I got off the bus when I saw these two vehicles.

I got off the bus to take these photos. Since "Leverage" and "Grimm" and "Portlandia" are all filmed in Portland, I naturally wondered what might be happening near these vehicles. Well, I couldn't find anything outside, so I gave up and walked to the nearest bus stop on East Burnside so that I could continue my homeward commute.

At work I mentioned doing this to someone who wondered if I had come near to finding the supposed shooting of the latest version of MTV's Real World. I wonder. And I doubt I'll ever know.

Shooting "Leverage" at the Schnitz, downtown

Could you be this laid back high above busy SW Broadway in downtown Portland?


See what I mean by high above Broadway? He's waiting until his next move, ensconced on a crane in front of the building where I've been to see Hal Holbrook as Mark Twain, the Beatles tribute band 1964, and Sting. Here's a bit about the building:
The beautifully restored Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall opened in 1984, and was originally the Portland Public Theatre, built in 1928. The Italian Rococo Revival architecture was said to be the national showcase of Rapp & Rapp, renowned Chicago theatre architects. Visitors are greeted by a 65 foot high “Portland” sign above the Broadway Marquee, which contains approximately 6,000 theatrical lights. You can read more from Wikipedia about the Schnitz at the link in the caption below.


These two lights are trained on the lobby of the venerable building, what many consider to be the anchor of the Portland Center for the Performing Arts, the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. The Portland sign has 5 foot tall neon letters.

"Leverage," seen on TNT, has filmed all around downtown for its second and third seasons. All I've ever managed to see are equipment trucks, cast trailers, and lights on cranes. I've never been to Boston, but Portland is standing in for Boston on this series.

"Leverage," at City Hall, Downtown Portland, May 27, 2009

Please scroll down to see today's dahlia, Cynthia Louise, from Swan Island Dahlias.

I haven't been in the right place at the right time to get any actual people who are in TNT's "Leverage," but I like these shots anyway. One day when Mama and I were in Lamont's station wagon, driving west on NW Glisan, he did see Timothy Hutton standing on the sidewalk, waiting to cross the street. Not having a rear view mirror connected to the passenger seat, I missed him! I tell you, my brain's going--I can't remember why we were in Lamont's car, but I can remember that I missed seeing my first ever live Academy Award winner. Not that I've seen any dead ones, didn't mean to make it sound like I had.

Outside City Hall on SW 5th Avenue. Notice the feet and legs on the right of the photo? There was a guard on duty.


Outside City Hall on SW 4th Avenue. The entrance is through this rounded portico.

City Hall is a four-story Italian Renaissance-style building, completed in 1895. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 21, 1974. City Hall has gone through several renovations, with the most recent overhaul gutting the interior to upgrade it to modern seismic and safety standards. The original was built for $600,000, while the 1996 to 1998 renovation cost $29 million.

Dahlia, Cynthia Louise. Facts from Swan Island Dahlias--Bloom: 10" Soft Yellow, Bush: 4'