In the 2005 season finale of Fx's "Rescue Me," Firefighter Tommy Gavin is pictured driving along in his pick up with Jesus Christ as a passenger. For Gavin, played by actor/writer Denis Leary, Jc is just one of many visions that come to him from part to episode. assuredly not a scene from the venerable series "Emergency," but an audience pleaser nonetheless. So much so, that Fx has ordered up a 3rd season of the sometimes irreverent, always controversial, "Rescue Me."
Following the huge financial success of Ron Howard's "Backdraft" (7 Million) and "Ladder 49" (0 million), Tv and motion picture producers began flocking to firehouses for more material. The most flourishing genre have been docu-dramas and documentaries, which apply existing footage and re-enactments to interpret interviews with key storytellers.
Hdtv Tv Ratings
Least flourishing have been reality shows like "The Bravest" (2001) and Nbc's short-lived "Firehouse" (2002). Both programs were well done and yield values were highly high. But the pair suffered greatly in the ratings. Why? Take note of the date, 2001. Bravest aired its first part on September 15, 2001, just 4 days after the Wtc disaster. A great many Fdny firefighters who appeared in the show, filmed while the summer of 2001, were either deceased or missing.
Firefighting as Entertainment
Even though Nbc's "Firehouse" aired in one of the hottest slots on network television (replacing Dateline:Nbc at 8pm Fridays) it too suffered from 9/11 backlash. Maybe the programs were too distressing for the general public, evoking the memories and hurt of 9/11. But that was over four years ago, and time has apparently healed those wounds.
Reality/Documentary
"Firehouse Usa, " Discovery Channel's new limited run weekly series, served as the band-aid. Filmed in Boston with the members of motor 37 and Ladder 26, "Firehouse Usa" is not the fire-rescue version of Cops. It is a show with substance, because the antagonist isn't an additional one drug-dealing; wife-beating, drunk -- it's much bigger. It's mother Nature at her worst. The format has been attempted before in 1993-94's "Firefighters," but those producers failed to accom-plish the three most prominent goals of any good documentary -- identify the antagonist, notify and entertain.
"Firehouse Usa" does all three very well. How? The producers use members right off the fireline to serve as storytellers. Who best to spin what it's like to do combat face-to-face with "the beast." Discovery's series tells the story not just of the fiery antagonist, but of the soldiers who ride the rigs to do battle. This ain't no easy task 'cause us jakes aren't noted for our communal speakin' prowess. But amazingly, the producers have somehow discovered a half dozen speak on-the-job firefighters to spin with the audience.
The visual motion of this program is two-tiered, intriguing its down and dirty shooting style and the go for it attitude of the Avid editors. I've learned that when shooting the scene of any fire or disaster, the best material is often found when the camera has just begun to roll -- or the operator is intriguing from one position to another. Nothing goes to waste on "Firehouse Usa" and the editors place these short and sweet gems to good use by helping embellish the longer, more approved shots.
Filming real firefighters, as I have since 1981, is a walk in the park. There's plentifulness of performance wherever you point the lens. But recreating the life of the firefighter isn't a simple task. And so, walking our walk and talking our talk has been a tough sell in Hollywood, as program producers exertion to incorporate solid acting and good yield with technical accuracy.
In 1995, Abc was flourishing in its made-for-Tv-Movie entitled "Philly Heat", based on Pfd's famed motor Co. 50. Veteran actor Peter Boyle gave a convincing execution as a Philly Battalion Chief, and the show would've been a great series and probably a huge success. But Heat was costly to yield -- twice that of a similar Er and Cop dramas, in which the yield team has unblemished control of the environment.
Leary's Formula
So leave it to Denis Leary, firefighting's most illustrated communal advocate, to found the definitive fire-rescue series -- one that assuredly works. In "Rescue Me" -- soon to enter its third season -- Leary's team has taken on the issue of cost by abandoning the former Hollywood grind of using a single motion picture film camera. Instead, the series Dp uses any Hdtv cameras, eliminating raw film costs, processing and and lengthy multi take setups. The crew rockets through each episode, development the turnaround in six shooting days, as compared to the 10 days grind of other weekly series.
Of all the firefighting dramas ever produced, Leary's is most like the real thing. He treats the firehouse for what it is -- a family! Kooky at times, emotionally distraught at others, but always there for one an additional one when they step off the rig to do battle with the beast. Don't expect the pablum of "Ladder-49." Leary and his writing partner Peter Tolan treat the firefighting family with borderline irreverance, much like Fx's "The Badge" or Hbo's "The Wire." "Rescue Me" has humor, friction and an identifiable antagonist, all of which are indispensable for development any flourishing drama. The' yield team has discovered the underground method for firefighting drama.
It's one thing to be brave -- an additional one to be stupid. Without knowing it, Leary and his team, as well as the producers of "Firehouse Usa," have paid firefighters the many tribute by reminding us that life and family are costly and can never be replaced. My hope is that others in our ranks will identify this tip and take its message to heart.
"Rescue Me" returns for its 4th season on Fx Network in June
Firefighting as Entertainment
