"DecoDence: Legendary Interiors & Illustrious Travelers Aboard the SS Normandie," a new exhibition showcasing objects and the interiors of the famed ocean liner, recently opened at the South Street Seaport Museum in New York City. With its distinguished art deco design and quality furnishings, SS Normandie epitomized style and sophistication and set the standard for luxury travel. The fa med ocean liner, which met an inglorious ending at the bottom of New York Harbor, comes back to li fe through vivid photos, recreated interiors, and more than 100 i rems from the art deco era. The Normandie was an ambassador of French culture, design and style, and her passengers were surro unded by works created by some of the most prominent art deco designers including Jean Dupas, Rene Lalique and Em ile-Jacques Ruhlmann. SS Normandie operated for the French line Compagnie Generale Transatlantique from 1935-1 940 and made hundreds ofcommercial voyages between France and New York. Dubbed a "floating palace," the Normandie remains the most powerful steam turbo-electric propelled passenger ship ever built. The United States took control of the liner during the German occupation of France. While being converted into a military vessel in 1942, USS Lafayette, ex-Normandie, caught fire and sank in New York Harbor. The exhibition is open through January 2011. (SSSM, 12 Fulton Street; New York, NY; www.sourhsrreetseaportmuseum.org) ... The National World War II Museum in New Orleans opened its new 70,000 sq.-ft. expansion in November with the Higgins landing craft serving as its centerpiece. The Higgins landing craft, designed by company owner Andrew Jackson Higgins, is often credited with helping to win World War II for its role both the E uropean and Pacific theaters. Higgins boats brought US soldiers and equipment to shore in every major amphibious assault in WWII. Higgins Industries grew from a 75 -employee firm to employing 25,000 workers in seven plants during the war. General Eisenhower said years later that Higgins "won the war for us." The National World War II Museum, founded by historian Stephen Ambrose (originally known as the D-Day Museum) , opened in June 2000. It is undergoing a $300 million expansion that will quadruple the size of the existing facility and will consist of fo ur pavillioins, a theater, USO
SEA HISTORY 130, SPRING 2010
Wo rld War II on the Missouri's deck on 2 September 1945 in Tokyo Bay. The battleship was also used in the Korean and Persian G ulf wars before being decommissioned in 1992; the memorial opened in January 1999. The Missouri's return from drydockin g, completed on time, comes just in time
Higgins Landing Craft from World Wtir II entertainment venue, a restaurant, and parade ground. (945 Magazine Street New Orleans, LA 70130; Ph. 504 528-1944; www.nationalww2museum.org) ... The Battleship Missouri Memorial reopened to visitation in January, following an $18 million drydocking project. The museum ship resides in Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, moored just a few hundred yards from USS Arizona. The restoration work included a refurbished hull, fresh coat of paint, and state-of-the-art cathodic protection an d humidity detection technologies, protecting the ship against corrosion for decades to come. Officials from Japan and the Allied Forces signed surrender documents ending
Seawater floods Dry Dock 4 at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard during the re.floating of the battleship ex-USS Missouri (BB 63).
USS Constitution Model Shipwright Guild Exhibit Members of the USS Constitution Model Shipwright Guild will display their finest work during the 31st annual show at the USS Constitution Museum. Mode/,s in the Spotlight opened in late January and will run through 20 March. Modelers from across New England are exhibiting 75 ship models, ranging from World War II vessels to fishing dories, ships-in-bottles to sailing vessels. Volunteers from the USS Constitution Model Shipwright Guild will be on hand so visitors can watch them in action and ask questions. The USS Constitution Museum is located in the historic Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston, directly across from USS Constitution. (Museum: Ph. 617 426-1812; www. ussconstitutionmuseum.org. The USS Constitution Model Shipwright Guild is amo ng the larges t ship model associations on the East Coast with more than 100 members: www.co nstitution-modelshipwrights.org.) (above right) HMS Victory by Mike Swanson; (below right) Lackawana by Henry Keene; (below) Myrtle Cory by George Willis Jr.
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