April 8 - Silver Streak

Today’s movie is a comedy with a scene that happens on April 8. Watch it tonight and enjoy.

SILVER STREAK            

George Caldwell is taking the Amtrak train Silver Streak from Los Angeles to Chicago for his sisters wedding. On board he meets Bob Sweet, a vitamin salesman, who wants to “get it on” with Hillie Burns, secretary to Professor Schreiner, who’s written a book about Rembrant, but she wants George instead.  During their romantic encounter, George sees a dead man hanging off the roof of the train outside her compartment for an instant. The next morning he discovers the dead man was Hillie’s boss.  When he investigates, a tough throws him off the train. He meets a crazy rancher who flies him in her private plane and he reboards the train. He finds Hillie lunching with Roger Devereau, a wealthy jet setter. George is introduced to Professor Schreiner and Deverearu apologizes for George having been tossed off the train, saying it was all a big mistake. George tells his tale to Bob Sweet, who is revealed to be a federal agent, not a vitamin salesman. He tells George the Feds are investigating Devereau and that Devereau killed the Professor because he had the “Rembrandt letters” which would reveal that two Rembrandt paintings authenticated by Deverau were actually fakes. George had thrown Hillie’s copy of the Professor’s book with the Rembrandt letters inside into his briefcase the night before, so Devereau’s men couldn’t find them. George and Sweet go to retrieve them. As they enter a tunnel, Sweet opens the compartment door thinking it is the porter and is shot in the blackness. As he is dying Sweet tells George to take his gun. When the porter does open the door he sees George holding the gun kneeling over Sweet’s body and so he thinks George did it. Devereau’s men chase George. He kills one of them, but is knocked off the train again. He goes to a wacky sheriff who won’t listen to his story and tries to arrest him for murder. George overpowers him and steals a patrol car from a deputy. In the back seat is a thief, Grover, who helps George avoid roadblocks. They steal a Jaguar and head for Kansas City to catch the Silver Streak, on April 8, 1974, where they have to sneak on board, since they see newspapers that say George is wanted for murder. On the train they try to rescue Hillie, but in a gunfight they have to jump off the train. They are picked up by the Feds, who know George isn’t a killer. The Feds stop the train and start to evacuate the passengers, but Devereau and his thugs begin shooting and start up the train again. George and Grover sneak back on board. In the drivers compartment Devereau kills the engineer and places a toolbox on the throttle and is then killed himself. George and Grover disconnect the last car from the train and slow to a stop. The rest of the out of control train crashes into the station. Hillie and George leave together. [1:09:35 to 1:51:55].    

                   

A funny comedy drama. Reminiscent in many ways of North by Northwest. A somewhat geeky guy is forced by circumstances to become a hero. Has a well thought out story complete with some great action sequences.

If you zoom in on the Chicago Tribune shown at 1:12:00 the issue is this date.

Producer - Edward K. Milkis

Director - Arthur Hiller

Awards - Nominated for the Best Sound Oscar.

Screenplay - Colin Higgins

Runtime - 1 hour 54 minutes

Released - December 8, 1976

Starring -

Gene Wilder as George Caldwell

Jill Clayburgh as Hilly Burns

Richard Pryor as Grover T. Muldoon

Patrick McGoohan as Roger Devereau

Ned Beatty as Bob Sweet

Clifton James as Sheriff Oliver Chauncey

Ray Walston as Edgar Whiney

Scatman Crothers as Pullman Porter Ralston

Lucille Benson as Rita Babtree

Stefan Gierasch as Professor Schreiner

Valerie Curtin as “Plain Jane”

Richard Kiel as Reace

Fred Willard as Jerry Jarvis

Henry Beckman as conventioneer

Copyright by Ivan Walters in 2015