SixofNine
09-20-2004, 10:32 AM
Bayonne's Henry Sanchez had a surprise visitor at his downtown home recently.
"Steven Spielberg was here about two weeks ago," Sanchez said. "He
knocked on my door and said, 'Hello, I'm Steven Spielberg.'"
Bayonne will soon be seeing a lot of the Hollywood film director when he begins filming a new movie, "War of the Worlds," inspired by the H.G. Wells book of the same name, starring Tom Cruise.
Pre-production work has begun and city lawyers are in the process of
negotiating terms for use of various public properties.
Holly Whidden, a publicist for Paramount Pictures in New York, confirmed yesterday that the studio is planning a film of that name with Cruise and that it is "in the early stages of production."
Shooting may start next month and could wrap by December, one city official said. It is slated for a summer release.
When the director came calling, Sanchez said he had no doubt it was the real deal, because "I looked outside and he had about 20 people with him. They were visiting all the homes in this area - Kennedy Boulevard, Pointview Terrace, First Street."
Spielberg, dressed casually in jeans, told Sanchez he was looking for a
location in Bayonne to shoot a movie and that he and his scouts were looking all over the city.
"Then he asked permission to come in and look at my house," Sanchez said.
Once inside the two-story house, near the southern end of Kennedy
Boulevard, Spielberg scanned a collection of World War II photos: Sanchez is a World War II Navy veteran who participated in the D Day Invasion of Europe.
Good for you, Henry!
The Oscar-winning director then toured the backyard patio deck and above-ground pool, Sanchez said.
An above-ground pool in a Bayonne backyard - shocker.
"And then he left, but some of his crew stayed and looked around a little more and then they left and I forgot all about it - until about four hours later, when David McGuire, a scout, rang the bell.
"David says, 'Henry, Steven says there's no sense looking at any other house. He wants to film in your house,'" Sanchez recalled. "He loves this area, downtown."
Since then, Sanchez said, pre-production crews have been back several times to visit, snapping pictures and taking measurements of various settings in and out of the house. They've also removed his outdoor pool, he said.
The first thing the Hollywood folks do is get rid of the above-ground backyard pool - another shocker.
As many as nine homes in the area may be involved in the upcoming shooting, Sanchez said.
Several downtown residents said Paramount representatives either visited or left fliers at homes, soliciting the use of homes and backyards that could be occupied by actors during filming.
"They were looking specifically at one-and two-family homes along Kennedy Boulevard near the Bayonne Bridge," one resident said.
99% of Bayonne is made up of Depression/WWII-era two-family homes - a couple of which I grew up in. Most of the remaining one percent is composed of Catholic churches and schools.
The Bayonne Bridge is a steel arch span bridge that connects the southern end of Bayonne with Staten Island, over the Kill van Kull. It's the same architecture (and actually has a longer arch span) as a slightly more well-known bridge in that burg in Australia. ;) I used to walk across it as a kid - pretty exciting as the mid-span clearance is 150 feet so that ocean-going vessels can use the ports in Newark and Elizabeth. I wonder if Spielberg will blow it up. :)
Several city officials said they were told by studio representatives that Spielberg and company want to build a structure - probably a gas station or auto body shop - on the Little League field on the south side of First Street near Kennedy Boulevard and then blow it up.
Spielberg wants to blow something up in a science fiction movie? The shocking surprises just keep popping out of this story.
The city hopes, eventually, to have a permanent film/TV studio setup at the Peninsula at Bayonne Harbor.
Let's not get carried away folks - this ain't Wilmington, North Carolina. Enjoy the 15 minutes.
"Steven Spielberg was here about two weeks ago," Sanchez said. "He
knocked on my door and said, 'Hello, I'm Steven Spielberg.'"
Bayonne will soon be seeing a lot of the Hollywood film director when he begins filming a new movie, "War of the Worlds," inspired by the H.G. Wells book of the same name, starring Tom Cruise.
Pre-production work has begun and city lawyers are in the process of
negotiating terms for use of various public properties.
Holly Whidden, a publicist for Paramount Pictures in New York, confirmed yesterday that the studio is planning a film of that name with Cruise and that it is "in the early stages of production."
Shooting may start next month and could wrap by December, one city official said. It is slated for a summer release.
When the director came calling, Sanchez said he had no doubt it was the real deal, because "I looked outside and he had about 20 people with him. They were visiting all the homes in this area - Kennedy Boulevard, Pointview Terrace, First Street."
Spielberg, dressed casually in jeans, told Sanchez he was looking for a
location in Bayonne to shoot a movie and that he and his scouts were looking all over the city.
"Then he asked permission to come in and look at my house," Sanchez said.
Once inside the two-story house, near the southern end of Kennedy
Boulevard, Spielberg scanned a collection of World War II photos: Sanchez is a World War II Navy veteran who participated in the D Day Invasion of Europe.
Good for you, Henry!
The Oscar-winning director then toured the backyard patio deck and above-ground pool, Sanchez said.
An above-ground pool in a Bayonne backyard - shocker.
"And then he left, but some of his crew stayed and looked around a little more and then they left and I forgot all about it - until about four hours later, when David McGuire, a scout, rang the bell.
"David says, 'Henry, Steven says there's no sense looking at any other house. He wants to film in your house,'" Sanchez recalled. "He loves this area, downtown."
Since then, Sanchez said, pre-production crews have been back several times to visit, snapping pictures and taking measurements of various settings in and out of the house. They've also removed his outdoor pool, he said.
The first thing the Hollywood folks do is get rid of the above-ground backyard pool - another shocker.
As many as nine homes in the area may be involved in the upcoming shooting, Sanchez said.
Several downtown residents said Paramount representatives either visited or left fliers at homes, soliciting the use of homes and backyards that could be occupied by actors during filming.
"They were looking specifically at one-and two-family homes along Kennedy Boulevard near the Bayonne Bridge," one resident said.
99% of Bayonne is made up of Depression/WWII-era two-family homes - a couple of which I grew up in. Most of the remaining one percent is composed of Catholic churches and schools.
The Bayonne Bridge is a steel arch span bridge that connects the southern end of Bayonne with Staten Island, over the Kill van Kull. It's the same architecture (and actually has a longer arch span) as a slightly more well-known bridge in that burg in Australia. ;) I used to walk across it as a kid - pretty exciting as the mid-span clearance is 150 feet so that ocean-going vessels can use the ports in Newark and Elizabeth. I wonder if Spielberg will blow it up. :)
Several city officials said they were told by studio representatives that Spielberg and company want to build a structure - probably a gas station or auto body shop - on the Little League field on the south side of First Street near Kennedy Boulevard and then blow it up.
Spielberg wants to blow something up in a science fiction movie? The shocking surprises just keep popping out of this story.
The city hopes, eventually, to have a permanent film/TV studio setup at the Peninsula at Bayonne Harbor.
Let's not get carried away folks - this ain't Wilmington, North Carolina. Enjoy the 15 minutes.