By John Dodge
CHICAGO (CBS) — For a short time, John Belushi was an employee of the Illinois Department of Corrections.
He, and presumably other actors and crew members, needed an employee ID to film the opening scenes for the classic 1980 “Blues Brothers” movie from inside the old Joliet Correctional Center.
The prison, which was built in the 1850s, closed in 2002.
The ID fetched an unknown price at an auction in 2009.
The reserve bid was $6,000, and it was valued by the auction house at $8,000.
The winning bidder, and the whereabouts of the ID, could not be determined.
After being released from prison, Belushi’s character, Jake Blues, puts together his old band and goes on a wild “Mission From God” to save the Catholic home where he and brother, Elwood (Dan Aykroyd), were raised.
Here are the opening lines from the movie, inside the prison.
Prison Guard #1: Yeah, the Assistant Warden wants this one out of the block early. Wants to get it over with fast.
Prison Guard #2: Okay, let’s do it.
[rattling the bars with his baton]
Prison Guard #1: Hey come on, it’s time to wake up.
Prison Guard #2: Wake up. Let’s go, it’s time.
[striking the sleeping Jake with his baton]
