IAMNOTASTALKER

July 29, 2019July 29, 2019

Bean Town from “Big Little Lies”

Big Little Lies sure made use of Sierra Madre this season (in case you missed my other posts on the city’s BLL appearances, you can check them out here, here and here). And it is not very hard to see why. The San Gabriel Valley town, situated just east of Pasadena, is charming, picturesque and extremely evocative of the past. It is like Pleasantville come to life! The place is also very reminiscent of Carmel, where the show is set, though it is even more quaint than the Northern California hamlet if you can believe it. And the hit HBO series utilized pretty much every square inch of it, including Bean Town, the beloved coffee house at 45 North Baldwin Avenue, which stood in for a pizza parlor, of all things, in episode 4. Though I blogged about the café back in February 2009, due to its recent small screen cameo, I decided it was time for a redo.

[ad]

I learned about Bean Town’s appearance on Big Little Lies thanks to the employees at Mother Moo Creamery (situated just down the road at 17 Kersting Court), whom I spoke with while researching my article about locales from the series for the June issue of Los Angeles magazine. They informed me that the coffee shop was altered significantly for the shoot and, boy oh boy, was it ever! So much so that, even with the insider information, I had a heck of a time figuring out what was lensed on the premises.

It was not until I started scanning through the café’s Instagram feed that I figured things out. During the March 2018 shoot, Bean Town’s owners graciously posted several photos of the space dressed for the filming. The set of images showed the coffee shop decked out to look like an upscale Italian restaurant, with large pieces of art dotting the walls, autumn decorations splayed on tabletops, and garlic strands hanging from the ceiling. One look and I knew immediately that Bean Town was the spot where Mary Louise Wright (Meryl Streep) took grandsons Josh (Cameron Crovetti) and Max (Nicholas Crovetti) for “the beeeeesssst pizza in the wooooooorld!” in “She Knows.” Virtually none of the café is actually shown in the scene (which is surprising considering the energy apparently spent on decorating it). What you see below is the extent of its appearance.

Despite the scant footage, though, enough was visible for me to be able to positively identify the place. As you can see, the artwork, fall wreath and decorative plate positioned behind Mary Louise in the segment match the décor pictured in Bean Town’s Instagram photo of the café’s back wall perfectly.

In everyday life, that back wall looks considerably different.

Per Bean Town’s Instagram, the coffee shop was closed for a full four days for the shoot, from Tuesday, March 27th through Friday, March 30th, so it is fairly gobsmacking that its appearance amounted to exactly sixty seconds of screen time! Typically, a scene of that length would require about a half a day of filming. And while the set dressing was extensive . . .

. . . I just can’t imagine that it necessitated three and a half days of prep and strike time.

So where did all that extra time go? My guess is that several additional segments were shot at the pizza parlor, but that they, like so much of Season 2, wound up on the cutting room floor. Who knows for certain, but man, what I wouldn’t give to see director Andrea Arnold’s original cut!

The Big Little Lies shoot required Bean Town and the Starbucks down the block (the only two coffee shops in the area!) to be closed simultaneously (the horror!), so, in an amazing gesture, the former set up an outdoor kiosk and offered free java so the community would not be without! The café, which was originally established in the ‘80s, actually has a long history of goodwill. When a horrible wind storm hit the San Gabriel Valley in December 2011, owner Matt Krantz powered the eatery with three generators so that locals could still get their fix. As he explained to the Patch, “We lost some signage, we lost a light and the awning tore up a bit but other than that, we’re here. Bumps and bruises. I could sit at home and not do anything, but I’d rather be here trying to keep everybody together and keep the sense of community that Sierra Madre is basically founded on.” He also delivered coffee and baked goods to the city crews working to get the town back up and running. And, in 2013, when a beloved barista unexpectedly passed away, Krantz not only shuttered the place for two full days to give friends and family a place to gather and mourn, but he also held a fundraiser on the premises to help with funeral costs. Bean Town is a café with heart! Oh, and their coffee is darn good, to boot!

As I mentioned in my 2009 post, Bean Town also appeared numerous times throughout the 2005 comedy Kicking and Screaming . . .

. . . most notably in the scene in which Phil Weston (Will Ferrell) has a minor breakdown over a too-long line. (I’ve been there, Phil! I’ve been there!) You can check out the hilarious segment here.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Bean Town, aka the pizza restaurant from the “She Knows” episode of Big Little Lies, is located at 45 North Baldwin Avenue in Sierra Madre. You can visit the eatery’s official website here. Several other spots from Season 2 can be found on the same block. The Starbucks where Tori Bachman (Sarah Sokolovic) propositioned Ed Mackenzie (Adam Scott) in “The Bad Mother” and where Renata Klein (Laura Dern) lashed out at Mary Louise in “I Want to Know” is just down the road at 1 Kersting Court. Mother Moo Creamery, where Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Reese Witherspoon) threw an ice cream cone at Mary Louise in a scene that was ultimately cut, is a few doors away at 17 Kersting Court. Deasy Penner Podley, aka Madeline’s real estate office, is at 30 North Baldwin Avenue. And the fictional Seaside Coffee Shop seen on Reese’s Instagram was created in the storefront that now houses Capelli Court Salon at 26 North Baldwin Avenue.

July 26, 2019July 27, 2019

Seaside Coffee Shop from “Big Little Lies”

My favorite filming location find from this season of Big Little Lies isn’t actually a filming location at all! Back on March 19th, 2018, shortly after shooting of S2 commenced, Reese Witherspoon posted an Instagram photo of herself sitting in front of the supposed Central Coast-area Seaside Coffee Shop with costar Laura Dern, captioning, “Watch out, Monterey, here we come! #BLL2.” Being that it was pretty much the first image of the season to be released, it naturally sent fans’ tongues wagging. I, for one, was practically drooling with anticipation upon seeing it! I also, of course, wanted to know exactly where the pic had been taken. I assumed (correctly) that Seaside Coffee Shop was not an actual eatery, but a mocked-up storefront. Because the series utilizes both the Central Coast and Southern California, though, I had no idea where to even begin looking. Figuring (incorrectly) that the café would appear in a scene during the upcoming season and I’d be better able to track it down then, I put my quest on the back burner. While it never did pop up onscreen, I was, thankfully, able to ID it anyway. If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times – stalking begets stalking! The morning after the premiere, titled “What Have They Done?”, aired, I went on the hunt for its locations and quickly pinpointed the real estate office where Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Witherspoon) works as the Deasy Penner Podley brokerage firm situated on the bottom floor of Hotel Shirley in Sierra Madre. It was the coloring of the building that I recognized and, as soon as I did, a lightbulb went off in my head as I realized that Seaside Coffee Shop could be found in the same spot!

[ad]

While Hotel Shirley’s northern street-level storefront (on the left-hand side below) portrayed Madeline’s real estate office (as denoted in this post), Seaside Coffee Shop was erected next door in the southern unit.

During my stalk of both locales back in late June, I asked the incredibly friendly Deasy Penner Podley agents about the Seaside Coffee Shop set (which they were shocked I had identified). They informed me that at the time of the Big Little Lies shoot, the space was vacant and that they believed it was not utilized for any filming, but created solely for the background of the various scenes taking place at Madeline’s office. Aside from Reese’s Instagram (and Laura Dern’s), though, the place was never seen – in the background or otherwise – so I guess whatever was shot in its vicinity wound up on the cutting room floor.

Today, the storefront is home to Capelli Court Salon.

It is a shame that it never appeared onscreen because the charming little shop would have been a welcome addition to the rather lackluster landscape of Season 2.

Reese did post a second image taken at the locale to Instagram on June 10 of this year, the day after “What Have They Done?” aired, saying “Pull up a chair! Let’s spill some #BLL tea from last night’s premiere!”, so I guess she found it pretty picturesque, too.

Even though Seaside Coffee Shop was never used for a scene, I was thrilled to finally be able to ID and stalk it!

The fictional café was created in the Capelli Court space’s northern window.

To complete the look, the site was dressed with signage, curtains, flowers in the window planter, and a bistro set.

I was ecstatic to discover a table and chairs set up on the sidewalk a stone’s throw away from Capelli Court’s exterior when I showed up to stalk the place. While the table was too heavy for me to move into position, I did pull one of the chairs over to pose à la Reese.

Even without the chair and other café adornments, though, the locale is still extremely recognizable – a little slice of Monterey right here in L.A. for BLL fans to enjoy!

The interior of the Capelli Court site was utilized by another HBO series, as well. In the Season 1 episode of Camping titled “Going to Town,” which aired in 2018, Jandice (Juliette Lewis) and Miguel (Arturo Del Puerto) shop for a ring at a fictional antique store the production created in the then-vacant space.

Though the front of the shop did not appear in the episode, the rear entrance could briefly be seen.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The fictional Seaside Coffee Shop from Big Little Lies was created in the storefront that now houses Capelli Court Salon at 26 North Baldwin Avenue in Sierra Madre. Deasy Penner Podley, aka Madeline’s real estate office from the show, is next door at 30 North Baldwin Avenue. Several other sites from Season 2 can be found on the same block including the Starbucks at 1 Kersting Court, where Tori Bachman (Sarah Sokolovic) propositioned Ed Mackenzie (Adam Scott) in “The Bad Mother” and where Renata Klein (Dern) lashed out at Mary Louise Wright (Meryl Streep) in “I Want to Know”, and Mother Moo Creamery at 17 Kersting Court, where Madeline threw an ice cream cone at Mary Louise in a scene that was ultimately cut.

July 24, 2019July 27, 2019

Madeline’s Real Estate Office from “Big Little Lies”

I try to keep things positive on this blog, but, man, Sunday night’s Big Little Lies finale was an epic disappointment! The entire season was hugely lackluster, truth be told, which is especially frustrating considering the outright perfection of Season 1. I will contend that the first few episodes started out semi-promising, but the show quickly made an about-face, jumping the shark not long after Renata Klein’s (Laura Dern) “I will not NOT be rich!” jailhouse proclamation. My friend Jennifer summed things up perfectly when she messaged me Monday morning saying, “This entire season felt like it was a bunch of shots composed of the following: the same flashbacks over and over again; waves; shaky cam footage with low-to-no sound; driving shots. That was the meat and potatoes of the season, and the dessert was the one or two shots each episode that didn’t fall into those categories.” The locations proved just as mediocre as the rest of the season (again, especially disappointing considering those of S1), but I still have quite a few left in my arsenal to blog about including the real estate office where Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Reese Witherspoon) worked. So here goes!

[ad]

The supposed Monterey-area Sotheby’s where Madeline is employed first appeared in Season 2’s premiere, “What Have They Done?” (How Madeline went from being the director of a community theater in Season 1 to a real estate agent in Season 2 was never explained – like so many of the other changes made – but I guess that is beside the point.)

I did not recognize the office when initially watching the episode the night it aired back in June, but while scanning through it the following morning on the hunt for locales, I noticed the bright green and orange coloring of its exterior, shown fleetingly as Madeline walks inside, and knew immediately that filming had taken place at Hotel Shirley in Sierra Madre.

Thanks to my many visits to Sierra Madre when I lived in nearby Pasadena, I have long been familiar with the two-story structure, which is a focal point of the city’s quaint downtown.

Though one of the area’s Historical Landmarks, oddly, I could not find much information about Hotel Shirley’s background online.

Per the sign displayed out front, the building dates back to 1889 when it served as the headquarters of Hawks & Copps Real Estate and Insurance. In 1911, it was rebuilt as Hotel Shirley, a lodging for visitors to Mt. Wilson described by newspapers of the day as an “ideal summer resort in the mountains” boasting “fine cuisine” as well as having “no fleas or mosquitoes” – always a plus. In later years, the property became everything from a church meeting hall to a grocer to a house of ill repute before finally being purchased by local realtor Judy Webb-Martin in 1994. She set about restoring the structure to operate, in part, as her brokerage firm, a project which took five years to complete. Being that Hawks & Copps was the city’s first real estate office, the site really has come full circle. You can check out a short video Judy put together about the building’s provenance, which is where the black and white still below comes from, here.

Big Little Lies made use of the north side of Hotel Shirley’s lower level which, in real life, is home to the Sierra Madre outpost of the Deasy Penner Podley brokerage firm.

I ran out to stalk the place shortly after its appearance in “What Have They Done?” and was thrilled to be wholeheartedly welcomed by the agents present, all of whom expressed my same affinity for the show. How exciting it must have been for them to witness a beloved series come to life right before their very eyes in their very workspace and to share the same air with such esteemed stars as Witherspoon, Dern, and Meryl-freaking-Streep! My new friends even allowed me to take pictures of the office’s interior and showed me exactly where filming had taken place!

As you can imagine, I was like a kid in a candy store, snapping away!

Deasy Penner Podley is also where Renata rants to Madeline about Otter Bay Elementary School Principal Warren Nippal (P.J. Byrne) in the episode titled “The End of the World.” According to the employees I spoke with, the office’s actual furnishings were used in the shoot, though the site has since been remodeled slightly with the black desks swiped out for natural wood versions and the back wall painted green instead of blue. Several pieces were also moved out for the shoot to give the space more openness, but otherwise, it is very recognizable from its onscreen appearance.

The Deasy Penner Podley agents also informed me that a third scene was shot at the office, but like so much of the footage from Season 2, it wound up on the cutting room floor.

Thanks to the Dear Old Hollywood website, I learned that Hotel Shirley is visible in the background of the 1956 drama Strange Intruder in the scene in which Paul Quentin (Edmund Purdom) catches a bus to leave town. (That’s it in the top left of both screen captures below.)

The Hotel can also briefly be seen in the Season 1 episode of Camping titled “Going to Town,” which aired in 2018.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking ! Smile

Stalk It: Deasy Penner Podley, aka Madeline’s real estate office from Big Little Lies, is located on the bottom level of Hotel Shirley at 30 North Baldwin Avenue in Sierra Madre. The Starbucks where Tori Bachman (Sarah Sokolovic) propositioned Ed Mackenzie (Adam Scott) in the episode titled “The Bad Mother” and where Renata lashed out at Mary Louise Wright (Streep) in “I Want to Know” can be found across the street at 1 Kersting Court. And Mother Moo Creamery, where Madeline runs into Mary Louise in “Kill Me” – and where she was supposed to throw an ice cream cone at her -is up the road at 17 Kersting Court.

July 22, 2019July 21, 2019

The Philadelphia Museum of Art from “Rocky”

The Philadelphia Museum of Art has been called the world’s second most famous filming location, falling only behind Grand Central Station in New York. While the latter has been captured on celluloid copious times, the former is known mainly for one significant appearance. It was there that Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) embodied triumph by scaling the site’s massive east entrance stairs, fists pumping in the air, in what is arguably one of cinema’s most iconic moments from the 1976 boxing classic Rocky. Even though I have never seen the movie (I know, I know!), I was very familiar with the archetypal segment (which you can watch here), so there was no way I was going to miss stalking the museum to re-create it while vacationing in the City of Brotherly Love in 2016!

[ad]

The Philadelphia Museum of Art as we know it today opened to the public on March 26th, 1928, though its roots date all the way back to 1876 when the city hosted the Centennial Exhibition, the first official World’s Fair to take place in the United States. One of the event’s most popular exhibits was the Art Gallery, situated inside the gorgeous Memorial Hall which still stands today at 4231 Avenue of the Republic. It proved so beloved in fact, that following the fair’s closure, it continued to function, becoming a permanent part of Philadelphia’s cultural landscape. By the 1890s, the need for a bigger space to house the museum’s growing collection had developed and city leaders began making plans to erect a larger gallery, though ground would not be broken on the new site until 1919 and construction would not be completed for another nine years after that.

Towering atop Fairmount Hill, the city’s highest point, the grand structure was designed by the Zantzinger, Borie and Medary and the Horace Trumbauer architecture firms.

The massive facility houses more than 220,000 works in 200 different galleries and features large-scale installations including a ceremonial Japanese teahouse, a pillared hallway fashioned from the ruins of 3 Indian temples and the former main entrance to France’s Abbey Church of Saint-Laurent, as well as pieces by Vincent van Gogh, Edward Hicks, Thomas Eakins, Pablo Picasso, and Henri Matisse.

Though the views of the city it boasts are just as picturesque as the art which hangs on its walls.

Today, PMOA is one of the largest, most visited art museums in the country. And thanks to Rocky, its east staircase is just as big a draw as the museum itself.

The “Rocky Steps,” as they are colloquially known, pop up twice in the flick – first mid-film, in the scene in which the fledgling boxer, while training for a big fight, unsuccessfully attempts to scale them during a nighttime jog.

Later in the movie, he finally makes it to the top and we see the museum . . .

. . . and its views in all of their glory. Rocky’s legendary run is actually immortalized with a set of footprints at the top of the stairs, but I was, unfortunately, unaware of that fact when I stalked the place, so I failed to get a photo of them. You can see what they look like here, though.

Several of the movie’s sequels have also made use of PMOA, including 1979’s Rocky II in which the Italian Stallion once again trains for a big fight by running up to the museum’s 72nd step.

In 1982’s Rocky III, the now famous boxer is honored with a bronze statue of himself that is displayed atop the museum’s east staircase. During the dedication ceremony early in the film, he is heckled by Clubber Lang (Mr. T).

Later in the movie, Rocky goes to see the statue during a nighttime motorcycle ride.

The A. Thomas Schomberg-designed piece, which stands 8’6” tall, was commissioned by Stallone for Rocky III and then left in place at the top of the steps when filming wrapped, a gift from the actor to the museum. While City Commerce Director Dick Doran embraced the move, proclaiming that Sylvester had done “more for Philadelphia’s image than anyone since Ben Franklin,” not all locals were as enthused, especially PMOA executives who felt that the sculpture was nothing more than a movie prop. In a rather contentious move, the work was eventually moved to the Wachovia Spectrum in South Philadelphia.

Though it was temporarily brought back to the museum in 1990 for a brief scene in Rocky V, as soon as the shoot wrapped it was relegated to the Spectrum once again.

Finally in 2006, the statue was given a new home just east of the base of the Rocky Steps where it still stands today.

That same year, the museum was featured in the closing credits of Rocky Balboa in a montage showing fans running up the staircase, re-creating the famous moment from the first movie . . .

. . . before flashing to an image of Rocky standing on the steps alone while snow falls around him.

And at the end of the 2015 sequel Creed, Rocky takes Adonis Johnson (Michael B. Jordan) to the staircase.

The Rocky franchise is hardly the only production to showcase the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Lisa Brandt (Janet Margolin) runs away to the museum in the 1962 drama David & Lisa.

The interior masks as New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, where Kate Miller (Angie Dickinson) meets Warren Lockman (Ken Baker), in the 1980 thriller Dressed to Kill.

Will Smith (Will Smith), imitating Rocky, runs up the staircase while training for a fight in the Season 4 episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air titled “The Philadelphia Story,” which aired in 1994.

Rose (Toni Collette) also pays homage to Rocky by running up the museum steps a couple of times in the 2005 drama In Her Shoes.

Kate (Tina Fey) and Rob (Greg Kinnear) kiss in front of the museum in the 2008 comedy Baby Mama.

Dr. Karen Fletcher (Betty Buckley) is briefly seen looking at Paul Cézanne’s The Bathers there in the 2016 thriller Split.

Shazam (Zachary Levi) heads to the Philadelphia Museum of Art with Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer) shortly after discovering his superhero alter ego in 2019’s Shazam!

He also perfects his laser abilities on the museum steps (with “Eye of the Tiger” from Rocky III playing in the background) later in the movie.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Philadelphia Museum of Art, from Rocky, is located at 2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park. The steps featured in the movie can be found on the eastern side of the property. You can visit the museum’s official website here.

July 19, 2019July 18, 2019

LOVE Park from “Shazam!”

I am a complete and total girly-girl, especially when it comes to anything having to do with love, hearts or romance. So when I headed to Philadelphia in September 2016, John F. Kennedy Plaza, aka LOVE Park, was at the top of my To-Stalk List – or rather the iconic LOVE statute that serves as its focal point was. Unbeknownst to me, the space was actually undergoing a two-year renovation at the time of our visit and closed to the public. I did get to see the sculpture, though, at a temporary display site in Dilworth Park in front of City Hall, a literal stone’s throw away from its usual home. The two spots are in such close proximity, in fact (they sit kitty-corner from each other across 15th Street), that it was not until perusing my photographs in preparation for this post that I realized I never actually set foot in LOVE Park during my trip! Regardless, after learning of the site’s fascinating history (and its connection to a certain Hollywood star), as well as of its recent cameo in the 2019 superhero film Shazam! (available on DVD and streaming now), I figured a blog about it was in order.

[ad]

LOVE Park was originally conceived of in 1932 by Cornell University architecture student Edmund Bacon, then 22, while working on his thesis, though it would not come to fruition for several decades. After graduating, Bacon spent time traveling around the world and eventually secured an architecture job in Shanghai. He then served in World War II before finally returning to his hometown of Philadelphia where he founded and then became the Executive Director of the City Planning Commission, a position he held from 1949 through 1970. During his tenure, Bacon spearheaded many projects to beautify the area, including finally enacting his college thesis idea of developing a municipal park to cover an underground parking garage that neighbored City Hall.

Bacon brought in his former Cornell University classmate Vincent George Kling to design the park, which opened to the public in 1965. Two years later, it was dedicated as “John F. Kennedy Plaza,” though it is more commonly referred to as “LOVE Park” thanks to the large Robert Indiana-designed LOVE sculpture that sits at its center. Measuring 6 feet by 6 feet by 3 feet, the shiny red, purple and green installation was first displayed on the premises, on temporary loan from the artist, in 1976 as part of the United States bicentennial celebration. Its return to Indiana in 1978 was met with much woe, so Philadelphia Art Commission president (and owner of the 76ers) Fitz Eugene Dixon Jr. rectified the situation, personally purchasing the piece to exhibit permanently in the Plaza.

In February 2016, John F. Kennedy Plaza was shuttered for the aforementioned renovation project which cost $26 million and took 2 years to complete. During the interim, the LOVE statue was moved to Dilworth Park, just south of the Philadelphia Municipal Services Building, as pictured below.

It was finally reinstated in February 2018 and the park re-opened to the public in May of that same year. The new design, which features two gardens, a great lawn, a fountain, and regular events including weekday food truck offerings, has been widely lamented by area denizens. An apparent shadow of its former self, The Philadelphia Citizen described the bleak space as “an enormous sidewalk,” while The Philadelphia Inquirer dubbed it a “granite Sahara,” and the Street Dept. blog went so far as to plead with locals to close their accounts with Bank of America, as the company funded a portion of the revamp. You can check out some images of LOVE Park pre- and post-overhaul here and here, respectively.

Aside from the LOVE statue, John F. Kennedy Plaza is perhaps best known for being a huge skateboarding mecca during the ‘80s and ‘90s, which brought the park worldwide attention, but also drew ire from some locals resulting in a long battle that caused the city to ban skating there in 1994. Many welcomed the activity, though, so the law was not strictly enforced and teens continued to shred it up on the premises until 2002 when the site underwent a renovation under the order of Mayor John F. Street which essentially made skating at the park obsolete. That project was met with much disdain, too, from countless Philadelphians including Edmund Bacon himself who, on October 28th of that year, hosted a protest of sorts by riding a skateboard through the Plaza – at the age of 92! As he stated to media outlets that day, “And now I, Edmund N. Bacon, in total defiance of Mayor Street and the council of the city of Philadelphia, hereby exercise my rights as a citizen of the United States and I deliberately skate in my beloved LOVE Park.” After his brief glide, he joyously proclaimed, “Oh God, thank you, thank you, thank you! My whole damn life has been worth it just for this moment!” You can check out a great video of the event here. Though Bacon is often referred to as “The Father of Modern Philadelphia” thanks to the huge mark he left on the City of Brotherly Love, I was thrilled to discover that his actual lineage is pretty darn noteworthy, too. Edmund, you see, is dad to none other than actor Kevin Bacon! And the LOVE Park’s Hollywood connection doesn’t end there.

In Shazam!, Dr. Sivana (Mark Strong) and Shazam (Zachary Levi) face off in a battle in the sky above LOVE Park.

During the fight, Sivana attempts to shoot Shazam with a laser, but misses and accidentally hits the William Penn statue atop City Hall instead, causing it to crash down to John F. Kennedy Plaza below.

LOVE Park also popped up in the 2009 comedy Baby Mama as the spot where Rob (Greg Kinnear) pretends to propose to Kate (Tina Fey) during a musical montage.

It is shown very briefly in an establishing shot of Philadelphia towards the end of the film, as well.

Noble Fox’s 2015 “What You Want” music video, which you can watch here, was also lensed at LOVE Park.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: John F. Kennedy Plaza, aka LOVE Park from Shazam!, is located at Arch and 16th Streets in Philadelphia’s Center City neighborhood.

July 17, 2019July 23, 2019

Ed and Tori’s Coffee Shop Meet-Up from “Big Little Lies”

If the news reports currently lighting up the internet are to be believed, the drama that took place behind the scenes of Big Little Lies’ latest season is far headier than that which unfolded onscreen! At the center of the dustup, per a recent IndieWire exposé, is Jean-Marc Vallée, the director of the series’ epic first season, who HBO penned to surreptitiously take over post-production duties from Season 2’s Andrea Arnold, largely modifying her vision. According to the article, “While there was a significant reworking of the show’s story through additional photography and an increased reliance on Season 1 flashbacks, a large part of what guided Vallée’s reconfiguration of the second season was removing Arnold’s signature contributions. Sixty-page scripts were slashed down to 40-plus minute episodes, sources say, largely by chopping up a scene to remove what one source described as Arnold’s character exploration and ‘ephemeral stuff.’” Eleven – yes, eleven! – different editors were apparently brought in to complete the retrofit. The dissension shows. Big Little Lies’ current season has not only been disjointed but seriously lacking – in storyline, character development, script (where are Madeline’s zingy one-liners?), cinematography and locations – especially in locations. The first season sported some of the most appealing spots to ever come out of Hollywood – from the houses to the restaurants to the parks, every square inch of the BLL landscape was intoxicating! This season, the sites have been tepid at best (not that I’ll stop reporting on them!). Take for instance the illicit meet-up between Ed Mackenzie (Adam Scott) and Tori Bachman (Sarah Sokolovic) in “The Bad Mother,” which took place at a . . . Starbucks. While I’m the first to extol appreciation for the coffee giant, I recognize that its stores are rather generic and bland. Not exactly the space I would have chosen for a steamy, Monterey-style tête-à-tête. Arnold, you could have done better! Nevertheless, I just had to stalk the outpost where the segment was shot.

[ad]

As I’ve said many times before, stalking begets stalking. While visiting a different Big Littles Lies location a few weeks ago (one that I have yet to blog about), I struck up a conversation with the employees of the establishment who informed me that the Starbucks at 1 Kersting Court in Sierra Madre was also used in some Season 2 filming. Though I found it extremely surprising that the series would utilize a coffee chain and thought my new friends might even be mistaken, I popped on over there to snap a few pics.

So when the café popped up Sunday night in “The Bad Mother,” I recognized it immediately.

It is at the Kersting Court Starbucks that, in what is easily one of the season’s most cringe-worthy moments, Tori propositions Ed to have an affair. (I’m not even going to mention the type of diary Tori claims she keeps!)

Thanks to extremely tight angles, which seem to be a hallmark of this season’s shooting style, not much of the coffee shop is visible in the scene.

Though it is easy to discern that the segment made use of the corner window pictured on the left-hand side below.

To add insult to injury, the Sierra Madre Starbucks was also utilized for a scene in the season finale titled “I Want to Know.” While ordering a double Americano (NO milk!) at the outpost prior to heading to court to support Celeste Wright (Nicole Kidman), a “wrought” Renata Klein (Laura Dern) runs into “judgey judger” Mary Louise Wright (Meryl Streep) and gives her a rather obscenity-laden piece of her mind. The segment (which you can watch here) is extraordinary (seriously, how is Meryl so good?), especially the ending in which Renata storms out sans her Americano causing Mary Louise to tell the barista, “Put it in a bag. I’ll take it to her cause we’re going to the same —” and then points her finger toward the wall cavalierly, failing to mention that they’re both going to Monterey Superior Court where Mary Louise is suing Celeste for custody of her two children. Like I said, the scene is genius. The location? Not so much.

The Kersting Court Starbucks is a cute little spot to grab a cup of joe, no doubt. The patio out front is especially inviting. Regardless of that fact, though, I still maintain that it is by no means extraordinary enough to be featured on a series like Big Little Lies, which is so adept at showcasing striking locations, viewers practically want to dive through their screens to immerse themselves in the scenery. Well, that was the case with Season 1, at least. Season 2 left quite a bit to be desired.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Starbucks where Tori propositions Ed in the Season 2 episode of Big Little Lies titled “The Bad Mother” is located at 1 Kersting Court in Sierra Madre.

July 12, 2019July 11, 2019

Grand Hope Park from “All About Steve”

The Hills are alive and well once again thanks to the recent MTV reboot The Hills: New Beginnings which debuted late last month. I actually did not have high hopes for the show, despite loving the original, but I have to say that the Grim Cheaper and I are really enjoying it. More mature and realistic than its predecessor, though no doubt just as engineered and produced, watching it feels like coming home again. There’s nothing quite like a revisit to the highly-stylized world of Audrina, Spencer, and Heidi! And thanks to a recap special the GC and I viewed prior to the premiere episode, I was reminded of Grand Hope Park, an oft-used site from the OG series that was also featured in the 2009 romcom All About Steve. Though I peripherally covered the picturesque spot in blogs about the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) and the Renaissance Tower in 2008 and 2011 respectively, I thought it was time the place got its due with a full-fledged post of its own.

[ad]

Situated on land that formerly housed a parking lot, Grand Hope Park was completed in 1993.

Designed by landscape architect Lawrence Halprin, the 2.5-acre site was commissioned by the Los Angeles Redevelopment Agency as part of the city’s Open Space Network, a collection of lush public areas dotted along downtown’s Hope Street.

Grand Hope Park, the first major park built in Los Angeles since Pershing Square in 1870, boasts large grassy expanses, a children’s playground, vine-draped pergolas, meandering pathways, numerous terraces, a plethora of trees, and a collection of art installations that includes sculptures, fountains, and a mosaic clock tower.

My favorite area of the property, though, is easily the unique sunken water court featuring a startling blue pool and geometric-shaped elements.

A protected serene little space in the heart of the city, Grand Hope Park is flanked by FIDM to the east and the Renaissance Tower apartment complex to the South, all of which have appeared onscreen.

One look at the bucolic site and it is not very hard to see why location managers have continually flocked there.

Grand Hope Park pops up twice at the beginning of All About Steve in establishing scenes that show Mary Horowitz (Sandra Bullock) on her way to and from her job as a cruciverbalist at what is supposedly The Sacramento Bee newspaper. Both the park . . .

. . . and its unique water court appear in the segments.

As I mentioned earlier, thanks to the fact that several cast members attended FIDM, Grand Hope Park regularly cameoed on The Hills. In a myriad of episodes, including Season 3’s “A Date with the Past” which aired in 2008, Lauren Conrad and friends were seen gossiping over coffee at the picturesque site.

Numerous other productions have made use of the place, as well.

Renaissance Tower regularly appeared as Buckland Auction House where Prue Halliwell (Shannen Doherty) worked during Seasons 1 and 2 of Charmed.

Phoebe Halliwell (Alyssa Milano) and her ex-boyfriend Clay (Victor Browne) also walk in the park in Charmed’s Season 1 episode titled “Feats of Clay,” which aired in 1999.

FIDM and Grand Hope Park popped up regularly as the exterior of the supposed Santa Monica-area St. Ambrose Hospital on the television series Private Practice.

In 2009, the park masked as the entrance to an FBI field office in the Season 7 episode of 24 titled “Day 7: 4:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.”

Thanks to the Castle Wiki website, I learned that Grand Hope Park was featured on the ABC series no less than nine times (“Nine times?” “Nine times!” “I don’t remember him being sick nine times.” Ferris Bueller reference – anyone, anyone?). In Season 1’s “Nanny McDead,” which aired in 2009, Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) and Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) interview a nanny named Chloe Richardson (Sarah Drew) at the park.

In 2011, it popped up in Season 3’s “Poof, You’re Dead,” as the spot where Beckett and Castle tracked down magician Chuck Russell (Chadwick Boseman).

That same year, Beckett told Castle about her recent break-up at Grand Hope Park in Season 4’s “Rise.”

In the Season 5 episode “Cloudy with a Chance of Murder,” which aired in 2012, Beckett and Castle investigate the killing of weathergirl Mandy Michaels (Candice Mann) at the park.

Later that season, a heavily dressed Grand Hope Park masked as the snowy New York plaza where a man wearing a St. Nick costume plummeted to his death in the episode titled “Secret Santa.”

It is at Grand Hope Park that Castle proposes to Beckett in the Season 5 finale titled “Watershed” . . .

. . . in a scene that continued over into the Season 6 premiere, “Valkyrie.”

Beckett and Castle covertly meet up at the park later that same season in the episode titled “Veritas.”

And in Season 7’s “Hollander’s Woods,” which aired in 2015, Beckett tells Castle about her tentative plan to become a state senator while at the site. Phew! Castle sure does love itself some Grand Hope Park!

Grand Hope Park is also where Carl Creel (Brian Patrick Wade) meets with Sunil Bakshi (Simon Kassianides) and almost gets shot in the Season 2 episode of Marvel’s AGENTS of S.H.I.E.L.D. titled “Heavy is the Head,” which aired in 2014.

And in the Season 1 episode of Supergirl titled “World’s Finest,” which aired in 2016, Cat Grant (Calista Flockhart) is kidnapped and taken to Grand Hope Park where a huge battle ensues.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Grand Hope Park, from All About Steve, is located at 919 South Grand Avenue in downtown L.A.

July 11, 2019July 10, 2019

My Latest Interview with US Modernist Radio

I apologize for being MIA the past couple of days. Both of my parents had surgery last week (my mom’s planned, my dad’s completely unplanned), so things have been hectic to say the least. My dad was finally released from the hospital yesterday and I am hoping to have a new post up tomorrow, but in the meantime be sure to check out my latest interview with US Modernist Radio. You can listen here or on any major podcast platform (it’s Episode #106). Note – while fave show 90210 is discussed, the interview was done back in February, before Luke Perry’s passing and before Shannen Doherty joined the cast of the upcoming reboot, hence no mention of either.

July 3, 2019July 3, 2019

The Stuart at Sierra Madre Villa from “American Woman”

I’m taking a break from my regularly scheduled Big Little Lies reporting today to bring you a post about one of my favorite buildings in all of Pasadena – The Stuart at Sierra Madre Villa. I’ve written about the Mid-Century Modern apartment complex and its cameo in That Thing You Do! before – way back in November 2013 – but last June, my friend/fellow stalker Kim sent me a photo of the place after seeing it pop up on American Woman, asking if I had any idea where it was. It since went on to be featured prominently on the 2018 series (which has sadly been cancelled and won’t be returning for a second season), so I figured the site was worthy of a redo and stopped by for another stalk of it while passing through Crown City last week.

[ad]

The spectacular Neo-Formalist style property was designed by architect Edward Durell Stone, who also gave us New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. The structure, completed in 1958, originally served as the headquarters and plant of the Stuart Pharmaceutical Company.

The Mid-Century masterpiece boasts a myriad of striking architectural elements including saucer-like chandeliers, an arcade formed by cast concrete block screens, a long reflecting pool with fountains (which were not turned on the day I visited), gold columns, and pristine grounds designed by landscape architect Thomas Church.

Stuart Pharmaceutical’s forward-thinking owner Arthur O. Hanisch believed in creating a work environment that would foster both the health and comfort of his many employees. As such, he had a plethora of then unique recreational amenities added to the complex including a pool, a pool house, a shaded pavilion, a garden court, a dining hall/lounge, and a terrace. The original pool is actually still intact today and is pictured below.

Though the outside of The Stuart is stunning . . .

. . . it is the inside that sets my heart aflutter.

The two-story atrium that serves as the lobby’s centerpiece is nothing short of perfection!

Boasting massive hanging planters, globe lights, an open staircase, a coffered ceiling and textured wall paneling, the space is spectacular to behold.

It’s like the quintessential layout from a 1950s advertisement!

Or a Mad Men set come to life!

As architectural historian Lauren Weiss Bricker stated in a 2004 Future Anterior article, Hanisch hoped to “build a completely new building concept. He wanted his building to conform to the landscaping, not in the general California way but in a way that would combine timeless beauty with increased efficiency and a utilization of the Southern California climate to make for maximum comfort for his employees, both in working and recreation areas.” I’d say he succeeded! I can’t even imagine getting to work in such a beautiful space.

You can check out what The Stuart originally looked like here. Amazingly, not much of its interior or exterior has changed over the years, though it did go through its fair share of trying times.

Shortly after the Stuart Pharmaceutical Company merged with Johnson & Johnson/Merck Pharmaceuticals in 1990, the building was shuttered and then eventually put on the market. In 1994, the Metropolitan Transit Authority snapped it up and, in a horrific turn, made plans to raze it to build a . . . parking lot. Thankfully, the Pasadena Heritage Group stepped in, securing the property’s placement on the National Registry of Historic Places, thereby saving it from demolition. The group couldn’t save the building from the vandals and vagrants that descended upon it during the years it sat vacant, though, and it suffered major damage and theft. It was finally purchased by BRE Properties in 2002 and underwent a massive renovation helmed by preservation architect Robert Chattel during which the site was turned into a mixed-used apartment complex/performing arts center. The 188-unit The Stuart at Sierra Madre Villa opened its doors to new residents in 2007. Though some ancillary structures were torn down during the renovation, the original main headquarters, which serves as a leasing office and communal space, was left largely intact, as was the pool, behind which the residential buildings were erected, as you can see below.

On American Woman, The Stuart masks as the supposed Wilshire Boulevard May Company department store where Bonnie Nolan (Alicia Silverstone) gets a job after leaving her philandering husband. It initially shows up in the series’ second episode titled “Changes and the New Normal,” first in the scene in which Bonnie shops for a suit prior to meeting with an employment agent and then as the spot where she puts her interest in fashion to good use by landing a saleswoman gig.

That episode saw some on location filming at the building.

As did the episodes titled “The Breakthrough” . . .

. . . and “I Will Survive.”

But for the most part, The Stuart was utilized in establishing shots.

And only the exterior of it appeared onscreen.

Interiors were shot on a set built at Warner Bros. Studio where American Woman was lensed.

The series is hardly the only production to feature The Stuart.

The Wonders pose for publicity photos in the building’s atrium in 1996’s That Thing You Do!

The Stuart portrays the fertility clinic that Kal (Ellen DeGeneres) and Fran (Sharon Stone) visit in the “2000” segment of the 2000 made-for-television movie If These Walls Could Talk 2.

And in the Season 2 episode of Animal Kingdom titled “Betrayal,” which aired in 2017, The Stuart serves as the office of Morgan Wilson (Laura San Giacomo).

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Big THANK YOU to my friend Kim for alerting me to this location’s appearance on American Woman!

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Stuart at Sierra Madre Villa, aka the May Company department store from American Woman, is located at 3360 East Foothill Boulevard in Pasadena. You can visit the complex’s official website here.

June 28, 2019July 30, 2019

Café Descanso from “Big Little Lies”

My mom recently commented to me that the latest season of Big Little Lies is shot very tightly, which she finds surprising being that director Andrea Arnold sought to feature more of the great outdoors this time around. Even Blissful Drip Café, the prop coffee shop built specifically for the series on a bluff overlooking Monterey Bay, isn’t really shown. As my mom lamented, anytime the ladies dine there, all that can really be seen are the chairs. Odd considering the strikingly dramatic views that would be visible if the camera just panned back slightly. One spot we are getting more of a glimpse of (though not by much) is Café Descanso, a casual outdoor eatery located at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge. Though I would have recognized the restaurant on sight having frequented the gardens many a time in the past, I was lucky enough to interview Big Little Lies’ insanely talented production designer John Paino a few months back (which I’m still pinching myself over!) as part of an article I wrote for the June issue of Los Angeles magazine and during our chat, he mentioned its Season 2 cameo. I didn’t realize just how much the place was going to be featured, though, and have been pleasantly surprised to see it pop up in every episode that has aired as of yet, sometimes more than once! So I just had to pop by for a quick stalk while driving through the area recently.

[ad]

I covered the history of Descanso Gardens way back when in a May 2009 post (I’m going to have to update that one soon!), so I’ll spare you a recap here. Suffice it to say the 160-acre site is a bucolic wonderland of lush landscapes which include a rosarium, an oak forest, koi ponds, and a Japanese tea garden. The venue charges a meager $9 admission fee, as opposed to The Huntington’s $25, so it does get pretty significantly crowded, something I bemoaned in my previous post. Regardless of the crowds, though, Descanso is beautiful.

The property boasts two onsite dining options – Maple, an upscale indoor eatery, and Café Descanso (pictured below), a walk-up window deli/bakery connected to a large outdoor patio. Both are operated by the Patina Restaurant Group.

The offerings at Café Descanso include pastries, coffees, salads, sandwiches, beer, wine and more.

I did not sample any of the fare while there, so I can’t say whether it is good or not, but the atmosphere sure is stellar!

Judging by the crowds, though (the line to the walk-up window never seemed to wane), I’d say the food must be pretty tasty.

Bonus – because the café is situated outside of Descanso’s entrance, admission is not required to dine there! (The same is true of Maple.)

Café Descanso is a truly idyllic little spot and, with its mature foliage, definitely has a Monterey feel, so it is not surprising that it came to be used on Big Little Lies.

In the series’ Season 2 opener, ”What Have They Done?”, Nathan Carlson (James Tupper) runs into Ed Mackenzie (Adam Scott) at the eatery and asks him to take his wife, Bonnie Carlson (Zoë Kravitz), out to lunch in the hopes of getting her to open up since “she’s gone missing in mental action.”

Unfortunately, I failed to bring screen captures with me on this particular stalk, so my photos above and below are from slightly different angles from which the scene was shot.

In the second episode of Season 2, titled “Tell-Tale Hearts,” Renata Klein (Laura Dern) tells Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Reese Witherspoon) about her husband’s financial misdeeds while at Café Descanso.

Again, my photos are slightly off angle-wise.

Later in that same episode, Ed and Nathan run into each other once again at the café and almost come to blows.

That particular scene was shot by the eatery’s walk-up window, which was changed a bit for the shoot. Not only was a menu board removed, but a sugar and creamer station were positioned at the forefront of the space, I believe, to make it appear to be more of a coffee shop than a restaurant.

In “The End of the World,” Madeline stumbles upon Ed and Bonnie having coffee together at Descanso Café.

Needless to say, she does not take the sighting well.

And in “She Knows,” Madeline and Renata run into Detective Adrienne Quinlan (Merrin Dungey) there.

I am fairly certain Café Descanso will be featured in additional Season 2 episodes and will update this post accordingly.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Café Descanso, from the second season of Big Little Lies, can be found at Descanso Gardens which is located at 1418 Descanso Drive in La Cañada Flintridge. You can visit the garden’s official website here. The café, which is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., is situated past the venue’s ticketing area, but is outside of the actual entrance, so admission is not required to dine there.