TV SHOW COMES TO CAPE TO FILM SEGMENT

"The Hit" and "Dopes on Dope," four- and eight-minute crime vignettes, are being filmed in the Cape Girardeau area this week.

Leap-Off Productions, a Los Angeles film company, is here to film the segments for the ABC television show, "Real Stories of the Highway Patrol."

People in Cape Girardeau were surprised when a group of law enforcement officers, accompanied by cameramen, showed up near a retail store downtown.

What appeared to be a secret meeting between two men in the doorway of Hecht's Woman, 113 N. Main, was actually a scene from the "The Hit."

Two Cape Central High School juniors, out seeking patrons for the school's Red Dagger group, were surprised when they were asked to be a part of the at-large cast.

<of the most surprised people on the scene were two junior students from Cape Central High School who were out seeking patrons for the school Red Dagger group.

Rachel Roberts and Sarah Adams were asked to be part of the at-large cast for "The Hit.">

"This is great, this is just great," Rachel Roberts said.

"People will never believe that we were selected for parts," Sarah Adams added.

The movie crew filmed in a number of areas Wednesday -- in a building in the Nash Road Industrial Park, an area near William and Louis streets, a rural area outside the city, just off Highway 177 and County Road 651, and downtown.

"Real Stories of the Highway Patrol" is based on actual events concerning the highway patrol, said Brent Davis, a spokesman for the Missouri State Patrol at Poplar Bluff.

Although fictitious names are used for victims in the segments, the officers who participated in the investigations and their names are used.

"People watching the segments filmed in Cape Girardeau will recognize many of the people involved," Davis said. "State troopers, Cape County and Stoddard County sheriff's deputies and some members from the Cape Girardeau Police Department are among the cast, either playing themselves or the bad guys with fictitious names."

Besides the officers, roles were filled by members of the Southeast Missouri State University Drama Department.

Some people will also recognize the events.

"The Hit" is based on a happening in Stoddard County where an investigation into an auto and parts theft ring led to an attempted "hit" on a Missouri trooper.

"Dopes on Dope" is based on the 1992 Scheper homicides, in which a Cape Girardeau woman and her two sons were killed at their home.

Ron Beck, a lieutenant in public information for the Missouri State Patrol in Jefferson City; Sgt. Brent Davis, a public affairs officer for the district state patrol at Poplar Bluff; and Sgt. Carl Kinnison, who is in charge of training and communications for the Cape Girardeau Police Department, and Cape Girardeau Police officer Capt. Steve Strom have been assisting the film crew since it arrived Monday.

The crew wants to wrap up shooting Saturday morning.

The 13-page script for "The Hit" will produce a four-minute segment for the program. "Dopes on Dope" will be longer, from eight to 10 minutes.

Film crew director Peter Tomarken is familiar with television game-show fans and has been recognized by some local people as the former host of the "Press Your Luck" program.