On Wednesday, May 13th, 2009, the
Reference Department at
Albright Memorial Library was used as a location to film scenes for the upcoming independent film
Blue Valentine, starring
Michelle Williams (
Brokeback Mountain) and
Ryan Gosling (
The Notebook). Director
Derek Cianfrance really loved the library building and selected it as a setting for pivotal scenes in the film.
Incentive Filmed Entertainment is financing
Blue Valentine;
Silverwood Films’ Lynette Howell and
Hunting Lane Films’ Jamie Patricof and
Alex Orlovsky are the producers. Also of note is that
Hunting Lane Films is the same production company that produced 2006's
Half Nelson, which earned
Ryan Gosling an Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
Yes, both
Michelle Williams and
Ryan Gosling were in the Reference Department for the filming.
Now the big question...did you meet them?
No...and yes. Because the Reference Department needed to be private and silent for the filming, the Reference staff were relocated to the computer lab for the duration of the filming. When we were permitted to return to the department, the crew was busy removing film equipment, etc. As we were getting ready to reopen the department to the public, we looked out the window behind the Reference Desk and there, in front of our library, were both
Michelle Williams and
Ryan Gosling talking to the crew at the main gate of the library. Seconds later,
Michelle Williams returned and came up the steps to the Reference Department. The staff said Hi to her and she, in turn, said, "Hi." Then I asked, "How are ya?" and she smiled and responded, "Fine."
And that was it. But I can now officially cross "Exchange pleasantries with Oscar nominee" off my list of Things to Do Before I Die.
Also check out page 22 of the May 18, 2009 issue of
People Weekly (the one with
"Kirstie Alley's Weight Saga" on the cover), which features a photo of
Michelle Williams in a wheelchair in
Scranton filming a scene; to see the pic online,
click here.
One final note: when they finished filming in Reference, a crew member for
Blue Valentine told us not to be surprised if various weird objects turn up scattered in the department, left over from filming. A few days later, one of our student assistants found (of all things) a clothes hanger left over from filming. I kept it, just for the heck of it--after all, it is an authentic
Blue Valentine filming artifact and, at worst, it will come in handy if I ever find myself feeling all
Joan Crawford (
NO WIRE HANGERS!!!!!!)
Blue Valentine is currently in post-production and is tentatively scheduled for a 2010 release.
On August 4th, The New York Times Book Review published a review and excerpt from a book about Scranton native (and Central High School alumni) Jane Jacobs (1916-2006), urban renewal activist and author of The Death and Life of Great American Cities. The book, Wrestling With Moses: How Jane Jacobs Took On New York's Master Builder and Transformed the American City, was published in July 2009.
