KTBX-TV Mobile Van

This picture was sent to us by Richard Gray of New Orleans. He found it in Bay Saint Louis, MIssissippi, and says it has been there for years. I found no record of a KTBX-TV, channel 15.

This is from Carl's Photo Gallery:

Now this is another mystery for me. What the heck is an old 60s era television station van doing in Bay St. Louis? Is one of the residents a collector of television station memorabilia and restored this to original form? Could it be a prop from some movie long ago and someone owns it as a collectible? Did I enter the Twilight Zone? Who knows? If someone does know, please email me. I've done plenty of research online and found absolutely no record of a KTBX-TV Channel 15 station corresponding to this van nor any "AIF Productions" (seen on the rear of the van). Furthermore, the lack of a network logo of any kind on the van leads me to believe that this may have actually been a prop for a TV show or movie and that someone in Bay St. Louis collected it and maintained it.

An email from Paul Walmsly:

I stumbled onto your website where I saw a picture of a local news van that you commented was probably a movie prop but you asked for confirmation of it. You are indeed correct.  I spoke to the owner of the van last night when I just happened to be driving by it and saw him leaving his house.  Many of us down here on the coast have wondered about the vehicle for some time.  I was lucky enough to catch Mr. Greg Niolet last night.  He confirmed that the van was used in New Orleans for a movie shoot years ago.  He couldn't remember what the movie was called but he said that it was about an African-American Basketball team back in the 60's era.  He said the movie company asked him if he wanted them to paint his van back to "normal" and he said no, that he would take it as it was. So that's the story on the van, straight from the horses mouth.  I told Greg that I had been scratching my head for years about the origins of the dang thing.  He said that he gets that same statement all the time.