5-Feb-13 – From Wacker Drive north to Kinzie Street, Chicago’s great State Street was shut down Tuesday so it could appear in an upcoming episode of Chicago Fire.

The NBC series that premiered on October 10 has filmed throughout Chicago. Last August, it was on Dearborn Street. This time, it was State Street’s turn, as one dramatic scene – rescue of a hapless passenger in a car, a Buick LaSabre with Illinois plates, that had struck a bicycle and a light pole – was staged, rehearsed, and then filmed again and again.

At around 8 a.m., nearby residents started noticing the wrecked car, brought in by forklift and arranged along the east side of State Street, directly across from Marina City. By 9 a.m., cast and crew were getting ready for the first rehearsal. By 10 a.m., with light snow falling in River North, they were filming. (Left) Behind a sign reassuring “this is not a real emergency,” a Buick LaSabre, with hood and roof damage from a fight with a light pole, not to mention the bicycle, sits ready for its big scene just north of the State Street Bridge.

On a street that has seen just about everything, there were no huge crowds of onlookers, surprising some of the crew. At times, it was difficult to tell small groups who were watching a television show being filmed from small groups of extras, improvising expressions of concern over the fake traffic accident. Construction workers at 330 North Wabash continued working. People still got through with minor delays. A sign near the State Street Bridge reminded pedestrians, “stores open for business.”

One group that did have to change its plans for the day were union workers protesting what they called “unfair labor practices” at the parent company of ABM Parking Services. They had intended to picket on State Street, near the parking ramps at Marina City that ABM manages, but they did not know about the filming. They instead picketed on Dearborn Street one block away.

City officials went to lengths to minimize the impact on people who live and work in the area. Rich Moskal, director of the Chicago Film Office, says he spoke “at length” last Tuesday with Donna Leonard, president of the condo association at Marina City, and residential property manager David Gantt, who encouraged him to give residents advance notice.

(Above) Costumes for actors portraying Chicago Fire Department personnel hang in a large garment bag. (Below) An actor gets direction for his portrayal of an accident victim. Standing with her back to the camera is Lauren German, who plays paramedic Leslie Shay.

(Above) Eamonn Walker, who portrays Chief Wallace Boden, discusses the scene. At left, Monica Raymund as Gabriela Dawson and Lauren German. (Below) German and Raymund rehearse the scene in a mist of fake smoke.

(Above) Actors in costume relax between shots on the plaza of 330 North Wabash. (Below) A Chicago police car fills the background during filming on North State Street, which was closed to traffic on Tuesday from about 9 a.m. to 4 p.m..

The show follows the lives of CFD firefighters and paramedics. Of the 23 episodes that NBC has ordered so far, 13 have aired. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the series started the year with a 2.4 rating, its highest yet, on January 2, helping to give NBC 6.9 million viewers that evening. (Right) Extras wait in the background near the State Street entrance to Marina City.