I knew there something I that I had wanted to add to that message that I
forgot. When I saw "...Roger Rabbit" I thought the bit about replacing
the trolley lines with freeways was just a plot device - I learned later
that it was based on reality!
--
Kid hitching on bumper of trolley (to Eddie Valiant, who is doing the
same): Hey mister, don't you have a car?
Eddie Valiant: A car? Who needs a car? LA has the best public transit
system in the world!
--
You can forgive anyone who was born after WWII for thinking that that
exchange was pure fantasy!
Gary McCormick
San Jose, CA
---------------------------------------------
"Richard B. Chianese" wrote:
>
> Gary,
>
> Wasn't this the plot for a movie about 10 years ago? "Who Framed Roger
> Rabbit?" Christopher Lloyd did a fantastic job as a cartoon character!
>
> Eddie Valient - "Freeway? What the hell's a freeway?"
> Judge Doom - "Eight lanes of shimmering cement running from here to
> Pasadena. Smooth, safe, fast! Traffic jams will be a thing of the
> past."
>
> Judge Doom - "You lack vision, but I see a place where people get on and
> off the freeway. On and off, off and on all day, all night! Soon,
> where Toon Town once stood will be a string of gas stations, inexpensive
> motels, restaurants that serve rapidly prepared food. Tire salons,
> automobile dealerships and wonderful, wonderful billboards reaching as
> far as the eye can see! My God, it'll be beautiful!"
>
> Rick Chianese
> SRL311-14035
> Orlando, FL - Ptly cloudy and 80F.
> Hess gas 1.099 reg - 1.179 prem
> Shell gas 1.229 reg - 1.379 prem
>
> Gary McCormick wrote:
> >
> > Back in the '30s there was a consortium of companies which included GM
> > and some of the tire and petroleum products companies which went around
> > buying up rail and trolley lines in a number of major cities all around
> > the country, and then closing them down. This increased people's
> > relinace on autos and bus lines, which (you guessed it) lots of
> > petroleum and tires and were of course built by GM. Taken in to court
> > for anti-trust and lots of other violaions, they were found guilty and
> > fined... $5,000. I think GM's president at the time probably wrote a
> > personal check to cover it.
> >
> > So, there are a lot of things which can be blamed on "...the idiots in
> > government..." but not this one (at least not /totally/).
> >
> > Gary McCormick
> > San Jose, CA
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