If Westsider Books on 80th and Broadway has looked a little different for the past few days, there’s a good reason: the shop has been rebranded as “M. Schwartz & Sons Rare and Used Books” for a movie called Fading Gigolo starring John Turturro, Woody Allen, Sharon Stone and Sofia Vergara.
The movie is reportedly about a character played by Turturro who becomes a gigolo to help Woody Allen’s character Murray make some money. In a scene that was recently shot, things get steamy between Stone and Vergara’s characters. The Daily Mail was on hand to take some pictures of the filming (looks like they might be in another part of the city).
Allen’s character apparently owns the bookstore. Stone is a dermatologist who hires Turturro, and Vergara is “a wealthy woman bored with her marriage who wants to have a threesome with Sharon and John’s characters.” This is the kind of thing that’s always happening to me in real life.
The guys at Westsider Books clearly feel like the story hits close to home. They told us:
“A wonderful & beloved neighborhood bookstore closing it’s doors after many decades serving the community. Forced out of business by e-readers, no doubt!”
Westsider will be closed through Friday for the movie shoot.
Photo via Westsider facebook page.