MBTA in other media (ex-MBTA in the movies)

[BostonUrbEx]

inb4 The Thomas Crown Affair is merged with this thread.

There was at least one brief seen in "21" featuring the Red Line. I forget the character names and the actor/actress names, but the main character and his girl were talking on red line train, I forget which series car it was. She gets off at a station where you can only see "Quincy", so I'm not sure which one it was... (I don't think it was North Quincy, so either Adams or Center, because the left side wasn't cut off)

There may have also been a brief scene of the Longfellow with a Red Line train crossing it during the intro credits, or I'm thinking of another movie.

[R36 Combine Coach]

On the note of TV ref's, there is a scene in an old episode of "Cheers" in which Norm, Cliff, and Sam ride a Type 7 to the Garden, also shows cars on the Green Line El by North Sta/ Garden.

That must have been in a later season, since the Type 7s were delivered in 1987.

[onthegreenline]

heh... I just rewatched the "Spenser: For hire" clip and noticed that at 1:50 the 1400 has a "Braintree/Davis" destination...

[3rdrail]

Check out these short films, 1900's Panoramic View of Boston Subway from an Electric Car by Edison (1st film) and the 1906 Seeing Boston (3rd film) from the film archives at the Boston Public Library. "Panoramic" gets into the subway and "Seeing Boston" has some interesting El shots. It ends curving outbound onto Huntington Ave. from Copley Square. How many places can you pick out ?
http://www.bpl.org/online/bostonmovies.htm

[StevieC48]

Spencer for Hire use the MBTA for a back drop in many of their shows. I know Cabot many times and the Forest Hills EL after abandonment. I know there was other spots but realy don't come to mind.

[Cadet57]

I didn't see it mentioned. But St.Elsewhere has a lot of shots of the Orange EL.

[bigbronco85]

A few random clips...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W68zZ0eC2lk
St Elsewhere

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j41_sCAuQiE
Spenser

Red Line in this clip at about 4:48, but I wouldn't watch all of this long clip if you plan on watching the movie on DVD or Netflix, there may be spoilers. This film is so much better when you watch it for the first time without knowing anything that happens. I'll leave out the Turbo Train as well for the same reason, there's no short clip on youtube. Simply put, this movie is too awesome to watch on a computer screen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j41_sCAuQiE

No MBTA, but one of the best scenes in the TFoEC:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MR-_m4CLzM8

[3rdrail]

A few years ago, Crossing Jordan - the TV show that casted Jill Hennessey as a physician in the Suffolk County Medical Examiner's Office (although she wore a Boston Police badge - don't ask me !) did a show in which the opening premise was that a Red Line train crashes off the Longfellow Bridge. If I remember correctly, they had a mock crash site in which one of the Pullman Standard's was wrecked.

[BigUglyCat]

Paul's mention of Crossing Jordan reminded me of a rather laughable premise of one episode of that show. The home of Jordan's parents was supposedly located in a neighborhood that was "abandoned" when the Green Line (!) was "relocated". I still shake my head over that one.

[WoofyMutt80]

As I recall, there is a scene in The Departed where either a set of 15/1600 or 1700's cross the bridge, and also the scene at Park Street (all the signs didnt say Park Street, just all red stripes, but all us MBTA people know it is Park Street) and a set of 1800's arrive.

When I was a kid, there was an episode of Reading Rainbow and it was at the Museum of Fine Arts and there was a brief clip of the Green Line outside.

[3rdrail]

Paul's mention of Crossing Jordan reminded me of a rather laughable premise of one episode of that show. The home of Jordan's parents was supposedly located in a neighborhood that was "abandoned" when the Green Line (!) was "relocated". I still shake my head over that one.

West End ?

[MBTA3247]

Red Line in this clip at about 4:48, but I wouldn't watch all of this long clip if you plan on watching the movie on DVD or Netflix, there may be spoilers. This film is so much better when you watch it for the first time without knowing anything that happens. I'll leave out the Turbo Train as well for the same reason, there's no short clip on youtube. Simply put, this movie is too awesome to watch on a computer screen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j41_sCAuQiE

You reposted the Spenser link.

[jamesinclair]

Fringe, which is set in Boston makes frequent mentions of the T, including South Station and Boylston.

Unfortunately, the show is filmed in Toronto, so all transit vehicles shown are Canadian, with the logos edited out.

[danib62]

In one of the outtakes from The Real World Boston one of the cast members is having a conversation while walking down the Government Center blue line platform and walks smack into a support column. I'm sure there are other T appearances in that season but I never watched it.

[typesix]

The series Ally McBeal would show Red Line trains on the Longfellow Bridge.