Does anyone know the current status of the first class lounges for sleeping car passengers on the Coast Starlight, which at one time were served by converted ex-ATSF lounges? There were various rumors the cars were going to be replaced, or overhauled and returned, or eliminated altogether. I'd appreciate any accurate updates. (Yes, of course, the term "parlor car" is a misnomer in this instance, or at least at variance with proper railroad usage meaning a first class daytime revenue car.)
They are not going to be eliminated. They will be, if they are not already, going to Beech Grove one at a time for major overhauls. Reportedly if a parlour car is not available for a particular run, a sightseer lounge will be substituted.
They are currently unstaffed, but sleeper attendants are providing some basic services. Amtrak is planning a "re-launch" of the Starlight sometime this coming Spring, at which time full staffing will return. To help pay for the attendant, sodas and snacks will no longer be complimentary, which is fine by me. Reports are that the downstairs theaters will be reopened showing classic MGM and Warneer Brothers movies, which are cheaper to acquire than newer movies. I can't confirm that detail, but it seems plausible.
Movies were eliminated in the Parlour Car at about the same time as they were eliminated from Sightseer Lounges. It was a cost-cutting measure. Amtrak can't just go out and rent movies for $1.99 a night. Their use on board a train constitutes a "non theatrical public exhibition" and is subject to royalty type fees. The company that supplied Amtrak with movies was Swank Motion Pictures (not to be confused with the porn outfit).
I don't think theft was much of an issue, since the playback equipment was kept locked up.
Thank goodness that (for whatever reason) those intrusive movies were yanked from the Sightseer lounge car. They were loud, and made sitting in the lounge (once upon a time a civilizing experience) simply unbearable. They also distracted from the scenery - what a tragic comment on our society that as a train crossed the western U.S., people would be slumped in the lounge staring blankly at a television screen, ignoring the remarkable vistas outside the window. Good riddance to the movies in the Sightseer lounges!
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