Crowds were much thinner then...but significantly increased after the shows aired. Don Richardson, the publicity guy at the time, said that the BH episodes were the best free publicity the city ever got. When you film on location, you generally keep the public back at a distance so they don't interfere. Exterior scenes were shot at the city...interiors on a Hollywood set. That is Chick Allen, the yarb doctor on the medicine wagon. Slim Wilson, a local personality, is in a few shots, too. Pete Herschend is in the scene at the basket shop with Granny and Ellie Mae. The cast and crew stayed at what was then called Rock Lane Lodge on Indian Point. They flew in on a plane and landed at Springfield. All reports I've read or heard about claim the cast was good to work with, and enjoyed visiting the area. The cast members like Donna Douglas and Granny and Jane Hathaway all participated in various publicity shots taken in the park. The most famous shot is one with Granny and Ellie Mae with Shad Heller standing in front of the Ice Cream Parlor/Hotel. Still, some of those scenes did include a few visitors to the park, and they are easy to spot in the medicine wagon scene, the feud on Main St. between Granny and Elverna Bradshaw, the street festival, the basket shop, the candle shop scenes, very easy to point out. There is a difference between the pros and the folks who happened to be on the scene at the time. The city "residents" in costume are in many of the scenes, generally just reacting to what the main cast members are up to. Pointing, smiling, laughing, and so on...just to add a little salt and pepper to a scene. Most of them, in terms of acting skills, rank only a half step in front of the park guests who managed to be part of crowd scenes...but that is ok...the majority of the attention should be on the main cast members, and it was. If you are at SDC this year, pick up the DVD set of BH episodes shot at the park. Then you can watch them anytime you want to!
