NAMES IN THE NEWS : DeNiro Learns to Fight Fires : NAMES IN THE NEWS
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CHICAGO — Robert DeNiro and Kurt Russell are getting a crash course on firefighting and arson investigation from the Chicago Fire Department.
Instructors from the department’s Fire Academy are giving up to three hours of training each night to the cast of “Backdraft,” a movie about a conflict between two brothers, both firefighters, and life in an urban fire department, Chief Stanley Span said.
The film stars DeNiro and Russell.
Span, coordinator of special events for the fire department, said training is conducted on the movie’s set.
DeNiro is being taught how to investigate fires suspected to be arson. Russell and other actors, including Billy Baldwin, are learning firefighting techniques such as raising ladders and knocking down walls and ceilings, Span said.
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