I spent all last Sunday working alongside actors Stephen Baldwin and Vincent Pastore.
Get out!
I kid you not.
Of course, you know the former as the youngest Baldwin brother who has starred in such flicks as “The Usual Suspects,” “The Young Riders,” and “Fourth of July.” You know the latter as the unforgettable Salvatore ‘Big Pussy’ Bonpensiero on “The Sopranos.”
And with luck, some day soon you might know them and yours truly as the judges on the pilot episode of “Plates on Fire,” which was filmed last Sunday at San Jose Fire Dept. Station #2 on Alum Rock Avenue.
It’s the brain-child of Santa Clara County Fire Capt. Joe Viramontez, who retired from his job only eight months ago. Instead of devoting time to improving his golf swing now, he decided to bankroll an idea for a reality cooking show he came up with three years ago involving firefighters battling it out in a series of culinary challenges in a fire station kitchen. The winner gets bragging rights, the title of champion and $10,000 for his/her favorite charity. The show is intended to travel around to showcase the cooking prowess of firefighters at stations all around the country.
“The charity component was important to me,” Viramontez says. “I didn’t want it to be just another cooking competition. I wanted to do something to give back.”
So, he hired producer Galley Molina, who splits his time between Los Angeles and San Jose, and whom Viramontez met at church. Molina, a reformed, convicted drug trafficker started his own independent production company, Reverence Gospel Media. He wrote and produced the film, “I’m in Love with a Church Girl,” which is expected to be released in 2012. The film, shot in San Jose last year, stars rapper Ja Rule, as well as both Baldwin and Pastore, which is how those two actors got involved with “Plates on Fire.” Michael K. Race, another producer on “I’m in Love with a Church Girl,” also was brought on board for this project.
Just how did the Food Gal, who has zilch acting experience, get asked to work alongside these Hollywood heavyweights? I’m told that someone who knew someone who knew someone recommended me as a good choice to round out the culinary know-how of the judging panel. I’m guessing it didn’t hurt that I don’t live too far away from Station #2, either. Or that I happen to be female — the only one in the cast, as it turns out.
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