Marvelous Malaise on a Medford Street Movie Set

Kamil Kaluski

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The new 2018 Jeep Wrangler, besides being damn awesome, is also a time machine. I just travelled to 1986 while listening to Howard Stern.
Posted by Hooniverse on Wednesday, January 10, 2018

 
I got a text message from my Charlestown friend:

“They are filming a movie on Medford Street, past Jenny’s Pizza. There is a bunch of 80s cars down there. Thought you’d be interested. They’re all parked along the football field”

Oh hell yea! I drove by the place this is what I saw.


The Town, a 2010 Ben Affleck flick was about the Charlestown section of Boston. Specifically, it was about the bank robberies that so many of Charlestown residents were committing. The truth is that if you talk to long-time Charlestown residents, the movie was not as factitious as is it may seem. To many of them it was almost a documentary.
Since then Boston has sort of become the Hollywood of the east, even despite The Teamsters sometimes bullying people around. Movies and shows are being filmed here all the time. These cars were lined-up for the filming of a ShowTime pilot called “The Town on the Hill”, which is a working title, as per the guy who was standing next to the cars and yapping on a walkie-talkie.

All these cars seem to be mid- or late-80s, perhaps very early 1990s because of the Caddy. Judging by the cars alone, a lot can be deciphered about the show. It will obviously be a crime drama (because Charlestown), with lots of corruption (because Boston),  :

  • The Caddy will be driven by some kind of a boss or a gangster who visits the area, because he lives in a Victorian house in Southie.
  • The Caprice is the outlaw’s, perhaps badass hero’s, ride.
  • The Saab or the Volvo 240 is owned by some kind of a lawyer, probably a crooked one.
  • Some hot chick, who will probably whip out her boobies at some point, because ShowTime, will sport around in the Karmann-Ghia.
  • The Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser, a typical middle-class family car for the time, is tough one. It means that kids are involved. Perhaps it’s the wife of the layer who, besides being a housewife, is also drug dealer? It’s a good car to transport illegal stuff in.
  • The white Oldsmobile Eighty Eight is equally tricky because it’s so ordinary. It could an undercover cop/agent car.

The show just writes itself…




 
 
 

About

Kamil Kaluski

Kamil Kaluski

East Coast Editor. Races crappy cars and has an unhealthy obsession with Eastern Bloc cars. Current fleet: 4Runner, Integra, Regal, Lada

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12 responses to “Marvelous Malaise on a Medford Street Movie Set”

  1. P161911 Avatar
    P161911

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/dc3c8f8f463b34fdbcf9978e7090c273cf60d1d514e118a42623f6da20c671be.jpg
    Maliase news vans in Atlanta this summer. It was filling in for San Francisco for a Gary Hart movie. Maybe the cars are just background.

    Reply
  2. Tomsk Avatar
    Tomsk

    Lots of cars that are seldom seen in that part of the country regardless of the time of year.
    A couple notes on the Oldsmobiles: 1) The white FWD sedan is a 98 (The Delta 88 had a more angled backlight and different taillight treatment, but was otherwise the same body, despite being designated an H-body rather than a C-body. Same was true of the contemporary Buick LeSabre and Electra/Park Avenue.), and 2) the “turbine” wheels on the Custom Cruiser still look cool after all these year.

    Reply
    1. Kamil K Avatar
      Kamil K

      Yea, I was suspecting that i may not have that right. It was a confusing time for GM.

      Reply
    2. Vairship Avatar
      Vairship

      Badgeneering at its best!

      Reply
  3. Alff Avatar
    Alff

    The caper is inevitably solved by the always disheveled and seemingly distracted detective wearing a tan trenchcoat. Of course, he drives the older dog-eared Volvo.

    Reply
  4. Batshitbox Avatar
    Batshitbox

    Wrong color plates! And too many plates! No front plate required in the ’80s, and the plates were green on white.
    I suppose they’ll fix that before the cameras roll.

    Reply
    1. Kamil K Avatar
      Kamil K

      Driving home from work I saw the Olds wagon also driving home, perhaps.
      Those were its actual street plates. Which is weird because of all the reasons you mention.

      Reply
  5. Wayward David Avatar
    Wayward David

    I hate to be That Guy, but the phrase “…the movie was not as factious as is it was seem…” kind of distracts from the article…

    Reply
    1. Kamil K Avatar
      Kamil K

      I was rushing… edited.

      Reply
      1. Vairship Avatar
        Vairship

        I loved the invention of the word “factitious” = something one would expect to be fictitious, but turned out to be factual.
        I think it should be added to the Hoonidictionary.

        Reply
  6. neight428 Avatar
    neight428

    On a related note, did anyone else find it remarkable that they found so many pristine late 80’s Oldsmobiles for Fargo?

    Reply
    1. Luxury Lexus Land-yacht Avatar
      Luxury Lexus Land-yacht

      Nah.
      The vehicles we have in salvage yards in the SW are in better condition, body-wise, than the same vehicles when they were 7 years old, up north.

      Reply