OMG - A Big Blog Blast!!

Thanks again for your continued comments about me and the show. I do have some news and pictures to share.

One of our loyal fans who built his own model of the Bridge on the River Kwai sent me these screen grabs from the episode where Tom blows up Higgins' model. As you may recall from an earlier post, I built 3 versions of this model for the show when I was still working up the hill at what's now Diamond Head Theatre as their last resident designer. There was the just started model, the halfway there bridge, and finally the completed one. I was there just off camera when they filmed the scene with Higgins building it. He'd go to place a piece and then they would yell "CUT" and I would take it off, wipe off the glue and get another piece ready. Sure glad I spent 7 years in college for that one!

I wasn't there when they filmed the scene with Tom blowing it up. Well, actually Jack Faggard, the special effects coordinator, did the actual explosion. These screen grabs are great since it really shows the pieces being blown up in the air. What I don't actually know for sure (and yet can still sleep at night) is who built the model they really did blow up? My guess is they completed more of the half done model and blew that one up. The reason I think that is that when I did start working on the show full time in season 3, my Higgins' model was already established on one of his bookcase shelves. Also don't know when the decision was made to place my completed model on the set as permanent dressing.

Well, I hope the gentleman who bought my invoice for the bridge sees these photos. When I was selling off anything I had left from the show on ebay, one person purchased my copies of the invoices I'd sent to the show for building the bridge and a couple of other things and framed them all together. Don't forget you can click on any of the pictures to make them larger. I blew them up a bit and corrected the colors.

Next bit of news for those of you with $10-15 million or so that you don't know what to do with. The estate where the pilot of "Magnum" was filmed (not to be confused with the Anderson Estate where the series exteriors were sometimes filmed) is being sold again. The estate had been owned by the State of Hawaii for decades, then a division of the Teamsters Union (another interesting story best told over a mai-tai) and finally a private owner is now for sale. The man who bought the estate in a very sad condition and spent many millions restoring what was one of the grandest estates ever built in Hawaii (for Clarence Cooke in the 30's) is having to sell it. I did get to tour it last year and gave him photos of some of the sets I had done in the house over the years (sorry, all post "Magnum"). The room with the brick where they did the first Higgin's den is there along with what became the drive-up and entry for Rick's Bar (aka Kamehameha Club) all look fantastic. He also restored the pool house, pool, servants quarters, all the decorative tile on the lanais and put in a kitchen any 5-star restaurant would envy.

The line is amazingly short for those who want to purchase it so you still have time to think about it. I may have some other news soon about my lack of career since "Alvin 3" ended in January. I did join the film board at the Honolulu Academy of Arts--the main film art house in Honolulu at the Doris Duke Theatre. Hope you're all having a great summer! Aloha.

Even Happier New Year!

Ok, my thanks to whoever is doing all that praying or whatever on my behalf because it's been working! After being ignored for the decorator job on a surf film about Bethany Hamilton and then turning down a 2 week job as their shopper buyer, I was asked to be the art director for a national Capital One ("What's in your wallet?") commercial with those wild and crazy visigoths. You'll probably be seeing the commercial in a few weeks. I worked 11 days, hired 9 guys, filmed 2 long days for 30 seconds of air time. We were based out of the same hotel as the surf movie and even another Capital One commercial for the Canadian market. It was a completely separate commercial and crew but for the same client. It's funny that several of them said how spoiled TV people were because commercials are so fast paced now. Then TV people think film people are spoiled because TV is so fast paced. Film people think TV people are spoiled because they don't have to worry about all the details of "The Big Screen." My take is to just shut up and do my job.

Right now besides "LOST" there is a George Clooney film, an Adam Sandler film, the surf film, and early rumblings from "Pirates of the Caribbean" filming here this summer and my phone wasn't ringing at all. Then 10 days ago I got a call to interview as Set Decorator for a new pilot for CBS's "Hawaii Five-0" Wow, that will teach me not to believe rumors. Lest you think I was a shoe-in because of my experience here, wrong. It wasn't until I was able to show my work online at www.flickr.com/photos/rick_romer/ that I was seriously considered. Then it took some discussion and another meeting before I was offered the job.

This is just the pilot. It has not been pre-sold or picked up yet--or so we are told. However, the script is absolutely amazing and riveting. Remember, I did another 5-0 pilot in '96 or '97 that never even aired (although it probably did help Gary Busey's career on Celebrity Rehab) so I am cautiously optimistic on this one. Daniel Dae Kim is going right from "LOST" into 5-0 as the character Chin Ho Kelley. Well, if they can revive "Hawaii Five-0" can a revival of "Magnum, P.I." be too far behind? There was only a year between the series after all.

I wasn't going to, but I got talked into seeing "avatar" in 3-D imax. I don't often say OMG, but OMG! I was ducking under those palm fronds in front of me during every chase scene. Nothing stayed inside the screen, it was right in front of me. I decided that it wasn't a film at all. It was an event. I came out of the theatre covered in popcorn and wanting to keep my yellow 3-d glasses on for the rest of my life. Go Blue People!

Well, Aloha from the only state that didn't have snowfall this weekend. I do assume there is snow on top of Mauna Kea, though. You have to drive up 14,000 feet to see it instead of outside in your driveway.

Aloha, Rick

Look what I found.....The Guesthouse Set! (and ME!)

Who would think I'd ever put this photo of me on the internet?  Well, I sure won't be mistaken for Tom Selleck!  One day the Art Director, Archie Bacon, and I were walking by the unprotected, uncovered Ferrari and I just happened to have my camera.  Like a couple of naughty kids, we took turns taking pictures of each other sitting in the car.  Yeah, I'm SO cool that I didn't even know how to open the door from the outside or the inside so I had to climb in and out!  This was the "driving " Ferrari.  They also had a "tow" Ferrari which they used behind a camera truck for when you saw Tom inside the car "driving"--which he wasn't.  Again, cutting back and forth between actual driving shots and sitting behind the wheel shots, it looks pretty good.  That's the soundstage behind me on the left.

On to the guesthouse photo--it turns out I did have one in my portfolio.  That means that when Indiana Jones comes over and we go on a quest in my attic to find the long buried photos, there could be more (?).  I know you all have seen this set more recently and more often than I have so pardon my first impression on seeing it for the first time in decades--what a dump!  It's much smaller than I remember and almost looks dirty with those walls.  Ok, please, no hate mail and death threats--it's just my first thougts after all these years.  You can see the make-up tables being stored inside the set since space was always a premium on that stage.  George Sumner was a personal friend of John Hillerman so that painting had to hang prominently over the fireplace.  It would not have been my choice since it photographed so dark on camera.  Basically the furniture was pretty much run of the mill sort of middle class Sears contemporary items.  I had forgotten there actually were windows on the camera left side of the set and the smaller one on the landing.  Normally a set would be lit for filming and then the lights taken down and used elsewhere.  As you can see, the basic lights were left up on the catwalk all the time because this was a permanent set.  The guesthouse set was fairly close to the side wall of the soundstage--the back wall maybe 6-8 feet away which made it difficult to have a higher ceiling since the roof sloped down at that point.  You can see the small ceiling sections over the entry door.

There was a door to the right of the TV set that really did lead into Tom's bedroom set.  There was also a small wall portion that could be used as part of the "4th wall" but was seldom seen.  I think that is my leadman Russ Maki standing on the set.  

Many have asked what happened to all the items.  I am amazed at how many of those items did survive the "great purge" when they tore down the old set dressing building a few years ago.  It's funny how when things are taken away from their original environment, they just become "stuff."  Like after my parents had died and we sold the family home, I brought things back to Hawaii that had been in that house for decades.  Somehow without the wall paper and windows and familiar surroundings, the things just weren't the same.  What few items that may or may not still exist in the new storage area,  are the property of the State of Hawaii Film Office and would not be for sale--so don't ask!   I'll be the one getting in trouble for even mentioning it!

I found a few other surprises--even a "funny" Christmas story (and photos) about an explosion we did that accidentally  blew out the windows out of a house and sent their Christmas tree flying across their living room.  Have to wait for Christmas for that one!  Again, thanks for all your encouragement and comments.  (don't stop now!)