First thing this morning at Guide training we were given information about the fire; the way the media portrayed it and many of their facts were completely wrong.
While the destruction of New York Street will be a financial loss, it is a very small section of the backlot - only 3 acres of the nearly 400 acre studio. The fire was caused by workers patching shingles on a roof; they did follow protocol, thus it was an accident. The King Kong attraction and New York Street were completely devastated; however, contrary to some reports, the "clock tower" and other sets were not burnt down and no irreplaceable films were lost. Less than 800 people chose to wait around for the park to open; it was the fire chiefs decision that it could not and those people received complimentary passes to return. News outlets inaccurately reported that "thousands" were turned away.
Today everything was open and functioning; the tour drives slowly by a section of the damage. As far as my job goes, the only difference will be the absence of the King Kong attraction. I never even got to go through the New York Street or Court House Square areas because they were always closed for filming. Because it's a working movie set, the tour is rerouted daily and there is always more than enough to see.
CLICK HERE to view photos I took Monday of the destruction and other highlights.
Today everything was open and functioning; the tour drives slowly by a section of the damage. As far as my job goes, the only difference will be the absence of the King Kong attraction. I never even got to go through the New York Street or Court House Square areas because they were always closed for filming. Because it's a working movie set, the tour is rerouted daily and there is always more than enough to see.
CLICK HERE to view photos I took Monday of the destruction and other highlights.
Wow, I told the husband the other day what I thought started it and I just heard the cause on the news...I was right. Do you know what was filming and what actors were there? Also, what are your chances of meeting the actors?
ReplyDelete~N.W.
I don't know what you heard, but the fire was NOT affiliated with filming. A roof was being repaired (I assume the roof to King Kong, but that's a guess); apparently they use blow torches to heat the tar... They waited the standard hour for it to cool before leaving. Thus, it's being considered an accident.
ReplyDeleteAs for filming, "Ghost Whisperer" is on hiatus until June or July. A soft drink commercial was filming on New York Street, but again, it had nothing to do with that and I highly doubt they were shooting at 4 a.m. on a Sunday.
~Abby