Cincinnati will get more airtime on 'Harry's Law'

The NBC drama "Harry's Law" is set in Cincinnati, but people who watched the first season couldn't really tell. The show opened with a view of the city's riverfront and skyline, but it was shot on a Warner Bros. back lot in Los Angeles.

That will change in season two, starting Sept. 21. Arnold's Bar and Grill on Eighth Street downtown will have a starring role as the hang-out for Harry, the lawyer played by Kathy Bates.

"One of the complaints about the show in its first season is that it didn't feel authentic," said Kristen Erwin, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Film Commission. "They told us if they got picked up for a second season, they'd come here to shoot more in Cincinnati. They did, and they were blown away by how beautiful and interesting the city is."

One of the show's producers and its director of photography came to town about a month ago, she said.

One item on their scouting list was a bar that had charm and character. They found it at the 150-year-old Arnold's on Eighth Street. They liked the bar's façade, with its green awning, checked curtains and antique neon, and took footage of it to use as an establishing shot at the beginning of scenes.

They also loved the funky, time-worn interior so much they're re-creating it as a set in Hollywood.

Brett Androski, who owns Arnold's with his wife, Rhonda, said they've signed a locations contract, sent the producers memorabilia to help them create the Arnold's aura, along with menus and T-shirts to be worn by actors playing servers.

"It can't be an exact replication," he said. "They have to make it more open. But they really liked the look and feel of it and are trying to capture that."

He said he's confident that Arnold's will be portrayed in a positive light, not as a seedy joint. The contract includes a clause promising the show won't depict anyone at the bar breaking any laws.

In the show, Bates' character has quit her job as a corporate lawyer and set up shop in a shoe store in an urban neighborhood. Arnold's will be where the characters meet clients and have staff meetings.

"The characters on the show are kind of quirky," said Androski. "Maybe they saw that in Arnold's, too."

Erwin said the crew from the show was here for a week, including two days of aerial shooting.

"They did a lot of shooting of the unique places that can't be reproduced on a back lot," she said. They included Fountain Square, Union Terminal, and the Roebling Bridge. They also shot places where the show's characters might go, such as the Hamilton County courthouse and City Hall.

"I'm really glad they came to town, and glad they got it right," she said. "I'm excited to see us represented in a good light."

The entire first season of the show will be shown in reruns this summer on NBC (Channels 5, 2) on Mondays at 10 p.m. The pilot aired Monday night. For season two, the series moves to Wednesdays, starting Sept. 21, at a different time, 9 p.m.