Mos Def as Vivien Thomas

On two recent Sundays, portions of an upcoming HBO feature starring Alan Rickman as surgeon Alfred Blalock and Mos Def as surgical technician Vivien Thomas were filmed here. Clad in vintage attire, hundreds of actors, including about two dozen employees who spent a day as unpaid extras, stood by as scenes were filmed at the Broadway entrance and in Hurd Hall. Much of the filming for “Something the Lord Made” took place at Spring Grove, the old psychiatric facility in Sykesville, Md. Real-life Hopkins heart surgeons who studied under Blalock had the opportunity to review the script and help hone an accurate portrayal of Blalock, Thomas and medical practice of the era. The cable network’s film is expected to air in May. Currently in discussion: a benefit premiere in Baltimore.

A Tragic Loss

The entire Johns Hopkins Medicine family mourns the untimely death of James and Lidia Wenz, who were killed in an accident on I-83 on Jan. 20. Jim Wenz, 40, was chairman of Bayview’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. A brilliant surgeon who specialized in joint reconstruction, he was sought out by patients from all over the world for the innovative technique he developed in minimally invasive hip replacement surgery. A Hopkins product through and through, he graduated from the School of Medicine in 1991 and did all of his training here. Lidia Wenz also completed her psychiatry residency at Hopkins. A specialist in pediatric psychiatry, she was on the faculty until 2001, when she left to spend full-time with her children.

Chosen Two

Architecture firms Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership and Perkins & Will have been selected to design two new clinical buildings that will rise on Orleans Street, where the Jefferson Street, Broadway Garage and Maryland Laundry buildings now stand. Executive architect ZGF will tackle the Children’s and Maternal Hospital, while P&W will take on the Cardiovascular Critical Care Tower.