“The filling station that time forgot.” — July 16
Action Oil in Jonesville, Ill., on Highway 351 between Oglesby and LaSalle is forgotten no longer.
A Chicago-based film production company read the story and decided to use Action Oil’s old-fashioned ambience — pumps that don’t take credit cards, a host of gossiping regulars — in an upcoming movie, “Passenger.” Producer Pat Fischer and a crew visited Action Oil in early November and filmed for half a day. The movie is about an elderly couple moving from the Midwest to Florida.
Unfortunately, the station was robbed in September, reported manager Melody Jessen. The screwdriver-wielding thief, a local man, was apprehended about an hour later, but it gave the employees quite a scare, Jessen said.
Meanwhile, her 79-year-old father, George, the friendly fellow who pumps gas on Wednesdays, is doing just fine. “I’m great,” George Jessen said with a big smile. “Doing just great.”