![]() Ironically, the Sand Point space in Hangar 27 was needed to create a replica of the observation deck of the Empire State Building. On the other hand, Foster thought a house on Queen Anne Hill suggested Baltimore enough to stand in for the Baltimore home of Ryan's parents. I can see the difference between an American and a Canadian city, and Vancouver doesn't feel American." It's not as bohemian, not as diverse as Seattle. "I'm going to get in trouble with the Canadians for saying this, but it feels like any city. Miller" 20 years ago, preferred not to use it. But Foster, who spent some time in Vancouver while his producer-father, David Foster, was working on "McCabe and Mrs. Vancouver, which stood in for Seattle in "Stakeout" and several other films, was briefly considered. Seattle moviegoers also will recognize Alki Beach, the Fremont Bridge, SeaTac airport, the Dahlia Lounge, Gove's Cove on Westlake Avenue. Several scenes were shot at the Sorrento Hotel as well. Among the locations that give the movie its authentic Seattle look is, of course, the Pike Place Market: the Athenian Inn, the Inn at the Market, and several First Avenue shops. There's nothing generic about living on a houseboat, as the Tom Hanks character does. `Sleepless in Generic' is not what it's about." That is, until we got closer to the city, and it became very clear that Seattle was an important location. I don't think Jeff had ever been to Seattle, so at first it was more about the title than it was about the city. ![]() "The story was always about two people living on opposite sides of the country who come together. "Nora directed it almost exactly as I wanted it. "As soon as Nora's draft of the script got out, the phones wouldn't stop ringing," said Foster, adding that Julia Roberts and Sharon Stone were interested in Ryan's role. She brought to it an edge, and a concern with social issues that wasn't in it before." Castle went on to direct "Dennis the Menace," which also goes into national release Friday. The original director, Nick Castle, bowed out because "he didn't feel comfortable with the direction Nora took it in. ," Ephron ended up directing the film as well. Nominated for screenplay Oscars for "Silkwood" and "When Harry Met Sally. According to Foster, she de-emphasized the story's sentiment, and almost all the dialogue is hers. Ward, who won an Academy Award for "The Sting," did a rewrite, then Ephron got involved. ![]() The project began several years ago as an original screenplay by Jeff Arch. She also gets some big laughs wherever the picture's been shown." We asked her to audition and she turned out to be so natural, so real, that she got the part. ![]() Nora was looking for someone like Shelley Duvall for one role, and we were at the Gravity Bar when we saw this waitress, Amanda Maher, who had that quality. "There's a nice pool of talent in Seattle. If the crew is already there, it keeps costs down. It costs money to import labor, to put the crew up, to pay their air fare. "The other consideration is the labor pool. "Seattle has the potential to be a full-service town, and I think it wants to be," Foster added. Almost $4 million of that budget stayed here: $1.3 million went to Seattle labor, $1 million for hotels and meals, and about $450,000 to local vendors. The $25 million romantic comedy, which stars Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, goes into national release Friday. Without permission to shoot at Sand Point, we couldn't afford to spend much time in Seattle. "But when we were looking for locations, we couldn't find a warehouse large enough for one set. "It was always set in Seattle," said the movie's producer, Gary Foster, speaking by phone from Los Angeles. If not for Sand Point Naval Base, writer-director Nora Ephron's "Sleepless in Seattle" would not have spent most of last summer here. When Nora Ephron's film crew came to town, they found what they were looking for and ended up staying for most of last summer making the Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan romantic comedy.
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