| Disaster on the Coastliner | |
|---|---|
 a movie poster showing helicopters seeing two mans that leaning on theAmtrak EMD F40PH locomotive. | |
| Genre | Action Drama |
| Written by | David Ambrose |
| Directed by | Richard C. Sarafian |
| Starring | Lloyd Bridges Raymond Burr Robert Fuller Pat Hingle E. G. Marshall Yvette Mimieux William Shatner Paul L. Smith |
| Theme music composer | Gerald Fried |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producer | Frank von Zerneck |
| Production locations | East Lyme, Connecticut Groton, Connecticut |
| Cinematography | Fred J. Koenekamp |
| Editor | Robert Florio |
| Running time | 100 minutes |
| Production companies | Filmways Television Moonlight Productions |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | October 28, 1979 (1979-10-28) |
Disaster on the Coastliner is a 1979 Americanmade-for-televisionaction drama film. It was directed byRichard C. Sarafian and starredLloyd Bridges,Raymond Burr,Robert Fuller,Pat Hingle,E. G. Marshall,Yvette Mimieux,William Shatner, andPaul L. Smith. It originally aired onThe ABC Sunday Night Movie on October 28, 1979.
A disgruntled railroad employee attempts to cause a collision between twopassenger trains.
The film was shot on a railway line in Connecticut. At his own suggestionWilliam Shatner did his own stunts, including standing on top of a movingF40PH. Years later Shatner called the stunt "the most truly dangerous stunt I ever did" and couldn't imagine "what [he] was thinking" in suggesting it. Shatner compared it to the work he'd done inKingdom of the Spiders, and wondered which was worse: "standing on top of a speeding locomotive without any kind of safety cable or gluing tarantulas to your face?"[1]: 105–108 Jack Sessums worked on the miniature effects and had his work profiled inTV Guide.[2]
Disaster on the Coastliner premiered onThe ABC Sunday Night Movie on October 28, 1979.[3] Although no DVD or VHS has been released in America, the movie's current owner, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, has made the movie available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Paramount plus in the United States. The movie aired on July 27, 2025 onFETV'sSunday Movie Matinee.
List of television films produced for American Broadcasting Company