Locomotive(s) in Dr. Zhivago

steaminfo · **Posted:** Fri Aug 24, 2007 9:46 am

I recently watched the 1965 movie, "Dr. Zhivago". I know from doing a little research that the city railroad scenes were filmed in Spain, and the rest were filmed near Edmonton, Alberta.

Does anyone know which locomotive(s) were used in the Canadian portion of the filming?

Regards,
Doug

Steve Singer · **Posted:** Fri Aug 24, 2007 2:38 pm

I thought it was Finland?

survivingworldsteam · **Posted:** Fri Aug 24, 2007 8:19 pm

Steve Singer wrote:

I thought it was Finland?

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_Zhi ... 65_film%29

Quote:

Since the book was banned in the Soviet Union, the movie was filmed largely in Spain, with the entire Moscow set being built from scratch outside of Madrid. Most of the scenes covering Zhivago and Lara's service in World War I were filmed in Soria, as was the Varykino estate. Some of the winter sequences were filmed in Finland, mostly landscape scenes, and Yuri's escape from the Partisans. Winter scenes of the family escaping to Yuriatin by rail were filmed in Canada.

Brian Norden · **Posted:** Fri Aug 24, 2007 11:01 pm

A word of caution often stated is not to trust everything you read at wikipedia.org. What is published there is not referred (reviewed by peers) for accuracy.

My folks took us to see the movie when it was new in 1965. We saw it in Hollywood and boxed away I have the program, information book on the movie. I recall reading that filming was done in Spain and Finland.

The website MDBi.com has information about movies and its page for Doctor Zhivago links to another one listing filming locations for the movie: Filming locations for Doctor Zhivago (1965). It gives a number of locations in Finland and Spain for the movie and includes that "stock railroad footage" was filmed in Alberta, Canada.

Several other websites list shooting locations for the movie as Spain, Finland and Canada. A couple of Canadian sites include a listing of Doctor Zhivago being filmed in Canada.

I kept looking and found this at http://www.toytrains.info/trainmovies.asp

Quote:

1965 Dr. Zhivago City railroad scenes were filmed in Spain, where the gauge is 5' 6". Rural railroad scenes were filmed in Canada, including the log station at Lake Louise on the Canadian Pacific, where the gauge is 4' 8 1/2" (standard gauge). The rails move farther apart and closer together as the location changes. (11/01/2005)

mxdata · **Joined:** Thu Jun 16, 2005 11:54 am **Posts:** 609

Yes, Wikipedia often has the very best information that somebody was able to "lift" from somebody else's website.

G. W. Laepple · **Joined:** Mon Aug 23, 2004 5:10 pm **Posts:** 1182

Further word of caution for Wikipedia entries: a recent report on NPR states that software is now available to trace back to the contributor. While it may not be significant for us, a check revealed that various political and industry operatives have "edited" entries to slant information for or against their vested interests. Be wary of what you read on Wikipedia.

mxdata · **Joined:** Thu Jun 16, 2005 11:54 am **Posts:** 609

I wonder if the guy who invented the internet ever considered all these problems....

Alexander D. Mitchell IV · **Posted:** Sat Aug 25, 2007 10:43 am

Wikipedia: The Home of the C- Term Paper/Report.

Now, give me time, and I'll dig out my "Railways and the Movies" books....

ctjacks · **Posted:** Sun Aug 26, 2007 11:52 pm

The Canadian Pacific Railroad is credited at the end of the movie. However, the engines in the movie certainly aren't from CP unless they were disguised rather heavily.

I suspect that the actual locomotives were filmed in Spain, and the mountain scenes - such as when the first see the Ural mountains - were shot along CP in Alberta.

Chris.