Do you recognize this house?
Ok, so maybe the title of my post has already given away the answer and lessened the suspense. If you were a fan or even an occasional viewer of the show “Roseanne” during the late 80’s or much of the 90’s, then you might have instantly recognized this house. After all, according to Wikipedia, Roseanne became “the most watched television show in the United States from 1989 to 1990.” But did you already know that writer / creator Matt Williams is a graduate of the University of Evansville? And that the exterior shots of the home used in the original series were taken in Evansville, at a house close to Williams’ alma mater? (This is pure speculation on my part but perhaps this home is also where the idea/concept for the show originated – or that certainly makes for an interesting story anyway.)
Fast foward to late 2017 and if you haven’t heard the news, let me be the first to tell you that Roseanne is in production again as I write this. You can read more about the show starting up again here. Suffice it to say that I was totally in the dark about most of this when I got a call out of the blue asking if I could get shots of the house for the LA production company that is producing the revival. That certainly doesn’t happen every day. But I was certainly happy to become a very small contributor to the new show and take both 4k video and still photographs of the exterior at different times of the day/night. After all, I think Roseanne is a staple in American comedy sitcoms and certainly hope the new series will have at least part of the success of the original. The fact that they have chosen to include the original house in it’s 2017 state, makes me think the folks behind the production will stay true to the original. Also, how can you not want to tune in to see one of my favorites, John Goodman, aka Walter Sobchak, reprise his “Dan” role?
Stay tuned for some more interesting behind-the-scenes tidbits about the “Roseanne house” and my experience shooting both videos and stills. Here’s part II. Like you, I can’t wait to see the first episode.
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