Argonne extras enjoy work despite 'grueling' hours

Reprinted from the Argonne News, March 4, 1996.

When the cameras began rolling the week of Feb. 12 for the 20th Century Fox film "Chain Reaction," several Argonne-East employees enjoyed a few of their 15 minutes of fame working as extras.

Diana Thompson (OCF-PRO) worked during the first day of filming and played a member of a SWAT team.

"I had a great time," Thompson said. "I actually got to open and close a car door for Morgan Freeman."

Thompson was on the set for about six or seven hours -- most of the time outdoors -- working on a scene which was shot five or six times. "It was a lot of fun," she said, in spite of the cold weather. "It was great just being able to talk to the stars. They were all very nice and very pleasant."

Sharon Gunter (HR) agreed that even though she put in "two long, long days" as an extra during filming at the Calumet Water Treatment Plant on Chicago's South Side, it was a good time.

Gunter took part in a scene where a laboratory is about to explode. She and played one of the laboratory workers trying frantically to escape before the lab goes up in flames.

"That was a real fun scene," she said. "Some of us made it to the elevator and others didn't and had to stand there and look shocked as the doors closed."

Gunter was amazed at how hard the film crews worked and at what good care they took of the extras. "The responsibility is just humongous," she said.

Sue Benson (DIS) also worked during filming at the water treatment plant.

"It was fun," Benson said, "but it was long and grueling." She got home at 3:30 a.m. both of the days she worked.

In one scene, she pretended to be talking to another extra while passing behind the movie's star Keanu Reeves. She also played one of the workers fleeing the lab before it exploded.

"The best part was meeting such a diverse group of people," Benson said. Among the extras were people just waiting for their big break, as well as others from all walks of life including bankers, lawyers and jewelers, to name a few.

When the two long days were finished, Benson, said, crew members asked the tired and bedraggled extras if they'd be willing to work again when they return to the area in April. Benson said she had to think about it for a few seconds, and answered: "Oh yeah!"