from here
PEAPACK-GLADSTONE - The cast and crew of television's Guiding Light aren't leaving town yet, even though CBS announced the it no longer will air the longest running show in broadcast history after Sept. 18.
Borough Mayor William Horton said he met with representatives of Guiding Light team Tuesday morning, and was told the show won't be canceling its 2009 lease with the borough to film at municipal locations all over town and to maintain a home base at a borough facility.
"My impression was that they're very hopeful another station will pick up the show," Horton said Tuesday afternoon.
For more than a year and a half, viewers of the show have been treated to shots of the borough's picturesque Liberty Park, with its swans and gazebo, scenes of the police station, library and borough hall, and many views of local establishments such as the Gladstone Tavern.
During that time, the Guiding Light crew had proved to be extraordinarily good neighbors, Horton said.
Horton said he had met some of the actors in the show but, not being a soap-opera fan, he wasn't sure which ones.
Proctor & Gamble, which owns the show, and production agency TeleNext Media Inc. are "actively trying to find other avenues for the show," Guiding Light production manager Kim Armstrong said after the meeting with Horton. She said the show shoots in the borough about once or twice a week.
Some of the locals are among the fans who hope the show will live on at another television address, even after ending its 57-year run on CBS.
"It's kind of neat seeing my town on T.V.," said borough resident Nancy Richiski, pausing from a jog with her dog in Liberty Park last Sunday.
Richiski said she really didn't follow the show's story line, but tuned in some mornings to identify locations in her hometown, whether Dominick's Pizza or the Bailey Funeral Home.
Life in the borough sometimes intersected with life in Springfield.
The Gladstone Tavern is a real restaurant, but it has also served as a restaurant owned by one of the show's characters, said Tom Carlin, owner and chef of the Gladstone Tavern.
Borough Police Chief Greg Skinner said the shooting didn't interfere with traffic or create problems in the borough, even when the crew sometimes borrowed a police car or two and an officer.
Skinner said one of the borough's patrol officers, Robert Keyes, was sometimes hired to assist the crew, and even appeared in a few of the show's scenes.
That led to an encounter between Keyes and an avid fan of the show who was exploring the borough one day, trying to track down some scenes from the soap opera, Skinner said.
The woman spotted Keyes and recognized him from the show, the chief said. She asked Keyes, "Are you a real police officer?" Skinner recalled.
A few weeks ago, someone passed by an outdoors fight scene, and reported the incident to police, Skinner said. Soon afterward, the crew notified police ahead of time when a water rescue was being filmed at Natirar, a county park, Skinner said.
However, a more nonchalant reaction is more typical.
Joe DeFreitas is the owner of Gladpack Sunoco, one of the local businesses with a working arrangement with Guiding Light. Sometimes, he gets a phone call that the crew will be arriving to film at his gas pumps, or behind his station.
Once in a while, his customers will wait in their cars to watch the filming, he said.
Bill Hartland, owner of Cait's Corner Deli, said he had gotten to know the crew as nice people and is hoping another station will pick up the show for their sakes, he said. Guiding Light is also a television icon, he said.
Guiding Light began as a radio show in 1937 and made the move to television in 1952, according to a press release from Guiding Light.
The owners of the deli, gas station and Dominick's pizzeria said they pick up a few bucks being filmed. Horton said the borough receives $7,500 a month for access to multiple municipal locations.
PEAPACK-GLADSTONE - The cast and crew of television's Guiding Light aren't leaving town yet, even though CBS announced the it no longer will air the longest running show in broadcast history after Sept. 18.
Borough Mayor William Horton said he met with representatives of Guiding Light team Tuesday morning, and was told the show won't be canceling its 2009 lease with the borough to film at municipal locations all over town and to maintain a home base at a borough facility.
"My impression was that they're very hopeful another station will pick up the show," Horton said Tuesday afternoon.
For more than a year and a half, viewers of the show have been treated to shots of the borough's picturesque Liberty Park, with its swans and gazebo, scenes of the police station, library and borough hall, and many views of local establishments such as the Gladstone Tavern.
During that time, the Guiding Light crew had proved to be extraordinarily good neighbors, Horton said.
Horton said he had met some of the actors in the show but, not being a soap-opera fan, he wasn't sure which ones.
Proctor & Gamble, which owns the show, and production agency TeleNext Media Inc. are "actively trying to find other avenues for the show," Guiding Light production manager Kim Armstrong said after the meeting with Horton. She said the show shoots in the borough about once or twice a week.
Some of the locals are among the fans who hope the show will live on at another television address, even after ending its 57-year run on CBS.
"It's kind of neat seeing my town on T.V.," said borough resident Nancy Richiski, pausing from a jog with her dog in Liberty Park last Sunday.
Richiski said she really didn't follow the show's story line, but tuned in some mornings to identify locations in her hometown, whether Dominick's Pizza or the Bailey Funeral Home.
Life in the borough sometimes intersected with life in Springfield.
The Gladstone Tavern is a real restaurant, but it has also served as a restaurant owned by one of the show's characters, said Tom Carlin, owner and chef of the Gladstone Tavern.
Borough Police Chief Greg Skinner said the shooting didn't interfere with traffic or create problems in the borough, even when the crew sometimes borrowed a police car or two and an officer.
Skinner said one of the borough's patrol officers, Robert Keyes, was sometimes hired to assist the crew, and even appeared in a few of the show's scenes.
That led to an encounter between Keyes and an avid fan of the show who was exploring the borough one day, trying to track down some scenes from the soap opera, Skinner said.
The woman spotted Keyes and recognized him from the show, the chief said. She asked Keyes, "Are you a real police officer?" Skinner recalled.
A few weeks ago, someone passed by an outdoors fight scene, and reported the incident to police, Skinner said. Soon afterward, the crew notified police ahead of time when a water rescue was being filmed at Natirar, a county park, Skinner said.
However, a more nonchalant reaction is more typical.
Joe DeFreitas is the owner of Gladpack Sunoco, one of the local businesses with a working arrangement with Guiding Light. Sometimes, he gets a phone call that the crew will be arriving to film at his gas pumps, or behind his station.
Once in a while, his customers will wait in their cars to watch the filming, he said.
Bill Hartland, owner of Cait's Corner Deli, said he had gotten to know the crew as nice people and is hoping another station will pick up the show for their sakes, he said. Guiding Light is also a television icon, he said.
Guiding Light began as a radio show in 1937 and made the move to television in 1952, according to a press release from Guiding Light.
The owners of the deli, gas station and Dominick's pizzeria said they pick up a few bucks being filmed. Horton said the borough receives $7,500 a month for access to multiple municipal locations.
Lycan Lover
