Managers on site

Your story about “The Italian Job” and the Mini Coopers driving down the subway stairs (“Getting Into a Jam in L.A.,” May 4) was fascinating -- fascinating, not because of the stunt itself but because not once did you mention the location managers and their staff. These are the people that make it possible to pull off this kind of stunt. Sure, a producer or director says, “I want to have cars driving down the stairs.” And, yes, a second assistant director has a great deal of responsibility toward moving the many picture cars through the shot safely and in a coordinated manner. But none of this would be possible without the days of legwork by a staff of location persons. They are the ones on the “front line” doing battle with disgruntled and inconvenienced merchants and residents. The majority of the crew shows up and the street is “magically” taken over. The real magic lies in the countless hours of phone calls, personal visits, permit applications and reviews done by the location department. Hopefully, the next time you run a story about some exciting stunt involving high-profile actors, you’ll “embed” one of your reporters with the many crew members who work, anonymously, in the “trenches.”

Russ Fega

Altadena