Re: O Winston Link Goes to the Big Roundhouse

["Rod Gayford" <rjaygee@eisa.net.au>]

Anybody who has read Trains Magazine for a considerable period of time
(since 1965 for me) would know the name O Winston Link along with Fogg the
railroad painter.  I recall a TV program on him several years ago (might
still have the video of it I recorded).  Yes, he recorded for posterity the
quintessential US railroad scene so well.  He will be missed.
Cheers

Rod Gayford

"Greg Rudd" <grudd@mail.usyd.edu.au> wrote in message
3A79DBD5.1FFE17F6@mail.usyd.edu.au">news:3A79DBD5.1FFE17F6@mail.usyd.edu.au...
>
>
> Nic Doncaster wrote:
>
> > This came to me through a US group.
> >
> > Thought it might be of interest
> >
> > Nic
> >
> > By ZEKE BARLOW
> > The Roanoke Times
> >
> >    A day after the historic Virginian Railroad passenger
> > station burned down, a much bigger blow was dealt to rail
> > enthusiasts:
> > Photographer O. Winston Link died of a heart attack. He was
> > 86.
> >
> >     Link chronicled railroad life in the 1950s and became not
> > only an international name in photography, but also captured the last
> > days of the American steam locomotive.
> >
> >     He had been sick for some time when he drove himself to
> > the hospital in Mount Kisco, N.Y., on Tuesday afternoon and
> > suffered a heart attack en route, said his publicist, Tom Garver. Link
> > died before he got to the hospital, Garver said.
> >
> >     There has been recent talk of creating an O. Winston Link
> > museum in the old Norfolk and Western passenger station in downtown
> > Roanoke. Link was lobbying to have the No. 1218 steam locomotive on
> > display and had said he wouldn't cooperate with the museum project
> > unless the train he described as "the most beautiful engine in the
> > world" was part of it.
> >
> >     For many, Link not only captured the last days of the
> > steam engine, but also froze an innocent time of the world in his
> > camera lens.
> >
> >     Besides the engines billowing steam, Link's photos showed
> > such scenes as folks sitting around a wood stove sharing a story
> > or a young boy waving to the engineers as a train chugged by.
> >
> >     "He was trying to document an era," said longtime friend
> > Joan Thomas, who markets videos for the British Broadcasting Corp.
> > made about Link. "He knew that not only the steam engines were
> > going but also a way a life."
> >
> >     An internationally known photographer, Link was featured
> > in the January issue of Vanity Fair, which featured photographers of
> > the 20th century. His photos would take days to construct
> > sometimes, complete with numerous flashes and wires galore. N&W would
> > work with Link on his photos, manipulating the trains to his liking.
> >
> >     "It was an impossibly beautiful relationship," Link said
> > recently.
> >
> >     Many people over the years have said how much Link's
> > works contributed to the history of the American railroad.
> >
> >     "It's a huge loss," Thomas said.
> >
> >     Staff writer Mike Allen contributed to this report.
>
> Very sad news indeed.  Without any doubt link was one of the great's.
>
> -greg
>
>