Okay, in the books, The Humphreys live on the Upper West Side. Is that a good area of town?

Yep! If I recall they lived on Riverside Drive, which is really as nice as many places on the East Side. It just illustrates a more 'creative' type of family than the old-money fifth avenue-dwellers that the other characters represent.

But the West Side rocks. I lived there for a while, it has Zabar's and Central Park West is far superior to Fifth Avenue. Personal preference, I suppose.

Thanks, fashionista. I was curious because in the books, the Humphreys don't have as much money as the other kids' famillies. However, their apartment seemed big.

That's because it's TV land, on TV land every thing seems bigger.

Why did I think this took place on the Upper East Side? Are they filming in NYC?

My dad lived across the street from Lenox Hill Hospital when I was in high school (I lived in a small town in WI during the school year) and the UES and village were my stomping grounds. I always wanted to go to high school in the city...


*cough*

I read they are filming in NYC, but I think most of places where they can get away with not filming in Manhattan will be in Queens. I didn't even know Silvercup Studios was still in operation - I pass by it on my drive between Manhattan and Queens all the time.

The show does take place on the Upper East Side. The majority of the families on the show, with the exception of the Humphries, live on the Upper East Side.

Like fashionista said, the Upper West Side is more artsy/intellectual latte liberal Volvo (but still rich) whereas the Upper East Side is more snobby ladies-who-lunch conservative rich. Both sides of the park (the two neighborhoods are separated by Central Park) look down on each other. (But seriously, the East Side sucks.)

Hey there! I live on the UES (and true to stereotype, I work on Wall Street). Seriously though I've lived on the UWS too and like it better. It's probably less expensive to live on Riverside Drive than 5th Avenue but I think Central Park West is as expensive if not more so than 5th for some buildings. Oh, and we have bald eagles on my side of the park.

I get that Brooklyn now conveys artsy/intellectual but it is still expensive and getting less artsy each year as the rent prices rise.

This is a great topic by the way. One of my main reasons for watching GG is to see the fantasy version of NYC. So much more fun than my real life version.

The show shoots all over the city, and Josh and Stephenie seem to take great pride in the fact that the city itself is a character.
In upcoming episodes you will see a great deal of places all around the city, not the least of which is the Palace Hotel.

Also have heard from those that have seen the next few episodes that it is terrific - leaves the pilot in the dust as it gets into the
characters and their individual lives and motivation.

Should be a great ride.

Me too - I used to live on the UES (3 yrs) and worked on Wall Street. I don't live in NYC anymore, but I miss it. I'm definitely going to be watching Gossip Girl and looking out for familiar places in the city.

About two or three weeks ago I passed some of those "no parking today due to filming" signs for Gossip Girl. This was on Park Avenue either b/w 53rd & 54th, or b/w 54th & 55th. I'm pretty sure it was b/w 53rd & 54th.

I have never been to Bendel's, is that sad? Where is it? The interior actually looked like Bloomingdale's in Los Angeles to me. Yeah, I'm an LA transplant living in Brooklyn.

Bendel's is on 5th ave @ 56th st. And it's the happiest place on earth. Not the most expensive by any stretch - that's more Bergdorff's - but elegant and more manageably sized. A large mansion with 5 floors of great, some unique designers, lots of cute dresses (that part was very realistic even if it was paid for product placement) and a fantastic cosmetics and beauty section. I'm a fan!

I was laughing at the cushy-looking train Serena rode in on at the beginning -- no way was that a real Metro North train.

The train actually was a real metro north. I think you may be getting it confused with the LIRR, which save fpr the nmew trains gets the crappy metro north reject trains.

New York is one of my favorite cities to visit (I would love to do an extended stay and more of a sense of what it's like to live there). UWS is still very, very nice. Columbia U. is just up the street from there. I'm surprised a family like the Humphreys don't live in an artier area like TriBeCa, SoHo or Greenwich Village.

In late July the crew was filming in front of St. Patrick's. It was Blair out on Fifth Avenue in front of St. Pat's and looking down Fifth Ave with a serious look on her face. The extras were dressed up in Fall going-to-church clothes.

This show and location demands that I link this site: http://www.nysocialdiary.com
These are the real life Eleanor Waldorfs, Lily Van der Woodsens and their offspring.

I'm pretty sure the wedding scene (where Serena and Nate had sex) was Campbell Apartment, but where was the Kiss on the Lips Party? At first I thought it was 632 Hudson (the former Real World house), but not totally sure.

That was indeed the Campbell Apartment. I don't know where the KOTL party was, though.

I think the Humphreys are supposed to live in Brooklyn on the show, right? The Upper West Side locale was in the books (which I haven't read). Anyway, I get the sense that even the Humphreys aren't genuinely middle-class in the flyover-country sense. Rufus seems like the kind of semifamous rocker/artist who "only" makes $150,000 a year or so (like Chris Robinson from the Black Crowes, as emerged during his divorce proceedings). There's nothing truly inexpensive to be had in Brooklyn anymore unless you go way out or live somewhere actually dangerous.

Looking forward to checking out more of the locations, if I do keep watching the show. I grew up in the city and went to high school on the Upper East Side, though I wasn't quite part of the rarified scene depicted here.

Don't forget that he has royalties to live off of and I assume he bought his apartment/ loft back in the early 90s when he had money and those places were comparatively cheap. ( I know a woman who has a loft in the outskirts of Tribeca/Soho which she purchased for $250,000 in 1993 and now is worth 2-4 million dollars)

I need a time machine

Serena's cute stripey-seated train might have been a Metro North train for another line (Harlem or Hudson) but it's not a New Haven Line train, and that's the only line she could have been taking back from Connecticut. The New Haven Line is the only line that hasn't gotten any swanky new trains in ages, which means that the trains today look exactly the same as they have for ages -- with the same red and blue seats on the trains in "The Ice Storm," for example.

I think Serena's seat was specially made. The New Haven line trains are from the 1970s (since the trains use two power systems, among other reasons- and that's a line that could desperately use new trains), but even the newer Harlem and Hudson line trains have the vinyl aqua and grayish seats. The exterior shots are definitely New Haven line trains, with the red exterior.

I work in 42nd ST. And I loved the shot of Grand Central at the beginning. I walk through there every day to work, and now I can't help but to think about GG when I do. I hope they keep showing more of the city.

The KOTL party took place at The Foundry. Which totally freaked me out because that's where I got married. The Foundry is actually in Queens, although when they're driving away in a cab an attempt is made to make it look like they're in Manhattan. At first I thought, "how would you hail a cab in that neighborhood?" and then I realized they didn't want us to think it was really in an outer-borough. Not that you can't catch a cab in parts of Queens, but The Foundry isn't really in an area with much of a nightlife.

I thought that was Campbell Apartments! To me it seemed like they were trying to play it off as part of the Palace, which was confusing...

And I agree that those seats were too nice to be New Haven line seats. I fell asleep on one last night and it was not that clean!

But I'm thrilled that they are trying to be more accurate than some other WB/CW shows that shall remain nameless. There are no trains to "Capeside" from GC!!!

I hope it's not spoilery to post that it looks like there will be some trips out to the Hamptons coming up this season. I was out in E. Hampton shooting a far less glamorous sort of TV show 10 days ago and some of the locals told us that Gossip Girl was shooting at a local restaurant just a few days before. The locals were surprised at how tiny our production crew was compared the GG's...

Cadsuane, you don't happen to be a Wheel of Time fan do you? I couldn't help but notice your screen name. :) RIP Robert Jordan. Sorry the the off-topic post here.

To keep things on topic, I hope we get to see some cool NY landmarks like the Flatiron building.

Proof I've spent too much time thinking about this stuff: my old boss had a daughter who lived in CT, and she - my boss - would sometimes commute in from her house; she would take the train from Southeast which is on the Harlem line. Was the town in which the boarding school was located mentioned? Perhaps it was near the state line and therefore near the Harlem line. Yeah,too much time thinking about this.

If it's any consolation, I had the same thought. The first stop on the Harlem line is a hub for people in several counties in 3 states, Berkshire (Mass), Litchfield (CT), Columbia and Dutchess (NY). So, it would be possible that she'd take that line from CT. I don't think they mentioned the city in CT but there are a number of boarding schools there. I can attest that the seats on the aren't as nice as those on the show. Even the new trains.

I also think that scene was in the Campbell Apartment. The super-high ceilings and balcony are pretty distinctive.

Yup, Cadsuane is a WOT reference.



That would be nice, but the characters don't seem like kids who spend much time downtown. But we can keep hoping.

I'll join the club of too much time thinking about this: pretty sure that the new Harlem line seats aren't striped, but either way, the train that they were showing chugging along into Manhattan was a New Haven line train-- they're the red ones. The Harlem line trains have a blue stripe, or they're the new silvery ones.

I think I need a life (or maybe a couple fewer trips on Metro North).

Having read the recap, I'm confused--are the Humphreys supposed to live on the West Side or in Brooklyn? I thought I had read somewhere that they lived in Brooklyn on the show, and there was an establishing shot of the Brooklyn Bridge at some point, but then there was Rufus's "it's a small island," Dan's quick jaunt to the Palace, etc. Confused.

I think for the show, it's supposed to be in Brooklyn. The UWS is actually pretty expensive, just younger and trendier for the most part.

And even though they live in Brooklyn, Manhattan is not that far off for them to know about it.

Last week the show was filming in front of a public school in Manhattan on the Upper West Side (76-77th and Columbus).

Add me to the group that says public pot smoking is not unlikely.

Gorgeous Grand Central shot.

The parts of Brooklyn the Humphreys would be comfortable living in aren't too much cheaper than the UWS these days, but ... TV show. If the Friends could live at Bedford and Barrow, the Humphreys can live wherever. I just see a lot of confusion about where they live, and the show's not helping much.

By the way, I liked how the exterior shots of the Palace were all framed so you thought the whole thing looked like the Villard Mansion section; the modern tower above doesn't look quite as swanky.

Man, why do they have to live in Williamsburg? As if my hood doesn't get enough mocking about it's "hipness". But the real question is, why do they keep taking the Brooklyn Bridge to get there from uptown?

Because the Brooklyn Bridge is picturesque and instantly recognizable, while the Williamsburg Bridge is about as hideous as you can make a suspension bridge.

It's so true. I hate my neighborhood...

I live just on the Manhattan side of the Williamsburgh Bridge and I don't think it's THAT horrible. That said, the first ep. used establishing shots of a fly-over of the Queensboro Bridge and over LIC before pushing into the Humphrey's loft, then a different shot is used in the second ep. of an exterior of a building in DUMBO and then they say they live in Williamsburg. And even if they do live in W'Burg you can easily get to the UES from the L to the 4/5/6 at Union Sq. in about 45 min. It's just always been a personal peeve of mine when TV/movies totally distort the geography of a place I am familiar with and I end up screaming at the screen about how THAT building is nowhere near THAT park or whatever, but I expect to see a lot of that on this show.

I hope that we'll end up seeing someone on this show take the train. Most likely one of the Humphreys. Actually I was shocked to see Chuck and Nate on the bus in the pilot.

Actually, when I lived on 75 and 2nd, and commuted across town to Columbia, I used to take the crosstown bus at 79th street to get to the subway and it was always filled with Collegiate boys (the city's most elite all boys prep school). So that part rang very true for me!

Was I hearing things or did Rufus say they lived in "Brooklynville"? What's the point of making up a neighborhood? Random!

I'm guessing the reason for the bus commute is that there's no crosstown subway uptown, or they probably would use that.

I, too, am confused by all the Brooklyn Bridge shots and the supposed Williamsburg loft. Alas.

I don't think they're crossing town on the bus since Chuck lives at The Palace and school is uptown from there, not crosstown. I know the girl's school is on 5th ave across from the museum, but has it been established where the boy's school is? If it is also near the park, they are probably just too lazy to walk from the 4/5/6 on Lexington to 5th. If Chuck and Nate were coming from the hotel, I can buy the bus ride, but if Dan is in Williamsburg he would have had to get on down at 14th st and that is one damn long bus ride.

I was kind of surprised that they don't have cars taking them to school and back everyday, though.

Was that Rufus/Lily scene in Williamsburg at Fabiane's?

It definitely wasn't Fabiane's but it looks like another cafe place just off of Bedford around N4 or N5. Is it sad that I am planning on checking it out on my way home to make sure?

I don't get why they use the Brooklyn Bridge, the Williamsburg Bridge says WILLIAMSBURG right across the top, so you'd think that would be more of a scene-setter.

On a separate note, I used to live on the UES and now live in Willy B. My Willy B rent is actually higher than my UES rent was.

In NY, public transportation doesn't have the stigma that it does in cities where the car is king (like say, Los Angeles). People of all financial backgrounds regularly take the subway and buses.I'd much rather live on Riverside Drive than the East Side. The view of the Hudson is much more impressive than the East River, and the park is nicer.30 Rock films there, too.

Well, Hairymango, while I agree that public transportation in general doesn't have a stigma in NYC like in other parts of the country, a lot of people here still turn their noses up at the bus. I personally don't mind the bus, but I know a lot of people who think the bus is just too slow and best reserved for older people or handicapped people. Not my opinion, just what I hear a lot of people say!

I also still think that for people who are portrayed as being super rich and the highest echelon of NYC's elite wouldn't generally want to take the bus. They do, after all, take cabs every other time we've seen them travel.

As someone who grew up on the Upper East Side and attended the same school (Nightingale-Bamford) as the GG author, Cecily Von Z, I had to chime in here.
Actually, most private school kids in NYC do take the public bus. All school kids get free bus passes, regardless of school or income level. Most of the kids I went to school with started taking the bus by themselves at an early age (around 8), this was really common, at least in the 80's (yes, I am way too old to be watching GG!). Even the richest of rich kids would take the bus and wouldn't be caught dead being chauffered to school. Maybe they might take a cab but the bus was a very social thing - lots of kids would go together, it's just what was done. The only people who rode the subway were those who lived way downtown or in Brooklyn. At that time, the only outerborough folks were from Brooklyn Heights, unless they were scholarship kids.

A few other notes:
The uniforms on the show are silly. All of the girls schools just make the girls wear skirts in the high school Most girls try to wear their skirts as short and as tight as possible. Also, no one wore (and again, this was the 80's) serious designer clothes, esp. not to school.

Chuck and Nate would probably not go to high school in the city, they would be at boarding school, unless they got kicked out (and Chuck would be prime bait for that!).
Most of the all boys schools go only to 8th grade then most of those boys go to boarding school. Only Collegiate and Browning go through high school. All of the all-girls schools go from K-12th. Usually about 1/3 of the class leaves for boarding school or a coed school after 8th or 9th grade. So, in that respect, Serena going away makes a lot of sense. As I recall, there were a few girls in Cecily's class who returned from boarding school in 10th or 11th grade, they got kicked out for booze or drugs or sex or something. That happened a lot.
Smoking pot in CP was common, not sure about doing it while walking down a path though...

That's kinda close to what I was going to say. I'm from NY and I loathe the bus. I'd rather grab a train then walk several blocks than sit on the bus which is just so freaking slow. So I was shocked to see someone of their "status" on the bus because I didn't think they would take one and didn't think the show would portray them as bus takers. I thought they'd stick them in cabs all the time or something lame like that.