A BUCKET LIST ITEM OF A LIFETIME

 Earlier this year Mike Quam had sent out an email about a movie company in need of an early Mustang fastback but it had to be an automatic. I contacted Mike about Cheryl’s 66 coupe since it was an automatic. Mike gave me the contact person’s information. Mark Blane the UPM (unit production manager) requested pictures of the car. Shortly after sending the pictures I received texts from the director, producer, and Mark that everyone loved the car and it was in. They sent over a contract to rent the car and a copy of the insurance policy listing Cheryl’s for protection. We dropped the car off the next Monday morning very early (in the rain) to a U-Haul facility in Waukesha where the first filming with the car was to be done. The movie company sent us a script for the car just like the actors get that details what is to happen that day. We met Mark Blane, the director, and several producers that morning and got a few pictures. Tuesday morning I got a call from Ed (producer) asking if the seat in the car could be moved back any further. He told me that one of the scenes was for Kevin to open the door, sit behind the wheel, and start the car in a cool way. Unfortunately, Kevin could not fit behind the wheel without some work which did not look cool. I had to tell them that the seat was all the way back and I have had issues with my long legs. They ended up taking him already in the car for the shots. We were supposed to pick the car back up Tuesday night at 7pm at the rented factory building that was their production facility in Glendale. We ended up a bit early but found out that Cheryl’s mustang was still on set being filmed. Mark Blane told us that the director and staff loved the car so much after the first day of filming they altered the script to add the car in to many additional scenes. While we were waiting for the car Mark gave us a tour of the sound sets at the site they were working out of. The first set was a full sized Wisconsin DOT office, the second was a hospital room, and the next was the production room with the screenwriters hovering over their laptops for the next day’s shoot. We ended up in the lunch room area talking with some of the actors and actresses when Kevin Spacey walked in with his dog and our car showed back up. The director told us that they must have shot our car from a 1,000 different angles that day. We found out that Kevin Spacy travels with his dog everywhere he goes. The dog was well behaved and will sit by his chair when Kevin is on set. He was filming three different movies at the same time as this one.

 The following week we were not supposed to drop the car back until Friday however I got a call on Thursday that they needed it back right away for a publicity shoot. That event worked out to our favor as the executive producer flew in, saw Cheryl’s car, and she fell in love with it. On Friday Cheryl and I were allowed on set to watch the filming which was to be at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center on the north side. It was interesting watching the filming especially the 61 Lincoln Continental. They needed that car for the writers version of the script and the only one they could find in time was a rusty wreck. It looked good inside and from 2/3’s of the door which was what they needed for the shots. The car did not run and had no brakes. We watched half a dozen times while the staff pushed it forward for the moving shots, then had to run around to the front to stop the car. The director told me that it would look fine after some editing (movie  magic). He also told us that normally sound effects are added in to the movie later however, Cheryl’s mustang sounded so good that they had mic’d up her pipes and every vroom sound will be her mustang. After the last shot with the mustang the director yelled that’s a wrap for the mustang and the entire crew hollered and cheered. The movie is to go to the big screen maybe by Christmas and at the moment it is to be called Road Worthy. Kevin Spacey, F. Murray Abraham, Billy Zane, and Francis Fisher were the A listers in the film but we had noticed many of the others from different films we had seen. Cheryl and I are to be listed in the credits when the movie is released which is super cool. The executive producer who we found out backed the film plus has a huge car collection did buy the mustang and it now resides in Los Angeles. This was beyond all imaging a bucket list item

 Mark and Cheryl Oravetz