Les Voyages du tortillard
Encyclopedia
Les Voyages du tortillard (The Secret Railroad in English) was a French language
series of animated shorts made in Quebec
.
The English version aired on the Global Television Network
and TVOntario
in the late 1970s.
The main character is a young boy named Simon who discovers a magical steam locomotive
hidden in the basement of his apartment building. Acting as the engineer Simon uses the locomotive to travel on many magical adventures.
Joining Simon every episode is Monsieur Globetrotteur (Mr. Passenger), an old man who awaited the coming of the train for many a decade before Simon finally arrived. With Mr. Passenger is Mélanie (Melanie), Mr. Passenger's cat
who always rides atop his long stove pipe hat.
Each episode also features a character named Stella, a girl with star shaped hair. Stella's character changes from episode to episode (a mermaid
in an underwater episode for example) but she always has her star shaped hair.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
series of animated shorts made in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
.
The English version aired on the Global Television Network
Global Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
and TVOntario
TVOntario
TVOntario, often referred to only as TVO , is a publicly funded, educational English-language television station and media organization in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario Educational Communications Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario...
in the late 1970s.
The main character is a young boy named Simon who discovers a magical steam locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
hidden in the basement of his apartment building. Acting as the engineer Simon uses the locomotive to travel on many magical adventures.
Joining Simon every episode is Monsieur Globetrotteur (Mr. Passenger), an old man who awaited the coming of the train for many a decade before Simon finally arrived. With Mr. Passenger is Mélanie (Melanie), Mr. Passenger's cat
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
who always rides atop his long stove pipe hat.
Each episode also features a character named Stella, a girl with star shaped hair. Stella's character changes from episode to episode (a mermaid
Mermaid
A mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
in an underwater episode for example) but she always has her star shaped hair.