Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/619377
decorations. The result has the exact effect I desired: enchanting confectionary to a child, slightly worn and tired, like the society of that time, when closely examined. Another challenge was finding several motels that were authentic to the period and big enough to shoot in—as every designer knows, not an easy task. Every period-appropriate hotel in the environs of Cincinnati was visited—including a few in Kentucky—and in the end, a shut-down motor court, the Hollywood Motel, was chosen for McKinley, and the still active Shaker Inn for the Josephine Motel, where Carol and Therese are caught by Tommy Tucker. For McKinley, an important set where Therese first meets Tommy Tucker (played by Cory Michael Smith), a small front building currently used for storage and living was reconfigured, constructing an office and a two-room breakfast space. The motel room was created out of two rooms (the "presidential suite"). All the rooms were painted and wallpapered in the film's dirty palette mixed with Americana red, white and blue. Heather found some great vintage America-themed wallpapers and fabrics and those were used along with portraits of the McKinley family to give the impression of a period-theme motel. At the Josephine location, Tommy Tucker's room was transformed using a sour green for the walls contrasted with blood red upholstery, and then Carol and Therese's adjoining room was built on stage, allowing more freedom for the exacting choreography needed for their crucial scene. These motels needed to contrast with the Drake Hotel—the centerpiece and end of the journey—the most glamorous hotel in Chicago and very impressive to Therese, a world she has never seen before. The Drake in the film is a composite of locations, all based on research and my visit to the real Drake. The exterior and entrance were filmed at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza where Todd was staying, and the restaurant and bedrooms were in different private clubs in the city. The bedrooms had to be decorated with rich, classic fabrics and furniture that were glamorous to Therese, even in comparison with the dark wood tones and muted pale colors of Carol's house. The final diner, the Spare Time, where Abby takes Therese and hands her Carol's letter, was also chosen to embody the future, the classic Eisenhower era that Therese now enters. The New York Times offices where Therese works are both a visual contrast and a complimentary counterpart to the toy store. A location was found with good bones, including many of the wooden partitions seen in the film. These were augmented with additional construction, extensive paint, flooring, glass and other detail work. The set was extensively dressed, based on research, to capture the hustle and excitement of this new world in the very center of things. In any period piece, streetscapes are enormously fun creatively and visually crucial for setting the tone and era of the story. We scouted the entire city of Cincinnati, and chose several streets that had not yet been gentrified and still had a period feel. Signage was added, awnings, window and street dressing. The fire hydrants were painted