by Bob Schultz

Every third Saturday on a rail line in the village of Gowanda, patrons come to enjoy what at first glance appears to be a four-hour rustic train ride.

However, this train ride will be different. As patrons eat, a murder plot develops right before their eyes. The end result, a "dead body" and questions to be answered. Is it "Murder on the Orient?" No. what it is is the New York and Lake Erie Railroad Express.

Zaidlins's Productions, a professional acting troupe out of Toronto, Canada, performs a different murder mystery play each month for the patrons of the New York and Lake Erie dinner train.

Larry Zaidlin's, president of the improvisational acting troupe, said the group started in Toronto in 1986 doing corporate entertainment. He later opened a restaurant in Canada and contracted the professional improvisational actors to perform the murder mysteries during dinner.

Zaidlin's Productions has been performing murder mysteries on the New York & Lake Erie for the past seven years, ever since the railroad's President Robert O. Dingman Jr. discovered the group on a dinner trip to Toronto.

He later contacted Mr. Zaidlin asking him if the group would be interested in doing the murder mystery on a train.

Mr. Zaidlin said a lot of the performers are stage actors and this event is a way to sharpen their skills because anything can happen during the performances.

What's exciting for the actors, Mr. Zaidlin says, is that the audience tries to get the actors out of character which is sometimes a challenge.

"I remember I was standing at a urinal when I was one of the actors in the murder mystery; and one of the people came up to me and asked how many times a day do you do this? I answered about six times a day." Mr. Zaidlin joked.

He said it's also fun when the actors can get the audience thinking someone is part of the murder mystery when actually they, in fact, are nothing but passengers enjoying the ride.

"We know the why, what, when, where, and how to each mystery. But the audience helps lead the investigation in different directions," Mr. Zaidlin said.

The New York & Lake Erie Railroad, with it's rich history and big screen stardom can be experienced on weekend excursions through the area's rural countryside.

Director of Passenger Operations Delores Campbell said the excursions are a "unique experience" in the area and travelers could see anything from the abundance of wildlife including deer and turkeys to a train hold-up, staged for special events.

The Gowanda-based railroad offers a Murder Mystery Dinner Train from February through November.

The trip takes passengers from Gowanda to Cherry Creek and back. Those attending the dinner have the opportunity to become part of the murder mystery or just try to outwit the detectives and other guests.

"It's authentic dinner train car dining with four to a table," Ms. Campbell said.

Joanne Bayer, a resident of Getzville who recently rode the Murder Mystery Train, said the train was unique and really got the passengers involved in the murder mystery.

"The whole concept of riding on a train and being involved in a murder mystery play was definitely different," she said.

She also said the friendly actors who discuss the murder mystery with guests when they get off the train also make the theatrical experience special.

A "body" is actually carried from the train while the mystery continues.

Ms. Strickland said one night, she got on the train at the South Dayton depot and the people thought she was part of the murder mystery.

"It's really a lot of fun and the meals are excellent." she said.

The history of the railroad operating under what is now the new York & Lake Erie Railroad is long and eventful. It began on May 14, 1851 with the first train through from Piermont-on-Hudson to Dunkirk.

This excursion train has carried many U.S. Senators, President Millard Fillmore, and the famous orator, Daniel Webster. Mr. Webster rode most of the two-day excursions in a rocking chair fastened to a flat car. He did this in order to give himself the best possible view of the Southern Tier farmlands and forests.

The first train from Buffalo to Jamestown ran on Oct. 9, 1875. Shortly thereafter, the Buffalo & Jamestown Railroad became an important part of the Buffalo & Southwestern Division of the Erie Railroad.

The line carried the Erie Railroad's freight trains from Buffalo to Chicago for many years. These trains came through the village of Gowanda.

The New York & Lake Erie Railroad was chartered on Aug. 9, 1978 and on Oct. 15, 1978 the N.Y. & L.E. began operating the line from Salamanca to Cattaraugus.