"The Local" - Emperor of the North in Lego

[Glenn Holland]

"The Local"

Long before I published my model of Oregon Pacific & Eastern 2-8-2 no. 19 in December 2022, I'd been working on an appropriate set of cars to go behind it. Those who remember Robert Aldrich's 1973 film "Emperor of the North" may remember some of the freight cars that were used behind 19 for the entirety of the film. Naturally, I had to model these in addition to 19 itself. Any other combination of cars would not be fitting.

Research, I've always said, is one of my favorite parts of modeling. Having a goal in mind and being forced (forced? that makes it sound like a bad thing!) to dive into history and explore the most fine and minute details of a topic is something that I particularly enjoy with everything I model. The freight consist used behind 19 in Emperor of the North certainly forced me to pay attention to detail and explore threads of information I'd have never otherwise come across. Each piece has a unique part to play and blends together to create a visually appealing but commonplace style freight train from Depression Era America. 

What you see here is the "minimum" consist for 19. The freight train seen on screen changes a few times throughout the duration of the movie, and a small handful of the cars used are not represented here (at least not yet). This is "The Local" version, or the "Pre-Portland" version of that train, seen in this configuration from the first scene through the end of the opening title sequence. A short time on screen, but a legitimate representation nonetheless. Missing from this representation are as many as four cars used at different times - at minimum, 19 pulls five cars plus a caboose (seen here). At most, eight plus a caboose. 

Each car has been modeled with as much detail as I have been able to research - some creative license has to be taken in cases like this because the bulk of information I'd need to do a perfect job simply does not exist, and if it does, I have not found it even after more than seven years of research. Still, I'm perfectly happy with the results. There is little I can think to improve on the train at this point, though that may change as more information becomes available.

Reaching this point has been years in the making. Through years of research, design, building, and redesign, I finally have an unquestionably appropriate train for 19. These (and the remaining few not yet built) will likely be the only cars to use behind 19 from now on. Anything else would not support the goal of properly representing "Emperor of the North" in Lego model form.

More to come, eventually - but for now, I'm celebrating this milestone.

More photos: 

Video: 

 

Thanks for reading.

[Murdoch17]

"Nobody rides Shack's rails!"

Be still my beating heart - it's my favorite train film in LEGO! (sorry 'Polar Express', 'Breakheart Pass' and 'The Train'!) This is a really amazing series of MOC's, and I love that you've got most of the freight cars built, with the rest coming eventually. It's also impressive you been doing research on this for over 7 years! 

Keep up the good work @Glenn Holland, I can't wait to see what you do next!

Edited August 2, 2024 by Murdoch17

[idlemarvel]

Remarkable set of models. Astonishing detail it what looks like 6-wide models. And it runs so well. Kudos dude!

[SD100]

Love it! I've wanted to do something similar but you just blew it away here! Definitely a classic in this hobby.

SD

[Glenn Holland]

On 8/2/2024 at 8:23 AM, Murdoch17 said:

"Nobody rides Shack's rails!"

Be still my beating heart - it's my favorite train film in LEGO! (sorry 'Polar Express', 'Breakheart Pass' and 'The Train'!) This is a really amazing series of MOC's, and I love that you've got most of the freight cars built, with the rest coming eventually. It's also impressive you been doing research on this for over 7 years! 

Keep up the good work @Glenn Holland, I can't wait to see what you do next!

Certainly my favorite movie as well - it's stuck with me for quite a while! The rest is definitely on the way, slowly but surely. 
Research is probably my favorite part of every model project, but I've been hoping to compile everything into some sort of published work eventually... and I do mean eventually. But there's a lot to show - photos, information. etc. It's all fascinating.

On 8/2/2024 at 9:26 AM, idlemarvel said:

Remarkable set of models. Astonishing detail it what looks like 6-wide models. And it runs so well. Kudos dude!

Thanks very much! These are uniformly 8-wide. Very pleased with performance as well, 19 should be capable of the extra cars that remain!

On 8/4/2024 at 3:12 AM, SD100 said:

Love it! I've wanted to do something similar but you just blew it away here! Definitely a classic in this hobby.

SD

It's such a neat story to tell when you have the full train you're representing. Glad you like it.

[Feuer Zug]

Superb work on the consist. The details are amazing, especially at 6-wide.

[Ropefish]

lovely work as always and wonderful attention to detail! always an inspiration to see your works!

[Glenn Holland]

17 hours ago, Feuer Zug said:

Superb work on the consist. The details are amazing, especially at 6-wide.

Very glad you like it. I built these models at "8-wide". 

5 hours ago, Ropefish said:

lovely work as always and wonderful attention to detail! always an inspiration to see your works!

Thanks very much!

[GoHabsGo]

Incredibly amazing!

I'm speechless.

[Darkkostas25]

Masterful build with decent realism. Astounding shaping. To be honest not a big fun of trains with small powered wheels(i know why they need to be that way but...) but yours model is gorgeous *_* 

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

This is perfection!
No smudge on any detail...the carriages are all works of art!
Great locomotive and amazing video!

[Glenn Holland]

On 8/6/2024 at 2:35 PM, GoHabsGo said:

Incredibly amazing!

I'm speechless.

Thank you!

23 hours ago, Darkkostas25 said:

Masterful build with decent realism. Astounding shaping. To be honest not a big fun of trains with small powered wheels(i know why they need to be that way but...) but yours model is gorgeous *_* 

Thank you! The 90-ton mikados are intersting locomotives, built generally for logging service. 19's drivers are only 48" in diameter. Glad you like it!

21 hours ago, LEGO Train 12 Volts said:

This is perfection!
No smudge on any detail...the carriages are all works of art!
Great locomotive and amazing video!

Thank you very much! Each piece is unique and contribute wonderfully to the overall train.

[FGMatt]

Stunning build!

[Ferro-Friki]

What a gorgeous engine AND consist. I now need to watch the film in order to appreciate it even more!

[Glenn Holland]

On 8/12/2024 at 8:04 AM, FGMatt said:

Stunning build!

Thank you! It certainly looks good now that it's finally together.

On 8/13/2024 at 11:32 AM, Ferro-Friki said:

What a gorgeous engine AND consist. I now need to watch the film in order to appreciate it even more!

You should!

19 hours ago, Vinceres said:

Gorgeous indeed, so many details. 

Thanks very much!

[Hod Carrier]

I've never heard of the film so can't comment on the likeness to the original, but I can appreciate the time and effort put into the research and design to come up with a faithful replica of a real train. Congratulations, Glenn. All that hard work has really paid off.

[Yperio_Bricks]

What a beautiful train this is So much details at this scale, it's perfect!

[JGW3000]

Emperor of the North is one of those unrecognized film classics (cult film). Awesome to see the train and Shack, A-1, and the rest of the crew as well. 

[Glenn Holland]

On 8/17/2024 at 7:13 AM, Hod Carrier said:

I've never heard of the film so can't comment on the likeness to the original, but I can appreciate the time and effort put into the research and design to come up with a faithful replica of a real train. Congratulations, Glenn. All that hard work has really paid off.

Much appreciated. I usually say the research phase is my favorite part of any project - certainly true here! But I'm always left wanting "just one more photograph" of detail X, Y, and Z!

On 8/19/2024 at 4:26 PM, Yperio_Bricks said:

What a beautiful train this is So much details at this scale, it's perfect!

Thank you, glad you like it!

On 8/21/2024 at 1:25 PM, JGW3000 said:

Emperor of the North is one of those unrecognized film classics (cult film). Awesome to see the train and Shack, A-1, and the rest of the crew as well. 

It's a great movie if you enjoy trains or other movies like The Dirty Dozen. Glad you like it.