>>>So.....does anybody know why "night" scenes were not actually filmed at night? Was it the existing technology at the time, and cameras not able to film without floodlights? Was it work rules prohibiting cast and crew from working at night? Was it simply that no one wanted to work at night and just work straight daytime hours so they could go home at night?<<<
Joe, you are correct that night scenes were shot with a darkening filter over the lens to make the scene appear dark without really being dark. There are probably several reasons why, some of which you have mentioned. I don't know if there were specific rules, but there could have been union rules, at least regarding the crew. I'm sure everyone *did* prefer working daytime hours and not extending those into the night. Making a weekly TV show was demanding enough without adding nighttime hours to the work load. I'm sure it was much more difficult to shoot in darkness at that time. Of course, digital didn't exist, and everything was shot on film. Film at that time had much less sensitivity to light than modern films do (yes, film still exists!). I think there's another reason, too. At that time, many movies were being shot on location for greater realism, but that trend only started in the 1950's. I don't think TV producers in the 1960's were striving for that much realism, a s working on a set was much less expensive and the lighting was so much easier to control. TAGS was already one of the more realistic TV shows on at the time because it wasn't shot strictly on a soundstage as most others were. The use of Forty Acres for outside shots is what gives viewers the feel that Mayberry is a real place. Nighttime shooting was likely just too problematic on several levels. At its original airing, few viewers would have even noticed, but we are now so used to realistic shooting that the fake nighttime techniques stand out to us. Thelma Lou (Janet) _______________________________________________ WBMUTBB mailing list WBMUTBB@wbmutbb.com http://www.wbmutbb.com/
