'Royal Pains' does no harm in Bay Shore
Bay Shore was taken over by royalty this week -- much to the benefit of the community.
The USA Network hit series “Royal Pains” was on location Tuesday through Thursday shooting a party scene for an episode to appear this fall. The show used the home of Fred O’Meally, a 20-year Bay Shore resident, whose house is surrounded on three sides by water. The “Pains” crew came in and worked its magic, making Bay Shore look like the Hamptons and teaching O’Meally how to really throw a party.
“They definitely taught me a thing or two,” he said. O’Meally has thrown about 15 fundraisers at his Lawrence Lane home since he moved in 12 years ago -- but none like this.
“[My] kids love it, most of the neighbors are loving it, it’s fun,” he said.
The show follows Dr. Hank Lawson, an ER-turned-concierge doctor serving the rich and famous in the Hamptons. In the Bay Shore episode, Hank and the cast pick up a newly divorced patient who is throwing herself a party for her recent un-nuptials.
The show’s crew regularly uses Long Island properties to create homes of characters. In April, the gang was at Old Westbury Gardens, where they turned the back lawn into a man’s personal football field for a scene.
The Bay Shore shoot was particularly special because the whole community was involved. Casting agents recruited 200 locals as extras, including O’Meally’s wife, Della, and daughters Kristina and Marissa, to fill out the scene, dressed as wealthy socialite types. His youngest daughter, Cara, was too young for the party scene, but O’Meally said she’s been promised a cameo in the future.
The show also rented out the parking lots of four local churches: Love and Mercy Church, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, Christian Science Church and St. Patrick Church. The show donated all of its leftover food from three days of breakfast, lunch and dinner to the St. Patrick parish soup kitchen.
“When we come into an area to film we want to leave a positive impression and be friends with everybody,” said Cheryl Martin, assistant locations manager for the show. “If we’re filming in the area we try to use a lot of the locals.”
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