Rita鈥檚 Diner went up in smoke in Cloverdale Aug. 10.
The made-for-TV diner was burnt down as cameras and a large swathe of film fans watched and recorded the experience.
鈥淭hey finally torched the building after a long day of shooting,鈥� said Paul Orazietti, the executive director of the Cloverdale BIA, and self-described film aficionado. 鈥淭hey set off these propane cannons at about 8 o鈥檆lock. People loved it. After waiting all day, I think everyone was very impressed.鈥�
Rita鈥檚 was constructed, over the course of a week for the set of 鈥檚 new TV series Rita鈥檚 was built in the parking lot at the corner of 176A Street and 58A Avenue.
鈥淭hey started filming early,鈥� said Orazietti. 鈥淭hey had a protest out front, then a reporter came on the scene, and basically, I gather, the place ends up getting torched.鈥�
Orazietti said he enjoyed bonding with fellow 鈥渟how-watchers鈥� while waiting for the blaze to begin.
鈥淭here were so many people filming with their phones. God knows how many videos are out there.鈥�
Big time action for
鈥� Paul Orazietti (@Paradeguy)
Orazietti said 鈥淎laska Daily鈥� was in town for a one-day shoot at three different locations: downtown cloverdale for the diner scene, and two scenes at two different residences around town.
Swank did not appear in the fire scene and it is unknown if she was in Cloverdale or not.
鈥淪he was rumoured to be here, but I didn鈥檛 see her,鈥� he said. 鈥淯nfortunately, there wasn鈥檛 a consensus on whether she was in town or not. One group said she was, another group said she wasn鈥檛, a few of the people that were escorting actors around did say she was in town earlier in the day. So I can鈥檛 say for sure.鈥�
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Orazietti said while it was a long day of filming, most people loved it. He said there was also an expectant energy among the 鈥渟how-watchers鈥� as everyone knew the day would end with the diner blaze.
鈥淪ometimes people can get ornery if they鈥檙e sitting around for three, four, five hours waiting for something to happen,鈥� he explained. 鈥淏ecause no one comes along and gives you the definitive word about when they鈥檒l be rolling cameras or what exactly is happening, 鈥榃e鈥檒l be doing this at such-and-such a time.鈥� But they鈥檙e loving it. Once the diner started burning, it was overwhelming. It can be a religious experience.鈥�
Orazietti said two other productions may hit Cloverdale before the summer鈥檚 out: 鈥淐ruel Summer 2鈥� and an as-yet unnamed Hallmark Christmas movie.
鈥淎laska Daily鈥� is set to premier Oct. 6 on ABC.
editor@cloverdalereporter.com
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