Here is a box and label for a Japanese tinplate model of the 1950s streamliner called the Kodama.
This is what it looked like in reality…you can sense the speed, punctuality, and cleanliness of this version of post-war modernity: it’s efficient, optimistic and progressive.
The USA were doing the same thing. It was called the Aerotrain and was made by GM. You can see the connection to the streamlined car design of the period.
And here is a picture of the train in real life…it’s a picture that reminds us that the future always looked a bit grubby…
And here is the Japanese train, with Fuji in the distance…
