Paramount Pictures

This month’s feature was recommended by blog reader Tony Wilson as one of his favorite railroad films. I will be highlighting his comments in purple as the story unfolds.

Reader Railroad #1702 (ex-US Army), a 2-8-0 consolidation is the star of the show, along with a string of old passenger cars, box cars and (seen briefly) a former Cotton Belt wooden caboose.

Eye candy for the guys and gals is supplied by Natalie Wood (as Alva Starr) and Robert Redford (as Owen Legate). Natalie/Alva in particular, plays a rather saucy wench (WOOF!) with a boarding house full of railroad workers seeking her favors. That SHAMELESS Hussy…

Finally, the location (fictional Dodson, Mississippi) for all this 1960s railroad goodness, is Bay St Louis, MS along the former Louisville & Nashville (now-CSX) tracks. What’s really cool is the train station is still there and they offer walking tours of the town to see movie locations.

“This Property is Condemned” contains the only known recording of an authentic Cotton Belt steam whistle from a 2-8-0 Consolidation. The whistle was fitted to the #1702 to replace the shrill European one the US Army used.

It’s a low-pitched, chime whistle — very mournful sounding — dare I describe it as “Moanin’ Low”?

Our story begins along the L&N RR tracks in Dodson/Bay St Louis. A young girl is trying to walk along the rail top. Check out the battered, jointed rail and the illuminated (red) block signal.

Hokey Smokes, it’s Scout! Yep, that’s actress Mary Badham as Willie Starr, Alva’s kid sister. Mary did indeed play Scout alongside Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird 1962.

The boy she’s chatting with (Tom, played by Jon Provost) is quite notable himself, having played little Timmy in a long-running TV show. Lassie meets the Mockingbird!

Both kids take a closer look at the infamous roadhouse/hostel.

The camera zooms in to the house and its current status. Flashback a couple years (roughly 1932) during the Great Depression. The Starr Boarding House is roaring along as a social club and gawd-knows-what-else for the town’s railroad workers. Okay, back to the train scenes.

Night time. L&N official Owen is riding the cab of #1702 on a railroad pass. The engineer tells him this is Dodson and to prepare to hit the ground running. Great views of the churning drivers as Owen tosses his grip, then bails off the gangway at a trot.

The equipment (locomotive and caboose) operated under Steam from Reader, Arkansas to Bay St Louis, MS and was routed MP-IC-L&N. Back home the same way.

Owen retrieves his grip as a classic Cotton Belt boxcar rolls past (if only it said Blue Streak Merchandise on the side.) ;p Owen’s first encounter with the little tart Alva, is over fried chicken and watermelon. The next morning, Alva bursts into his bedroom to show some cleavage and turn on the charm. ROWF!

Flirt… (said in Pepe Le Pew faux-French voice).

“That’s the Hummingbird Express” according to trollop Alva. She wants to ride it some day to New Orleans. There actually WAS a Hummingbird train on the L&N, but according to wiki (that completely-accurate fount of knowledge), it didn’t start running until 1946.

This same footage was later reused in another Robert Redford picture, “The Sting 1973”.

Owen posing outside the Bay St Louis depot. Note the Great Northern Railway boxcar to the left; Front portion of #1702 backing up; There’s that ex-Cotton Belt wood caboose painted up as L&N; A Mopac boxcar (buzz saw logo) is behind Owen as he enters the shop.

Willie waves a highball to the engineer as L&N #1702 flashes past. Sitting trackside, she watches the long freight with kid hobos aboard. I spy C&EI, N&W and MP boxcars with the L&N/SSW caboose bringing up the markers.

Front end view of #1702 at the shops. Bad news. Owen is passing out pink slips to the shop force, (depression-era cost-saving move), and thus is none too popular. If looks could kill…

Despite the sackings, (which will surely put the Starr Boarding House out of business), Wench Alva is fascinated with Owen and she nicely decorates the tender of L&N #1702 and “The Old Reliable” boxcar.

Louisville & Nashville #6157 is a thoroughly-trashed, heavyweight coach named “Miss Alva”; Filmmakers did a stupendous job weathering and ornately painting this car; The black cat leaping from seat to seat inside the dusty interior is almost too much (bad omen, eh?).

That very car still exists – parked at the Meridian, MS train station.

Interlude: After finally bedding Owen, Temptress Alva gets to show some skin for the camera (hubba-hubba AND Yowza!) as her Mom (Hazel Starr played by Kate Reid) yells, “We are going to Memphis and that is FINAL!! As if. Alva’s got her big browns focused on the Crescent City.

Station views. Willie chats up Owen, who’s fixing to leave town (the GN boxcar is still there); Owen entering the station and buying a ticket to The Big Easy for Alva; Track level view of the platform. “Dixie Line” L&N boxcar slogan on the left.

I wish they would have focused (at least briefly) on that L&N Station Board behind Alva — lots of good information there; Well-lit shot of L&N #1702 arriving at Dodson; I count at least 7 passenger cars pulled by the 2-8-0; After Alva boards, the Porter lifts the step box and the Conductor waves a highball.

A group of private car owners (perhaps from the NOLA area?) furnished the passenger cars, which were painted for L&N, and paid for by the movie company. The Reader Railroad furnished the 1702 and the wooden Cotton Belt caboose, but no passenger cars.

Interior of one of the coaches. Alva’s living her dream – off to New Orleans. She’s not following Mumsie to Memphis, no-sir-ee.

Beautifully-filmed (helicopter) sequence of Alva riding the train over Bay St Louis with the U.S. 90 highway bridge in the background.

The wood pile railroad trestle was completely wiped out by Hurricane Betsy shortly after filming wrapped in 1965. It has since been rebuilt.

Time passes and we find ourselves back in Dodson. DUTCH ANGLE!! That means things are pretty much fubar in town since the Starr cavalcade closed down. And just LOOK at the slur (misspelled, of course) next to the Miss Alva sign. Dishonor! Foul!

Anyways, our final railroad scene, at least for my review, is Willie giving Tom the skinny on what happened to everyone since the closure.

Epilogue for Reader Railroad #1702: She is still running on the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad in Bryson City, North Carolina as of 2023.

Here’s what IMDb has to say about This Property is Condemned:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061089/

If you have ANY information about this movie you’d like to share, please contact me at: Lindsay.Korst@gmail.com, or leave a comment.  Thanks and enjoy the blog!

THE END