| After The Namesake, Mira Nair is all set to direct Amelia Earhart's biopic Amelia, starring Richard Gere, Hilary Swank and Virginia Madsen. The film is about the rocky relationship between the famed aviator (Swank) and publisher-promoter George Putnam (Gere), whom Earhart eventually married. Madsen plays Dorothy Binney, Putnam's first wife in the film for Avalon Pictures and Fox Searchlight. |
| June 15, 2008 BEDFORD - The fence around actor Richard Gere's country inn can stay, town officials decided. The Zoning Board of Appeals on Wednesday unanimously granted a variance to allow the fence, which town officials said had been built a bit taller than the 4-foot height limitation. Since being erected, the area in front of the cedar fence has been re-landscaped and shrubs added, Building Inspector Richard Megna said Friday. "It softens the look of the fence," Megna said. The fence, about 4.5 feet tall in its highest spot, obscures the view of the parking lot of Bedford Post, where Gere and his business partners plan to open a new restaurant and eight-room inn. A cafe opened in a renovated barn on the 14-acre property in January. The more formal restaurant and inn will be in a neighboring building and are expected to open sometime in September. Gere and his wife, actress Carey Lowell, and business partner Russell Hernandez purchased the property for $2.7 million in 2006. Hernandez said Friday he was pleased to get approval for the fence "We're just glad we were able to work it out with the town," he said. The inn's variance application states they built the barrier in a concave style that bows downward in sections in order to lower its height. Working in favor of the inn's bid to keep the fence was that neighbors had written to the zoning board asking that it be allowed to stay. Peter and Carol Bouyoucos, who live across the street from the inn at 954 Old Post Road, wrote one of the letters saying they're happy with the fence. Given its height, the fence helps obscure headlights from cars in the parking lot of the inn's property, the couple wrote. "In our minds the fence is both beautiful and practical, and it would be a shame to see it replaced," they said in their June 11 letter. Local residents have been pleased that the property is being refurbished after years of being an eyesore in the upscale neighborhood north of the historic Bedford Village hamlet. The inn's building is believed to pre-date the American Revolution. The property had been home for decades to the popular Nino's restaurant, and later become Hoppfield's Inn. It eventually fell into disrepair. Shirley and George Bianco, who also live nearby, wrote town officials on June 11 to say that the renovation has been done in a way that's been considerate to neighbors. "The town is lucky to have buyers willing to take on this enormous project to restore this important structure," the Biancos wrote. "The fence in question is attractive and hides the patron cars. The evergreen plantings behind the fence make it appear invisible. It would be visually disruptive to our residential neighborhood if the parking lot at The Bedford Post were visible." |
| Hollywood invades Dunnville 'Amelia'descendson DunnvilleTown gets in on the action when director yells 'Action' Posted By BY DOREEN HOOVER There's still some stardust in the air around Dunnville following a visit from actors Hilary Swank and Richard Gere last week. The two stars came to town to film scenes at the Dunnville Airport for the movie Amelia which depicts the life of pilot Amelia Earhart. Swank, who bears a striking resemblance to the famed aviator, filmed scenes on May 27 and 28 while Gere, who portrays Earhart's husband and manager George Palmer Putnam, was only needed on the Dunnville set on May 27. Filming has already been underway in Toronto with production to also include stops in Nova Scotia and South Africa. The multi-million dollar project, directed by Mira Nair, is tentatively scheduled for theatre release in the fall of 2009. During the Dunnville shoot both actors stayed overnight at local bed and breakfasts and Swank surprised staff at Grand Island Bar-B-Q when she and her entourage stopped by to eat on May 27. Filming also had area residents looking skyward as vintage planes took part in aerial races for the movie. Along with shooting scenes both in the northwest corner of the airport and next to Hangar 1, the movie production made use of three of the four airport hangars. Hangar 1 was used as the commissary, Hangar 3 was for wardrobe, hair and makeup, and Hangar 4 was for aircraft storage. While the majority of people involved with the movie were visiting the town for only a few days, many Dunnville area residents also got to experience life on a movie set after being chosen as extras. More than 700 people lined up outside Memorial Arena on May 21 in hopes of being among the 300 extras chosen. Jacob Goron, 6, and Kenneth Goron, 5, were among the youngest extras on the Amelia set. They worked for eight hours on the final day of shooting on May 29. "It went really well and all in all they had a really good time," mother Julie Goron said. "Everyone was coming up and telling them how cute they were in their outfits. Everyone was so nice and they were awesome with the kids. People on set kept telling me how well they were doing." The two Dunnville brothers were part of a grandstand scene filmed in the back corner of the airport. "They got to wave flags, scream and just be kids," Julie said. "They had a blast and Jacob was so excited at school the next day telling his friends about being in the movie." "I was there because they're so young and it was fun watching how they do things behind the scenes," she added. "There was a lot of waiting time for a five and six year old so they were bored inbetween and they were tired by the end of the day, but we had fun. Even if their parts end up being cut from the movie it was still worth it for the experience they had." "I liked it when the white plane went up in front of me," Jacob said. "The whole part of waiting was boring, but I had fun being in the movie." Kenneth also enjoyed the whole experience. "It was fun," the Anna Melick Memorial School JK student said. "I got to see six or seven planes and the best part was when the plane flew past me. I'd like to do it again." One of the oldest extras on set was George Culver. The 91-year-old Dunnville resident participated in all three days of filming at the airport. "A lot of people were trying to be an extra so I thought I'd give it a try," he said. Culver said he saw Swank and Gere during his days on the set and while he admitted to not being a real movie goer he thought both actors did a good job. "The whole experience was quite interesting, but there was a lot of standing around which is rough on older people," he said. "Signing in and getting dressed was the worst part, but the wardrobe people, especially Karen and Richard, were really helpful. The wardrobe people and those working in Hangar 3 put in the most hours I've ever seen. They deserve a lot of credit." Culver thought one of the reasons the Dunnville Airport was chosen as a location was because the film needed a grass runway. "Dunnville is about the only place with a grass runway," he said. "During my last shot we had to line up along both sides of that runway. One plane came in and touched down and then took off again. In another scene we had to imagine a plane going by. They took about 20 shots of us turning our heads." Despite all the standing around and the chilly temperatures Culver said he was glad he took part. "It was all quite a highlight for me," he said. "I'm proud that I was able to do this at my age even though I'm feeling a bit tired now. It's the most money I ever made standing around and doing nothing." Mary Williams worked as an extra for two days participating in crowd scenes shot next to Hangar 1 and in the northwest corner of the airport. The Dunnville woman said she wanted to try to become an extra as soon as she heard the movie was coming to town. "I was extremely excited when I heard about the movie filming here because we've never had anything like this in Dunnville before," Williams said. "It's something I felt I just had to participate in." Williams, accompanied by her teenage son Christopher, arrived at the extra call around 7 p. m. on May 21 and within 30 minutes those still waiting in line were informed that more people had showed up than expected. "Someone from casting yelled out that Dunnville rocks and then we were given an e-mail address where we could send a full image of ourselves and all our measurements," she said. "They said we would hear by Friday if we got picked to be extras." When Williams didn't get a call she admitted to being disappointed. That disappointment was soon replaced by excitement when she was called on May 27 to show up for makeup, hair and wardrobe by 4:45 a. m. the next day. "It was a bit chaotic because I didn't know what to expect so I just got in line," she said. "I had to go to makeup first and then hair and then wardrobe. It took hours and then we all waited until we were called from the hangar and boarded a bus to go to the back set." Williams was among a group of people standing in bleachers cheering during the plane races. "I was given a flag while other people were given popcorn, candy apples, hot dogs or old cameras to hold as props," she said. "For different shots on the bleachers we were told to not stand next to the same people." As the day progressed Williams was moved to the set next to Hangar 1 which depicted the ceremony held at the conclusion of the first Women's Air Derby in 1929. The all-women derby, later referred to as the Powder Puff Derby, saw aviators fly from California to Cleveland over a nine-day period. Earhart finished the race a distant third. "I was standing in the audience and all of a sudden there was Hilary," Williams said. "It was exciting to see Hilary and the director behind her." After many hours of shooting different angles of the crowd scene Williams and other extras were moved to the back set again where shots were taken of Swank sitting in a plane. "Between scenes it was very cold and windy so they gave us blankets and let some wear coats while they were getting ready to film," Williams said. "They really tried to make you comfortable and if you needed anything there was always someone there to help. They made you feel like they wanted you there and that you weren't just a speck in the field." Williams first day on the set lasted from 4:45 a. m. to 8 p. m. "It was a long day, but also a lot of fun," she said. "At times it was boring, but I spent time talking to people I knew. Some people napped and brought magazines to read. If I didn't know people there I probably would have found it extremely boring, but I was also on a high about doing this." Williams' second day on the set lasted from 5:30 a. m. to 6 p. m. "It was very interesting seeing the different stages they have to go through," she said. "I understand all the work that goes into making movies now. You could film all day and it could end up being five minutes in the movie." "It was a pretty exciting experience for me," Williams added. "I'm thrilled I got the call and very glad I did it." Dunnville's John Pemberton worked on the set for three days playing a carnival photographer in crowd scenes and got to see both Swank and Gere in action. One of Pemberton's encounters with Gere occurred during a scene where extras watched airplane maneuvers while standing on a bleacher. Gere was standing an arm's length from Pemberton. "It was really interesting and I really enjoyed doing it," he said. "I think it's a great thing for Dunnville." Pemberton sees the Amelia filming as being great promotion for both the Dunnville Airport and the No. 6 RCAF Museum. "We're entertaining a very big motion picture production," he said. "It's going to be a big production and it's obviously going to be up for awards." Don Oatman, president of the No. 6 RCAF Museum, also believes the filming of Amelia in Dunnville was positive for the airport as well as the museum. "A good share of people working on the film near Hangar 1 went through the museum and they were really impressed by what we had there," he said. "I think we got a lot of publicity for the museum. A lot of the extras from the area said they didn't realize the museum was even here. It was good for us to get our name out there and to let people know what we have going on." Many museum members helped get the site in shape for filming and some even helped assemble and dismantle a vintage plane brought in for the movie. "The owner of the plane was asking around to get some hands to help her put the wings on the plane and someone mentioned that the museum members might help," Oatman said. "Jim Mattice, Stan Swayze and Ross Watterworth helped her with the wings and later Stan and I helped with the dismantling." On a personal level Oatman said he enjoyed seeing all the vintage planes and cars brought to the airport during the shoot. "It was nice to see all the aircraft up close and they were in such good condition," he said. "Everyone was commenting on the aircraft there. They were all Canadian aircraft from private collections and museums." Dunnville Museum life member Sherry Swayze was also impressed by the vintage aircraft and cars on site. "They were all fantastic and were in fabulous condition," she said. "They were all kept in Hangar 3 at the end of each day. It was very nice to see." Oatman is one of many hoping more film companies will choose to use the Dunnville Airport for future productions. "They said they liked the facilities and the way everyone treated them," he said. "When they left they said they would be back. They were happy with how we tried to accommodate them. This has been good for Dunnville." - - - |
| Fiat's Lancia hopes new Delta to help meet targets Wed Jun 4, 2008 4:05pm TURIN, Italy, June 4 (Reuters) - Italy's Lancia will roll out this month a new version of the Delta, a car once known for its dominance of world rally championships, as it strives to achieve ambitious targets set for the end of the decade. Fiat's (FIA.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) premium brand hopes the Delta -- a cross between a sedan and a station wagon -- will boost its profile and help more than double total sales to 300,000 units by 2010. As it has done with other models, Lancia will use a celebrity to promote it: Richard Gere. And the television spot in which the U.S. actor appears will likely further raise the brand's profile, given the sensitive issue it addresses. The spot, shown at a news conference on Wednesday at the Venaria Reale, a palace once owned by the Savoy royal family near this northern city, has him travelling from Hollywood to Tibet, whose autonomy from China Gere supports. Tibet has become a focal point for protests against China as the country prepares to host the Olympic Games this summer. Asked about the message that could be read in the spot, Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne said it reflected the group's way of expressing opinions different from the others. "I obviously like it," he said. With a price tag of 21,000 euros to 31,000 euros, the Delta will go on sale on June 21, marking Lancia's entry into a new segment. "We knew that we had a line-up that was not balanced: between the small and the big models there was a hole to fill," Lancia Chief Executive Olivier Francois told reporters. The Delta comes at a time of fierce competition in a market where car makers are facing higher costs and weaker sales. France's Renault (RENA.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) and Peugeot Citroen (PEUP.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) are introducing new models, some of which will compete with the Delta such as the Laguna and the Citroen C5. Francois said he aimed to sell 20,000 units this year and 70,000 every year afterwards. He also stuck to a sales target of a total of 150,000 this year against 123,000 in 2007. But the market has been tough, especially in Italy where Lancia gets the bulk of its sales. In April, new sales for Lancia cars in Italy fell 10.89 percent as its home market shrank for the fifth month in a row. Marchionne was convinced the market would remain uncertain for rest of year. But he hoped the decline in Italy and Spain would be offset by better performance elsehwere in Europe. The smallest of Fiat's three brands, Lancia had been slowly increasing its sales with a heavy marketing campaign and an expansion of its dealer network across Europe. It expects sales to grow outside Italy by 79 percent in 2008. The Delta's name evokes the world rally championships that an earlier version of the model dominated two decades ago. But it is the only thing that it has in common with the first version that came out in 1979. In contrast with the boxy hatchback that was made to race down the backwood roads of a rally, the new one is longer, sleeker and definitely more urban. Lancia spent nearly 300 million euros and more than 15 months developing the new Delta. As part of Fiat's strategy to cut costs, it was built on a platform similar to the one used by the Bravo, a mid-sized car launched last year under the Fiat brand. Lancia's market share in Italy is less than 5 percent but it has wider profit margins than Fiat's mass-market cars. (Writing by Gilles Castonguay; Editing by Gary Hill |
| Part of Main Street will be closed for movie June 3, 2008 Film crews are returning to the Woonsocket railway station at Main and High streets today for more work on Hachiko: A Dog?s Story, the Richard Gere film about a faithful dog. Main Street between High Street and Arnold Street will be closed from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. The detour will remain in effect until Friday. As a result, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority has announced that the Route 54 (Lincoln/Woonsocket) bus will be detoured. Outbound trips leaving Providence traveling via Park Avenue will leave Main Street and Railroad Street by taking a right onto Main Street, left onto Bernon Street and then resume the regular route. All inbound trips will travel the regular route. RIPTA also announced that the Route 87 (Fairmount/Walnut Hill) bus will be detoured. Eastbound trips will leave via Harris Avenue to Railroad Street, take a right onto Arnold Street, left onto Bernon Street and then resume the regular route. Westbound trips will leave via Main Street, take a right onto Railroad Street, left onto Arnold Street, a right onto Main Street, left onto Bernon and then resume the regular route. |
| Brooklyn's Finest Director Anton Fuqua had a glass of champagne at the top in 2001 when he made Training Day and won Denzel Washington an Oscar. It’s been nothing but of misfires for him since then, with a string of critical and financial failures. Nobody even notices when there’s a new Anton Fuqua movie coming out anymore, he probably has King Arthur to thank for that. He’s got a couple of projects on tap though, which may put him right back on top. One of them is Brooklyn’s Finest, a crime drama starring Ellen Barkin, Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, and his Training Day good luck charm Ethan Hawke. Not much has been known about the film until now, other than that Gere, Cheadle, and Hawke will play police officers whose lives are changed by a specific crime scene. Tonight though we’ve gotten hold of a few pages from the script, which offer clues into just exactly what Fuqua’s up to with his latest cop drama. The pages we have focus primarily on four different characters. The lead of the bunch is Eddie, a cop a few days away from retirement. This seems likely to be the part played by Richard Gere. He’s disillusioned and better, a drunk who finds comfort in hookers and lives with his wife but hasn’t spoken to her in years. He’s saddled with a rookie named Melvin. Melvin is a former marine and as eager as Eddie is tired. In the background is Tango, a character that seems like it might be a fit for Don Cheadle, or maybe even Wesley Snipes who was at one point rumored to be involved in the project. He’s an angry, undercover cop who’s bucking to get out of the undercover job and behind a desk, before as he puts it, he forgets how to be a normal person. He’s at odds with his bosses and the FBI, who want to use him to set up someone he believes to be innocent, implicating him in something which sounds like either the murder of another cop, or a drug deal gone wrong. Which brings us to the fourth major character outlined in our little pieces of the puzzle. His name is Sal, a down on his luck father with a pregnant wife, and a crummy house full of mold. He’s looking for a way to save his family from the hell they’re currently stuck in, and he thinks he’s found it in the form of a bag filled with bloody drug money, money which he believes no one will miss. It seems like it’s that money which will tie all of these characters and the whole thing together. Disillusioned cops and bags full of money has been done so many times before, but based on what I have here, Fuqua’s really going to have his work cut out for him if there’s anything original to be found in Brooklyn’s Finest. Some of the characters are well drawn, Eddie and Sal in particular seem interesting. Maybe that will be enough to carry Fuqua’s movie beyond the usual corrupt cop genre. |
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| June 2, 2008 The film “Brooklyn’s Finest” is shooting today in Fort Green on Dekalb Avenue near Adelphi Street |
| Cast Richard Gere ... Eddie Dugan Ethan Hawke ... Sal Wesley Snipes ... Caz (rumored) Don Cheadle ... Tango Ellen Barkin Jesse Williams ... Eddie Quinlan Stella Maeve ... Cynthia Jas Anderson ... K rock Kevin Navayne ... Drug dealer Wass Stevens ... Patrick Leary Shannon Kane ... Chantel Wade Allain-Marcus ... C-Rayz Rick Zahn ... Police Commissioner |
| We got a tip that there are signs up in Queens (near Saunders St and 63rd Rd) for Brooklyn’s Finest today |
| Signs were posted all over Brooklyn Heights this weekend announcing the filming of Brooklyn’s Finest an upcoming motion picture starring Ellen Barkin, Ethan Hawke and Don Cheadle. The poster claims that the filmmakers are looking to shoot in a Brooklyn Heights apartment and it COULD BE YOURS. Filming will take place for “a few days” in May, June or July. Interested parties are asked to call 917-671-9400. Our favorite line on the flier: “The movie is directed by Antoine Fuqua and tells the story of three disenfranchised New York City police officiers whoselives become entwined as they each discover what it means to ‘protect and serve.’” |
| BROOKLYN’S FINEST Through July 11. Stars: Ethan Hawke, Don Cheadle, Richard Gere. Locations Include: Brownsville. Written by a former transit worker, this drama about Brooklyn cops, which some have likened to The Wire, is shooting in housing projects. |
| Richard Gere at the Japan America Society of Boston Annual Gala |
| Richard Gere was the keynote speaker at the annual Japan America Society of Boston Gala. It was held in Boston at the Westin Waterside Hotel. Long term JASB Board member, and RIIFF supporter, Vernon Alden, was recognized for his year's on commitment and service. |
| Hachiko Film News and Photos Updated June 10, 2008. View Here |
| Lancia Delta that will be advertised by Richard Gere in Italy |
| Delta Lancia Commercial with Richard Gere |
June 13, 2008
| Photos Updated June 14, 2008 Japan Society of Boston Annual Dinner - Japan Society of Boston, 5/28/08 |
Hachiko Film Photos added June 17, 2008
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Hachiko Page IV updated 6/17/08
Hachiko Page V updated 6/17/08
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| June 19, 2008 ~Amelia~ The film stars Richard Gere, Virginia Madsen, Ewan McGregor and Christopher Eccleston. Swank will play Earhart in the formative stages of her career. George Putnam, a publisher and publicist, was engaged by society denizen Amy Guest to set up a daring nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean. When Guest was talked out of trying to become the first woman to make the trip, she dispatched Putnam to find a female pilot, and to turn the flight into a media event. Mira Nair directs |
| June 19, 2008 Richard Gere, in a scene from his latest movie, “The Hunting Party,” appears on a Tokyo subway poster advertising Dandy House. In the movie, Gere plays a journalist on the trail of Serb war criminals. The connection between the movie and Dandy House—a chain of esthetic salons for men—remains unclear. |
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