Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge

Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Address:  Zakim Bridge I-93
Date: September 2010
Website: www.leonardpzakimbunkerhillbridge.org

  The Big Dig was an ambitious project in Boston.  It took the elevated roadways that ran through the city and moved them underground.  It cost billions of dollars and ran well over budget.  Construction started in 1991 and finally finished about 10 years later than anticipated in 2007.  Still, it was an example of long term thinking that changed the face of Boston forever.  We think for the better.

  As part of the project,  the Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge was built over the Charles River and the Rose Kennedy Greenway (above) was built where the old highway once stood.  Both projects were named after prominent figures from Boston.  Leonard Zakim was a civil rights activist and Rose Kennedy was the mother of president John F Kennedy along with 8 other Kennedy children.

  The Zakim Bridge has become a recognizable Boston landmark.  It was the widest cable stayed bridge in the world at one point.  In the movie Zookeeper, Kevin James climbs the bridge on the back of his gorilla friend Bernie.  They are trying to find the taxi Rosario Dawson is taking to the airport and stop her.  Thanks to the Zakim Bridge and the Big Dig getting to the airport in Boston is easier than ever. 

  We have stayed at the Marriot Residence Inn in Charlestown on more than one occasion and had a view of the Zakim Bridge from our room.  The closest bridge is North Washington Street Bridge and the Zakim Bridge is behind it.

  We often took a shortcut through the Charles River locks to get from our hotel to the subway.  It was also more fun, especially when a boat was passing through.

  You can also get a nice close-up view of the bridge by day.

  And by night.

    When the sun sets the upside down Ys that hold the cable and support the bridge stand out against the sky.  The Zakim Bridge and parkland created by the Big Dig make walking around Boston a pleasant experience.  You almost forget that underneath your feet hundreds of cars are rushing through tunnels trying to get across the city.

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Map of Our World
Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge , Charles River Locks
Rose Kennedy Greenway

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Post # 260

Big City Nights (Da Funk)

Location: New York, New York, USA
Address: 139 2nd Ave #1
Date: January 2019
Website:  daftpunk.com

  Daft Punk caught the world's attention with their single Da Funk back in 1996.  It was a purely instrumental song with a driving beat and funky synthesizers.  The music video directed by Spike Jonze brought even more attention.  The video was a short film called Big City Nights. In the video, Da Funk played in the background behind the dialogue.

  We were watching the music video for Da Funk and after the dog missed his bus (more on the video's plot later) we noticed something.   Down the street we could see a sign for the musical percussion peformance group STOMP.  In New York, STOMP has been performing at the Orpheum Theatre since 1994.  They are still going strong after more than 10,000 performances.

  We did some research and found that a large part of the music video was filmed in New York's East Village on 2nd Avenue near the Ottendorfer Library.  The building was built in 1883 and one part is the library and another part is the Deutsches Dispensary (pictured above).  The building does not make an appearance in the video but its bus stop does as do some of the surrounding buildings.

  The video follows Charles the dog as he hobbles through the street on crutches.  All the while his boom box with a broken volume knob is blasting Da Funk.  Charles is not a real dog but an actor in a costume.  Daft Punk also like to hide behind costumes and usually appear in public dressed as robots.  Charles tries to take a survey, buys a two dollar book called Big City Nights and eventually runs into an old neighbour.

  Charles the dog runs into Beatrice inside a variety store and they walk out into the street.  Beatrice invites Charles to "come with" for dinner downtown.  Charles agrees.  They wait for a bus outside of the East Village Meat Market.  The gold door on the left looks about the same but the white door (pictured above) used to also be gold back in the 90s. 

  We know this is the right place as across the road is a restaurant.  You can see the words Ukranian Restaurant reflected in the window behind Charles.

  A bus pulls up and Beatrice gets on.  Charles wants to follow her but sees a sign stating "No Radios. No Smoking. No Spitting".  Now he must choose between his music and a girl.   The bus closes its doors and drives away.  Charles hobbles down the street alone.

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Map of Our World

Ottendorfer Public Library
Orpheum Theatre
East Village Ukranian Restaurant
East Village Meat Market

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Post # 246

Lubetkin Penguin Pool

Location: London, England
Address:  Regent's Park
Date: September 2015
Website:  www.zsl.org

  In 1934, London Zoo opened its famous spiral-ramped Penguin Pool.  The pool was designed by Berthold Lubetkin who worked for an architectural firm called Tecton.  It is one of the first uses of reinforced concrete and is a grade I listed structure in England.  A grade I listing is reserved for buildings of exceptional interest.

  The movie About a Boy was released in 2002.  In the movie there is a small scene where Will (Hugh Grant) and Marcus (Nicholas Hoult) visit the zoo.  As they have their discussion they walk past the Penguin Pool.  There are still penguins in the enclosure as they did not leave until 2004.

   We saw a few reasons for the penguins moving out of the pool.  One said that they were contracting bumblefoot due to walking on concrete.  Bumblefoot is a bacterial infection on the feet of birds.  Some people say there was originally rubber over the concrete and it should be put back.  We also read they were moved to a duck pond during some repairs and seemed to really enjoy their new location.  Another lesser believed theory was based on the popularity of the About A Boy movie and the inclusion of the pool in the film.  It was said that the pool attracted too many Hugh Grant fans and the penguins requested to move to a new location where people came just to see them.  Who knows?  At any rate you can now visit the London Zoo and see the old exhibit which sits empty.  You can also see the colony of penguins who are happily living in a new area of the zoo called Penguin Beach.

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Map of Our World
ZSL London Zoo (Lubetkin Penguin Pool)

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Post # 243

Super Dave King Of The Road

Location: Ajax, Ontario, Canada 
Address: Westney Road & Concession Road 9
Date: Jan 2019
Website:  bobeinstein.com

   Since the passing of Bob Einstein we have been watching a lot of Super Dave clips online.  One of our favourites is when Super Dave plays piano on top of a bus to help get rid of profanity on the highway.   Knowing that the show filmed in Scarborough and Markham, Ontario we thought "We could find that place.  It couldn't be that hard?"  So we put a couch on our car and gave it a try.

We noticed Westney Road on a sign behind Super Dave when he and Fuji arrive after being introduced by Mike Walden.

  In this picture you can see the stop sign where Super Dave's tour bus was parked.  The tour bus is parked facing oncoming traffic and headed north. The idea is that Super Dave is going to go on a week long tour singing songs from the top of the bus.  He has everything he needs.  On the roof of the bus is some patio furniture, a barbeque an exercise bike and a piano.

  Super straps himself onto his piano bench and asks Fuji to put on his favourite song.  That song is Roger Miller's King Of The Road.  It isn't long before we see the bus drive past the pond in the photo above.

"Trailer For Sale Or Rent. Rooms To Let Fifty Cents."

  The bus heads up the road and Super Dave is really enjoying himself singing along.  He is having sensational fun.

"I'm A Man Of Means. By No Means, King Of The Road."

  Now no matter how many times Super Dave gets hurt doing something, we still find it incredibly funny.  Westney Road goes under a train bridge.  Super Dave's bus is just tall enough to make it.  Unfortunately someone singing and playing piano on top of that bus won't fit through the tunnel.  A sign on the bridge states that it is 3.4 metres tall.  That is about 11 foot 2 inches.  A coach bus can be between 10 and 11 feet high or even more.  You do the math..

    Super Dave, his patio furniture, his barbeque, exercise bike and piano all get crushed against the bridge and fall into the road.  We know this is the right bridge as it has the 1911 date on it like in the video.  It is also a safe bet that this is one of, if not the oldest bridge in the area.

  We also determined that Super Dave was travelling north when he hit the bridge as we checked both sides. The photo above is of the opposite side.  The deterioration of the bridge has continued but it is obvious to us that the south side is where the Super One collided.  There is also far too much graffiti inside the bridge and sadly none of it was even Super Dave related.

  This last photo was taken while standing where Super Dave lay crushed in the road.  He clears a piano key out of his throat and changes his song to "On The Road Again".  Thanks for the ride Super, it was hilarious.

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Map of Our World
King Of The Road

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Post # 239

Remembering Super Dave

Location: Markham, Ontario, Canada 
Address: 171 Town Centre Blvd
Date: Jan 2019
Website:  bobeinstein.com

  Super Dave Osborne was the greatest stuntman the world has ever known.  Actually he was far better at making us laugh than he was at successfully completing a stunt.  Super Dave was the creation of Bob Einstein and we have been laughing at the same joke for decades.  What will go wrong with Super Dave's stunt today?  Super Dave always starts out cheery and optimistic and then things go wrong and he ends up injured and censored.  Bob Einstein died January 2nd, 2019 and we thought we would highlight the Toronto connection with his beloved character.

     Super Dave was a regular on John Byner's comedy television program called Bizarre.  It was during Bizarre that Super Dave filmed his memorable CN Tower stunt.  Just one year after stuntman Dar Robertson jumped off the tower as Christopher Plummer's stunt double in the movie Highpoint, Super Dave prepared for his jump.  Super Dave is standing outside at the top of the tower with announcer Mike Walden.  Mike would be Super Dave's announcer throughout the Super One's career.

  The stunt has to be called off due to high winds, but as Mike goes back inside the tower he hits Super Dave with the door.  We see Super Dave flail as he falls from the tower.  He lands in a parking lot that used to be just about where Ripley's Aquarium is today.  To add insult to injury, the ambulance runs Super Dave over and drags him underneath the vehicle.

  Bizarre was filmed at the Glen Warren Studios in Scarborough.  The buildings are still there today as CTV Studios.  The studios are located at number nine Channel Nine Court since 9 is the channel that the station broadcasts on.  One of us has been inside the studios to watch a taping of a television show called Circus which aired in the early 1980s.  In 1987 Super Dave was given his own show and it also filmed at CTV.

  One of us was also lucky enough to see a taping of the Super Dave show when it moved to its new location at the Markham Theatre.  The show was filmed in Markham, Ontario up until it ended in 1991.  Each week there were specials guest performers along with a Super Dave stunt.  Super Dave would attempt his stunt strapped in with genuine Saskatchewan seal skin bindings but things never worked out as he planned.  We always knew something was going to happen when Super Dave attempted a stunt.  We would have a good laugh.

  If you still need a little more of the Super One while you are in Toronto then you need to visit Super Dave! Convenience at the corner of Coxwell and Gerrard.  It has everything you expect from a convenience store.  Lotto tickets, candy bars, milk, magazines and more.  While you are there you can stand out front and give a big thumbs up with the words Super Dave up above your head.  Higher up still, in comedy heaven, you will find the legendary Super Dave.

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Map of Our World
CTV Toronto , Markham Theatre
CN Tower , Super Dave! Convenience

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Post # 238

Joey Goes Into The Map

Location: London England
Address: Grosvenor Square
Date: Aug 2015
Website: www.marriott.com

  On the television show Friends, the whole gang headed to London, England for Ross and Emily's wedding.  Actually, Rachel and Phoebe stayed back in New York.  Joey is very excited to tour the city, but Chandler not so much.  They are staying at the London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square.

  When they step out the front door of the hotel Joey pulls out his map.  It is a London pop-up map.  Joey tries to determine where in the city they are.  Finally it comes to him.  He places the map on the ground and declares "I'm gonna have to go into the map."

  Joey finds his bearings and carries the map into the street.  Chandler distracts him and he has to step into the map once again.  The green roofed building above is currently a restaurant called Spaghetti House.

   Joey and Chandler take a double decker bus tour and next they end up at Westminster Abbey.  Chandler does not want to be on camera and Joey declares him "Westminster Crabby" before chasing him towards the entrance.

   Next the pair end up beside the Tower of London where Joey buys a Union Jack souvenir hat.  He buys it from souvenir stand run by billionaire businessman Richard Branson.  It makes one wonder how lucrative the souvenir market is in London.  It also makes one wonder how lucrative it is to make an appearance on a season finale of a top rated television show.  Anyway, the hat is the last straw for Chandler and he and Joey head their separate ways.
  Later, back at the hotel Chandler finds out that while he had a horrible time, Joey had the best time.  He ran into Fergie.  Not the Fergie of Black-Eyed Peas, but the original Fergie.  Sarah Ferguson is the Duchess of York and was previously married to Prince Andrew and she recorded a video greeting on Joeys camcorder.
  We have visited all the places Joey and Chandler visit in this episode.  While we didn't have a pop-up map to help us, we always grab the first map we see at the airport or hotel to help guide us through the city while on vacation.

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Map of Our World
London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square , Westminster Abbey , Tower Of London

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Post # 229

Lower Bay Station Filming Location

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  1013 Critchley Lane
Date: May 2018
Website:  transit.toronto.on.ca

  The Toronto Transit Commission runs the subway system in Toronto.  Bay Station is one of the stations along Bloor Street.  Bay Station also has a hidden lower station beneath it which was only used briefly in 1966.  It has become known as Lower Bay and has not seen much action as far as commuters since it was closed.  What it has seen is an increase in movie stars.

  We finally visited Lower Bay during Doors Open Toronto 2018 when the public was allowed inside.  You enter the station from the platform of Bay Station.

  Then you head down a long stairwell to this hidden filming location.  Over a series of posts we will describe some of the movie scenes filmed on the TTC.  We hunted down these movies and actually watched them.  The TTC had posters from some of the movies displayed on the platform.  Also thanks goes out to Transmania Ontario for this video, Transit Toronto for this list, and Reel Toronto for these posts.  We have chosen not to get too detailed on the plot or to express our opinion of the movies. A lot of them despite featuring well known actors are not well known movies for a reason.  You will just have to decide if you want to watch them for yourselves.

Okay, let's see what Hollywood has been doing in Toronto's sub-subway.
 
SUICIDE SQUAD

  Suicide Squad is the highest grossing movie ever filmed in Lower Bay Station.  The movie is part of the DC comics universe and is about a woman who becomes possesed by a witch known as Enchantress.  Enchantress frees her brother who possesses a man.   He goes out onto the Lower Bay platform and takes over several other people.  They all fall onto the tracks and using the third rail for strength he crashes through a subway train.  We couldn't get onto the tracks during Doors Open as two subway trains were parked there for safety reasons.

  The Suicide Squad is assembled from a group of imprisoned criminals to defeat the Enchantress.  Later in the movie, the Suicide Squad wait outside Toronto's Bay Station.  They replaced the exisiting BAY sign with a different Bay St. sign for the movie.

  Deadshot (Will Smith) leans against the tiled wall on the right while Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) sits on the escalator rail on the left.  Special forces colonel Rick Flag, Killer Croc, El Diablo, Captain Boomerang and Katana are all there as well.

   Killer Croc swims into a flooded lower portion of the station and the rest of the crew walk the Lower Bay platform which is covered in remains and black residue from the Enchantress's brother's attack.  It seems they used Lower Bay to pretend it was Upper Bay for the movie.

MAX PAYNE

 

  Max Payne is a movie based on a video game.  Mark Wahlberg is a cop with a dark past obsessed with finding out who killed his wife and child.
 

  He walks along the platform and three twitchy junkies sit on a wooden bench.  They notice his nice shiny watch.  When he enters the men's room they confront him for his watch. He tells them to come and get it.  The washroom gets destroyed. One junkie runs into the tunnel where he is attacked by flying shadows. Mark keeps his watch.

RESIDENT EVIL : RETRIBUTION
 

  You can usually tell a movie is filmed in Lower Bay by its distinctive white pillars with a blue green stripe near the top.   Almost all of the movies we watched did nothing to hide them.  Resident Evil : Retribution is a zombie movie based on a video game and stars Milla Jovovich.  Milla walks along a subway platform with her daughter.  This time Lower Bay station is made up to look like a Russian subway station with large yellow and red pillars.  They encounter Michelle Rodriguez there and Milla gives Michelle a gun to defend herself from the zombie hoardes.  Milla leaves to rescue the rest of her team and after a car chase they all end up back on the subway platform.  They escape by going down into the subway tunnel.  When they climb down from the platform onto the tracks you can see the distinctive Lower Bay pillars.  You can also see the fancy Russian pillars behind them further along the platform. They only dressed part of the station for the movie and figured we wouldn't notice.

  Since Lower Bay is an unused station it also much safer to film there than at a live station.  You can cut all the power when your franchise star (from six Resident Evil movies) gets near the third rail.  Not to mention the film crew.  The photo above shows a list of required equipment for all the crew.


DARKMAN II

    Another movie that filmed somewhere on the TTC was Darkman II.  We started to realize that the posters on display were not all movies filmed at Lower Bay, but somewhere on the TTC system.  We also realized that the Darkman poster they had on display was for the original movie and not the sequel.  The first movie was directed by Sam Rami, filmed in Los Angeles and starred Liam Neeson as Darkman.  The sequel was directed by Bradford May, filmed in Toronto and starred Arnold Vosloo as Darkman.  Liam Neeson has a very particular set of skills so you just can't go and replace him.  Anyway, the only short scene from Darkman II that was filmed on the TTC is when Darkman drives his home-made train car through the tunnels.

  During Doors Open we were able to go into the front subway car and take some photos of the subway tunnels.  Many actors have run into one of the four tunnels at Lower Bay and maybe even the non Liam Neeson Darkman rode his special train car through here too.

UNDERCOVER BROTHER

  There was a poster of Undercover Brother in Lower Bay.  We could not determine where or if this movie ever filmed on the TTC.  Maybe some deleted scenes?  This seems like a good spot to end this blog post as we are going to go and watch Undercover Brother one more time.  We will revisit Lower Bay Station again in another post.

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This location is near Bay subway. Visit other Toronto TTC stations.

Map of Our World
Lower Bay Station

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Post # 224