The Silver Streak

The Silver Streak
Theatrical release half-sheet poster
Directed byTommy Atkins
Written byH.W. Hanemann
Jack O'Donnell
Roger Whately
Produced byGlendon Alvine
StarringCharles Starrett
Sally Blane
Hardie Albright
William Farnum
Irving Pichel
Arthur Lake
CinematographyJ. Roy Hunt
Edited byFred Kundtson
Music byAl Colombo
Distributed byRKO Radio Pictures
Release dates
  • December 10, 1934 (1934-12-10) (Premiere-Galesburg, Illinois)[1]
  • December 21, 1934 (1934-12-21) (US)[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Silver Streak is a 1934 American black-and-white film drama from RKO, loosely based on the record-setting "dawn-to-dusk" run of the Pioneer Zephyr on May 26, 1934.[2] The film stars Sally Blane, Charles Starrett, William Farnum, and Hardie Albright.

The original Zephyr train was used for the film's exterior shots, while interior scenes were filmed on a Hollywood sound stage. For the film, the "Burlington Route" nameplate on the train's nose was replaced with one that read "Silver Streak". One of the film's promotional items was a small book called The Story of the Silver Streak, illustrated with black-and-white film stills.[3]

In 2006 Con-Cor International, Ltd. produced scale models of the Pioneer Zephyr. A limited number (350 HO scale and 250 N scale) of these bore the film's Silver Streak nameplate instead of the standard Burlington Route nameplate.

  1. ^ a b "The Silver Streak: Detail View". American Film Institute. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
  2. ^ F.S.N. (January 16, 1935). "The Silver Streak (1934) Burlington Zephyr Featured in 'Silver Streak' at the Mayfair -- 'White Cuckatoo' at the Astor". The New York Times.
  3. ^ Packer, Eleanor. "The Story of the Silver Streak." (1935, Whitman Publishing).