BusTalk

[Mr. Linsky]

I happened to be surfing the cable channels the other night and came upon 'Dog Day Afternoon' - a 1975 Warner Brothers film release directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Al Pacino in a true story about a man who attempts to rob a Brooklyn bank to pay for his homosexual lover's sex change operation and which turned into an hours long hostage situation and a media circus.

In one scene in the film, in which all exteriors were shot on location in Brooklyn, there's a commotion around a television set in a nearby store among several women including the wife of Mr. Pacino's character when they realize that he is the robber outside the door of the bank screaming at the police.

As the camera picks up the traffic passing the store, I was amazed to see a Green Bus Lines GM new look lumbering by and immediately figured it must have been a Q35.

Now to the part of the story in which I had a personal interest;

My lifelong best friend and law school classmate became a partner in the prestigious Brooklyn criminal law firm that represented Al Pacino's real life character at trial and was both the attorney of record at the arraignment and a subsequent technical adviser on the picture.

Before release to theaters, my wife and I were invited along to a private preview of the movie at the production company's 666 5th. Avenue offices along with a sumptuous dinner at the Top of The Sixes Restaurant.

Unfortunately, there are no still shots of the scene with the bus but if you get a hold of the DVD, it's about half way through the film.

Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, New York

[B53RICH]

Mr. L., believe it or not that was actually a Q60 bus. That scene was at the McDonald's at the intersection of Jamaica Avenue and Queens Boulevard. At the beginning of the scene you can see the street signs bearing the old Queens colors, beige background, blue lettering.
The El in the background is also long gone.