Oooh, a movie star!

Movies and television shows are shot on the streets of New York City nearly every day and most residents take them in stride, barely giving the equipment and workers a second glance. Generally, New Yorkers’ attitude towards the actors and crews who live and work here is that they are simply part of the scenery. Many of those in the entertainment industry say that one of the things they enjoy about Brooklyn is our indifference (whether genuine or feigned) to the stars in our midst.

That’s why I suspect that most of the group that gathered outside the movie trailers parked near the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge were from out of town. At least, I hope so. The overwhelmingly female crowd arrived on Cranberry Street armed with cameras, sunglasses and water bottles and stood for hours in the blazing sun, hoping to catch a glimpse of Robert Pattinson, one of the stars of the film being shot here today.

Some were, to put it mildly, obsessed with Pattinson, the actor who stars in the Twilight films.  One rather average-looking woman confessed to me that she travels the country and follows him around. Scary stuff, I think, but I guess it explains why the set was crawling with security agents and bodyguards. No one can predict when an adoring fan is going to turn into another Mark David Chapman.

Fortunately, despite the flurry of frenzy, the shoot was completed without incident. By the time the sun went down, the equipment was packed up, the actors were spirited away, the sunburnt crowd dispersed and Brooklyn Heights was restored to a quiet neighborhood of tidy brownstones.

Signs were posted to alert the neighborhood

Fans gathered at a trailer on Cranberry Street

They were all equipped with cameras

Some climbed light poles for a better view

They didn’t notice Roger Moore being filmed on the next block

The former 007 was able to work in peace

Robsessed
Twilight The Movie
Mark David Chapman