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New Show about engineers 10
- Thread starter Lutfi
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bridgebuster
Active member
Crossframe,
I was never a big "Leave It To Beaver" fan. I read about Ward being a civil engineer in an article about obscure TV trivia.
Anyway, I also remember a watching TV show in the early 60's about a traveling group of construction workers and engineers.(I suspect it originally aired in the 50's since I didn't watch it during prime time and it was shown on a local channel rather than a network station) I think it was called "Troubleshooters" or something like that.
I was never a big "Leave It To Beaver" fan. I read about Ward being a civil engineer in an article about obscure TV trivia.
Anyway, I also remember a watching TV show in the early 60's about a traveling group of construction workers and engineers.(I suspect it originally aired in the 50's since I didn't watch it during prime time and it was shown on a local channel rather than a network station) I think it was called "Troubleshooters" or something like that.
SlideRuleEra
Structural
bridgebuster - I had totally forgotten about "Troubleshooters" staring Keenan Wynn. An internet source says that it was first run on TV in 1959 - 1960. That jives with my memory of the show.
bridgebuster
Active member
SlideRuleEra,
Thanks for the post. I couldn't find anything on the internet.
Thanks for the post. I couldn't find anything on the internet.
JedClampett
Structural
For "Troubleshooters" check:
bridgebuster
Active member
Thanks Jed.
A movie just came to mind: "The Black Cat" from 1934 with Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff. Karloff played an evil civil engineer. Lugosi was the good guy; he played a doctor. Figures; even then we didn't get any respect.
A movie just came to mind: "The Black Cat" from 1934 with Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff. Karloff played an evil civil engineer. Lugosi was the good guy; he played a doctor. Figures; even then we didn't get any respect.
bridgebuster
Active member
Some more movies/TV that came to mind:
"The Fighting Seabees". Construction engineer John Wayne spearheads the creation of the Seabees. BTW, this is the first of only three movies in which the character portrayed by John Wayne is killed. Duke fans should be able to identify the other two.
"Wake Island" with Brian Donlevy. Civilian construction workers battle the Japanese in the early days of WWII.
"The Towering Inferno". It was a structural engineer who figured out how to extinguish the fire. Of course no building would have a million gallon water tank on the top floor (and no competent engineer would install gas mains in a fire stair; the script should have been reviewed by an engineer) but hey, we got a good plug.
The episode of "Superman" Honest civil engineer played by Dabs Greer is framed for murder by a corrupt contractor after it was discovered that he was using substandard material. Luckily, Superman arrived in the nick of time as the warden was pulling the switch for electric chair.
Then there was the movie "Daylight" with Sylvester Stallone about a disaster in the Holland Tunnel (between NYC and NJ). There were no engineers in the movie but there was a scene that I disliked. The mayor orders the entrances of the tunnel to be blown up to prevent flooding of NY and NJ; the people in the tunnel would be left to die. The mayor tells her aide, "that'swhat the engineers decided. They know what's best". Granted, we do know best but we would have been able to prevent the flooding and rescue the people trapped inside.
"The Fighting Seabees". Construction engineer John Wayne spearheads the creation of the Seabees. BTW, this is the first of only three movies in which the character portrayed by John Wayne is killed. Duke fans should be able to identify the other two.
"Wake Island" with Brian Donlevy. Civilian construction workers battle the Japanese in the early days of WWII.
"The Towering Inferno". It was a structural engineer who figured out how to extinguish the fire. Of course no building would have a million gallon water tank on the top floor (and no competent engineer would install gas mains in a fire stair; the script should have been reviewed by an engineer) but hey, we got a good plug.
The episode of "Superman" Honest civil engineer played by Dabs Greer is framed for murder by a corrupt contractor after it was discovered that he was using substandard material. Luckily, Superman arrived in the nick of time as the warden was pulling the switch for electric chair.
Then there was the movie "Daylight" with Sylvester Stallone about a disaster in the Holland Tunnel (between NYC and NJ). There were no engineers in the movie but there was a scene that I disliked. The mayor orders the entrances of the tunnel to be blown up to prevent flooding of NY and NJ; the people in the tunnel would be left to die. The mayor tells her aide, "that'swhat the engineers decided. They know what's best". Granted, we do know best but we would have been able to prevent the flooding and rescue the people trapped inside.
bridgebuster
Active member
How could I forget the Paul Muni classic "I Was a Fugitive From a Chain Gang"? Innocent construction worker is convicted of a crime he didn't commit; escapes to Chicago; becomes a famous civil engineer and leading citizen; is betrayed by a woman and goes back to prison. Once again No Respect.
BTW: I do spend my day working. It just takes me 10 hours to work 8.
BTW: I do spend my day working. It just takes me 10 hours to work 8.
This is a great thread!.
You guys have already mentioned various negative portrayals of engineers. I would like to add this classic, found in George Orwell's novel 1984.
"The door opened, and another prisoner was brought in whose appearance sent a momentary chill through Winston. He was a commonplace, mean-looking man who might have been an engineer or technician of some kind. But what was startling was the emaciation of his face. It was like a skull. Because of its thinness the mouth and eyes looked disproportionately large, and the eyes seemed filled with a murderous, unappeasable hatred of somebody or something."
You guys have already mentioned various negative portrayals of engineers. I would like to add this classic, found in George Orwell's novel 1984.
"The door opened, and another prisoner was brought in whose appearance sent a momentary chill through Winston. He was a commonplace, mean-looking man who might have been an engineer or technician of some kind. But what was startling was the emaciation of his face. It was like a skull. Because of its thinness the mouth and eyes looked disproportionately large, and the eyes seemed filled with a murderous, unappeasable hatred of somebody or something."
jheidt2543
Civil/Environmental
I'm glad this thread came around again. I saw the movie "The Aviator" last weekend and there are two references to the "Cross Your Heart" incident in it. One regarding the design of it and one regarding defending the amount of Jane Russell's clevage shown in a movie. It was a different time and place back then!
Not a bad movie by the way and it shows a little different side of Howard Huges. While, I don't think he wasn't a graduate engineer, he certainly had a good intuitive engineering ability.
Not a bad movie by the way and it shows a little different side of Howard Huges. While, I don't think he wasn't a graduate engineer, he certainly had a good intuitive engineering ability.
I can't believe that with this great thread going so long that the take-all movie for Civil Engineers has not been mentioned. "Bridge over the River Kwai" - Story for those who don't know, Japaneese capture some British POW's and try to construct a bridge out of bamboo and rice...or something like that. Really good movie with plenty of drawings and no CADD to mess up the idea 
And of course there is always Homer Simpson the Safety man for the nuclear power plant, can't remember if he is a Safety Engineer, but he works with plenty of them.
And of course there is always Homer Simpson the Safety man for the nuclear power plant, can't remember if he is a Safety Engineer, but he works with plenty of them.
SperlingPE
Structural
There was a movie about a British civil engineer being sent to build a bridge oversees. There was a problem with two lions stalking the work force. I believe it was called "???? and the Darkness". Or something like that. The story is roughly based on real life events. The hero in the story (civil engineer) eventually kills the two lions. I believe the lions are on display in some museum.
....ahem...yes, we engineers used to be able to kill those with whom we disagreed on projects. But today, we are just a commodity and have fallen down the food chain. But someday, we engineers will rise up and regain that lost splendor and glory and.....
sorry - got carried away.
sorry - got carried away.
Another old movie that had an engineer as the star, was No Highway in the Sky. The lead character was Jimmy Stewart. He plays an eccentric engineer who theorizes that Britain's new Reindeer airplanes will disintegrate after 1440 hours in the air. Finding himself aboard one of the planes as it is reaching the stress point, he manages to convince an actress on board (Dietrich) of their danger. Good movie.
There was a very old movie with three civil engineers as the lead. They end up perishing in a plane crash on the way to a job in South America. I believe they may have even been structural engineers. They were all bachelors and lived in a large home in NYC. They came back as ghosts to help two special young friends fall in love and get married. Very odd movie, but it was a very good movie. I have only seen it once, and for the life of me I can not find the name of it. If anyone knows the name, please let me know.
Thanks
There was a very old movie with three civil engineers as the lead. They end up perishing in a plane crash on the way to a job in South America. I believe they may have even been structural engineers. They were all bachelors and lived in a large home in NYC. They came back as ghosts to help two special young friends fall in love and get married. Very odd movie, but it was a very good movie. I have only seen it once, and for the life of me I can not find the name of it. If anyone knows the name, please let me know.
Thanks
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- #58
In the same dramatic way as on the legal and medical shows, there is no doubt in my mind that a show about structural engineers COULD be made interesting. Some lines could read (and I have discussed this with my wife):
"What do you MEAN they used only A36 steel?"
"You simply CANNOT take that kind of shear with this fastener..."
" you talk of cost, but I'm talking about STABILITY dammit..."
" welding to aluminum - are you INSANE?"...
"Sure we'll have the drawings ready early, but are you willing to take that chance?"
"We used nodal averaging once - ONLY ONCE..."
"Are you telling me your backup is CORRUPT?"
"Moving all the installation processes to early February is an option, but I'm thinking of the little guy, the worker sitting there with his welding torch and nothing to weld. What about him? What happens when his kid asks - daddy, what did you work on today..."
OK, OK, so it wouldn't be THAT entertaining.
Time to get back to work.
Any others?
"What do you MEAN they used only A36 steel?"
"You simply CANNOT take that kind of shear with this fastener..."
" you talk of cost, but I'm talking about STABILITY dammit..."
" welding to aluminum - are you INSANE?"...
"Sure we'll have the drawings ready early, but are you willing to take that chance?"
"We used nodal averaging once - ONLY ONCE..."
"Are you telling me your backup is CORRUPT?"
"Moving all the installation processes to early February is an option, but I'm thinking of the little guy, the worker sitting there with his welding torch and nothing to weld. What about him? What happens when his kid asks - daddy, what did you work on today..."
OK, OK, so it wouldn't be THAT entertaining.
Time to get back to work.
Any others?
bridgebuster
Active member
How about "Engineer's Court"? Engineers defending homeowners from unscupulous contractors.
Around Christmas (I'm allowed to use this word, right?) I was watching The People's Court. The case involved a homeowner suing a contractor over cracks in his "cement driveway." I kept yelling at the TV "it's not cement, it's concrete."
The owner showed some photos; the cracks were more than just normal shrinkage. Plus, the concrete was placed in cold weather.
Unfortunately, the homeowner lost. The contractor convinced the judge that "cement" is a bad material for driveways, because it always cracks. The judge stated that since the owner signed a contract that relieved the contractor all liability in the event of cracking, tough s--t.
The owner should've brought an engineer to court; it might've helped his case.
Around Christmas (I'm allowed to use this word, right?) I was watching The People's Court. The case involved a homeowner suing a contractor over cracks in his "cement driveway." I kept yelling at the TV "it's not cement, it's concrete."
The owner showed some photos; the cracks were more than just normal shrinkage. Plus, the concrete was placed in cold weather.
Unfortunately, the homeowner lost. The contractor convinced the judge that "cement" is a bad material for driveways, because it always cracks. The judge stated that since the owner signed a contract that relieved the contractor all liability in the event of cracking, tough s--t.
The owner should've brought an engineer to court; it might've helped his case.
jheidt2543
Civil/Environmental
SperlingPE & debodine:
debodine is correct, the movie is “The Ghost and the Darkness” and is based on the true experiences of a British engineer sent to Kenya to build a railroad bridge over the Tasvo River. I first heard of this story in the book Dangerous to Man, by Roger Caras, Chilton Books, 1964. I liked the book right from the dedication, “To whom else could an author dedicate a book entitled Dangerous to Man, but to his wife?”
From page 16, “Certainly the most famous man-eating lions of all were those of Tasvo….. The whole story was reported in full by Lieutenant Colonel J. H. Patterson, an engineer assigned to the construction of the bridge over the Tasvo River, who brought the career of the Tsavo man-eaters to an end by his skill and persistence, and not without considerable personal danger.”
The true story takes place in 1898 and Patterson wrote a booklet, complete with photos, documenting his hunt for the Man-Eaters of Tasvo. The movie shows a thru-truss bridge, the actual bridge is a plate girder bridge, but I guess that is artistic license. The two stuffed lions killed by Patterson, were first made into rugs, for his den, but later were stuffed in a standing position and some how they made it to the Museum of Natural History in Chicago, where they can be seen today. They are not as impressive as the original photos taken at the time they were shot. They were both huge, maneless males, whose combined rampage killed 28 of the native workers and shut down the construction project. Patterson hunted the big cats for over three weeks, narrowly escaping two attacks, before getting both of them.
You see, there is adventure to be had as an engineer! Ah, the good old days!
debodine is correct, the movie is “The Ghost and the Darkness” and is based on the true experiences of a British engineer sent to Kenya to build a railroad bridge over the Tasvo River. I first heard of this story in the book Dangerous to Man, by Roger Caras, Chilton Books, 1964. I liked the book right from the dedication, “To whom else could an author dedicate a book entitled Dangerous to Man, but to his wife?”
From page 16, “Certainly the most famous man-eating lions of all were those of Tasvo….. The whole story was reported in full by Lieutenant Colonel J. H. Patterson, an engineer assigned to the construction of the bridge over the Tasvo River, who brought the career of the Tsavo man-eaters to an end by his skill and persistence, and not without considerable personal danger.”
The true story takes place in 1898 and Patterson wrote a booklet, complete with photos, documenting his hunt for the Man-Eaters of Tasvo. The movie shows a thru-truss bridge, the actual bridge is a plate girder bridge, but I guess that is artistic license. The two stuffed lions killed by Patterson, were first made into rugs, for his den, but later were stuffed in a standing position and some how they made it to the Museum of Natural History in Chicago, where they can be seen today. They are not as impressive as the original photos taken at the time they were shot. They were both huge, maneless males, whose combined rampage killed 28 of the native workers and shut down the construction project. Patterson hunted the big cats for over three weeks, narrowly escaping two attacks, before getting both of them.
You see, there is adventure to be had as an engineer! Ah, the good old days!
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