Description
The Graf Zeppelin was a German passenger airship. In 1929 it made its most famous flight, a round-the-world voyage, half of the cost of which was funded by the William Randolph Hearst media empire in the United States. At Hearst’s insistence, the flight started and ended in Lakehurst, New Jersey. It made stops in Germany, Tokyo and Los Angeles before returning to Lakehurst. The trip took place in five legs and concluded in a little over 21 days including stops, setting a record for the fastest circumnavigation of the world at the time.
By November 2, 1928, radio station WGN in Chicago was airing a children’s radio show called The Field’s Make-Believe Hour, sponsored by the Marshall Field & Company. The program was later referred to as The Air Castle Hour.
Edgar Miller was a versatile and accomplished artist, designer, and architect. He is considered one of the nation’s foremost industrial designers in the first half of the 20th century and was a pioneer in the use of graphic art in advertising. His two-dimensional works included illustration, mapmaking, graphic design, and advertising. He also designed and executed architectural interiors and exteriors, including furnishings, wall treatments, and stained glass windows. Called by some a “Renaissance man,” he mastered whatever medium he turned to, be it painting, sculpting, drawing, or woodcarving. His guiding principle was that the world should respect and learn from nature. Miller was ahead of his time in designing interiors for four buildings on Chicago’s near-north side in the 1920s that cleverly incorporated salvaged and recycled materials. Today, the non-profit called Edgar Miller Legacy works to preserve the art and the homes he created as part of Chicago history and to promote his ideas.
Condition: Generally very good with the usual overall light toning, wear, handling.
References:
Cahan, Richard and Michael Williams. “Edgar Miller and the Handmade Home.” Edgar Miller Legacy. https://www.edgarmiller.org/history (17 February 2020).
“Edgar Miller Renaissance Man.” Edgar Miller Legacy. 2020. http://explore.edgarmiller.org/ (17 February 2020).
Hopkinson, Doug. “A Man and His Air Castle.” The Old Radio Times. No. 56. July-August 2011. https://archive.org/stream/OldRadioTimes_2011_07_06JulAug/2011_07_06JulAug_djvu.txt / (17 February 2020).
“Illustration.” Edgar Miller Legacy. 2020. https://www.edgarmiller.org/graphic-design/u80piswd0jw9jlwrv9r11vse65yssg (17 February 2020).
“LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin.” Wikipedia.org. 10 February 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LZ_127_Graf_Zeppelin (17 February 2020).
Mortice, Zach. “The Brilliant Artist That Chicago, and the World, Nearly Forgot.” Citylab, Bloomberg L.P. 18 June 2018. https://www.citylab.com/design/2018/06/the-brilliant-artist-that-chicago-and-the-world-nearly-forgot/562649/ (17 February 2020).
