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DVD with sound and good motion pictures of PRR & NYC

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DVD with sound and good motion pictures of PRR & NYC
Posted by selector on Wednesday, March 28, 2007 12:56 AM

It seems that any number of outfits advertise very attractive sounding VHS tape and DVD's of late model steam shot during the 40's and 50's.

Would any of you who have actually seen a few of them be willing to recommend a particular title that would include later PRR and NYC steam?  I would like reasonably good quality and sound in the original productions since I would expect good fidelity in both elements in either modern tape or DVD formats.  I would not be especially keen to get grainy, jerky, amateurish stuff for just a few dollars, but would rather spend more to get a really good product, something I would really enjoy.

Please.

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Posted by spikejones52002 on Wednesday, March 28, 2007 6:45 AM

So would I.

I am sick and tired of finally getting a video. Then It is the sound track of the person's child doing their accordian lession.

I never stood my a railroad track and heard an engine playing music.

The biggest disappointment was, When I got a video of U.P.s turbine electric. the sound track was of a lawnmower.

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Posted by daveklepper on Wednesday, March 28, 2007 8:43 AM
In 1935 or 1936, General Motors, the Chevrolet Division, produced a safe driving film that is a better portrait of high-speed steam passenger operations that just about anything I have ever seen.   The idea was to impress on regular automobile drivers that their responsibilites were no different than those of a regular railroad locomotive engineer.  And in making this film they used interior cab shots with engineers running the train, wonderful exteror shots of high speed steam passenger trains, the heavyweight Olympian, the 20th Century Limited, the Royal Blue, and the only streamliner was the Hiawatha with its streamlined 4-4-2.  Interesting to me is that they did not use any of the new diesel-powered streamliners, the UP City trains nor the Burlington Zephyr, which were partly GM.  The sounds were authentic, the discussions good and realistic, and possibly some railfan organizations can talk GM into releasing it for general distribution.   And the message is equally applicable today.
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Posted by selector on Wednesday, March 28, 2007 5:38 PM

Thanks, Dave.  I don't imagine, though, that I would have a hope in aitch finding a copy of that particular item.

There seems to be a lot of promise in the advertisements in Classic Trains magazine, but a close look suggests that much of the footage is soundless and taken by fans and amateurs.  If I could be assured of good quality, their professional status would be unimportant to me, but...you know.

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Posted by TomDiehl on Thursday, March 29, 2007 11:49 AM
Recently, I picked up one that was a DVD copy of some old Emery Gulash 16mm films made in the 50's and 60's of the Pennsylvania Railroad (also the title of the DVD) from Green Frog Productions. There is a short musical sound track at the beginning, but the bulk of the poresentation is the actual sound track from the movies. It was the first place I got to hear a Baldwin Shark running at speed (sort of sounds like an old aircraft radial engine). Most of it is stationary camera locations with a few pacing from the car shots.
Smile, it makes people wonder what you're up to. Chief of Sanitation; Clowntown
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Posted by Redwards on Thursday, March 29, 2007 12:13 PM

I think this is the Safe Roads documentary referenced above:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSVU9hMSb0Y

--Reed

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Posted by wallyworld on Thursday, March 29, 2007 2:26 PM

These two were in VHS format but nearly all film makers are providing old popular titles in DVD.

PRR Best in my book, lots of T1's in action on St Louis Mainline with wheel slippage.at speed..doubleheaded k4's...Hippos in coal action.on Sandusky....K4's flying to Atlantic City..E6's..Pennsy Steam by Mark 1..all in color..some Reading to boot.turn up that volume!

NYC...Sunday River's Niagras and Mohawks....look like wheeled bullet casings...some early diesel..bonus footage of Erie steam...sad view of CNJ dead line...Mother Hubbards in fast commuter service...whooppee...black and white some color...

Have played both over and over....and over much to family's consternation...when theyre out of the house, you can hear the doppler scream of Pennsy steam.....on the next block.

Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has.

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Posted by selector on Thursday, March 29, 2007 2:32 PM

Thanks, Tom, and to Reed, thanks very much for that link.  The traffic pattern in that scene in the busy rush-hour, close to the end, is a little scary.  I am amazed at the traffic density, too.

The in-cab shots were great.  I had never seen an engineer haul back on the throttle like that.  In my one cab ride, in a Baldwn 2-8-2T, admittedly only the engine and no train, the engineer just opened the throttle to get the locomotive moving.  I guess the scene in the film was of a locomotive starting a heavy load.  No wonder they spun at times.

I appreciate the inputs, both of you.

-Crandell

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Posted by selector on Thursday, March 29, 2007 2:36 PM

Wallyword, thanks for replying.  I am guessing you had intended to provide as many as two links, or titles, but they do not show up.  I would be most interested, and most grateful if you would return and fix it for me.

 Thanks.

-Crandell

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Posted by wallyworld on Thursday, March 29, 2007 4:18 PM
 selector wrote:

Wallyword, thanks for replying.  I am guessing you had intended to provide as many as two links, or titles, but they do not show up.  I would be most interested, and most grateful if you would return and fix it for me.

 Thanks.

-Crandell

Niagras and Mohawks http://www.sundayriverproductions.com/steameast/NYC3.html

Look for Pennsy Steam DVD Version. http://unix8.sunserver.com/mark1video/-strse-PENNSYLVANIA-RAILROAD/Categories.bok

 

 

 

 

Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has.

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Posted by selector on Friday, March 30, 2007 12:48 AM
Thank-you!!! Big Smile [:D]
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Posted by Joe Hohmann on Saturday, March 31, 2007 6:57 AM
Currently at Best Buys, a 5 disc, 10 hour set for $15.99 called "Railway Journeys". See recent OGR forum thread for details, comments, etc.
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Posted by selector on Tuesday, April 3, 2007 12:59 PM
Thanks, Joe.  I'll take a look.

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