70 Years of Trains Magazine on DVD

[Gilbert B Norman]

Mr. Audley, may I spam your forum?

http://www.kalmbachstore.com/15100.html

First, let it be understood that I have no pecuniary interest whatever in the sale of this product, but in the sixty years that I have been following railroad industry affairs, first as a railfan and later from being employed within then after leaving what I guess could be called an "industry observer", I have never seen a product offered that could prove as invaluable as this for anyone desiring a meaningful chronicle on how the industry has evolved during the past seventy years.

Since I already have a complete TRAINS collection VI#1 onward, I will likely pass, but if Kalmbach were to offer a keyword search feature updated monthly and available on-line, I'd subscribe in a heartbeat.

[Aa3rt]

Certainly not spam Mr. Norman and I welcome your bringing this to our attention.

As one who misspent my youth reading and re-reading my father's collection of Trains and Railroad magazines dating back to the 1940's, having the entire collection of Trains on DVD should be a valuable (and space saving) resource.

In the interest of maintaining domestic harmony I most likely won't be ordering this right away but it may make an ideal gift suggestion.

[2nd trick op]

I can only add a second to Mr. Norman's observation that those among us who weren't there during Trains' best years (1955-1972, IMHO) don't know what they missed. Glad to see that work preserved in a more-accessible format

[Otto Vondrak]

I can only add a second to Mr. Norman's observation that those among us who weren't there during Trains' best years (1955-1972, IMHO)

What happened in 1972? I liked the whole DPM period through 1990, personally.

[Gilbert B Norman]

Otto, I would guess Mr. 2nd Trick's reference is that DPM was covinced that Amtrak could never offer services at a level worthy of his interest and simply "washed his hands" of it. He knew he could never write with the same passion as displayed in the likes of "Great Guns, Mr. Johnston (Panama Ltd)" or "The Clean Window Train" (Empire Builder) and his 1967 "farewell" to trains as he knew them editorials "Chico Calls it Quits' and "Excuse the First Person".

[2nd trick op]

Enjoyed the comments, gentlemen: I suspect that while we all felt a kinship with what went on at "1027 North Seventh" in those days, our personal circumstances added something to both our perception, and to that on the other side of the exchange.

1972 was the year i finished my education, and was about to begin all the adjustments the real-world demands that quickly diminish our lofty expectations, A couple of atttempts to "hire on" in the days before the Disabilities Act quickly convinced me that if I wanted the "24/7, blue collar and black coffee" athmosphere that I preferred, I'd better try for something in trucking. it was also the year that Hurricane Agnes took so much away from the railroad scene in my neighborhood.

Things weren't going too well over in Milwaukee either. (Just as an aside, i woder if Mr. Norman can remember a couple of ads by his own Milwaukee Road done in the "hip" style of the time with freight with hands and feet; they apparently fell flat.)

But to return to the subject, I can remember a couple of phrases in some of Mr. Morgan's writing of the day that let on that he was dealing with his own mid-life crisis. And it was also at about that time that Rosemary Entringer was battling her own fatal illness. It's disheartening to compare that pic of Rosy on a Reading Ramble in the early Sixties with the one published with her final tribute little more than a decade later.

So the publication itself seemed to slide into a "get it while you can" mode -- features on car-ferries, mixed trains, special moves, all sorts of unusual things that couldn't last much longer, not to mention the Bicentennial ballyhoo and an unfortunate foray into Preidential politics. Occasionally, a Frank Clodfelter or Bill Moedinger would contribute something closer to the diminishing mainstream, but as with Civil War buffs, ferroequineology seemed to be in danger of becoming a venue with a limited sphere of interest.

But luckily for all of us, that's not how it turned out. I don't think you can become a serious railfan without coming to terms with the conflict between the subject matter's long time horizons vs your own finiteness.

But if Mr. Morgan could only see the tributes penned, and the intelligent discourse going on at this site ..... it's the best tribute we can pay to that very special time and crew.