C.P. residents deal with filming in their backyard

BY KATHLEEN QUILLIGAN
Kathleen.Quilligan@nwitimes.com
219.662.5331 | Wednesday, March 26, 2008

CROWN POINT | From Shirley Friend's kitchen, it's impossible to hear the thousands of screaming Johnny Depp fans, but easy to hear the hum of the truck that blocks her driveway, ready to make snow on cue.

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Like many of the city's residents, Friend said she's happy part of "Public Enemies" is being filmed in Crown Point.

After all, the movie's main character, bank robber John Dillinger, played by Depp, became a part of the city's history when he escaped from the Lake County jail in 1934.

While many in the city visited the film's set with the hope of seeing a star or two, Friend and other residents virtually live on the set since their homes are affected by the barricades that stop traffic and hold back the star-gazers.

Friday, the city sent a letter to affected residents, informing them which streets would be closed and when.

"We are asking that no cars be parked on the roadway and that the vehicles that you will be driving be parked at an alternate location," the letter said.

But Friend, a 70-year-old widow who lives with her son, said she couldn't move her car down the block because she uses a walker and her son was not at home.

"I'm here all by myself," she said. "I had a baloney sandwich for my Easter dinner."

The city's letter provided phone numbers for residents to call if they had problems. Friend received a call Tuesday from the city after she complained her driveway had been blocked. Tuesday morning her driveway was clear, but by Tuesday afternoon it was blocked again.

"At least they could get me a photo of Johnny," Friend said.

Across the street, Joan Heidbreder, who has lived in her house for 58 years, said the filming was nothing she couldn't handle.

"We'll just have to put up with it a couple of days," she said. "But the trucks are noisy."

Heidbreder's husband, John, is the president of the Old Sheriff's House Foundation, and the two are hoping the movie could help raise funds to further restore the historic building.

"We've never promoted Dillinger," she said. "He was here for a couple days and that was it. Our interest is in the whole justice system."