Latest news with #Orville
Atlantic
5 days ago
- Atlantic
Has Air Travel Ever Been Good?
This is an edition of Time-Travel Thursdays, a journey through The Atlantic 's archives to contextualize the present. Sign up here. Of YouTube's many microgenres, one of the most popular and most enduring is the airplane meltdown. There are thousands or maybe millions of these videos online: Passengers going nuts over spilled drinks or supposedly bad service; flight cancellations turning grown adults feral; tiny inconveniences disrupting the brittle peace of the temporary societies that exist in the air above us all the time. Sometimes, if you're lucky, you'll find a compilation, a clip show of modern misery. The Atlantic 's early aviation writers would have a lot of questions about this. Those questions would probably start with 'What is a YouTube?,' but I suspect they'd get more philosophical pretty quickly. In the early 20th century, flying was a source of intense curiosity and great wonder; if anyone was melting down, it was probably because they were simply so dazzled by it all, or maybe very scared—not because someone used their armrest. 'For some years I have been afflicted with the belief that flight is possible to man,' Wilbur Wright wrote in a letter to a friend in 1900, eventually published in The Atlantic. Three years later, he and his brother, Orville, managed to get a biplane in the air for 12 seconds. Only 18 years after that, Kenneth Chafee McIntosh wrote that 'aviation has superposed itself upon civilization. Its future is limitless, not predictable.' Its present, however, was not fun. Early airplanes were used mostly for warcraft and mail carrying; occasionally, a passenger might come along for some reason or another, but they had to sit with the pilot in an open cockpit, exposed to whatever the weather was. Even once we figured out how to put more people inside planes, cabins weren't pressurized, so they flew low and jiggled everyone around. Until 1930, there were no flight attendants, which I suppose means there was no one to scream at. Some engines were loud enough to cause permanent hearing damage. Even so, the airplane's world-changing potential was obvious. By 1941, people were writing poetry collections about it, and The Atlantic was reviewing them. After 1945, the era of mass air travel began, aviation having been 'transformed by the war from a government-subsidized experiment into an economically sound transportation industry.' In the '50s, airplanes overtook trains, and then ships, as America's preferred means of long-distance transportation. This era is now widely considered to be commercial aviation's golden age, when the technology was established enough to be comfortable, safe, and fast, but still novel enough to feel remarkable: human ingenuity made material. In the popular imagination, at least, this was the last time flying was dignified. Stewardesses wore fabulous outfits and meals were served on real plates and nobody knew what a vape was. But that moment existed more in theory than it did in reality. In the century's middle decades, flying was significantly more expensive and more dangerous than it is today. Airports were segregated until the early 1960s. Every new advance seemed to come with a downside. As soon as planes got faster and flights got longer, passengers started reporting strange symptoms, ones they would later learn to call jet lag. As more people flew, the experience became both more banal and more crowded—just another form of mass transit. More flights and faster speeds meant mounting safety concerns (some warranted, some not). In 1978, the airline industry was deregulated, which resulted in less stability, lower quality of service, and, eventually, higher fares. By June 2001, three months before air travel was to change forever, it was already pretty bad, per the pilot and longtime Atlantic writer James Fallows. The industry was 'nearing the limits of its capacity,' he wrote, having routed more and more flights through hub airports in an effort to keep planes full and maximize profits. Delays were reaching record levels. After 9/11, security theater turned flight attendants into cops and passengers into would-be criminals. The airlines continued to cut costs, squooshing seats closer together and charging for just about everything they could: legroom, internet, checked bags, overhead space, food, even water, as Ester Bloom reported in 2015. 'To travel by air,' Lenika Cruz wrote in 2022, 'is to endure a million tiny indignities.' Flying really has gotten worse, due to greed and war and corporate decision making. But the truth is, the experience has always been somewhat unpleasant, because transporting human bodies through the air at hundreds of miles an hour is so difficult, it almost shouldn't be possible. I looked in our archives expecting to find stories about air travel's supposed midcentury glamor. I didn't find much. But I did find a piece from 2007, in which Virginia Postrel examines the collective longing for such a time, a time 'before price competition, security checks, and slobs in sweatpants ruined everything.' She quoted Aimée Bratt, who, as a flight attendant with Pan Am in the mid-'60s, 'was struck by 'how crowded it was on an airplane, no place to put anything, lines for the lavatories, no place to sit or stand … Passengers got their food trays, there was no choice of meals, drinks were served from a hand tray, six at a time, pillows and blankets were overhead, and there were no extra amenities like headsets or hot towels.'' But people didn't complain. 'Travel itself,' Postrel wrote, 'was privilege enough. Airline glamour was not about the actual experience of flying but about the idea of air travel—and the ideals and identity it represented.' Flying was budding internationalism, uncomplicated awe, wide skies, endless potential, the future made present and the impossible made real. Flying wasn't thrilling because the stewardesses dressed amazing—it was thrilling because up until very recently, the very concept of a waitress in the sky had been science fiction. Air travel has changed, but so have we. This is the noble life cycle of any technology: It is unimaginable, and then it is imaginable, and then it is just there. Fire, windmills, eyeglasses, the steam engine, pasteurization, cars, air-conditioning, microwaves, miniskirts, email, smartphones, bubble tea—every miracle eventually becomes mundane. It has to, I think: We need to make room for new miracles. We need to find new things to write poems about. When this magazine was first printed, in 1857, our species thought we were stuck on Earth. We eventually figured out how to liberate ourselves from the laws of physics and fly through the air, and then we figured out how to get live television and cold orange juice and fully reclining beds up there. And then we figured out how to make all of this dreadfully tedious. That's a remarkable human achievement, too.
Epoch Times
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Epoch Times
John Northrop's All-Wing Vision and the B-2 Stealth Bomber
When America hosted its first International Air Meet from Jan. 10 to Jan. 20, 1910, it had only been six years since the Wright Brothers conducted the world's first successful sustained flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The Wright Flyer first flew for 12 seconds and then ended the day with a 59-second flight, covering 120 feet and 852 feet, respectively. The crowd of spectators for this history-making event, aside from Orville and Wilbur Wright, numbered five people. The International Air Meet exemplified the growth and excitement of aviation. The International Air Meet took place on the opposite side of the continent in Los Angeles. It showcased 16 different planes (43 were scheduled), witnessed flights that covered 110 miles and reached higher than 4,000 feet. It was attended by more than 250,000 people.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
A whirlwind of work prepares Hungerford exhibit for opening
Jun. 12—WATERTOWN — The exhibit, "Hungerford's A$hes," opens Friday at Flower Memorial Library. Opening with a reception from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the library, the exhibit explores the legacy of the Hungerford family in Watertown. It will be on display through Aug. 18. The exhibit is being promoted as an "Exhibit of heirlooms and comic-book art taking you on a journey through the North Country." It has been years in the making. Descendant Andre J. Hungerford, an attorney and resident of Maine who practices in that state and Massachusetts, said he was inspired to combine graphic novel and exhibit ideas in 2015 when he attended the Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton Luncheon in New York City to benefit the New York Historical Society. Special guests were Lin-Manuel Miranda and author Ron Chernow. Hungerford talked to both. Miranda turned Chernow's biography of Alexander Hamilton into a blockbuster Broadway show. A team of family descendants was involved in creating the exhibit. On Thursday afternoon, Hungerford was at the library unboxing and unwrapping exhibit items that were professionally prepared for shipment. They were delivered to his home in Maine over the past several months, and from there, the collection arrived in Watertown at 3:30 a.m. Thursday morning after a 10-hour trip. The exhibit is in the library's South Reading Room. "It took half a day to load up the truck," Hungerford said. "Everything had to be packed in a certain way. You can't just load it. There was a forklift involved. It was a big production, at least for me." Hungerford said the people from across the country with roots in the Hungerford family will be at today's opening. "It costs a lot of money and we're not making a dime," he said. "But we wanted to do something nice for the town. We are from here." Those hired to create the exhibit ranged from frame and painting conservators to paper conservationists. "I've never done this before," Hungerford said. "We had to get artisans from all around the country." Kenneth Welton, owner of Tigpro Stainless Fabrication, Portland, Maine, designed the heavy-duty wall unit where framed portraits and other items will be hung. The design involves a metal framework attached to high-end ash plywood from Atlantic Hardwoods. "It's nice stuff," Welton said Thursday between trips to the delivery truck. "It's durable and should hold the paintings just fine." "I've seen Ken work on projects where I could not see a solution as to how something could be fixed," Hungerford said. "But by looking at it, he finds a solution as to how it's going to go." Hungerford said he'd be working on the exhibit's setup until the final moments of its opening today. Hungerford legacy Orville Hungerford was born on Oct. 29, 1790, in Farmington, Connecticut. Orville's father moved the family to Watertown in 1804, where Orville would become a prominent merchant, banker, industrialist, freemason, and railroad president. During his time as a merchant, Orville married Elizabeth Porter Stanley (also known as Betsy). The couple eventually had seven children and raised two others (Betsy's nephew and Orville's nephew). Orville made his fortune supplying the U.S. troops at Sackets Harbor during the War of 1812 and later channeled the profit into banking and commerce. He also was a U.S. Congressman, elected to House of Representatives representing New York State's 29th district between 1843 and 1847. In 1847, Orville was defeated for office of the New York Comptroller by Millard Fillmore, who went on to become the 13th president of the United States. Orville died on April 6, 1851 in his stone mansion on Washington Street (moved in the early 1960s block-by-block to Flower Avenue West). Events are scheduled for today, Saturday and Sunday relating to the exhibit's opening. Friday: 2:30 p.m.: A gathering in front of First Presbyterian Church, 403 Washington St., which was funded largely by Orville and Betsey Hungerford. Orville was the first to have a funeral service there shortly after the church was dedicated in 1851. 3:30 p.m.: The exhibit opens. It is dedicated to Orville Hungerford Mann Jr., Esq. Organizers say, "Dress is preppy." Light snacks will be provided. 5:30 p.m.: Group photograph in front of the library. Venue may be moved depending on the amont of people attending. 6 p.m.: Dinner at Crystal Restaurant, 87 Public Square. 8:30 p.m.: Gathering at the Seaway Grill located in the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel, 200 Riverside Drive, Clayton, for a discussion regarding the Wise/Hungerford/Mann family from Watertown. Saturday: 10 a.m.: Tour of Brookside Cemetery, 19000 County Route 165, Watertown, with a focus of Orville Hungerford's Gothic mausoleum. Meet at the front gates. Discussion will focus on historic preservation versus restoration or improvement. Afterwards, a gathering at the Orville Hungerford stone mansion at 315 Flower Avenue West. A vote will be held on lunch location. 1:30 p.m.: Presentation at Flower Library by family historian Richard Warren Hungerford Jr., regarding the development of the Hungerford Family Foundation, Inc.'s database, which the family calls the world's largest private single family database. 5 p.m.: Tour of Sackets Harbor, where Orville made his first fortune, followed by dinner at Good Fellos, 202 W. Main St. Venue may be moved due to the amount of people attending. Sunday: The agenda calls for a gathering in Clayton to visit the Antique Boat Museum and a boat tour of Boldt Castle on Heart Island and Singer Castle on Dark Island with times coordinated the evening before. For questions on the agenda, contact A.J. Hungerford at 207-409-4843.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Yahoo
Crime spree; Tortoise birthday; Storm chances
SIOUX FALLS S.D. (KELO) — Here are this morning's top stories with KELOLAND On the Go. The person who sold pills to a 15-year-old girl who then died from fentanyl poisoning was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Monday. Teen sentenced to 20 years for fentanyl death A scaley South Dakota resident is celebrating a major milestone this month. Orville the tortoise turns 120 A Sioux Falls man was arrested after a spree of crimes were reported throughout the city Friday. 35-year-old arrested in early morning crime spree including stolen bus Stronger t-storms development may take place in clusters south of I-90, with a marginal risk of severe weather. We expect a new round of mainly nocturnal thunderstorms to develop in southeastern KELOLAND overnight into Thursday morning. Hot weather today; Increasing thunderstorm chances ahead Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Orville the tortoise turns 120
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — A scaley South Dakota resident is celebrating a major milestone this month. A Giant Aldabra Tortoise named Orville is turning 120 years old. The other tortoises are 62 and 37 years old. A summer staple frozen in time Officials say the tortoises can live anywhere from 120 to 150 years. The tortoises live in the Tortoise Yard at the Reptile Gardens in Rapid City. The Human Resource Director talked about what the tortoises mean for the zoo. 'They are probably the most popular thing out here. I think a lot of people, when they come out as kids and then come out again as adults, this is probably just one of the many things. I think it's one of the biggest things that stays with people, for sure, are the giant tortoises,' said Lance Fuhrmann, Human Resource Director at the Reptile Gardens. In a post on Facebook, Reptile Gardens says they will celebrate Orville's birthday on June 26th. The celebration will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
