Series 567 Rail Video-DVD Titles

AIRCRAFT / SHIPS

INTERURBAN / TRAM / BUS

ELECTRIC TRACTION SYSTEMS

Tony (Ashcat) Marsden who produces the 'Victorian Year In Steam' series is also the appointed videographer on the Qantas Antarctic Charter flights. Tony produces a 60 minute documentary of the scenery for sale to passengers. On most of these flights, the Captain gives passengers a 15 minute tour of the flight deck controls via a video link to the in-flight video system. Tony has flight deck access to operate the camera - probably the only exception for a layman worldwide as all flight decks are now locked just before take off. Passenger access is no longer possible and Tony has had to undergo stringent CASA & ASIO scrutiny to be permitted 'up front'. The flight deck ‘tours’ proved very popular with passengers, and many requested a video of that part of their trip to the ‘Land of the Midnight Sun’. Senior Check Captain John Dennis thought the producing of a video was a great idea, and suggested an ‘in-depth’ 45 minute production which would be available for sale to Antarctic travellers. John facilitated official approval for the production. Tony filmed this tour and with an explanation of the flight deck of a Boeing 747-400 Longreach Jumbo. He has now made available, exclusively to Series 567 Rail Video, and our customer base, the DVD/Video of that tour. The flight deck tour was filmed on a return trip from Antarctica flying at 37000 feet.

If you are into the aircraft ‘scene’ or would just like to know what happens at ‘the pointy end’ of a 747-400 then this is for you.

SER 038D TALL SHIPS / A CELEBRATION OF TASMANIA MARITIME HISTORY 99 min $29.95

Sunday, 10^th January 1988. This was the day that the city of Hobart awoke to the sight of a harbour filled with sails as the tall ships moved up the Derwent River to their berths. Four days later the fleet prepared for the race to Sydney, while the nation readied itself for the week long bi-centennial festivities leading up to Australia Day. Ten years later, the Tall Ships left Sydney on Boxing Day and set sail for Hobart to commemorate the anniversary of Bass and Flinders’ discovery of Bass Strait. A city with a reputation for hospitality, Hobart welcomed their visitors with unprecedented enthusiasm.Tall Ships captures the excitement and spectacle of the departure from Sydney, the voyage to Tasmania and the colour and warmth of the Hobart welcome. Running Time: 60 min

A CELEBRATION OF TASMANIA MARITIME HISTORY (including the AUSTRALIAN WOODEN BOAT FESTIVAL)

Tasmania surrounded by water has forged a long and rich maritime history. No other Australian State has been so dependant on the sea for its economy. Experience the world renowned Tall Ships events, thrill at the glory of the parade of sail and explore Tasmania’s Wooden Boat School. See and hear the craft, love and devotion to the world of the wooden boat. The Australian Wooden Boat Festival has established a reputation as one of the world’s best maritime events. Held on Hobart’s vibrant waterfront, the four-day festival brings together the biggest collection of wooden boats in the southern hemisphere. Running Time: 39 min

BR-DVD BRITANNIA - A ROYAL SOUVENIR (The Royal Yacht) 40 min $45.00
For nearly half a century, Britannia served the Royal family as a home and Great Britain as a very special ambassador.
In her time the Royal Yacht sailed more than one million miles taking her Majesty the Queen on 968 official visits. She first set sail in 1953 and has been captained by 9 Admirals and 1 Commodore. Her normal crew consisted of no less than 19 officers and 220 yachtsmen. Typically the Royal Family would be accompanied by 45 members of attendant staff along with as much as five tons of luggage! The Yacht entertained Kings and Queens, Presidents, Prime Ministers, Statesmen and women, along with thousands of distinguished guests from all around the globe. The VIP list included Churchill, Reagan, Yeltsin, Mandela, Clinton and Thatcher to name but a few. The producers of this unique and comprehensive official video were given unparalleled access to the Royal Yacht. The tour takes you from Britannia's upper decks to her engine room, from the officers' wardroom to the Royal Apartments and from the Admiral's cabin to the Queen and Prince Philip's bedchambers. You will even see inside the guest suite where Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong Jones, Princess Anne and Captain Mark Philips, Prince Charles and Princess Diana and The Duke and Duchess of York all stayed during their honeymoons. You will see the magnificent dining table fully laid out for a 52 guest state banquet. It would take as much as three hours to set out each place precisely with the aid of rulers. Britannia played a unique role in the history of the British Monarchy and now you can have your own private tour to savour over and over again in your own home. Tom Cotcher provides an historical and informative narrative.

E 6 PENNSY's RACETRACK [DVD-R] 69 min $48.00
Herron Rail Video
'The North East Corridor 1940 - 1980'

A compilation of 16mm film by David J. Williams III with added film by Ted Gay, John M. Prophet, Jim Herron, Alan Evans, Bill Warrick, Wendell Murphy. From its inception by the Pennsylvania Railroad to Amtrak ownership in the late 20th Century, the North East Corridor is one of the world's greatest electrified main lines! In this program you'll witness highlights of PRR, Penn Central, Conrail and Amtrak operations from the 1940's, '50's, '60's, '70's to the early 1980's as this world famous trackage went through transitions of ownership and rolling stock. The picture traces operations from the Washington, DC area to New York with action scenes at many locations in between. This is the North East Corridor at its best! - Also included is an historic overview of the line with footage from the 1920's and supporting passenger train operations at Alexandria, VA in 1940. Mainly colour with some B&W.

E 7                HENDERSON MINE [DVD-R]                                                                         60 min                 $38.00
The Henderson Mine is 50 miles west of Denver, CO. It used a panel caving process and a rail transport system to mine molybdenum*. The rail system was a 42-inch catenary style railroad. Motive power was supplied by 32 Swedish built ASEA electric locomotives with dual voltage 1400 & 600 dc volts. The lower voltage was for safety in close clearance portions of the mine. Ore was moved 14 miles to the mill using 250 20-ton ore cars. The 9.8 mile tunnel that was said to be the 10th longest railroad tunnel in the world. The railroad ceased operation in July 1999.
*Molybdenum – A lead ore, molybdenit. A metallic element that resembles chromium and tungsten in many properties, used in strengthening and hardening steel.

E 8                ELECTRIC RAILS AROUND THE BAY [DVD]                                             67 min                  $48.00
Charles Smiley
Three Bay Area electric lines all in one program. See the Sacramento Northern, SP Red Trains and the Peninsular Railway stories. This 16mm film was shot by a variety of rail historians from 1910 to 1957. See the rail and ferry operations in the bay's early days plus the bridge operations that began the era of great change and decline. The Sacramento Northern section covers passenger and some great freight action in the south-end. See the Oakland hills and street running plus Contra Costa Country out to the ferry slip.

E 9                MILWAUKEE ROAD SCRAPBOOK (DVD-R)                                             74 min                  $50.00
Charles Smiley
The DVD explains the Milwaukee's 'Pacific Extension' line built around World War One. The extension connected the Midwestern based line to ports in the Pacific Northwest. The cost to do this hovered around 230 Million Dollars. The video reviews the history of the Pacific Extension's electrification by reviewing all the various locomotive types and the development of a network of substations to power the system's overhead wiring.
See some nice footage of the Butte Anaconda and Pacific Railway which was a heavy electric rail project closely watched by the Milwaukee Road as they began their own electrification in the 19-teens era. More electric action shows some Great Northern power that used AC propulsion to bring trains through the long Cascade Tunnel in the State of Washington. The Milwaukee's extensive plan electrified 660-miles of mainline track. The engineering and innovation on the Milwaukee was often superb but never had sufficient traffic. The decades wore the Milwaukee down until the Pacific Extension was converted to all diesel operation by 1972 and eventually closed forever in 1977. The Milwaukee used conventional power on many un-electrified branchlines out west. Both freight and passenger operations on the Pacific Extension are included. Spanning almost five decades of operation, some of the film was shot by actual Milwaukee Road employees 'on the job'. Colour ~ Narration ~ Sound

E 10 ELECTRIC RAILS OF UTAH (DVD-R) 90 min $50.00
Charles Smiley
Visit The Fabulous electric railroads that once roamed the Great Salt Lake area. The lines featured are the Bamberger Railroad, The Utah Idaho Central, Salt Lake Garfield & Western, (Saltair), and the Salt Lake & Utah Railroad. Passenger and freight operation, with nostalgic scenes and lots of history, make this a 'must see' video. The Bamberger and the Saltair both operated trains to amusement parks - such as Lagoon Park and the Saltair Pavilion. We cover those topics as well as express LCL service. Ride the trains from Salt Lake City to Logan, Idaho and down to Preston, Utah and see a vanished way of living. Take a pleasant trip out on the Salt Lake by rail to the Saltair Pavilion. See streetcars in Salt Lake City with vintage city scenes that will 'take you back' to the WWII era. Don't forget to take the ride on a Bamberger high-speed Brill car. The gigantic Kennecott Copper Corporation pit mine of Bingham Canyon is a feature with a fascinating vintage-look at one of Utah's major industries that has provided employment and prosperity. See the circa-1920 pit mine electric trains and the giant electric ore trains to the concentrators around Magna. The Kennecott Copper Corporation's operation in East Nevada is also covered as a comparison. Our usual maps, accurate sound, graphics and historical information help tie all this wonderful vintage material together to form a nice look at the Salt Lake area from an electric railroader's perspective. ALL VINTAGE!!! Colour / Narration / Sound

See the Key System as never before. All the lines, A through H, and the streetcar lines are represented. Ride the Key ferry boats and interurban units from the beginning in 1903 to the end in 1958. There are countless visual gems in this feature that bring back a 'vintage' Eastbay lifestyle.

FEATURING THE WWII RICHMOND SHIPYARD RAILWAY - A special section is on the Richmond Shipyard Railway during WWII. The construction, refurbishment of the elderly, ancient IRT cars, and the operation of the war-trains to the Kaiser Shipyard are covered.

A BAY AREA SPECIAL PRESENTATION - See the wonderful Key System Ferry Boats and a pleasant way to cross the San Francisco Bay for millions of commuters every year.

Take yourself back to the first years of the electric interurban line built by the genius of ‘Borax Smith’ and his partner, Frank C. Havens, in the effort to develop the Eastbay Area. We also bring cameo appearances of the Southern Pacific's electric IER Lines, SP and Santa Fe steam trains, and San Francisco Muni streetcars that gave the greater Bay Area a fine and complete transportation system. The looming war, the US Navy and the 1939 Treasure Island World's Fair bring some new nostalgic views and a profound perspective on the eve of World War II.

Don't miss the coming Key System Bridge Train units and the building of the Bay Bridge that defined how the San Francisco and Eastbay communities cemented their linkage to become a 'seamless' and prosperous region. We also bring accurate, 'synchronized' sound to these historic rail treasures...Colour/Narrated

See the Key System forward from 1945 and the end of WW II that brought the National City Lines ‘buy-out’. See the last 13 years of a great transit line that struggled to maintain quality service in a world of change. We review the NCL and compare its new control of the Key System to the LA Railway and others. See the last few years of the Key’s subsidiary streetcar lines that were all ripped out after 1948. Visit the Transbay Terminal in San Francisco and ride the Bay Bridge. Visit and ride through the Bridge Yard and recall the Key’s great fleet of Bridge Units connecting the greater East Bay with San Francisco. Run through the Emeryville Yard and watch trains spill past Tower Two. See great trains in a wealth of locations in a bygone era on all the Bridge Lines A through F. Don’t miss the action with freight trains down 40th Street from Sacramento Northern’s connection to the C Line and the Oakland Terminal Railway. The F Line’s ‘City Of Berkeley’ Key train of former SN Railway cars is just one of the delights to see on the Berkeley Line. Watch the stunning B Line trains around Lake Merritt and on up to Underhill. The C Line to Piedmont and Oakland Avenue offers the beauty of the East Bay. Sixteen people shot film that made this video possible for you to see! Their efforts allow us to relive those wonderful days. The Key has now been gone for 50 years! Colour / Narration

Created in 1930 by consolidating remaining trackage of Union Traction Co., Northern Indiana Railroad, and Interstate Public Service Co., the Indiana Railroad offered service from Louisville to Ft. Wayne. In 1934, lines of the Terre Haute. Indianapolis & Eastern and Dayton & Western were added while other lines were being abandoned, bringing service from Terre Haute to Ohio with connections at Dayton. Indianapolis, the hub of the system, was served by the world's largest traction terminal. But the end was only a few years away and the last trains ran in 1941. In this collection of very rare film, you will see the famous high speed lightweight cars, Railway Post Office cars, and the unique freight equipment of this long lost company. Plus additional bonus footage.

A collection of classic vintage film of Street and Interurban Railways, narrated with a musical background. Visit streetcar lines in Louisville, Birmingham, Miami, Richmond, Norfolk, and Newport News, plus Interurban lines Nashville-Franklin Railway, Piedmont & Northern Railway and West Penn Railways which served Parkersburg and Marietta in Ohio plus Clarksburg, WV. The time frame is from 1937 to the 1950's, depending on the subject. Also included are two bonus segments of Victorian cable cars in Melbourne, Australia and some trolley diners in America. Most of the film has been taken from 16mm. The Nashville - Franklin Railway segment is from 8mm film. Along with the railroad subjects, there are classic street scenes in many towns with automobiles and trucks from that time. This is truly a time capsule of life in America during a simpler time. Colour / Narration

I 21 CABLE CARS OF SAN FRANCISCO [DVD-R] 55 min $43.00
Highball Productions
Walk with us as we climb the hills of San Francisco and watch the world famous cable cars on the Powell-Hyde line. See these favourite attractions as they climb the steep hills just as they have for 125 years. Visit the power house and see the giant wheels that drive the cables, and find out how it all works. Finally, ride the cars from Fisherman's Wharf to Market Street, see the scenery and watch the grip man at work. * colour * hifi sound * narrated

I 23 MUNI's F LINE (San Francisco) [DVD-R] 80 min $43.00
San Francisco's preserved PCC cars and other designs from around America - and the world on the F line between Fisherman's Wharf and Castro and the shuttle from the Ferry Terminal. Join us as we hike the 5 mile line. See the colorful cars, on their own right of way along the Embarcadero and mixed up with other traffic on bustling downtown Market Street. Cars from Melbourne, Australia, Milan, Italy and New Orleans.

In 1902 Southern California was a collection of small farm towns. It was waiting for something to pull it together. That something was THE PACIFIC ELECTRIC. This is the story of the rise and fall of "THE WORLD'S GREATEST ELECTRIC RAILWAY." It is a complete history starting in 1872 with L.A.'s first horse car line and continuing through to the last RED CAR in 1961. The story is told by EMMY WINNING PRODUCERS using RARE FILM FOOTAGE, HUNDREDS OF PHOTOGRAPHS, animated maps and interviews with historians, those who worked on the railway, and those who simply remember the days when you could travel anywhere in Southern California by electric rail. BONUS MATERIAL includes a tour (25 min) of P.E. remnants, the bits and pieces that remain behind, fifty years after the last RED CAR ran in Southern California. Produced in cooperation with the world famous Huntington Library, This Was Pacific Electric explains the interweaving of this famous railway and the development of Southern California -- Five counties that became what they are today because of the RED CARS of the PE

This video is for all our traction and trolley fans. Here is great film from the 30's and 40's, and some from the 50's and 60's. Green Frog has created an entertaining and informative DVD of how it used to be when traction and trolleys were an integral part of our economy. Visit the North Shore Railroad (including some spectacular Winter scenes), the South Shore, Seattle Trolleys of the 30’s and 40's, Yakima Valley operations, and in the 1930's, the Third Avenue Trolleys, the New York Westchester & Boston, Public Service Transport of New Jersey and the Lehigh Valley Transit (Some of the LV of the 30's in colour!).
The majority of the original film was shot on 16 mm COLOUR film, the Eastern film from the 30’s was shot on 8mm black & white, and some colour...very rare!

Omnibus London Archive takes a nostalgic trip back to the streets of London with professional 16mm film productions and 35mm movie film shot for the cinema From London’s first horse buses of the early 1900s we follow the development of the bus through the B, K and NS types to the STs and LTs of the 1930s. Then we see the RTs, RTLs and RTWs of the 40s and 50s, ending with some magnificent colour film from the 1960s introducing the famous Routemaster as we shall always remember them.

Omnibus UK Archive takes us on a journey around the United Kingdom from the South Coast of England to the Highlands of Scotland, looking at many different bus operators from 1949 to 1971 but also includes many re-war vehicles filmed at the same time. This fabulous collection includes film from the Southern Counties Touring Society, Geoffrey Ashwell’s film collection and the magnificent British Transport Films Unit. Features buses from Maidstone, Brighton, Eastbourne, Provincial, Midland Red, Northampton, Doncaster, Wigan, Blackburn and many more. Presented by the late John Huntley Black & White and Colour

Trolleybus Archive Take One, includes footage from the Southern Counties Touring Society filmed between 1948 and 1967. There are highlights from the film “Heart of the Trolleybus” which captures the workings of the Metrovick factory in Sheffield and excerpts from a very early promotional film made for Richard Garrett & Sons Ltd detailing their ‘latest developments’ in Trolleybus technology out on the near-empty roads of England.
Systems visited include: Ipswich, Southend, Maidstone, Hastings, Brighton, Portsmouth, Bournemouth, London, Reading, Birmingham, Walsall, Wolverhampton, Notts & Derby, Mexborough & Swinton, Grimsby, Doncaster and Bradford.

Trolleybus Archive Take Two, is 100% in colour. Peter Goddard’s evocative archive features trolleybuses touring towns and cities in which they would never normally have worked such as Bournemouth, Cardiff, Teesside and Reading. We also visit Walsall, Wolverhampton, Derby, Huddersfield and Bradford. Finally there is the closure of the Maidstone system and the last day of operation in Huddersfield. Presented by the late John Huntley Black & White and Colour

REDCARS-DVD Pacific Electric / Los Angeles Streetcars Combo [DVD] 65 min $40.00

The Pacific Electric Railway - once the largest interurban railway in the nation - and the unique streetcars of the Los Angeles Transit Lines exist now only in memory and on film. These outstanding documentaries have been combined on one DVD to let you relive the final years of these two transportation legends.

Pacific Electric - The Twilight Years: After serving Southern California’s transportation needs for over sixty years, by the 1950s the PE’s rail passenger service had been reduced to five lines. View the last of the once-famous Hollywood cars on the Watts Local and the Big Red Cars, often referred to as "blimps," on the Long Beach, San Pedro, Bellflower, and Catalina Lines. See railfan trips, the tower cars on the four-track mainline, and the last of the "Juice Jacks" in action on Santa Monica Boulevard and at Butte Street Yard. (30 minutes)

Los Angeles Streetcars - The Final Years: Los Angeles commuters fondly referred to their narrow-gauge streetcars as "Yellow Cars." We’ll take you on an end-to-end tour of the W and S lines, the last to use H-Series standard type streetcars. In 1958, the MTA took over and converted the whole system to streamlined PCC-type cars, most of which were painted two-tone green. See the entire routes of the five remaining lines: R, S, V, P and J. Visit the Georgia Street Car House on the last day of operation and the Vernon Yard as retired cars are placed in storage. It’s a remarkable look at a memorable system. (35 minutes)

DVD Special Feature: Chapter Menus provide instant access to program segments. Produced by Pentrex 1992, released on DVD 2005. In Color with Hi-Fi Sound and Narration. No region code, can be played in any NTSC DVD player worldwide.

Ancient trams ply the crowded streets of amazing Calcutta, India's largest city. Mixed up with street vendors, rickshaws, insane taxis, speeding mini-buses, nerveless pedestrians and the odd sheep and goat, the battered trams continue much as they have for more than one hundred and twenty five years, clanging and clanking through the teeming streets of this incredible city. See rainbow coloured trams, porters with incredible loads on their heads, street vendors, inquisitive kids and the crowded, bustling streets of old Calcutta. Experience the culture shock, don't miss Calcutta's incredible trams!

D 18 KEY SYSTEM EMPIRE & GOLDEN GATE TREASURE [DVD] 61 min $57.00
Charles Smiley
See the Key System from its early days with ferryboats to the Bay Bridge era. Learn the history from start to finish of the great East-shore Empire. Visit all the lines and cross the bay by ferry and bridge-rails to San Francisco. Streetcars, Bridge-articulated units and many surprises, plus cameo appearances of early Muni and IER make this a transportation story.
This is unlike any other trolley program we have seen. Not just street running but a total history and explanation of the Bay area lines. Charles Smiley, as usual, has thoroughly researched the subject bringing together a feast of interesting footage from the 30s and 40s. You will be enthralled not just by the trolleys but with glimpses of the Clipper Sea plane, SP ferry boats, early Muni, Bart in the 70s, cable cars then and now, etc.. colour / hifi sound / narrated