Mistakes on IMDB.com. ReallyHere is something I wrote yesterday just for the heck of it. Did not plan to post it but what the heck.IMDB.com was wrong ! How do I know? Because I was there and in a position of responsibility and “they were not”. Here: is what I wrote ( sort of tongue in cheek, but it still points out a flaw in IMDB information gathering protocol - and it would not be THAT hard to fix- in my opinion - since listing staff and crew on any project automatically gives them a fact verification contact list!) The Internet Movie Database Wrong!Wow! Is that possible?Aren’t they the repository of all things about the movie business?! The “go to” authority when it comes to film and television production? And who am I anyway to challenge their authority in THEIR area of expertise?Still - I DO know that in just this one case —that IMDB.com is wrong because I was there —working on the episode of the TV series in question— and even nearly in a position of authority as THE first assistant director and – you know - there are not too many things I can say that about.BEING AN AUTHORITY on something I MEAN.So it irks me just a little bit that they can act so all knowing and – well – just be wrong.But enough of the rant. What I am talking about —.What this involves is a short-lived MGM cop show filmed in Chicago called “Lady Blue” and a post in THE Internet Movie Database where “someone” asserts in the review that an episode was shot at the notorious Cabrini Green Housing Project. This would have been back in 1985. But it wasn’t. It was not filmed at Cabrini Green.In all fairness, it is an easy conclusion to jump to, especially if one was not familiar with Cabrini and how it looked when it was still around. Especially when compared to Chicago’s other many other housing projects.In fact, whoever wrote this may have actually had a copy of the script. But NO other information like, say, a call sheet or a production report. That’s for sure.We did NOT, however, film at Cabrini.Why?Because the Chicago Police Department deemed it too dangerous a place for us to work!!They told us that, because there were multiple gangs at Cabrini Green, gangs that from time to time got into shootouts with each other, that they were afraid that one of these gang skirmishes would break out between gangs and WE would be caught in the crossfire!I kid you not!! THAT was the big concern and they were likely right! Whose to argue with Chicago’s finest when it comes to something they had to live with every day!And if you lived in Chicago then, you likely know that it actually was a real concern because you would remember those old box cars that were parked on the railroad tracks between Cabrini Green and Chicago’s elite Lincoln Park neighborhood. I recall being told, anyway, that they were there to block stray bullets from finding their way into Lincoln Park.Which raises lots of questions doesn’t it: like “what about the directions on the compass which weren’t as well healed as Lincoln Park” or “why was such a housing project built there in the first place?!”But I am sure those issues have been discussed many many times in the past and so you can google them yourself if you wish. Likely whatever you find online will also tell you why Cabrini Green is no more.So anyway - the Chicago Film Office moved us to another place – another housing project - called Hilliard Heights or Towers or something like that – which was down near Wentworth Street and Chicago’s older more traditional looking Chinatown – the one where our contact was a character named Wilson Moy- which is a whole different story entirely! But Hilliard “whatever it was called then” was different than the other projects - including the nearby Robert Taylor homes because – and again we were told this – because it had just one gang! Therefore no crossfire! So that’s where this episode But we still had to be out of there by 5 p.m. because – as it was explained to me anyway – the gang guys would likely sleep most of the days – leaving the place to mostly women and children during the day – but after 5 p.m. all hell COULD break loose and – well — you just can’t make this stuff up!Hilliard Towers – I looked it up – is still there now it seems. And it had been “rehabbed” and is now positioned online as an “affordable” place for seniors to live.Sure.All I remember is it’s roundish silhouette against the skyline and that it’s elevators smelled like an old latrine because- well – they sort of were!So IMDB got it wrong because whoever wrote that piece was not actually there. But I doubt that anyone cares enough at IMDB to make a change -,really- and I don’t care enough to fight them either. So I guess this tiny error will just stay as it is – the facts aside.As they say now: “my bad”!But so is IMDb.com for not challenging random entries or doing a better job of drawing in better qualified sources!Selah Skip Note: This conversation was created from a reply on: Misrepresentation and speculation in the FAQ.



