This play is perfect for aviation buffs, history lovers, and anyone else who appreciates great entertainment.

Available for personal appearances and performances
E-mail: nrdc@earthlink.net
Contact: (818) 366-7288

The Harriet Quimby Scrapbook, the life of America’s first Birdwoman 1875-1912

By Giacinta Bradley Koontz

AMELIA EARHART: In Her Own Words

A One Woman Play
WRITTEN AND PERFORMED BY ROBERTA E. BASSIN

     It is July 2, 1937, and we are in Lae, New Guinea. Amelia Earhart (Roberta Bassin) speaks to an asssembly of well-wishers and reporters (the audience) as she prepares for the Pacific Ocean leg of her around-the-world flight. There she reminisces about her childhood, discusses her record-setting flying adventures, and her philosophy regarding interests, family, status of women, fun and work. At the conclusion Ms. Bassin answers audience questions about Amelia Earhart.

Amelia Earhart is one of America's most famous and admired heroine. The public closely followed her exploits when she was alive, and the mystery of her disappearance remains endlessly intriguing.

Roberta Bassin is a professional actress and acting teacher, and has received acclaim for her compelling portrayals of an array of interesting characters in film, TV, and stage. In addition to her acting, Ms. Bassin has a degree from UCLA in History and English and holds a California Lifetime Teaching Credential.

This is a brief, first-hand account of the Non-scheduled airline industry from 1948-1958, which began with surplus DC3s and WWII pilots. Unpublished manuscript, soft-cover, 100 pages, photographs. $25.00 (Postage included in price). Contact:
Hal Cope: zebuone@aol.com

BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH by Hal Cope.

As a pilot flying 47 different types of aircraft, the author relates fifty years of heart-stopping adventures, including life in Africa as a bush pilot, movie director, airplane stunt pilot, and numerous encounters with famous people such as Jimmy Doolittle and former Kenyan President, Jomo Kenyatta. Unpublished manuscript, soft-cover, 170 pages, photographs. $38.00 (Postage included in price). Contact: Hal Cope: zebuone@aol.com

IOWA TAKES TO THE AIR - VOLUME  ONE  1845-1918

BY ANN HOLTGREN PELLEGRENO
288 pp, 135 photographs
Price:  $25.00/ea plus shipping within the USA

     Iowans saw an unmanned balloon ascension in 1845 and later witnessed an exciting array of manned balloon ascensions, flights of dirigible-type airships, and parachute jumps. Beginning with the first aeroplane flight in 1910, Iowans watched pilots at many exhibitions. The book is a lively account of those years.

IOWA TAKES TO THE AIR -  VOLUME TWO 1919-1941

BY ANN HOLTGREN PELLEGRENO
336 pp, 175 photographs
Price:  $30.00/ea plus shipping within the USA

     Pilots, parachutists, and wing walkers entertained thousands of spectators.  Airlines, the Iowa Good Will Air Tours, airport operators, and flying services moved aviation forward. Some aircraft were manufactured in the state. Hundreds of persons learned to fly. During those years, aviation came of age in the state, nation, and world.

THE AROUND THE RIM FLIGHT

BY MIRIAM ORR SEYMOUR
135 pp,  with photographs and illustrations
Price:  $25.00/ea plus $3.00 shipping within the USA

The year was 1919.  The aeoplane was a medium bomber, designed and built by Glenn Martin.  It was the first totally made-in-America bomber purchased by Army Air Service.

     The reliability of its airframe was unknown. The reliability of its 400hp Packard Liberty motors was uncertain.  The flight planning defined Rim Flight as a “test flight” and the planners themselves regarded it as a totally hazardous venture with little chance of success.  It was a flight that would test the strength of the aeroplane, define her weaknesses and challenge the abilities and courage of her crew.

     Using the actual log of this flight as it flew parallel to the borders of the United States; Seymour has created a day-by-day account of this significant, but little-known, event in aviation history. 

     Three Army Air Service officers and two master sergeants rode in open, “pits”, without parachutes, logged 9,823 miles, and re-built the aeroplane in an open field after their one and only crash landing.  They visited 46 cities, convinced local authorities of the importance of establishing air ports, and created a pattern that was the beginning of formal air routes. Their efforts also gave impetus to the development of aerial charts, radio communication, aviation weather service and other tools that made possible the industry that is air transportation.

IOWA TAKES TO THE AIR  - VOLUME THREE 1841-2003

BY ANN HOLTGREN PELLEGRENO
268 pp, 211 photographs
Price:  $35.00/ea plus shipping within the USA

     Beginning with the heroic exploits of Iowans during World War II and continuing with aeronautical development and activities in the state, this third volume tells of Iowa aviation from 1941 through 2003.

     Thousands of Iowans were involved in the military air services and on the home front during World War II, which was a huge impetus for aviation during the last half of the 20th Century. Veterans used the G.I. Bill to obtain flight training and become mechanics.  Iowans operated flying services, manufactured airplanes, and restored and maintained aircraft.

     Iowans participated in ballooning, gliding, parachuting, aerobatics, and air racing. They attended air shows, dedications, and flight breakfasts.  They built museums to preserve and display the aviation heritage of the state.

     The building of airports made possible an evolving air transportation system with improvements in airplanes, routes, and services. Millions of Iowans traveled to thousands of destinations, first on propeller-driven aircraft and later on jets.