We have another entry for the Pencil Paparazzi file. This one comes from Doulicia in Ann Arbor.
This is from the set of Betty Ann Water’s house, a private residence on Fifth St. in Ann Arbor. It’s 3 blocks from my house, so I walked past it on my way home from work each afternoon. Apparently they did some filming outside, but whenever I was there, they were doing filming inside the house. Nonetheless there were 30 crew in the yard and street. Occasionally they’d bring out a prop (e.g. a broken chair: “Did Hillary throw the chair?” “Did someone sit in it and break it?”) or let in a dog (“Are they Hillary’s dogs?” answer: Yes. They travel with her).
The base camp was 2 blocks from our house, in back of a church. The trailers were parked there and the various equipment trucks. My boys usually ride their bikes in that parking lot, though, so I let them take a pass through. One day we saw Hillary with her dogs in the playground area.
For this picture, I was on my way home and they had Hillary’s Suburban (a tan behemouth) running and backed up in front of the house – no white shuttle van for her. She walked out, got in the passenger seat (she has a driver). I was across the street, talking with my haircutter. She was holding her adorable, weeks-old husky puppy. Hillary pointed to the dog and broke into that Oscar-winning smile. She really did look lovely. Then they drove away.
Interestingly, the next day all signs of occupation were gone. It was as if the 3 semis, the 4 prop tents, the countless lights, cameras, shades, filters and people who’d been there round the clock had been vacuumed up. The only remnant from filming were 2 large tree branches laying by the curb for pickup. One had green silk maple leaves wrapped on its dead limb; the other had orange and yellow silk maple leaves. No doubt they were used outside a window to make the seasons change.
The man whose home it they used was just moving back in (temporarily – he said they’d be back in a few weeks). He said he thought it was a scam when a guy knocked on his door saying he was a location scout for a Hollywood movie starring Hillary Swank. The guy asked to take photos of the interior. The owner said no way. The scout returned a few weeks later and asked again. The owner still wouldn’t let him take pictures, but he gave the scout a tour.
Apparently 2 things made the house appealing: It has a lot of original and unaltered woodwork (i.e. the old arts and crafts baseboards that are, like 8 inches high) and a few walls had been knocked out at some point, making rooms flow together and easily accommodating of cameras.
I love the image of the two dead branches covered in silk leaves… One hopes it’s not the case, but it seems like it might prove to be a good metaphor for Michigan’s experience with the film industry.
Thanks, Alicia. This is great.
15 Comments
These are a lot of fun…
I saw them shooting at Sidetrack last night.
I find the absence of her ass upsetting.
I meant to say that I find the absence of her ass in this image upsetting. I, of course, realize that in real life she has an ass.
I never saw her ass. The Suburban was in the way.
Though far from timely, I could offer up Pencil Paparazzi renditions of my memories of last summer:
+ Drew Barrymore crashing a private party
+ Jimmy Fallon behind the bar and serving beers at the Elbow Room
Paw’s constant pining for celebrity ass is just one of the many reasons we’re no longer together. The dead branch he kept hidden under a silk leaf was quite another.
There is no statute of limitations, so please send what you’ve got, Greg.
And, Doulicia, I know that it’s not, but that suburban comment of yours sounds like a punch line for a “she’s got a big ass” joke.
And, to my knowledge, Johnny Eck remains the only ass-less celebrity.
I, like many readers, don’t often just give a round of applause to comments or posts, but, for the record, I love this and all the pencil pappars.
yes, I thought about saying, “I never saw the Suburban; her ass was in the way.” THAT is a punchline.
oh wait…now I get it Mark. Yours is funnier. I almost spit Mountain Dew Voltage on my computer.
You see, Mrs. Paw used to love to have me reenact the eunuch scene from History of the World Part I . We did it quite frequently. I played the Gregory Hines part. We found neighbors in Ypsi Township to play the other roles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3viQHsBFc4
Can someone please draw Minnie Driver’s ass? I hear it’s at Eve a lot.
Someone should tell her about the $6.95 pizza coupon for Aubree’s….she could save a lot of money! And supplement her ass, all at the same time.
Alicia!! I found this on the Ann Arbor Chronicle site! Excellent!
One Trackback
[…] Hillary Swank: […]