Commentary: How Hollywood helped build the air travel industry

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Long earlier paparazzi shots astatine LAX and complaints astir personage backstage pitchy usage, Hollywood — and Los Angeles — played a cardinal relation successful the maturation of aviation.

Everyone knows the opus “On the Good Ship Lollipop.” Shirley Temple’s signature tune has go a taste touchstone, showing up successful the past of the Chicago mob (it was the nickname of the Cicero crew) and, of course, “The Simpsons.”

But if you haven’t seen the 1934 movie “Bright Eyes,” you mightiness not cognize that the vessel successful question is an airplane oregon that this hymn to aerial question was primitively sung arsenic Temple’s quality taxied astir 1 of Los Angeles’ archetypal commercialized airports, Glendale’s Grand Central Air Terminal.

Which you tin inactive spot if you instrumentality “a saccharine trip,” not to the candy store but on Grand Central Avenue, wherever it cleaves done Disney’s Grand Central Creative Campus.

Completed successful 1929 and restored by Disney successful 2014, the beauteous Spanish Revival and Art Deco gathering is each that remains of the airport.

Mary Pickford astatine the Chaplin Airfield connected Fairfax Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard successful 1921.

Here Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh began their record-breaking archetypal regular L.A. to New York hose formation (a specified 50 hours!) and aviator Laura Ingalls became the archetypal pistillate to alert solo from the East Coast to the West. Here countless celebrities and manufacture titans alighted arsenic they came, oregon returned, to L.A. The airdrome was besides the tract of scenes from galore different aboriginal films, including 1930’s “Hell’s Angels,” produced by Howard Hughes, and 1933’s “Lady Killer,” starring James Cagney.

It was not, however, the mounting for the celebrated airdrome country successful “Casablanca” — by champion accounts, that was Van Nuys Airport.

That the Grand Central Air Terminal present houses Disney offices and lawsuit spaces (and is unfastened for the occasional L.A. Conservancy oregon Art Deco Society tour) marks a full-circle moment. From the brief, hazy films of the Wright brothers’ aboriginal flights to complaints astir celebrities’ private-jet emissions, Hollywood has had a deep, complicated, mutually beneficial (and occasionally tragic) narration with aviation.

A poster for the movie "The Skywayman" starring Ormer Locklear.

So arsenic we participate the vacation season, during which millions volition flock to some the airdrome and (one hopes) the multiplex, it seems fitting to see however Hollywood helped build, virtually and figuratively, the aerial question industry.

With its mild upwind and acres of bare land, turn-of-the-20th period L.A. was cleanable for 2 burgeoning industries: formation and film.

Hollywood powerfulness players and planes

Grand Central Air Terminal was not the archetypal country airport. Even earlier World War I, L.A.’s affluent and innovative were transfixed by flight. In 1910 much than 200,000 radical attended the Los Angeles International Air Meet astatine Dominguez Field successful what is present Rancho Dominguez.

Men basal astatine Thomas Ince airfield astatine Venice Boulevard and Mildred Avenue.

As the tiny craft manufacturers that would yet become, oregon beryllium replaced by, Lockheed, Douglas and Northrop planted themselves connected the West Coast, L.C. Brand — often called the “father of Glendale” — built an airstrip successful beforehand of his hillside mansion (now the Brand Library) and soundless movie producer/future workplace caput Thomas Ince built Ince Field successful Venice arsenic a basal for stunt pilots. In 1914, the second became the archetypal airfield connected the West Coast to beryllium officially designated an airport.

By the clip WWI ended, airports and airstrips dotted the L.A. country — by immoderate accounts, 53 existed wrong 10 miles of City Hall. Hughes is the astir celebrated span betwixt movie and formation — producing movies and aboriginal moving RKO Pictures portion besides founding Hughes Aircraft Co., gathering and flying game-changing planes and, eventually, moving Trans World Airlines. But helium was not the lone one.

Cecil B. DeMille with his biplane astatine DeMille Field No. 2.

In 1918, Cecil B. DeMille established the Mercury Aviation Co. — which would go the archetypal commercialized hose with regularly scheduled flights successful the satellite — and built an airfield, DeMille Field No. 1, astatine Melrose and Fairfax avenues. The archetypal rider formation from New York to L.A. landed astatine DeMille Field No. 2, astatine Wilshire and Fairfax.

In 1919, Sydney Chaplin (brother and concern manager of Charlie) built his ain airfield beauteous overmuch crossed the thoroughfare connected a parcel bordered by Fairfax, Wilshire and La Cienega. (Consider that the adjacent clip you’re trying to marque a near connected La Cienega.)

Chaplin and DeMille soon discovered that aerial question was not arsenic profitable arsenic it archetypal seemed — the runways of L.A.’s tiny airports became excessively abbreviated to accommodate progressively ample planes and, arsenic the metropolis grew, the onshore was much invaluable for existent property development. But much important than these Hollywood-owned airfields was the relation aviation played successful the burgeoning movie industry, and vice versa.

Aviation successful film

Many World War I airmen came to L.A. to go stunt pilots and, occasionally, movie stars. Former Royal Air Force gunner-actor Reginald Denny flew stunts with the 13 Black Cats astatine Burdett Field (located astatine 94th Street and Western Avenue successful what is present Inglewood) and appeared successful dozens of non-aviation films, including “Anna Karenina,” “The Little Minister” and “Rebecca.”

Carl Laemmle connected the helping of an airplane with aviator Frank Stites.

Being a stunt pilot, adjacent for the movies, was a perilous occupation. Frank Stites died portion performing stunts during the 1915 festivities for Universal Studios’ opening weekend. (He is said to haunt the backlot.)

Five years later, the decease of American ex-serviceman Ormer Locklear made Hollywood history. Known for his quality to marque “wing-walking” repairs during his stint successful the Army Air Service, Locklear discontinue the subject aft WWI to signifier the Locklear Flying Circus. Carl Laemmle made him a prima with “The Great Air Robbery” (which was filmed astatine DeMille Field No. 1). But Locklear’s 2nd film, “The Skywayman” for workplace caput William Fox, would beryllium his last. The last stunt was filmed astatine night. Locklear asked that the lights astatine DeMille tract beryllium doused truthful helium could spot erstwhile helium should propulsion retired of his dive. When that didn’t happen, Locklear crashed and was killed, on with his flying spouse Milton “Skeets” Elliott. (Fox included the clang successful the movie — nary known footage exists today.)

According to L.A. and Hollywood historiographer Marc Wanamaker, the mishap truthful appalled Denny that helium began moving connected a mode to movie aerial stunts without putting pilots successful danger. “Denny devised a miniature vigor plane, remote-controlled, which became the ground for drones successful World War II,” and was utilized to bid combatant pilots, Wanamaker says. “So you spot however intertwined it each was — Hollywood and flying.”

Early question pictures were obsessed with movement, Wanamaker says. “It started with horses, past trains and past planes.”

“Bright Eyes,” successful which the orphaned Shirley Blake (Temple) is adopted by a radical of her father’s aviator friends, was conscionable 1 successful a drawstring of films that celebrated, and promoted, aerial question and the occurrence of flight.

A pistillate with an airplane chapeau successful the 1940s.

After WWI, everyone, including women, wanted to alert and Hollywood encouraged it. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy made aviation comedies; Harry Houdini took to the skies successful “The Grim Game.” Rudolph Valentino learned to alert arsenic did Mary Pickford and Ruth Roland, who became the queen of stunt flying films. Both women owned their ain planes and Pickford, Wanamaker says, brought a “dragon” level to Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, posing successful beforehand of it arsenic a publicity stunt.

When stars began traveling by air, they made those question plans known truthful photographers could seizure them disembarking connected the runway, the hose sanction intelligibly visible. Some posed with their ain planes, others astatine assorted terminals or, occasionally, successful flight-inspired styles, including hats shaped similar planes. Studio costume designers, including Howard Greer and, later, Jean Louis, enactment unneurotic formation attendant fashion.

Camouflaging an airport

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, workplace accumulation designers and artists came up with a mode to disguise Hollywood Burbank Airport (then Lockheed Air Terminal) arsenic portion of the suburban community. After it opened successful 1930 arsenic United Airport, Burbank became Glendale’s main rival successful aerial question and personage sightings (what would go Los Angeles International Airport was inactive Mines Field and acres of wheat and barley).

A metallic level successful the foreground, with the tile-roofed Burbank Airport gathering successful the background.

United Airport was purchased by Lockheed successful 1940 and aft the United States entered WWI, it was utilized to physique and signifier subject aircraft. Concerned that Japan would onslaught West Coast targets, the subject turned to the studios to assistance camouflage Lockheed.

Designers from Disney, Paramount and 20th Century Fox helped plan a 1,000-acre canopy that would marque the airdrome indistinguishable from the vicinity that surrounded it. According to the Lockheed Martin website: “The main mill was covered with a canopy of chickenhearted wire, netting and painted canvas to blend successful with the surrounding grass. And fake trees were erected with spray-painted chickenhearted feathers for leaves, immoderate painted greenish to correspond caller maturation and immoderate brownish to correspond decaying patches.”

No bombs were ever dropped connected Lockheed airdrome truthful Operation Camouflage was a success, which is simply a bully happening considering that adjacent aft commercialized question began astatine LAX successful 1979, coastline fog often forced planes to onshore astatine Burbank.

This is not to accidental that LAX doesn’t person its ain Hollywood history. Mines Field, purchased by L.A. successful 1937, was wherever Jimmy Stewart and different aviation-loving actors, including Tyrone Power and Robert Taylor, learned to fly. Since LAX opened, it has been featured successful countless films, tv series, euphony videos, songs and video games, from the opening country of “The Graduate” to the opening lyrics of Miley Cyrus’ “Party successful the U.S.A.” The 2024 Netflix movie “Carry-On” takes spot astir wholly astatine LAX, but was filmed successful a decommissioned terminal astatine Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.

Alice White wears an airplane chapeau successful 1930.

Now, adjacent arsenic some the amusement and aerial question industries acquisition each mode of difficulties successful the modern economy, their symbiotic narration continues to thrive. Celebrities inactive endorse airlines (and proceed to person their photos taken portion traveling connected them, though much often by chap fliers) and though “Casablanca” acceptable a precise precocious bar, it’s inactive pugnacious to bushed a bully airdrome scene. Film and formation are inactive touchstones of escapade and possibility, aft all.

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