army wives

I love the show, Army Wives. Today, I got to visit their set. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let us take pictures of anything inside, so I only got a few of the outside set of their version of Iraq. They are setting it up for the Mother's Day episode where Joan gets trapped in a sandstorm.

I was surprised that the inside was smaller than I had expected. We got to meet many people who work on the set and find out about their jobs. Of course, I was looking for the stars, and I was not to be disappointed! As we were talking to the guy who makes sure military protocol is followed within the elements of the show, Gen. Holden (Brian McNamara) walked through. Oh my......he is even better looking in person! What a shock, then when we went backstage to watch an episode being taped to see him standing RIGHT NEXT TO THE MONITOR WHERE I WAS!!!!! He talked to us a little, and he is pretty darned funny. Oh, I wanted to sneak a picture so bad. I was afraid they might yell or take my camera or I would have. The director for this episode seemed a little high strung, so goodness knows I didn't want to do anything to make him mad!

The scene that we watched being taped involved Claudia Joy (Kim Delaney) and one of Pam's kids. They taped the scene like 23 times and to my experienced eye LOL, it looked perfect the first time. Not so, said the director, and he had them do it over and over and over. I'm not sure what he was looking for but, miraculously once lunchtime rolled around, he had found it:o)
Kim is even prettier in person. Too bad that she didn't come over and see us, but they all pretty much cleared out once they yelled, "Cut!"

Some of the most interesting jobs were:
1. The set shopper: She goes around and buys all of the stuff that you see on the set including stuff for the houses and anything else that's needed......tarps, fabric, tents, today she was looking for a shopping cart carrel for a scene that they are doing in an empty parking lot.
2. The props guy: His name was Shady! He handles all types of props from water pitchers to Troll doll erasers. He said that if it's something the actors touch, he is in charge. He also said that he has to provide options for the creative team to decide from (Brooke, the set shopper, said the same thing).

A couple of things that the tour guide (who is also the unit manager) said that I found interesting:
1. Extras are local and they are paid $108 a day.
2. They employ about 130 people (not including extras) and all of those people are independent contractors. They basically work until the producer doesn't need or like them anymore. So, you are always looking for your next job.
3. She said that she may have 50-100 W-2s at the end of the year!
4. You have to learn to live below your means because you never know when your next job may be.
5. The best way to get a job is to intern somewhere.

I was so excited the entire time I was there. There was about an hour that we didn't know if we were going to make it because nobody seemed to know where we were going! I was getting frustrated to say the least.

Oh, and while I didn't see her upclose, I am pretty sure that I saw Denise (Catherine Bell) walking across the parking lot. I've seen enough Jag to know how she walks! I couldn't get my camera out and ready fast enough to catch her. I'll post the pictures when I get home. I wish they were more exciting....but the tour more than made up for it!
The episode was between