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The former site of Eastland Mall in North Versailles Township was a movie stand-in for a war-torn scene apparently set in Vietnam.
"They were able to film the portion of the property they were using so that you couldn't see the hills of Pennsylvania," Township Manager Chastity Booker says.
On Monday, the Almanac reported that "Warrior," an upcoming film starring Nick Nolte, had filmed some scenes at Eastland.
According to the Hollywood trade paper Variety, Nolte plays a Vietnam vet and retired steelworker training his sons to compete in a mixed-martial arts tournament.
The Lionsgate production is slated for 2010 release.
Film crews had to receive appropriate permits from the township and its engineer, Don Glenn, Booker says, to erect the temporary set along East Pittsburgh-McKeesport Boulevard for the movie shoot, which took place over the weekend of July 18.
The mall, which opened in 1963 and closed in 2005, was demolished during the winter of 2006-07.
One of the nation's largest shopping center operators, Benderson Development Corp. of Buffalo, N.Y., purchased the property in 1988 from the now-defunct Gimbels Department Store chain.
Located between the residential sections of the township known as Crestas Terrace and Green Valley, the 58-acre site is valued by Allegheny County tax assessors at nearly $860,000 (1, 2).
Benderson once proposed constructing a 200,000-square-foot office-retail complex called "Eastland Centre" on the property, but the company has pulled the plans from its website.
Booker, who became township manager in April, says North Versailles officials continue to hear "various rumors" about the Eastland property, but have yet to receive any concrete development proposals.
How do you say “straight to DVD” in any of the languages spoken in the Mon Valley?
Dan - July 30, 2009
It’s a shame that Eastland was torn down, Dan, because that flea market was the Mon Valley’s go-to place for illegal pirated DVDs.
Webmaster - July 30, 2009
Consider this an International Village preview. My apologies, if I missed anyone’s favorite non-English language.
Slovak – rovnou na DVD
Polish – prosto na DVD
Serbian – равно на ДВД
Hungarian – egyenesen DVD
Croation – ravno na DVD (always best to put someone between the Serbs and the Croats)
German – direkt auf DVD
Italian – dritto a DVD
Greek – κατευθείαν σε DVD
Slovenian – naravnost na DVD
Spanish – directamente a DVD
Dan - July 30, 2009
Anybody else catch the irony of the Eastland being used for a setting of a “war-torn” area?
Bob - July 30, 2009
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