Southern Pacific Daylight Time

Southern Pacific Daylight Time

A & R Productions

Length: 50 minutes

Time Period: 1930’s- 1950’s

Locations: Pacific Coast, Donner Pass, Chicago, Sunset Route, Mt. Shasta

Source: Blackhawk Collection

MSRP: 29.95

A collection of 5 vintage based SP films. Featuring steam era SP Coast Daylights and more. There are chapters on: SP/ RI Golden State, Cab Forwards and steam era Donner Pass snow service. Approximately half of this show is in black and white film.

The early 1937 Coast Daylight footage was from pre- LAPUT days. Train 99 operates from Central Station in LA to Oakland Mole destination. Black and white film is clean. Interesting.

Action along the Pacific Coast with Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. The Lark is seen here.

SP train number 99 departs Central Station in 1937 at Los Angeles. The GS-2 has it’s counterpart, train 98 scheduled southbound from Oakland.

Ted Daluku narrates a good script. Train sounds are included. The assorted chapters are titled and presented as a series of film shorts. Quality is very good on the whole. One film in particular, The Golden State, seems to have been produced in the 1950’s. Appropriate period corniness for modern viewers.

The City of San Francisco is being freed from the snow in 1952.

SP 4270 is a late model AC11. Leading the Western Pacific California Zephyr at Truckee in 1952.

Jointly operated by Rock Island and Southern Pacific, is The Golden State. Tracing the train from LaSalle Street Station in Chicago, this move winds up on SP’s Sunset Route to Los Angeles. Appears to be a railroad produced film.

F units lead trains thru the snowsheds on Donner Pass. This frame has Donner Lake.

SP Daylight Time. The Coast Daylights can be found in full color, on other programs. Naturally, it is still worthy for SP fans. For the rest of us, the vintage era Donner Pass action would be the main reason to acquire this release. A good and informative show.