# The Sing-Songy Voice of Old-Fashioned Railroad Workers **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 22, 2008, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393 "2008-04-22T13:22:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2008, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/1 "2008-04-22T13:22:04Z")
0:41 at [this clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uShISLpPqiE). Note how the low voice in the background almost _sings_ “Tomorrowland Transit Authority…” I have vague memories of old movies in which a character would be boarding a train, and somewhere a voice would be “singing” some information about the train: “Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe now boarding on platform number fi-ive~~” for example. Did this really go on, and if so, what was the purpose of it? Why not just speak the information instead of singing it? ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angel_of_the_lord/32/2949_2.png) [@Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_of_the_Lord)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2008, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/2 "2008-04-22T13:57:04Z")
WAG: This may have originated before electronic amplification was available. Calling out in some sort of sing-song rhythm might’ve made it easier to pick up the conductor’s calls out from the general din of the train or train station. ---
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/3 "2008-04-23T02:23:21Z")
**Angel of the Lord** is on to something. Think “Town crier” for example. In normal speech, softer syllables get lost. With such singing this is less likely to happen. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/4 "2008-04-23T02:36:13Z")
“On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe” was an actual song, sung by Judy Garland in the film The Harvey Girls. Radio shows would have their announcers pick up on the musical cadence of the towns to use as a joke that their audience would catch. I think it was on the Jack Benny Show in particular that this was a running joke, but my memory may be playing tricks with me. Rhymes and cadences are effective mnemonics that are known to be used as far back as Homer, which was designed to be memorized and recited aurally. I don’t think real train announcers were always as musical, at least not if you judge by all the jokes about unintelligible train announcements that were made at the time. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/5 "2008-04-23T03:17:15Z")
[QUOTE=Exapno Mapcase] I think it was on the Jack Benny Show in particular that this was a running joke, but my memory may be playing tricks with me. [/QUOTE] “Anaheim, Azusa, and Cucamonga.” It was indeed a running gag on the Jack Benny show, voiced by the great Mel Blanc. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/6 "2008-04-23T03:18:44Z")
Since it’s before my time, what was the joke? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/7 "2008-04-23T03:51:33Z")
The joke was in the funny way that he said the words, in a way that only Mel Blanc could do. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/8 "2008-04-23T12:18:07Z")
Not to mention that Anaheim, Azusa, and Cucamonga are funny words on their own. also, LA is a lot more the pop cultural center of the US now than it was in the early 1950s. The style of those town names sounded pretty exotic to folks from Peabody, Ohio or New Haven CT. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/9 "2008-04-23T12:45:20Z")
“Cooo-ka-munga!” Damn, I’m grinning. (On topic? Well, the sing-song cadence will also be easier to distinguish over the background noise of the engine and the motion of the cars.) ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/10 "2008-04-23T12:56:55Z")
[QUOTE=LSLGuy] Not to mention that Anaheim, Azusa, and Cucamonga are funny words on their own. also, LA is a lot more the pop cultural center of the US now than it was in the early 1950s. The style of those town names sounded pretty exotic to folks from Peabody, Ohio or New Haven CT. [/QUOTE] More importantly, they sounded quaintly absurd to the folks from Brooklyn and Bayonne who _were_ at the pop cultural center of the US at the time. Why “Anaheim” would be a sillier name for a place than “Levittown” is beyond me, but that’s regional bias for ya. ---
**Author:** ![kjckjc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e36b37/32.png) [@kjckjc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kjckjc)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/11 "2008-04-23T12:59:50Z")
[QUOTE=Exapno Mapcase] The joke was in the funny way that he said the words, in a way that only Mel Blanc could do. [/QUOTE] I have also [read](http://www.tvacres.com/trains_azusa.htm) (it was before my time too) that often Mel would stretch out the names over a ridiculously long and funny length. Like Cuc…(15 minutes of show including perhaps an entire skit or such)…amonga! Such that the audience and even Jack would forget that Mel hadn’t finished the bit yet. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/12 "2008-04-23T14:09:27Z")
It’s the “Cucamonga” that makes it funny. It’s the part of the bit that people remember, and the part that people stress. Even now, it sounds amusing. Blanc would also use it in Warner Brothers cartoons, where it was often just cut down to the Cucamonga. Also, it was a running gag. The first time might get a smile, but once it became a catchphrase, it was even funnier. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2008, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/13 "2008-04-23T15:31:38Z")
And let’s not forget that old Jan and Dean hit, “The Anaheim, Azusa & Cucamonga Sewing Circle, Book Review And Timing Association.” ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2008, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/14 "2008-04-26T18:19:09Z")
[QUOTE=Beware of Doug] More importantly, they sounded quaintly absurd to the folks from Brooklyn and Bayonne who _were_ at the pop cultural center of the US at the time. Why “Anaheim” would be a sillier name for a place than “Levittown” is beyond me, but that’s regional bias for ya. [/QUOTE] 'Zactly. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2008, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/15 "2008-04-26T19:51:54Z")
A bellhop paged “Call for Phillip Mor-reeeiss!” in a similar style as a slogan for that brand of cigarettes. See the very end of this clip: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzTGxY7gTCg](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzTGxY7gTCg) ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2008, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/16 "2008-04-26T21:22:26Z")
Singing out something was also a good way to keep time (railroad workers used to sing songs as they did things like working on the tracks). Given that trains need to run on time, singing can help subconsciously imply the need for the listeners to hurry up and get on the train, since shouting, “All right you maggots! Git yer asses on the locomotive!” probably wouldn’t have gone over too well. ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2008, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/17 "2008-04-27T06:57:55Z")
From Wikipedia’s entry for Mel Blanc: > [@](#): > > Another famous Blanc shtick on Jack’s show was the train depot announcer who inevitably intoned, sidelong: “Train leaving on Track Five for Anaheim, Azusa, and Cucamonga”. Part of the joke was the Angelino studio audience’s awareness that no such train existed connecting those then-small towns (years before Disneyland opened). To the wider audience, the primary joke was the pregnant pause that evolved over time between “Cuc..” and “…amonga”; eventually, minutes would pass while the skit went on as the audience awaited the inevitable conclusion of the word. (At least once, a completely different skit followed before the inevitable “…amonga” finally appeared.) I have quite a few of the old Jack Benny shows - including that one where it was literally over 20 minutes until Blanc finished the “…amonga!” Quite hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2008, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/18 "2008-04-27T21:46:34Z")
Could you please tell me which Jack Benny episode that was? I want to look for it. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2008, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/19 "2008-04-27T21:54:52Z")
Is a Cucamonga video clip available online? ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2008, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393/20 "2008-04-27T23:58:12Z")
I don’t have show numbers, I’m sorry. Try this: [http://benny.crispy.com/search.php](http://benny.crispy.com/search.php) Enter cucamonga in the search box - 2 episodes will pop up. You can hear Mel Blanc on both of them doing the “Anaheim, Azusa, and Cucamonga” bit in both of them. I doubt, from the episode synopses, that the long pause is on either of them. **Johnny** , I’m not aware of any video online, but audio is definitely available. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-sing-songy-voice-of-old-fashioned-railroad-workers/446393.md?page=2)