace up “A” town down.”

Okay, we're a middle-aged white guy, but we think we understood that.  A paen to Jackie Long of Altadena, who has made movies we've never seen.  But we like callin' our 'hood "A-town."

Shout out to Steve Buscemi ...

one of our favorites -- he Twittered that he would be in the 'dena this morning to film "Pete Smalls is Dead" with Sam Rockwell.  If you see him, say hi!

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas ...

... just like the ones I used to know -- with artificial snow.

Westminster Presbyterian Church is hosting an HBO filming crew for "The Pacific," a companion piece to "Band of Brothers" of a few years ago.  Here, Westminster is flocked up to play the role of a New Jersey Catholic church.

As you can see, the Nativity scene is very convincing

Even from across the street, the illusion is maintained -- just ignore the crew in shorts and T-shirts!

More 90210 in 91001

Lindsay, Lindsay, Lindsay!  Lindsay Blake is out stalking Altadena houses/film sets again, and comes across the house at 1690 Altadena Dr., which was featured on her apparent favorite 1990's show and several other films and television series.

(Again, the Google street view vehicle was around when Altadena Dr. was torn up, so it didn't get a shot of the house that we could embed!)

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

If you drive by Westminster Presbyterian today, you'll see a snowy holiday scene -- entirely artificial, of course.  A spokesman for Westminster Pres tells us that they're filming an HBO movie, and the church is supposed to be a Catholic church in New Jersey in the winter.  It's very festive!  We'll try to get some pictures up later.

"The Rubio House"

Lindsay Blake, whose very fun Iamnotastalker blog looks at Hollywood shooting locations, turns her attention to Altadena again.  The home at 1090 Rubio St. has been featured in many films and television shows as Lindsay explains with her inimitable verve.

Google Street view thru Street Cities - Free Mapping and Street View Tools

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Bass on Bass

Altadenan Saul Bass was renowned for his arresting, blocky, almost-brutal film titles (many of his title sequences were better than the actual films!)  Today's Smashing Telly blog features a documentary of Bass, with the master talking about his work.

(Also note the piece below it -- Werner Von Braun in Nazi footage, launching a V2, and some years later explaining rocketry on a Disney show.  Rockets go up, who knows where they come down?)

KeKe Palmer on the move

Singer/actress/Altadenan KeKe Palmer (star of Akeelah and the Bee) is off promoting her new film, The Longshots, in this Miami Herald feature.

8/25 update: KeKe does Q&A at Sly Fox Film Reviews.

Cruise, meet Calvin

It takes four cranes to block the stained glass at Westminster Presbyterian Church for the Tom Cruise movie they're filming today.  No idea if they're discussing engrams vs. double predestination, or MEST vs. TULIP ...

Beyonce! Cruise! Branagh! Travolta still tracking Xenu in his plane ...

Chris Considine, who alerted us to the mystery low-flying passenger jet, is not only our source of aviation news, but inside Hollywood scoop ....

[Beyonce] was at my friend's house all day yesterday filming a thriller!...and no I can't tell you where it is. I don't know if they are still there today, been too busy.

BUT what I can tell you is that Tom [personal but altogether justified opinion deleted] Cruise is at the big church at Lake and Woodbury [that would be Westminister Presbyterian] filming new sequences for his Nazi movie where he is the officer who tries to kill Hitler...Kenneth Branagh is there as well. I got an inside tour of the 'church set' last evening and it's quite spectacular.

They have redone the floors for the church, made it into a Catholic German church. They created amazing bigger than life statues of saints and pedestals from styrofoam (they look amazingly like ancient marble ones) a whole new set of the stations of the cross, and copied the design of the stained glass windows and put that all around on the walls...It wasn't finished, but the filming is today.

To infinity and Beyonce

JFX Online has some shots of a thriller being filmed in the High 'Dena featuring Beyonce (whom Altadenablog has actually heard of).  Anyone know where this shoot is going on?  Altadenablog may feel like stalking.

A Cinder-Dena Story

Lindsay Blake's fun Iamnotastalker blog looks at the house on Calavaras that served as Hillary Duff's Cinderalla Story home.  Since it's kinda-sorta near the campus of Altadenablog World Headquarters, we've seen it tricked out several times for shoots -- once covered with faux snow (snaux?) and a red sleigh parked out front.

The architecture buff in us once read about a style of structure called "storybook" -- this certainly qualifies!