International Railroad Discussion > "Unbroken" movie train scene

In the movie "Unbroken", they showed a scene of the hero getting on a train to go to the 1936 Olympic trials, from the Torrance, California, train station. It was not Pacific Electric interurban cars in the movie, so it had to be a Santa Fe train portrayed. Did Santa Fe have passenger service to Torrance in 1936? Also the signals looked foreign, they weren't searchlights. Much of the film was shot in Australia and New Zealand, so it must have been Australian or New Zealand signals. I seem to remember "CBC" in the top back corner of a passenger car, didn't look at all like AT&SF equipment. This is a cross-post from the Western Railroads forum.

mapboy

See:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-17/werris-creek-farewells-movie-makers/5162972

Cheers,
Jack

Africansteam, you've got it! This looks like the scene in the movie, only shot in Werris Creek, Australia, from ground level- http://www.panoramio.com/photo/96994995 Per ATSF100WEST on the Western Railroads board, there never was scheduled passenger service to Torrance (other than on Pacific Electric, with overhead electrified wires). The book probably mentioned leaving on the train, and the screenwriter assumed the train left from Torrance on a steam train, but he really got on the local PE or he got on a long-distance train in Los Angeles. In the movie, they were really off in replicating his leaving on a train. Apparently no one knew to ask on TrainOrders.com!

mapboy

I am a railfan who lives at Tamworth NSW Australia , Werris Creek a small town is 40 klms south , i was down there a lot when they filmed the movie, heritage coaches from the Thirlmere Rail Museum south of Sydney were used and were lettered Southern Pacific , the station there is a large two story sandstone historic building which is on a junction of two lines , there is a platform on each side of the station , there is also a large rail museum housed in part of the building and a model railway is being built upstairs right now.
There is CTC between Muswellbrook and out to near Narrabri which is to the west ,colour light signals are used , there is a long passing siding at Werris Creek which ends at the station at one end and the other end is down where the freight yard is and locomotive depot , main traffic is coal , there are many coal mines to the west around Gunnedah and they load unit trains around the clock , there is also a coal mine just south of Werris Creek which loads a couple of unit trains of coal a day . Grain is also a major traffic in season , grain trains start from the yard. Also two daily container trains go to Narrabri to load cotton and grain that is exported from Sydney . The coal trains and grain trains unload at Newcastle which is a busy port. There is a daily passenger rail service each way to Sydney , diesel rail cars are used called explorers , the train splits at Werris Creek , the main section goes north to Tamworth and finishes at Armidale and a two car rear section goes west to Moree passing through Narrabri , the sections join up again at Werris Creek late morning before the complete train heads off to Newcastle and then on to Sydney. There are no station staff at the station , the on board crew take care of passenger business , tickets for the train at Werris Creek are bought at the newsagent in the main street or online .
I saw the heritage coaches leave Werris Creek on there return to Sydney , they were hauled by two preserved vintage locos , 4306 and 4501.
Grambo

http://www.legion.org/magazine/225256/man-who-was-unbroken

Lurch_in_ABQ Wrote:
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> http://www.legion.org/magazine/225256/man-who-was-
> unbroken

Thanks for the link, a good read.

mapboy

Lurch_in_ABQ Wrote:
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> http://www.legion.org/magazine/225256/man-who-was-
> unbroken


Another incredible human being, from the Greatest Generation.

What an incredible man....

Bob