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| Our 15 minutes of fame... Behind the Scenes of 'Saturday Night Fever' John Travolta spent a few months in Brooklyn filming the movie 'Saturday Night Fever' during the Spring of 1977. The character he played was a 19-year old guy who lived and worked in Bay Ridge and patronized its discos and diners on the weekends.
Inside 'Six Brothers,' cables, spotlights, cameras and technicians filled the aisles and a makeup artist could be seen fussing over Travolta while he listened attentively to the director's instructions. Some scenes were shot eight times before the director was satisfied, but the young actor (better known to his fans back then as Vinnie Barbarino from the popular TV show 'Welcome Back Kotter') kept adding a fresh approach to each take. During a break, Travolta would sit in the back of the hardware store sipping coffee and rehearsing his lines. A few fortunate fans were allowed on the set and presented the actor with a pad and pen for a quick autograph. John smiled, signed the pad and went back to studying his script. A few feet away, his Mom (who had a brief appearance in the film as a customer) was quietly talking with a few of the store owners' wives about their favorite subject -- their children. At the end of each day, Travolta had to be escorted out the back door due to the frantic fans in front of the Fifth Avenue shop. A black limousine would wait for him on 73rd Street and whisk him off to his hotel in Manhattan. When they finished filming, the six Albergo brothers gathered around John for a few quick photos. "I can't believe you guys are all brothers," he told them. "That's great." Yeah John... we thought so too! © 2008
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