Lost 2014 Tour: The Ghost and Mr. Miles

A residence on Hinano Street served as our second LOST location stop of the day.  The exterior of this house appears in the season 4 episode "Confirmed Dead" at the beginning of a sequence in which Miles Straume visits a grieving woman in Inglewood, California who recently lost her grandson.

Miles parks in front of his client's home.  From "Confirmed Dead"

Hinano street residence, 2014

Note that the lattice is no longer present in 2014.  I'm not sure if it was added by the LOST production crew or if it was there but the homeowner removed it at some point after the shoot.

Note lattice hiding the entranceway. ("Confirmed Dead")

Looking out, probably taken at the same residence. ("Confirmed Dead")

Lost 2014 Tour: Lindsey Littleton's Home

On our (MJ, Rambo, and myself) jaunt through Honolulu the first LOST filming location we visited was a private residence on Makini Street that played the part of Lindsey Littleton's home in Australia.  During Christian Shepard's drunken bender down under he had Ana Lucia drive him to the home, then demanded that Lindsey let him see his daughter.

Rather than procuring a right-side-driver car (as would be present in Australia), the production team simply flipped the film horizontally.

Film flipped to simulate Australia

To better compare with the real home, here is the same shot flipped again to properly represent what was in front of the camera when the scene was filmed.

Lindsey Littleton's home 

Home on Makini Street, 2014

Christian confronts Lindsey in doorway

In 2014 there is additional privacy for doorway confrontations.

Lost 2014: Day 3

For me, Friday, September 19th, 2014 started around 9:30AM with another fine breakfast at Lulu's, this time shared with several of my LOST cohorts.  If I recall correctly MJ, Chris, Ian, Fiona, and Rambo made it out that morning.

Ian's breakfast at Lulu's. (photo: Ian)

After breakfast MJ and I walked over to the beach.  While MJ took a short swim in the ocean I played to my strengths and relaxed in the shade under a tree.

Doin' what i do best.

We were then rejoined by Rambo and the three of us set off on foot to see some of the sights in the area.  First we walked through Kapiolani Park, which among other things features this awesome view of Diamondhead fronted by a lonely cluster of trees.

Kapiolani Park.

We then moved on to the Waikiki Shell, a lovely outdoor theatre which has no doubt hosted many a shindig, but of particular note is the LOST concert performed by the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Michael Giacchino back in 2007.

Waikiki Shell

Next up we perused a few LOST locations which I'll cover in separate posts.  Eventually we ended up at Leonard's Bakery, where we randomly ran into Alice, Terri, Kiana, and Allison.  Small island!

Catching some shade and some sustenance.

We ran into Allison and the rest of the Fab Four. (Photo: Alice)

Enjoying a macadamia nut malasada at Leonard's (Photo: MJ)

After Leonard's, MJ, Rambo and I caught a city bus back to our respective hotels.  Fortunately happy hour was still in effect, so you can guess where I ended up.

We've got to stop meeting like this.

After freshening up at the hotel I spent a few minutes experimenting with some of the effects functions on my camera.  (Actually, my son's camera.  I decided to forgo my Nikon DSLR on this trip  in favour of his compact Canon camera and my iPod touch. )

Hyper-colour view of DiamondHead from the Park Shore hotel.

Moody Honolulu taken from the Park Shore hotel.

Panorama behind the Park Shore hotel.

Shortly thereafter I met up with the regular gang and we ubered (that's a word now, right?) over to O'Toole's pub for a LOSTie meetup.

Friday afternoon LOSTie meet up at O'Toole's (Photo: Ian)

We're heeeeeerrrrrreeee! (Photo: Ian)

The party was already in full swing when we arrived, with a group of 20 or so LOST fans drinking and conversing around a large table.

One of our first items of business to take care of was a toast to the rest of our LOST buddies who weren't able to make it to Oahu this time around.

To absent friends...  (Photo: Chris)

Several beers later we decided to head out for dinner.  As it had started to rain rather heavily the decision was made to go across the street to Murphy's Bar and Grill.  It was also around this time that I ran into "Amy Foxland", whom I had met when I was on The Island three years prior.  Although Amy lived on Oahu back in 2011, she had since moved back to the Mainland.  I didn't know she was attending Lost 2014 so it was a very happy surprise to see her again.  Amy was accompanied by her friend Sharon; I sat with the two of them for some time and caught up on the latest news.  A few minutes in a very rude English bloke poked his nose over a partition and accused me of deserting his group!  The nerve!  When the meals finally arrived I said bade farewell to Amy and Sharon and scooted back over to my compatriots.  (I do not recommend Murphy's chicken salad, by the way -- dry and tasteless.)  The British bloke eventually apologized for his horrendous behaviour and we were back to being bosom buddies again.

Pleading my case.  (Photo: Ian)

Time to kiss and make up.  (Photo: Amy)

After dinner we ubered back to Waikiki.  A few in the group called it a night, while others dropped in to The Cheesecake Factory to satisfy their sweet teeth!  I was part of the latter set.  We ordered two slices of cheesecake to share among several people; our initial trepidation about not ordering enough evaporated when dessert arrived.  These were American sized cheesecakes to be sure!

Huge slab 'o cheesecake.

After cheesecake I got word that Paul was back at the Mai Tai Bar, so I scooted over there to finish off the night.  On the way I could have sworn I saw a nattily-dressed surfing turtle.

Hard-shell dude.

Paul was hanging with the younger set that night; most seemed to be in their early twenties, and in fact one in their group was apparently refused entry earlier for being underaged.  I love my forty-sumptin' pals, but it was refreshing to see a new generation of LOST fans on the scene, equally devoted and obsessed.  Just the other day my eleven-year-old daughter came home and told me that one of the girls in her class really likes LOST as well.  Clearly the show's legacy will live on for many years to come.

After again closing out the Mai Tai Bar we dispersed back to our hotels.  The following day would mark the beginning of the "official" Lost 2014 events.

Bonus Photo: One of my favourite shots from the trip, taken at Murphy's and featuring two lovely ladies:

(Photo: Ian)

Lost 2014 Tour: Fort Street Flashback

I covered many of the LOST locations found on Fort Street Mall between South King and Merchant in a previous post.  However, I couldn't resist taking a few moments during my 2014 return to rest and reflect on the incredible day I'd had, and the amazing events to come.  And where better to do this than on one of the benches that Eloise Hawking and Desmond David Hume occupied during one of LOST finest hours, "Flashes Before Your Eyes".

Desmond and Eloise discuss destiny.

I rest my weary feet.

Lost 2014 Tour: LAPD station

Next on the itinerary is the Walter Murray Gibson building, which played the role of LAPD police station twice:  The office scenes featuring Sideways Sawyer and Miles in the episode "Recon" were filmed within, while the exterior appeared briefly in the season 3 premiere, "A Tale of Two Cities" in the sequence where Sarah bails Jack out of jail. 

Sarah exits the police station after bailing out Jack.

Obsessive Jack is close behind.

Walter Murray Gibson building, 2014

Lost 2014 Tour: Walkabout Office

It's a strange feeling standing on a street corner, gazing intently at the empty, papered-up building across the street, experiencing a powerful wave of emotion well up inside of you.  Such was the case as I stood at the intersection of Nuuanu and North King Street, eyes cast at the ground floor office across the way.  As amazing as the LOST pilot is, and as good a its first two episodes are, many fans have said that it was the third instalment, "Walkabout", that convinced them beyond all doubt that LOST would be something more than a good television program -- it would be a jewel, an obsession, a life-changer.  The flashback scene of Locke arguing his case to his walkabout guide, the reveal of Locke's condition, and the subsequent scene him waking on The Island to find his paralysis miraculously cured is a highlight of season 1 and an incredible confluence of storytelling, acting, and score.

Locke pleads his case. ("Walkabout")

1 North King Street, September 2014

The shot above was taken from the corner diagonally opposite; the building I stood in front of can be seen through the window just above Locke's shoulder.

The shot below was taken straight across North King Street.  (In fact, I was standing right in front of "Kate's bank", which tells you how close some of the filming locations are!) Locke would have been sitting directly behind left-side window.  The waiting bus would have been parked on Nuuanu Street, facing the beach which is only a couple of blocks away.

Don't tell me what I can't do!

Locke's window.

Dejected Locke.

Lost 2014 Tour: Kate's Bank

The next stop on my tour was the Chinatown branch of the First Hawaiian Bank.  It appeared onscreen as the bank Kate robbed to retrieve her childhood boyfriend's toy airplane.

Suspicious-looking dude loitering outside bank.

Lovely lady applying for loan inside bank.

I entered the bank to admire the fancy wooden tellers' booths, but didn't snap any pictures.  The best I can do in terms of screen-matching is a shot of the bank doors which appeared onscreen.

Bank door from the inside.

Bank door from the outside.

Lost 2014 Tour: Thai alley

There is a two block radius on either side of Fort Street Mall between South Beretania Street and Merchant Street that is filled with LOST locations.  One of the least obvious of these is a short, narrow alleyway called Chaplain Lane.  The LOST crew did an incredible job turning this nondescript area into a bustling corner of Thailand in the season 3 classic "Strange in a Strange Land".  (a.k.a. "The Completely Superfluous Origin Story for Jack's Tattoos.")

Where Achara goes...

... Jack follows...

...and, eventually, I follow too!

Here's a shot from "Strange in a Strange Lane" taken from Fort Street Mall (telltale grey paving stones) looking toward Chaplain Lane.

Not far from here is the Black Cat Tattoo Parlour.  I was tempted to enter and check the back rooms to see if Achara might be around.

The same location was used briefly in the season 6 episode "Recon", when Sawyer chased down Kate.

Note the patterned gate, and large window to the right

Note "Mercury" on top grate, and pipe on right side.

The scene was shot in front of the Mercury Bar on Chaplain Lane.