[SailCT]

Originally Posted by JayCT

Yes, both of the Stepford Wives movies were filmed in Fairfield County.

Hollywood has long used Connecticut for stories that mostly involve affluent people. A number have been mentioned already but among others are:

- Who's the Boss? (Tony Danza, Judith Light tv show)
- Soap (Billy Crystal tv show)
- Bewitched (Elizabeth Montgomery tv show)
- I Love Lucy (classic Lucille Ball tv show)
- Judging Amy (Amy Breneman tv show)
- Bringing Up Baby (Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant movie)
- Sneaky Pete (current Giovanni Rabesi tv show)
- Mystic Pizza (Julia Roberts movie)
- Holiday Inn (Bing Crosby movie)
- Auntie Mame (Lucille Ball movie)
- The Women (Meg Ryan movie)

Here are links to more complete lists of tv shows and movies. Some I knew, some I did not know at all and some I knew but did not realize they were set here. Jay

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catego...in_Connecticut

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catego...in_Connecticut

What about Mystic River?

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by SailCT

What about Mystic River?

That was based in Boston where there is also a river named Mystic River. Jay

[ryanthegoldengod]

Originally Posted by JayCT

That was based in Boston where there is also a river named Mystic River. Jay

And this reminds me that CT is not the only area Hollywood paints with a broad brush. Anything set in Boston is usually going to feature hard nosed, salt of the earth, blue collar folks. And that's hardly a complete picture of Boston--especially in the 21st century.

California means surfer dudes, valley girls, and tech nerds--yet much of California is actually pretty rural and/or conservative.

The south? Rednecks, devout Christians, maybe not the brightest bulbs. Never mind that the south produced William Faulkner, Ted Turner, Oprah, and Stephen Colbert.

But storytelling involves a certain amount of filtering and distilling of reality.

[NewJeffCT]

at least Mystic Pizza did portray an area outside of Fairfield County and did have the difference in classes between "blue collar" Julia Roberts and her wealthy boyfriend. And, that is kind of like Mystic/Stonington even today - a wealthy upper class and a good amount of blue collar types.

Of course, I don't think I've seen the movie since it was in theaters

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by ryanthegoldengod

And this reminds me that CT is not the only area Hollywood paints with a broad brush. Anything set in Boston is usually going to feature hard nosed, salt of the earth, blue collar folks. And that's hardly a complete picture of Boston--especially in the 21st century.

California means surfer dudes, valley girls, and tech nerds--yet much of California is actually pretty rural and/or conservative.

The south? Rednecks, devout Christians, maybe not the brightest bulbs. Never mind that the south produced William Faulkner, Ted Turner, Oprah, and Stephen Colbert.

But storytelling involves a certain amount of filtering and distilling of reality.

You’re so right about California. Outside the major cities, it’s incredibly conservative - even the suburban areas. Orange County and San Bernardino are deep red areas within the LA metro. The rural areas are, believe it or not, no different than rural Georgia, socially.

[ryanthegoldengod]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

You’re so right about California. Outside the major cities, it’s incredibly conservative - even the suburban areas. Orange County and San Bernardino are deep red areas within the LA metro. The rural areas are, believe it or not, no different than rural Georgia, socially.

Yeah that's something I only learned recently. People forget what a huge state it is. And large portions outside of the coastal cities seem to skew to the right.

[Stepfordct]

The show "Billions" takes place in Westport.

[Mike 75]

Stanley and Iris, starring Robert DeNiro and Jane Fonda. Takes place in Waterbury. I remember a lot of "I Ain't Fonda Hanoi Jane" bumper stickers when they were shooting it in the late 80's.

And Jacknife, which also stars DeNiro and Ed Harris. Pretty sure its set in Meriden.

[MikefromCT]

The Ice Storm is probably one of the best films as far as use of authentic Connecticut locations. It's a film one watches more to admire for the story itself than for entertainment value, and it ends on a very sad note, but I love the film. It was filmed in both Greenwich and New Canaan.


I actually learned in speaking with a neighbor who lives in my building that there was a movie filmed in my complex when they were still apartments before they converted to condos back in the late '70s. Which I thought was really cool. Also, actor Andrew McCarthy lived in my building back in the '90s for a brief period when he was performing in an off-Broadway play in Hartford. One of the women in my condo association got to meet him when she lived there at the same time as he did and said he was really nice in person.

[MikefromCT]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

You’re so right about California. Outside the major cities, it’s incredibly conservative - even the suburban areas. Orange County and San Bernardino are deep red areas within the LA metro. The rural areas are, believe it or not, no different than rural Georgia, socially.

Orange County is definitely conservative, but not as much as it used to be. As the racial and economic demographics have shifted somewhat, the political landscape has changed as well. There's definitely some major Republican strongholds, but in other areas Democrats (usually the more conservative-leaning "blue dog Democrats" like Loretta Sanchez) have made inroads. Believe it or not, Orange County actually carried a Democrat in the 2016 election for the first time since The Great Depression. Riverside County is similar in that it leans Republican but in more recent federal elections, this hasn't been the case.


IMO, the true conservative parts of Cali are in places like Kern County which, like most of the other conservative strongholds of the state, cover a large area geographically but are more sparsely populated. These areas have cities, too, but they're all a fraction of the population of the major metro areas of the state.


I feel like California is emblematic of what's happening nationwide in terms of city vs. country, and how it concurs with political leanings: the cities and their inner suburbs that border them are becoming increasingly Democratic, the exurbs and rural areas are becoming Republican strongholds. Not always, but that seems that's the prevailing pattern.