last night i watched the movie "ray". in one scene in new orleans circa 1957 there was a train pulling twin stack containers. i assumed the container thing was newer than that. up in alabama i saw plenty of pig trains (TOFC) in the 60's and 70's but don't remember containers back very far. maybe from the 20 years or so i lost interest in trains. how long these things been around? thanks david
David: The start of what we see as containers was in April 1956, with Malcolm McLean and what became SeaLand. At this time, the containers either travelled on chassis or mounted on conventional flatcars. The first of the double stacks in service was propelled by partnership between SeaLand and SP and debuted in 1977. I'd say there's considerable artistic license in that movie.
I saw the movie this week as well, and also noticed that "feau pax". Oliver Stone made the same mistake in JFK.
