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'Gossip Girl' Dumps Upper East Side for Columbia University

By Leslie Albrecht | August 18, 2010 12:12pm | Updated on August 18, 2010 12:24pm

By Leslie Albrecht

DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

UPPER WEST SIDE — "Gossip Girl," the teen soap opera that gave America a glamorized glimpse of Upper East Side private school life, is making its way to the Upper West Side, sources say.

The TV blog Zap2it.com reported that the fashion-and-sex-drenched show is planning a multi-episode story involving a fictional Columbia University professor to be played by "Mad Men" actor Sam Page.

Stars Blake Lively and Leighton Meester were spotted filming Tuesday at Grant's Tomb.

A spokeswoman for "Gossip Girl" confirmed that Page is a guest star on the show during the new season, which premieres Sept. 13 on The CW network.

But she said she couldn't comment on Page's character or storyline.

According to Zap2it, Page will play at professor at Columbia, where  Meester's character Blair Waldorf recently transferred after a stint at NYU.

But apparently the Page character will have plenty of screen time with socialite siren Serena van der Woodsen, played by Lively, Zap2it reports.

That means Upper West Siders will likely see more of Meester, Lively and actor Ed Westwick, whose character Chuck Bass bought the Empire Hotel, according to neighborhood blog MyUpperWest.

Fans who want to catch "Gossip Girl" in action can check out On Location Vacations, which lists unconfirmed dates and locations of shoots for various TV shows and feature films.

Upper West Siders have seen plenty of Hollywood action on their sidewalks this summer. The feature film "Premium Rush," starring "Inception" actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt, has been shooting at Columbia and in other neighborhood spots.

Some residents are growing impatient with the blocked streets and traffic that the shooting can create.

On one Upper West Side block, an exasperated neighbor head-butted a production assistant on the "Premium Rush" set.

But young women who saw the star shooting recently at Columbia gave the film crew a warm reception.