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contemporary materials and furnishings were layered
over that. To the astonishment of many, I wallpapered
the ceiling of some rooms, a fashion of the '40s, and it
looked fantastic.
The set has a long, paneled corridor, a noisy aluminum
storm door in the back, and a warm palette throughout.
This is the place Whitey came every day; he never really
lived anywhere else. He and his brother—himself a
remarkable man, the President of the Massachusetts
Senate—visited, ate meals, played cards with their
mother, and let their guard down in the family home.
The set created a warm, inviting place with the history
and detail of fifty years of family life.
The other big challenge was to find a world for the FBI
that would contrast with the warm and shabby Southie,
and yet was still true to Boston. The question became
whether to be loyal to the FBI office as it actually was
at that time. FBI agents that were in the same squad
as Connolly provided us floor plans and detailed
descriptions of how the actual office was designed
and laid out. It was in a notable building right in
