Tag Archives: CTC

Disaster On The Coastliner 1979

5 Replies

ABC Television / Orion Pictures

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2024!

This is a LONG, but enjoyable review — at least it was for me! ;p

I previously wrote about this ABC Sunday Night Movie ten years ago. My summary of the All-Star Cast, pretty much covers the basics about what happened. Whoever wrote the script for this 97 minute potboiler, obviously had no idea how a railroad operates. The shortcoming of my first review is I only included two pictures!

That just won’t do when you have early-Amtrak equipment on both coasts (ex-Santa Fe Surf Line in California and ex-New Haven Shore Line in Connecticut) with lots of footage inside Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal (LAUPT) as well. Thus, this review will be short on plot and long on pictures.

Oh, did I mention? William Shatner has lots of screen time despite being only 7th in the credits (an unforgiveable oversight) and is the hero of the day — as only Captain Kirk could do it. Engines ahead. Warp factor one.

I’m really torn about the ID of this locomotive in the opening credits. It’s too blurry to get the exact unit number (400 something). At first I thought it was an EMD FL9 locomotive, but AFAIK, those engines didn’t have nose lift rings. So this is probably an EMD E9 diesel selected from a private railroad, pre-Amtrak.

Continue reading →

Once Upon The Wabash 1953

Leave a reply

Condor Films, Inc., St. Louis

Corny. Even back THEN, this script dialogue was corny. But, oh, that pristine first-generation diesel, domed streamliner. Wabash’s Blue Bird. That WAS the way to travel.

This was the best color version I could find online — I had to chop off the bottom portion on many screen caps account frikken Periscope Films’ “counter” running through the entire picture. Spoilsports.

Anyway, color scenes of freight and passenger equipment from the postwar era are always a treat to look at, even though Wabash was a bit late to the streamliner game.

Follow the Flag!

Leading this Chicago – St. Louis domeliner (the Blue Bird, #21 southbound; #24 northbound) is EMD E8A WAB #1000 built in 1951 and producing 2,250 horsepower.

Continue reading →

Some Trouble At Troublesome 1956

1 Reply

Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad

There actually is a location in Colorado called Troublesome (for Troublesome Creek) just a few miles east of Kremmling, where Union Pacific (nee-D&RGW) still has a short siding.

Our feature starts off with a lecture from G.B. Aydelott, President Rio Grande Railroad, scrolling across the screen and continues with the somewhat patronizing tone of the narrator. “This train is worth over a MILLION dollars”, he repeats over and over (implying “which you careless employees turned into splintered wood, contorted steel, and ruined lading”).

Having experienced the wrath of management, our story begins in the remote community of Bond, Colorado. It’s oh-dark 30 in the morning and the 5 man crew (remember those?) is reporting for duty to take the SPD (Southern Pacific – Denver) to Roper Yard in the Mile-High City.

The head end crew, (engineer, fireman, head brakeman) prepares to climb aboard DRGW #5554, an EMD F7A built in February 1949 leading an A-B-B-A set of units. The beautiful “Prospector” scheme in Aspen Gold and silver graces the flanks of these locomotives.

Continue reading →

This Is My Railroad 1949

1 Reply

Southern Pacific Railroad

The date is a little unclear. I believe this movie was originally produced in 1946 featuring steam power, then remade in color featuring diesels in 1949 or later. Something like that. If someone knows the true story, let me know.

Three cheers for the red and orange! In the years before Donald J. Russell got his mitts on the Espee (and began systematically dismantling their fabulous passenger train network), this WAS the friendly SP.

Freight F units wore the classy “Black Widow” paint scheme, whilst Passenger train diesels wore the flashy “Daylight” dress pulling matched consists throughout the southwest.

Our film is a snapshot of life along the SP Lines including snow fighting operations in the Sierra Nevada. From lower-quadrant semaphores to early CTC installations to rebuilding rolling stock, Southern Pacific did it all their own way. Let’s check out this colorful carnival of transportation. (Apologies for the fuzzy YouTube print.)

It hasta be Shasta. SP Train #9, the Shasta Daylight was a Portland to Oakland streamliner. Mount Shasta looms in the background as an Alco PA locomotive leads the way south (west in SP parlance).

Freight paid most of the bills, though, including SP X6190 leading a set of EMD F7 locomotives through the Sierras.

Continue reading →

Challenge for Tomorrow 1954

1 Reply

Santa Fe Railway Safety Department

This one was a lot of fun to research and review. An old Santa Fe safety film in glorious Technicolor from the days of yore. Its formal name was the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway (ATSF) which stretched from Chicago to Los Angeles, The Bay Area (Richmond, California), and down from Kansas City into Texas.

Somehow all the prints I discovered online have the opening credits/title page lopped off. Thus, we’ll use the above safety images instead. The gent in the natty suit and bow tie, (wide lapels must be “IN” this year), has his pointer on San Bernardino’s injury count. He really needs to take a look at Albuquerque.

Just a smattering of steam locomotives are shown segueing into Santa Fe’s colorful, first-generation diesel fleet. And there’s no topping that classic red, silver and gold “Warbonnet” scheme on the passenger engines.

Let’s check it out. Santa Fe, All The Waaaaay!!

Motorcar operator “Skippy” is trundling down the San Joaquin Valley, blissfully unaware of the approaching San Francisco Chief. Should we warn him? “Look around, Skip, look around!” bellows the narrator. This great bit of melodrama will be fleshed out in the upcoming story. Read on.

Continue reading →