Switchman Recites All Freight Car Numbers Perfectly | You Asked For It

A switchman renowned for his photographic memory demonstrates his ability to recall the numbers and initials of 20 passing freight cars without using pencil or paper. Selected and verified by authorities, his flawless performance astonishes the crew, proving his unmatched skill in railroad memory work.
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As the longest-running reality TV program in history, You Asked For It is your hub for extraordinary short stories from around the world. Each segment was filmed at the request of a viewer, a uniquely interactive approach to documentary filmmaking that captured some of the most incredible moments ever seen on screen!
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[@bigmonmagoomba9634]

Coveralls and a bowtie. Priceless.

[@steadyrest7048]

Back in the late 70s I worked with a machinist from England making gears of all types. He always wore clean coveralls with a necktie. Another fellow American in the trade always wore clean ironed blue jeans with leg creases, a nice button up shirt and freshly polished black safety shoes.

[@jamessimms415]

May not have been paid much, but there was pride in their work. Doing it correctly & safely to the best of their ability (& sometimes ‘bending’ the rules as much ‘as possible’j was essential to the success of their employer. Sure, there were grump heads, but every company has them.

[@mikerca]

Amazing that he also recited not only the number, but also the railway company’s, and did them in order.

[@Traincraft_Fan]

a true legend in the railroad community, you don't get people like that anymore sadly

[@ChaseThePinballWizard]

@@Traincraft_Fan yeah i think outlawing all the radioactive stuff you could buy drastically reduced the number of mutants.

[@mpeterll]

That is the minimum requirement for the task as the railroad reporting marks are just as important as the number. The initials and the number together makes the car ID. One without the other is worthless.

[@willb.383]

That’s how memory like this works. He’s basically watching the cars go by in his head the same way they did in reality. Doing them out of order wouldn’t necessarily be impossible but it would go against how his skill at this operates.

[@toolsteel8482]

A nice roll by of fallen flags. The cars are not defaced with graffiti. This was a nice era of railroading when the roads took pride in their service having cool, catchy slogans.

[@Fernando39986]

Art on wheels isnt bad. As a railroader i enjoy seeing how far they travel and how old some can be..

[@kayzeaza]

Because spray paint wasn’t around yet 😂

[@KartKing4ever]

The rail industry was long past its peak by the time this was filmed. Still more together than it is today, though.

[@GWNorth-db8vn]

The bulls meant business in those days, too.

[@voidwalker9223]

@@KartKing4evereh idk about that the RR were amazing during late 40s and 50s. Huge number of RRs, both steam and diesel working together. Huge steam locos. Maybe not as dramatized as the old steam days but power and diversity wise it was a great time to be a rail fan

[@farmerbrown3768]

I’m telling my age here, I remember watching that show (You Asked for it) way back in the “60”s! I also noticed there was no graffiti on those cars either.

[@kayzeaza]

Spray paint wasn’t around yet, at least to the public. People have been doing graffiti for centuries tho.

[@kreuner11]

Maybe because aerosol paint was not invented yet?

[@johnbardong2360]

The idea of spray painting ones name on a freight car didn't start happening until the 70s and really grew in the 80s

[@twent3313]

Not even hobo monikers?

[@jameswilson6395]

Spray paint was available

[@toresbe]

Kind of a TV nerd thing, but I'm really amazed how well they managed to splice the film back and forth at 0:14 to extend the length of his reaction shot. So much manual craftsmanship had to go right for that to be so seamless. They had to duplicate the film with precisely the same exposure, then splice them physically with no noticeable splice.

[@macmedic892]

I never would have noticed that if you didn’t point it out. I even had trouble seeing it the first time I watched after seeing the comment. It’s really fascinating to see, and they did such a fantastic job doing it.

[@shortliner68]

Wow....I love seeing all the old road names of fallen flag railroads, and look how clean the freight cars appeared back then. Brings back memories of train watching in the early 1960s. I used to watch "You Asked For It" on TV as a kid, sponsored by Skippy peanut butter.

[@youaskedforit]

We're happy to bring back the memories!

[@gargoyle7863]

Police chief should have him hired on the spot as the radio operator knowing all the nations stolen cars license plates and wanted persons names.

[@fourtyfivefudd]

I work as a conductor and do his very job. without a switch list or consist list i couldn't remember the last car I just walked past. If I do have to remember a car, I just try to remember the initials and last 2 or 3 numbers. And i couldn't imagine myself wearing a bow tie at work there either lol

[@KartKing4ever]

He's FORTY-EIGHT? Wow. Yeah, it was a different time.

[@WhiteCamry]

Today we'd assume he was 78.

[@casadilla111]

Love watching the chief’s reactions, you can tell he’s genuinely sitting there, checking them off and impressed by what he’s witnessing!

[@boxcarthehusky420]

That rock Island alco was cleeaan

[@trainzguy2472]

cleanest rock island locomotive to exist

[@boxcarthehusky420]

@@trainzguy2472 and the fact it's an alco makes it even more amazing.

[@GWNorth-db8vn]

It's a mighty fine line.

[@SportyMabamba]

@@boxcarthehusky420if an Alco ain’t smokin’ an Alco ain’t workin’ 🤣

[@Modine.]

I just found it odd that the city police chief was the one that picked what cars would be on that train. Different times I guess. 🤷‍♂️

[@RealJeep]

Back then, the police chief gave it an air of respectability and honesty.

[@Jojo-u6c]

@@RealJeep exactly

[@eazcorazon]

I salute these sage elders of the ancestral autistic order. May their passions live on in all of us.

[@puppy4645]

this dude had been working for this rail company since he was 15, let that sink in.

[@bc5441]

Amazing, but the rest of the crew is grateful to have their switch lists!

[@jackuzi8252]

I was surprised to see the mention of the Phoebe Snow character at 3:02. She was used in advertising for the Lackawanna railroad but according to Wikipedia she was retired during WWI because the government prohibited railroads burning anthracite (conserving it for steeelmaking). These cars were obviously made after WWI. I guess because she was so well-known they may have kept putting her name on railcars for a long time afterwards.

[@Random3716]

In 1949 the DL&W revived the name when they streamlined the Hoboken-Buffalo Lackawana Limited, renaming their premier passenger train the Phoebe Snow.

[@SC1089]

Mr. Flanders scares me.

[@WestCoastin82]

😂😭

[@StevenOBrien]

Looks like Abe Lincoln.

[@gordonmorrow]

In the late 1940’s my father worked on the extra gang at the local rail yard and said they had a person who could do this exact same thing. I wonder how common this was. Or still is.

[@rossbryan6102]

LOL NOWADAYS, IF NOT RETIRED , I WOULD WHIP OUT MY CELL PHONE AND DO AN VIDEO, AS THEY ROLLED BY!!

[@doubleutubefan5]

I worked at railserve for a year, I could do about 5-7 cars from memory. If they were sweet bran cars that all started 534xxx then I could get maybe 10. No where near this guy

[@michaelseavello4612]

I remember seeing this when it was first aired.

[@johns3106]

Changing styles and times…did anyone else pick up that this fella is only 48 years old?! I’m almost 57 and he looks old to me…strang how clothing, glasses etc. can really make a difference in perceived age.

[@piecrust21]

Man had also been with the railroad since he was 13. Child labor laws have come a little ways.

[@Look_What_You_Did]

For the first time life expectancy were increasing in his 48th year on the planet. Males that reached 80 were in the 5th percentile. And the quality of life at 80 was not great in many instances.

[@rossbryan6102]

AS AN KANSAS CITY SANTA FE RR EMPLOYEE I AN AN BIT AMAZED THERE WAS ONLY ONE SANTA FE BOX CAR IN THIS CUT OF CARS! IN THESE DAYS KANSAS CITY WAS AN INTERCHANGE POINT FOR 13 SEPARATE INDEPENDENT RAILROADS! AT THIS TIME KANSAS CITY WAS THE NUMBER 3 RR TOWN IN KANSAS CITY, BEHIND # 1 CHICAGO, AND # 2 ST LOUIS! NOWADAYS DUE TO MERGERS AND SHIFTS IN ROUTING, KANSAS CITY IS NOW # 2 AFTER CHICAGO! KEEP THEM ROLLING BROTHERS!! 👍👍

[@theknickerbocker5808]

Guy ran numbers on the side.

[@jamessimms415]

Likely didn’t get paid much, so it helped

[@markhosbach9420]

This is so cool! I remember watching this episode as a boy with my Dad. He never missed an episode. I was awed by this man's performance of mental power and never forgot it. Imagine coming across it here on KZbin more than sixty years later.

[@youaskedforit]

We're happy to bring back the memories!

[@jaminova_1969]

Remarkable! I check in about 100-120 tractor trailers per day and I'm lucky if I can remember the last one I checked for more than 10 minutes! There are exceptions, if there is an issue with a trailer I need to commit to memory but I would love to have this switch-mans talents!

[@RT-qd8yl]

The original Aspy railfan 😄 He -walked- watched so we could run! Also I love the way he says "dubya".

[@scpvrr]

This was really cool, seeing so many fallen flags. Great video.

[@SA-76234]

Man. Over 20 years of doing this work and I still write my engine number on my glove 🤣

[@RyansColoradoRailProductions]

I can do this too with modern engines and rolling stock!

[@lukeonuke]

Tbh we need shows lile this today, glorifying hard working people to the masses

[@TFinSF]

We can call it "Not The Kardashians"

[@ShainAndrews]

Nope. There is a whole lot more to this planet than "hard working people".

[@northwesttravels7234]

Exceeds the space race in excitement.

[@naysmith5272]

Next week: the man who can recite his KZbin watch history without any assistance… 😮

[@eddieafterburner]

This guy was the OG AEI reader

[@tree502]

Nobody wonders why his wife never asked him "what happened at work today"

[@willmcpherson8097]

Switchman is 48????? Wow, I'm 49. I thought this guy was like 65 or 70.

[@josephschuster1494]

Wonderful God-given gift! I’m certain there are others today with this same ability, with the idea that researchers can locate some of them in the hopes of eventually finding a cure for dementia. 🚂

[@B-and-O-Operator-Fairmont]

I would have trouble with a switchlist form and pencil!

[@smeghead666]

I have no doubt that some of the greatest potential minds in the world wind up being wasted doing menial work that is far below what they are capable of offering to humanity.

[@billr8667]

A few observations... Flanders looks like a ghost. The numbers guy is 48 and has 33 years on the road, so he started when he was 15! I'm guessing this show was produced in the 1950's based on the B&W picture and the production quality. Videos like this demonstrate how much faster men aged back then compared to present day. A fellow who was 65 was considered old.

[@youaskedforit]

I agree work and stress make people look older! You can say they weren't allowed to be just kids

[@EricLehner]

Astonishing.

[@evan12697]

thats a rough 48 damn

[@owencrater7089]

Bye gone era, with great folks that did a great job. The comments below about no graffiti on the cars shows we have a different set of values these days. And I don't mean improved. Thanks for the vid.

[@kayzeaza]

Okay boomer, go take your dirt nap

[@Look_What_You_Did]

Right... because they didn't select pristine cars for the show... That would never happen. Just like the gentleman in brand new overalls and hat.

[@owencrater7089]

@@Look_What_You_Did He knew he'd be on TV and wanted to look nice. He took pride in his appearance. Not a problem there.

[@sissysakura7676]

WoW....

[@jarodthornton]

2:12 my man is 48

[@earlwright9715]

And he started working there at 15 yrs old

[@Kiyoone]

more and more i think that the past was glorious and everything modern kinda suck.

[@timdaugherty5921]

48?!! he looks 88

[@zhiracs]

the entire world was like 50% cigarette smoke at the time.

[@ccityplanner1217]

There's an amateur from Stratford who's trained himself to do this.

[@davidhull1481]

I vaguely remember this show- what network did it air on, and when?

[@youaskedforit]

ABC, around the 1950's

[@davidhull1481]

@@youaskedforit I have a vague memory of it but I was too young to care about it at the time.

[@anthonybrunotheodd]

What year is this?

[@rickeuler5792]

I remember watching this exact segment when I was a kid. I'd guess somewhere in the early 1960's.

[@user-vj9qz3br6l]

People’s personalities and demeanors back then were much different, perhaps better

[@claudiadarling9441]

They were being filmed for a TV show and wanted to look good.

[@uncipaws7643]

Try this with 12-digit UIC 438 numbers.

[@cinemabunny]

How many toothpicks were in that box?

[@zAlaska]

He began working there at 15 years old. I think that is illegal now, creating the Kia boys as an alternative.

[@claudiadarling9441]

Yes I’m sure kids stealing cars would totally rather be working on the railroad. That’s why nobody stole cars in the ‘20s!

[@AndrewStJohn-yx4wv]

Unfortunately, Mr. Stevens could not remember when his taxes were due and had the spend the rest of his life in a federal penitentiary

[@Alexius1Komnenos]

Lol

[@michaelkhoo5846]

Will y'all shut up and let the man concentrate!

[@plunkervillerr1529]

What year did Art Baker leave the show?

[@youaskedforit]

1958

[@Arathor82]

Jesus, was that a corpse ?

[@zambonibob2026]

Humans back then were better

[@mrbutthurt7341]

Hell yeah! Racism! What a time! Human rights violations with no way of really spreading the word! What an era!

[@jimmybrock6593]

No gang related graffiti on cars.😊😮

[@Look_What_You_Did]

You realize they assembled the train for the show...

[@EricLehner]

What, no graffiti?

[@KNR6292]

Now thats someone i trust with my amazon packages 🤠