Shreveport, Louisiana: Now Known as "Little Hollywood?"
Filed under: Fandom, DIY/Filmmaking
When you talk to someone about Shreveport, Louisiana, usually the first thing to come up are the city's casinos. The airport is rather small, and getting a taxi is no small task. There's not much in Shreveport; as I sat in my taxi on my way to the Hilton hotel for an eventual set visit, the driver pointed out landmarks like the Waffle House, the Cancer Center, and "the place where they hold the county fair." He spoke with a thick Cajun accent, and, somehow, immediately knew that I was there for a film -- even though the only info he had was that I came from New York. How would he know this? I don't look like I belong in film. I don't sit and type feverishly on a blackberry, and I don't wear dark glasses. But he knew. Somehow.
Upon arriving at the hotel, things became a tad clearer. Not far from me, mingling among a few other folks, was director Oliver Stone. Wha? Oliver Stone is hanging out in Shreveport? (A bunch of us assumed he was prepping for that George Bush flick, but nothing was confirmed.) A few minutes after spotting Stone, Harold Ramis walked through. Hmmm. What's going on here? Later that night while having dinner at the one good steakhouse in Shreveport, sandwiched between trailer parks and new housing developments, we spotted the cast of The Year One -- Michael Cera, David Cross, Juno Temple, among others. Then, a few minutes after seeing them, Bob Weinstein walked in for a meal. Wha? Now Bob Weinstein is in Shreveport!? I swear my head was spinning -- what in the world was going on in little Shreveport, Louisiana?
Surely, they weren't all here for the Waffle House?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-06-2008 @ 3:15PM
Joshua said...
And???..... Really that’s all of this post we get? Surely you did some digging wow it’s like the whole second half of this post is missing. How about some closure on this... i will continue...
Surely they weren't there for the waffle house? So I asked my waiter if he knew why there were so many famous people in town at this given time. he responded by saying that All of these well known Hollywood types are actually part of a secret society that chooses one small out of the way city in the united states and boosts their economy for one week they usually purchase condemned houses and eat the best restaurants then they head to the local Wal-Mart and buy all the yarn in their sewing department and knit sweaters for the kittens in their local animal shelters.
I was flabbergasted by this news and wondered to myself who else is involved with this secret society?
Sound off with who you think is a Secret member behind the scenes of hollywood.
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3-06-2008 @ 3:19PM
Erik Davis said...
Ha -- I could've continued and wrote another two paragraphs on the tax breaks (which is why they're all there), but I figured that'd be too boring. It does, however, sort of feel unfinished and I'm sorry for that.
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3-06-2008 @ 7:17PM
Joel said...
I'm from Northern Louisiana and I can say that there are several films filmed in Shreveport, Louisiana. There are always some people I know that go to casting calls to be extras.
Oh, and I found it interesting that the taxi driver had a Cajun accent. That's very rare in North Louisiana, as most people with Cajun accent are in South Louisiana.
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3-07-2008 @ 11:12AM
Matt Weeks said...
I live in Shreveport Louisiana and trust me i asked myself this very same question every day. They are here for the tax break. I've seen and met half of the people you are talking about in the best buy next to my apartment. It's pretty crazy to all of us around here. On another note, there is no such thing as a county fair anywhere in Louisiana due to the fact we have parishes. The place he was talking about was the place where they hold the State Fair.
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