Supertrain

Supertrain is an American science fiction adventure drama television series that ran on NBC from February 7 to May 5, 1979. Nine episodes were made, including a two-hour pilot episode. The series takes place on the Supertrain, a nuclear-powered high-speed train that is equipped with amenities more appropriate to a cruise ship. It has luxuries such as a swimming pool, shopping centers, a gym, a library, a medical center, and a discotheque. It is so big it has to run on very broad gauge track. Though it had a rated top speed of 250 mph (400 km/h), and cruised at 190 mph (310 km/h), the train took 36 hours to go from New York City to Los Angeles, which would put the train's average speed at around 78 mph (126 km/h), slower than the moderately paced Amtrak Acela Express and well below the speeds of bullet trains in Europe and Asia; however, the first few episodes establish that Supertrain does not go directly from New York to Los Angeles, stopping in Chicago and Denver as well as an unnamed stop somewhere in Texas. Much like its contemporary The Love Boat, the plots concerned the passengers' social lives, usually with multiple intertwining storylines. Supertrain was described in a 1979 Variety review, "It's a 'Love Boat' on wheels which has yet to get on track." Most of the cast of a given episode were guest stars. The production was elaborate, with huge sets and two high-tech model trains for outside shots.

Director

Donald E. Westlake, Earl W. Wallace