Filming for the next Superman movie continued to Metropolis this week, shifting from Plano to Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday. That left Plano's Main Street with covered or damaged prop buildings, while fencing and screens covered part of some buildings Friday afternoon. To see how the set changed over time, compare this photo gallery with this one and that one.

Fax machine beep. Telephone chirp. Chopping sounds of flying helicopters. Objects exploding. These sounds have become commonplace for the businesses on Plano's Main Street that are staying open during the filming of the Superman reboot Man of Steel. Production activity seemed to intensify this week, as portions of Main Street were blocked by black screens. The Beacon-News cited "reports" in an article posted Monday about the prop 7-Eleven at Main and Center streets being blown up. The article also mentioned a series of explosions in the Smallville set between 9:30 and 10:30 a.m. Monday “We’re…

Editor's note: It appears Chapala Family Restaurant is closed. Yorkville Patch apologizes for the error. You find yourself headed to a small, rural Illinois town whose name you’ve only ever seen on a tackle box to see some filming locations (maybe some action) for the new Superman movie. A few of Plano’s classic dining spots will be shut during filming, but that doesn’t mean you need to go hungry when you visit the Action Capitol of western Kendall County.   Plano has a long history of Mexican immigration and, as you might expect, there are a large number of Mexican food establishments in …

Kevin Costner knocking on doors in the neighborhood. Amy Adams and Henry Cavill sightings. Plans to blow up the 7-Eleven. Or that old furniture store on the west side of town. Or some other building in town.These are just a few of the rumors circulating through Plano as film crews take over the town to shoot the Warner Bros. Man of Steel flick.Richard Healy, executive director of the Plano Area Chamber of Commerce, said back-fence talk has run the gamut, from the producers fighting and threatening to pull out of Plano altogether, to plans to blow up the old Walmart building."They've just …

Some wonder who will be the first to try to pump gas at the 7-Eleven along Plano’s Main Street. The gas station isn’t real. It’s part of this small town’s transformation into Clark Kent’s Smallville for filming of the new Superman reboot Man of Steel. Crews also built structures in vacant lots flanking the town’s depot, closed off Hugh Street north of Main Street to build a Sears and constructed a barber shop in another open space. “When you look at it, you can see the chairs of the barbershop,” said Richard Healy, executive director of the Plano Area Chamber of Commerce. Crews were still …

Superman is watching over the veteran’s memorial park along Route 34 in Plano. He’s about three feet tall and plastic, but he’s perched in front of Roots Hair Studio and Barber Shop, on the southeast corner of Route 34 and Center Street. Given the recent heat, that may be less comfortable than his last home in the toy box of Roots’ owner Marcus Thomas’ grandchildren. “When I found him, he was in excellent condition,” Thomas said. “I had to put him out.” But the toy superhero has attracted a fair share of gawkers and photographers since construction crews descended on Plano, Thomas said. The …

In a matter of weeks, Marlene Kee will be at the center of the Smallville set for the new Superman movie partially filming in Plano. The front of her shop, The Office Works, will be included in the movie set. Crews associated with the movie, dubbed ''Autumn Frost" for shooting purposes, descended on the town of 10,850 in early May. They reinvigorated the downtown, cosmetically and economically, said Kee, who also chairs the local chamber of commerce's board of directors. "It's been a real boost in the economy," Kee said. "There's not an empty building around here." Thursday afternoon crews …