Temple Tuesday: Bachelors, Bobby-Soxers, and Buttons

Today we take a step back in time to visit the Long Beach airport which was featured prominently at the climax of Shirley Temple’s 1947 comedy, “The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer.”

Aviator Earl Daugherty opened a 20 acre field for his flight training school in Long Beach, California on June 6, 1919. A year later, the city contacted Daugherty about developing a 60 acre municipal flying field; the “new” Long Beach Airport (named after Daugherty) was dedicated on December 20, 1924. An additional 255 acres was purchased in 1939 for a new administrative building with the dedication held on June 8, 1941. Architects W. Horace Austin and Kenneth S. Wing. Sr. designed the Streamline Moderne structure which can be seen at the end of the film as Cary Grant’s character pulls up to the airport on his way to Chicago.

 

His driver is none other than Dore Schary, the producer of the film:

Here, Cary Grant and Myrna Loy exchange a bit of banter before they board the plane and depart to their “happily every after” romantic conclusion:

I love the way the two dash off to the entry stairs:

Here’s a vintage shot from the 1950’s showing the airport in color:

The building was named a City of Long Beach Cultural Heritage Landmark in 1990. At some point, the Daugherty Field name was ditched; I couldn’t find out why during my quick search on the www. Here’s the airport looks now. The sign as you approach the terminal (who put that cotton-picking traffic light in front of the sign?!?):

And the terminal building in all its streamline moderne glory:

You almost expect to see Cary and Dory pulling up to the curb:

I’ve never been inside so I don’t know if any of the original WPA tile murals still exist. That will have to be another trip (and post).

In other Shirley news, Melissa (aka “The Colonel”) gave me the opportunity to do the design for the annual Shirley’s Army pin. For the fifth anniversary, I decided to use a portrait of Shirley from her last film at 20th-Century Fox, “Young People” (1940). Here’s the final design:

See more Long Beach, California photos at my main website.