Film Shoots

There was a time when a great many Hollywood films were done in Toronto. Eastern Avenue in that city has blocks of huge buildings that look like warehouses but   are actually gigantic film studios. When our Canadian dollar was significantly less than the American buck, Canada and especially Toronto was the place to shoot.  At that time there were many opportunities to get in on this type of work that is, if you knew the agent that did the hiring.

Being a musician I could be called for a lot of film shoots that required a band or orchestra for a particular scene. Our hiring status was a step above an extra's. We were considered "Special Services" actors.

You were paid a higher fee because you played an instrument.  You were also paid for the use of that instrument and in some cases they gave you a fee for the Tuxedo. The governing Union body (A.C.T.R.A) that oversees this type of employment has many benefits that are quite progressive.  However, to be fair the working conditions are enormously different than a regular music job.

After 8 hours of employment the scale goes up and after 12 hours it is doubled.  Then after the first 6 hours the cast and crew have to be fed. Meal times are strictly observed or you receive compensation and the filming company is penalized.

I have to say that his type of employment isn't for everyone as there is a lot of time spent just hanging around waiting to be called "on camera." Let me tell you. You drink a lot of coffee or sit around for hours doing crossword puzzles.

The agent that would hire you expected a complete commitment to the scheduling as subbing out was completely out of the question.  This stipulation is understandable, as a film sequence in which you are in can't have other faces replacing you.  They call it "continuity."  I've always enjoyed doing these jobs and got to work with many big names as Sylvester Stalone, David Carradine, Angie Dickenson, Antonio Banderas, Robin Williams, Danny Devito and many others.

You weren't expected to play but most of the time you did. This helped make the scene believable.   When there were strings in the orchestra you could count on having music, as it would be impossible for the violin section to bow together without actually playing something written. Other times you would just mime to a sound track that is piped in for you to hear.

One day I got a call from a trumpet player Herbie Spanier. Herbie had a reputation for being a real character.  He really did march to a different drummer in everything he did. It's difficult to say whether he was a good trumpet player as his playing was so "off the wall" and creative that there were only limited uses for his type of playing.

He wasn't considered suitable for many of the traditional dance bands that were doing a lot of weekend work. However, I have heard some recordings by the National Film Board of Canada and on these occasions, Herbie is absolutely brilliant. He is as far out as you can imagine but in my estimation his creative playing is completely appropriate.

Herbie had heard that I had done a number of films and owned a lot of costumes and equipment that could be used in film shoots.

He had just landed a job on a film and he needed to borrow a violin for a scene requiring him to go from table to table as an entertainer. (He didn't play violin but in this case that didn't matter.)  Well, it so happens that I had a fiddle that I got from a school. The school had a fire in the music room but this violin somehow survived.  It was slightly charred and the strings were missing. I replaced the strings and the violin ended up as a pleasing ornament on my wall.

I heard that Herbie needed the work so I loaned him the violin with his promise that he would return it after the film shoot in a week or so. Well, a week became a month and so on and then it became six months. To be honest with you, if I had never gotten the violin back from Herbie I was out a whole five bucks. It was not a big deal.

I decided to have some fun with Herbie and I concocted an invoice with very official looking letterhead that I mailed to him.   The Invoice more or less stated....Rental of Stradivarius violin for professional use (not returned) $10,000 dollars.

In a few days, here is Herbie knocking on my door around six a.m. looking haggard and somewhat frightened returning my violin. Poor guy. I think he thought the invoice was a valid legal document.  

Herbie Spanier was one of a kind.

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