THE
1980
BULLETIN
CAR SIDES & COVER

	The cover and the carsides are both
something new for the BULLETIN, so
the story behind them is worth telling.

	It started back in the 1950s when the
Varney ads on the back page of Model
Railroader began featuring photographs
by John Allen. At that time, John’s mod-
eling was far in advance of anything else
commonly seen. Coupled with his abili-
ties with a camera (he was a commercial
photographer), those ads were probably
the most eagerly awaited feature each
month. I was one of literally thousands
of model railroaders who were captivated
by John’s talent and imaginative mod-
eling.

	Then, in the early 60s, the Navy gave
me some good news—I was being trans-
ferred to the Navy’s Postgraduate School
in Monterey. Naturally, one of the first
things I did after arriving in Monterey
was to contact John. John, as gracious
as ever, invited me up to the Gorre &
Daphetid RR and I soon became one of
the regular operating crew.

	That was a year to remember. Not
only did I acquire membership in the
G&D Operators, but also an upgraded
formal education and a wife. Discretion,
still being the better part of valor, pre-
cludes me from saying which took pri-
ority even at this late date.

	Subsequent assignments, along with
parents living only about an hour’s drive
from Monterey, allowed frequent trips to
the G&D over the next decade. The visits
were both interesting and challenging.
Interesting because the frequency of my
visits was such that John had usually
done a great deal of work in adding to
the G&D since the previous visit; and
challenging because of the new track
which had been added or the changes
made in the operating system between
visits.

	Then, in 1972, I received orders to
depart for overseas duty shortly before
Christmas. During the pre-departure
leave period, my family and I spent a
weekend in Monterey. While they were
watching a movie, I spent some time
photographing the G&D while John was
working on the layout. The resulting pic-
tures are mostly not publishable be-
cause they were specifically taken at
odd angles to emphasize the tricks of
forced perspective and lighting that
John used to achieve his spectacular ef-
fects. Those pictures, though (including
the one of Cold Shoulder), have to be
close to being the very last slides taken
of the G&D.

	Some foulups in my transportation
arrangements changed my departure
date for overseas to the first Friday in
January, 1973. On the spur of the mo-
ment, I went down to Monterey for the
weekly G&D operating session preceding
that departure date. Then, before the
plane carrying me to Okinawa had land-
ed, John was gone. A few days later the
G&D itself was destroyed in a fire. (If
you want to see more of the G&D, check
the Tape/Slide Clinic listings in your Di-
rectory of Information.)

	Which brings us to a time around last
Christmas when Bud Sima and I were
discussing our thoughts for BULLETIN
car sides. Bud came up with the idea of
trying some sides honoring famous rail-
roads of past modelers. Talk rather
quickly gravitated to the Gorre & Da-
phetid (pronounced gory and defeated,
for those that may not have heard of it),
and Bud produced the fine artwork for
the G&D sides in this issue.

	John used a combination of decals
and photographs for lettering his own
G&D cars. I have seen G&D cars with
what appear to be herald decals, but the
set John gave me consisted of decal let-
tering and photographic prints for the
heralds. John’s technique was to use a
razor blade to slice away the backing of
the photo until it was very thin, then
glue it to the car side with a mixture of
10-30% white glue in water. Extra G&D
heralds have been included in case you
want to try this technique, but you’ll
have to dig up the decal lettering on
your own.

	If you have any comments on the col-
or cover or on the idea of carsides hon-
oring famous model railroads of the
past, I’d appreciate hearing from you.
Your comments will help determine the
course of similar projects being contem-
plated. All comments will be read and a
sampling printed in BOS, but I may not
be able to answer every one personally.
And, please, include your printed name
and address on every card or letter.

... Don Mitchell

NMRA BULLETIN
December 1980