1. Johnny Cash: While this may not suprise some, as seen by his numerous songs that had stuff to do with trains such as "I've got a thing about trains". Johnny Cash was in fact a railfan, having grown up near both the Rock Island Line and Cotton Belt route, it's fair to say he had an interest in trains. Also, in his cover of the Nine Inch Nails song "hurt" you can see him in the cab of Southern Railway No. 4501. Another thing with him is that on his variety show back in the 1960s that always included a segment on railroads. You could say Johnny was a train fan through and through.
2. Walt Disney: When you were known for placing a Steam Railroad and a Monorail both in the same amusement park you own, it's fair to say you must have some interest in trains. There have also been reports that before creating Walt Disney Inc, he worked on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad. Not only that he also owned numerous toy trains. Walt Disney could be the definition of a railfan if need be.
3. Rod Stewart: Famous Rock n Roll star Rod Stewart is known for owning a tremendous HO scale model train layout he calls "the three river city". He was also once quoted stating that "I'm proud to be a railway modeler," "It means more to me to be on the cover of Model Railroader than to be on the cover of a music magazine." Obviously this bluntly states he has a passion for trains as well.
4. Joe Biden: Along with being the 47th Vice President of the United States, Biden is known to be a passenger train enthusiast. He has logged over 2 MILLION MILES on Amtrak travel alone over the past 40 years or so. He is a major advocate for passenger rail and played a major role in making sure Amtrak got 2 Billion dollars to go towards upgrading their trains on the Northeast Corridor. Not only that, he also played a part in restoring St. Paul, Minnesota's Union Station. Regardless of your political beliefs, Joe has been and continues to be a major advocate for trains.
5. Merle Haggard: The fact that Merle's 23rd studio album is called "My Love Affair With Trains" could be enough evidence for some that he really enjoys his trains. His Father also worked for the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad and he lived in a house made out of a Santa Fe boxcar. His tour bus was even painted with the Santa Fe "drumhead" logo on it! Not only that, but his collection of model trains was worth over $250,000! So yeah, you could say he was pretty devoted to his trains!!
6. Neil Young: Neil Young has always been a huge fan of Lionel Trains since he was a young boy. He got his first Lionel set when he was a pre-teen and had kept his hobby since. His special needs son Ben, is also a big fan of the trains and they bond together through their love of model trains! In fact, their bond was so significant that Neil had a "paddle" designed for Ben to operate the trains by leaning his head into the paddle to apply and disengage power to the train set due to the fact he had severe difficulties using his arms and legs. Talk about devotion!
7. Roger Daltry: The singer of world renowned band The Who has a 45×25 foot layout that he operates in his attic with some of his friends. He discovered this hobby when he was in his "middle age". Him and his friend Cliff Parsons were both appalled at the fact that children of Brittain didn't know much about their country's proud railroad history, and are working on developing the 2.5 acre Ashford International Model Railway Educational Centre, which is planned to feature up to 30 massive model railroad layouts worth several hundred thousands of pounds! There is no denying his love of trains when he out that much into it!
8. Frank Sinatra: Ol Blue eyes had a thing for trains, so much so that he would take the subway from Hoboken to Manhattan just to see the model trains in window displays at department stores! His mother pawned an old fox fur she had aquired so that way Frank could have his first train set. Another interesting tale about Frank was that he would hop aboard streetcars with his friends to the old Lionel train factory and search their dumpsters for discarded model train parts. They would then put together trains from whatever larts they could find! ( Talk about hardcore!) As an adult his interest never faded, as he devoted an entire guesthouse on his California ranch to become a model train shrine! This was how he would spend his time out of the limelight to unwind. Because of the fact that he was on tour constantly, Sinatra never really had time to buy trains of his own. However, his staff loved him like his own family and went out of their way to buy an actual full sized caboose that was placed on his ranch property! Devoted? I'd say for sure!
Very Cool to know this info. The only sad thing is a lot of so called no-bodies have even greater layouts. And should be on this same list IMO.
ReplyDeleteRod Stewart models in HO scale not O
ReplyDeleteThanks for the correction!
Delete