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United States of AmericaA stockbroker from Texas battles eastern bankers, railroads and government.
SynopsisRobert R. Young (a.k.a. "Punk") a shy boy from Texas, became a railroad tycoon, millionaire, business giant and social success. He took on the big eastern bankers, railroads and government in his crusade for coast-to-coast rail passenger service. Young was chairman of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. In 1954, he waged a bitter proxy fight for the New York Central Railroad. Advertising Age magazine named him advertising man of the year in 1946 for his famous Hog Ad.
Director's StatementUnlike programs where people are interviewed to tell someone's life story, I wanted Robert R. Young to tell his story. I started out with a few paragraphs about him in a couple of books and a few magazine articles. Prior to becoming a filmmaker, I worked in radio news, so I knew how to dig for information. I traveled to Indiana, Virginia and West Virginia and collected articles Young wrote about railroading and business. I wasn't worried about condensing boxes of photos, film and information covering the years from 1897 to 1958. If I could cover the world in a 90 second radio newscast, I could tell Young's story in 45 minutes.
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Directed by
Carol Hoffman -
Written by
Carol Hoffman -
Produced by
Carol Hoffman - Punk: The Robert R. Young Story Website
Written by: Carol Hoffman
Produced by: Carol Hoffman
Cast
: Bruce Ryan: Carol Hoffman
Crew
: Thomas Fenton: Sonya Kostas Ramos
: Gerhard Schermaier
: Carol Hoffman
: Carly
: Bill Conners
: Ed Esposito
: Carol Hoffman
"Punk" The Robert R. Young Story is a fascinating account of a colorful railroad reformer whose campaign for modernization of the rail system still benefits the nation today." - Howard Skidmore, Former V.P. Public Relations of the C & O Railroad
"This fast paced video would be a positve addition to social studies or business units." - School Library Journal
When "Punk: The Robert R. Young Story" was shown at the CSX Railroad shareholders meeting (CSX began as the C&O Railroad) those who knew Young said they learned a great deal from the program. Howard Skidmore, former VP Public Relations of the C&O Railroad called it, "a fascinating account of a colorful railroad reformer whose campaign for modernization of the rail system still benefits the nation today." The most common reaction from viewers: "Wow! What an interesting man. I can't believe I never heard of him!" If I wasn't married to a guy who grew up along the New York Central Railroad tracks, I might not have heard of him, either. Young was friends with the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. His wife, Anita O'Keeffe, was the sister of the famous painter, Georgia O'Keeffe. At five feet six, 135 pounds, he was sometimes dubbed "the smallest Texan in the world." His nickname "Punk" is short for Punkin' Head because his hair had an orange tint.
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Director
Carol Hoffman
