Blue Bloods in Harlem

It was a quick slightly rainy day. We got there early, we were served breakfast, which was dubious -- fiercely determined runny eggs, half cooked scalloped potatoes, oatmeal and coffee. Everything was warm, so I didn't complain. I drowned the potatoes in ketchup the catering provided, and ate what I could. After about an hour, someone brought in a crate of small bottled waters, which I was grateful for and picked up two bottles, easily downed one and kept the other one with my rollie suitcase that held my two other clothing changes -- ah, the life of a BG actor. Have the wardrobe of a rich chameleon but receive for it the pay of a pauper.

Part of the scene was playing in a barber shop. It was amusing hearing the PA's chat amongst themselves the ratio of men to women in a typical barber shop in the city. I played a 'customer' reading a paper and just sitting there, and the second was being a pedestrian. It wasn't rocket science and it only took about five or six takes, it was great.

Mark Warhlberg (sp?) was there, and so was Jennifer Esposito, who was having a hard time cuffing the 'criminal' -- at one point, the cuffs flew out of her hands and the director yelled "cut!"

By mid afternoon, we were wrapped and I took a cab home to celebrate as it was nearby and I didn't feel like walking the twenty plus blocks home. I was floating and didn't care. It was a short day and I was going to get a check for it. Back in the BG game I am!

CBS pilot - "Back"

It's a beautiful day today. I had a 5:30 AM call to play a tourist. I had to bring a prop (brought my digital camera) and a packed knapsack that had extra change of clothes and shoes just in case and managed to get there early. I almost doubted where I was going but made it after getting further confirmation from a fellow BG who happened to be having coffee in a shop nearby. It was dark when I left my home and it was dark when I arrived in Wall Street and the subsequent holding area which was a Chinese restaurant.

I checked in and managed to get my wardrobe approved then changed about when they saw I had options -- I was able to let an actor friend borrow my grey wool jacket since their jacket was deemed "too light" in color by wardrobe. I had not seen this actor friend in a long while so we caught up on things and hung out together for the bulk of the shoot, which was fun. Got to say hi to some of the regulars, although some were missed.

We filmed around Trinity Church, then we were told by the church's own security we had to move it along and so we moved, to another couple of blocks further down. Some lookee-loos were pretty nice and kept it moving after getting a glance, but some wanted to be in the scene and 'blend in with the extras' and thought they could just jump in and no one would be the wiser. One got uppity demanding to know why she couldn't be a part of it, and all I did was shake my head and say "please, no....no." And all she could say was why -- my actor friend was going to take the trouble to explain it, but if this visitor wanted to play tourist dumb, I was going to play along and break it down simple: "you need work visa -- take your work papers to that person over there (the PA) and see if they will let you work".

So it was pretty much walking back and forth as pedestrians as the actor Skeet Ulrich looked around, seemingly observant and looking all around him and the World Trade Center site. Skeet is not in any of these photos as we are not allowed to take pictures while filming. He didn't seem all that much taller than me and looked older than I thought he would. I don't know if it was makeup to look that way deliberately or that he's lived a pretty fast or harsh life in Hollywood. He's always presented as 'youthful' on camera. He recently did a series called Jericho on CBS, so perhaps they're looking for another star vehicle for him.

There was a lot of standing and walking in circles, which was rather funny. We got fed breakfast, a hot breakfast, but no lunch. We were let go around 1:30, 1:45, so there was no need to feed us a second meal. It was OK, I was grateful to take the brisk walk to the train station after changing out of my high heeled black leather boots and into my comfy F-UGGS, which is what I call my fake Uggs. Fuggs. *LOL*

In any case, except for the brisk wind that tends to come off the water down on Wall St., it was an otherwise nice and pretty day that ended blessedly early and well. Saw Meredith from Amerifilm Casting -- she was the one casting for this. I said hello and introduced myself to her -- as I had done on Hancock and when I met her at the Amerifilm open casting call over two years ago. She meets so many people, so it's not like she'll remember me. She was very nice to me.

Going to eat dinner. Just wanted to post this before falling asleep and forgetting!

bad news for the longest running soap opera

I'm posting this here as this is related to my work. This is one less show for actors to get work on.

CBS Cancels The Guiding Light
April 1, 2009
-By Marc Berman
Veteran CBS daytime soap The Guiding Light, the longest running daytime drama in the history of television, will broadcast its final episode on Friday, Sept. 18, 2009. The serial debuted in a 15-minute format on NBC radio on Jan. 25, 1937 and moved to CBS (airing concurrently on broadcast and radio) beginning on June 30, 1952. The radio show ended in 1956, and The Guiding Light ultimately expanded to 30-minutes in 1967.Ten years later it became a full daily hour. “Guiding Light has achieved a piece of television history that will never be matched; it has crossed mediums, adapted its stories to decades of social change and woven its way through generations of audiences like no other," said Nancy Tellem, President, CBS Paramount Network Television Entertainment Group. "This daytime icon will always be an indelible part of CBS's history, with a legacy of innovation and reputation for quality and excellence at every step of the way. While its presence will be missed, its contributions will always be celebrated and never be forgotten." There is no word at present what CBS will fill the weekday hour with.