Re: 1989's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

For the remainder of the shoot, 484 was based in Chama and ran lite to and from the location. On Wed. September 7, my fireman and I (probably Blea, I didn’t note that), we in at 530am and zoomed up the hill light engine to Cumbres. Today we did all the close up shots of the actors for the shots we did on Windy Point with the second Unit on Aug. 31. The big buzz of the day was Harrison ford was going to be there to watch. He wasn’t in any of the scenes we shot as our part of the story was then when was a young man. River Phoenix played this part. Apparently Ford just wanted watch.

We spent the morning filming out on Windy Point, then pulled into Cumbres to let #2 by and have lunch. After lunch, we backed 484 out of the siding and down to the water plug to top off the tank. I got down to oil around. There were a bunch of people walking around headed back to the train. I guy came up behind me and said “This is REALLY cool.” I turned around there was Harrison Ford in shorts and a t-shirt. “They told me there was going to be a train here, but I had no idea it would be this cool and amazing….Wow”. I thanked him. He asked if there was any way he could come up and ride with us on the engine. I said that is was HIS train, why not? He then said he had to go talk to someone back on the train, but would be back.

Pretty soon we were headed back around the Point where we worked for the rest of the day. No Harrison Ford…. Approaching 300pm they called a wrap for the day and we pulled back to Cumbres to clear up for #3. I was sitting on 484’s right seat watching the mob unload, and saw Ford making his way alongside the train. He walked up to the engine looked up at me and with a disgusted tone said “THEY wouldn’t let me come up and ride…” “Who is ‘they’”….. “my bosses”……”I thought YOU were the boss”…..”Oh no, I have LOTS of bosses. Thanks anyway, gotta go….” There way go, my brush with Harrison Ford.

After unloading the gear and turning 484, we grabbed the train and headed down the hill. The next 3 shooting days were to be in Lobato. We took the train down there, set it out, and ran light engine to Chama for the night, tying up at 700pm, 12 ½ hours on duty.

The last three days of the shoot was a 630am call to run 484 to Lobato where we did the close up shots of fight on the boxcars below Lobato and the water spout scene at Lobato. For years the fake water tank dating from 1968 had stood next to the tracks at Lobato. For this scene they wanted a water column. They moved the tank back. Actually they tore the old one down, and built a new one further from the track. The brought in this typical Hollywood water column. Supposedly this thing cost $65k to build. It had ball bearings in it so it would spin easy.



After a couple of hours pf shooting, we’re in the siding as 488 steams by with train #2…