Good-Bye, Indy

Our town hosted the filming of the new Indiana Jones picture last week. They just finished yesterday. I guess all they shot were a few stunt scenes in and around the Yale campus, but it was horribly tantalizing for me, who used to dress up in Grandpa's old fedora and call myself Dakota Johnson. Also, John Williams was my favorite composer for a good five years, chiefly on the basis of the Indiana Jones theme. And most tellingly, my own dad still calls me "the Kid," because I once told him I envied Short Round's relationship with father-figure Dr. Jones in Temple of Doom. I decided I should steer clear of shooting when, on the way to the bank one afternoon, I spotted a lady carrying a binder reading CONTINUITY and felt my heart beat faster. Star-struck by the script girl: not a good sign. Any glimpses of Mr. Ford himself and I'd melt faster than those Ark-jacking Nazis. Or maybe I just didn't want to admit to myself or my friends how very much I wanted to join those crowds on the other side of the police tape, craning their necks for a glimpse of Han Solo in the flesh. Boyfriend JoJo, who manages the local bookshop, did have his own brush with fame when a production assistant came into the shop looking for a tome to use as a prop in the movie. No, literally, like, "Hi, do you have any tomes?" Unfortunately, they were fresh out of tomes. There will be no thank-you to Labyrinth Books in the end credits of Indiana Jones and BTW Your Boyhood Heroes Are All Old. But rather than dwell on missed opportunities, I'll look on the bright side of sharing my town with a major Hollywood production--through some of my fabulous new connections in the entertainment industry, I can share with my loyal readers just a sneak peek at some of the thrilling stunt sequences filmed here in New Haven. I must emphasize that this footage is very rough and does not represent what the final, edited film will look like after production and post-production are completed, but I think you'll agree it's still pretty exciting.