Hollywood converged on the borough this past week as no less than three films or TV shows were shot here, "On location," including Will Smith and Josh Brolin filming, "Men In Black III," in Morris Park.
Word quickly spread after the first day of shooting MIB 3, on April 11, that the crowd swelled to several hundred, before shooting wrapped up at the, "Van Nest Lanes," bowling alley on Bronxdale Avenue, on April 14.
One young Bronx actor who declined to give his name, stated that Smith got upset over the script, recalling, "He didn't like the first script, he didn't think it was his style, so he decided that they needed to rewrite the script... now he likes it and he's filming it."
On the final day of shooting, television personality and Bronx native Regis Philbin paid a visit to the set, before walking over and telling the crowd, "This is my old neighborhood and I love coming back."
Philbin then went to plant a kiss on the cheek of a special ed student, who proceeded to latch on to him in a bear hug. A police officer and the young woman's caretaker quickly intervened, providing everyone with a good laugh.
The caretaker, Diana Vasquez of Metro New York, on Halsey Street in the Westchester Square section, then introduced this reporter to the cereal bear-hugger, "Pamela," who replied with a request, "Can I have your autograph?"
Vasquez and several staff members and patients waited for over two hours, when they finally got to meet Philbin.
Actor and comedian Jamie Fox then waved to the crowd as he walked to his SUV, before driving away. Smith would come out a short time later and again, Smith went straight to Pamela, who again, threw her arms around the A-list actor, as the police officer again had to intervene. After a minute, Vasquez told Pamela, "Let him go, he's married."
Jimmy Farago, who has worked at Van Nest Lanes since 1965, and has owned it since 1979, was on hand as Hollywood turned his bowling alley into the, "Cosmic Lanes." In the film, Smith's Character returns to 1969, to meet Tommy Lee Jones' character, portrayed by Josh Brolin, who was also spotted on the set.
Farago said of Smith, "He was very pleasant, very nice, yes I got to meet him but... he's got security all around him." Farago, who's had two other films shot at his bowling alley, Denzel Washington's, "American Gangster," and, "Across The Universe," recalled, "Every time he went out to go to his trailer, he would go to the crowd and take pictures and sign autographs and shake hands."
The cast heads back to complete filming at Brooklyn's Coney Island and MIB 3 is scheduled for release in May, 2012.
As MIB 3 was filming on Bronxdale Avenue, cast members of, "Law and Order: SVU," was filming outside of Einstein College of Medicine, and the cast of the HBO series, "Boardwalk Empire," was filming near Herbert H. Lehman College in Bedford Park.
Actor Regis Philbin gets some friendly police assistance after getting bear-hugged by an excited fan.--Photo by David Greene
