SS NORMANDIE

[Tyler J Frederick]

Hey guys! Guess what? When I arrive at the library, & call my Mother, she told she was watching Cake Boss on the Learning Channel, & what happen was that for the 75th anniversary of the Normandie's Maiden Voyage, The South Street Seaport Museum call this Guy & requested to make them a Normandie cake. Isn't that awesome? I go to library to use the computer, since I don't have one of my own, & coming to here is just of the things I do on a computer. I thought share what Mom told me. Hey Queen Mary's 75th Birthday is next week. I'm excited about that. Tyler Frederick

[Tyler J Frederick]

Has anybody read John Maxtone-Graham's Normandie? Man, everytime I read that book, like all of John's work, & all the books of Titanic, Queen Mary, I like get zombify by Normandie's beauty. anymore books on SS Normandie I should look into?
Tyler J Frederick

[Kathy Reed]

HI All! I joined the board to discuss the SS Normandie! I have been so interested in her ever since I transcribed my Aunt Helen's diaries. She sailed the SS Normandie on August 2, 1938, to England. for a nine-country, two month journey. She came home, from Cherbourg, on September 28 (just before the Munich Conference) aboard the Queen Mary. I have been searching Ebay for interior (amateur) photos of the Normandie and they don't seem to exist. Guess back then, not many folks had good flash attachments on their cameras. My Aunt Helen took a few photos outside on deck, and a friend took a few photos as the ship was pulling away from the dock in New York. I just found a neat photo on the Internet, of the area where the pets were kept, and read that it was actually inside one of the stacks!

She and her friend were very fortunate. They reserved their room as Tourist class, but were put into the area called the "Interchangeable Quarters" which were used for Tourist or for First Class. So they ended up with a very pretty room. I am publishing her adventures into a book. If you want to see some photos of the Normandie that have never been seen before (they are from her scrapbook) then look at my video. (There is another photo - the outdoor swimming pool) which is in the book, and I have only seen one other photo of it on the Internet. I do not yet have any books on the SS Normandie, so I search online for them.
Here is a link to my little web page, and you can click on the YouTube Video from there:
http://www.touring1938europeunawares.com
http://www.touring1938europeunawares.com

[Kathy Reed]

Did anyone notice on Ebay that someone is selling stiff paper (printouts) models of the Normandie? They are replicas of a sendaway from Kellogg's Cereals, or similar. I got mine, but have not put it together yet. It is huge! Comes in two parts, the above water, and below water. The original information told kids that it floated! Well, they did not suggest you leave it in the water for hours.

I have to get up the nerve to cut it out and assemble it soon. I'm so intimidated by it. Looks pretty detailed. It will be about two feet long when it's assembled.

[Tyler J Frederick]

Ms. Reed.
My name is Tyler Joshua Frederick, & I have been a member of the Titanic Historical Society for only 6 months. I am glad to talk about Normandie with someone. I can't for the book your making to be out. Is there other Normandie books I can check out right now? Normandie from John Maxtone-Graham is the only one I got. Thank you. Tyler

[Kathy Reed]

I was looking at books on the Normandie today, on Amazon.com. There seems to be one that has been rediced from $100 to $70. Read the review. Some folks don't like the text, but I'll bet the pictures are amazing.

Then, there is another one that looks nice, but if you read the description, it's for children...supposed to have many lovely illustrations, but it's about a child taking a journey on the boat. I would not mind buying that one to give to the children next door. Some seem out of print, but you might find them on Ebay.

It's all about seeing what others are saying, I think...so you can make your determination on which book to buy. Best Wishes. I will post here when my book is finally available to sale on Amazon.
Talk to you soon, Kathy
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[Timothy Trower]

Normandie, by John Maxtone-Graham, is an excellent book; it was originally published at $100 and was carried in the THS online store (but I believe they are sold out). This may be the book that you are referencing -- when I wrote my review for the Titanic Commutator, I praised it highly.

[Kathy Reed]

I am sure it's wonderful. It has been sitting in my Amazon.com shopping cart for a couple of weeks now. Might ask for it, for my upcoming birthday! Thanks for your valuable input.

[Kathy Reed]

I just found a neat web page with a HUGE depiction of the deck of the SS Normadie. http://www.alae.us/Normandie/MegaRender/NormandieMegaRender.htm
I have a photo of my aunt swimming in that pool! (wearing her little white bathing cap.)

See the next level (railing) of deck above it? She and her friend managed to get their chairs right in the center of it. So they could look down on the pool, and see the ocean beyond it. That must have been amazing! This was the first week in August - and she wrote in her diary that the temperature was "swell" if you stayed in the water.

Also, look one level up and see the nets? Were those Badminton nets? You would think that the birdie would just "fly" away and into the ocean!

[Timothy Trower]

One other book of note is Normandie: Her Life and Times by Harvey Aardman. Although not as good of a read as is the JMG book, it is still an important history of the ship and well worth reading.

[Tyler J Frederick]

Thank you, Tim. I'm trying to save money right to go MA, So I don't think I get til afterward, but I'll keep it in mind til the. Tyler Joshua Frederick

[Kathy Reed]

Excerpt from my book, which will be on Amazon in September. It's called Touring 1938 Europe Unawares.

The first chapter takes place boarding and sailing on the Normandie to England. It took about 4-5 days. The Normandie is quite fast.

"Today has been a dream and more. We departed our hotel for the Normandie at 9:30 a.m. There it was, waiting for passengers and appearing even larger than it had yesterday. After passing through ticket and passport examination, Margy and I walked up the long gangplank, passing by rows of red-capped bellhops who were standing at attention, until we were finally on board! The ship was so vast that one moment we wandered around happily, and the next we were hopelessly lost. We just giggled, twirled around, and darted off in another direction.

The temperature in New York today, was heading for 96 degrees, and we nearly perished! We were not dressed for such hot weather because our destination is Europe, where it will be cooler. Friends and relatives, who came to see us off, were allowed to visit us on the ship. We had been dashing around so much that they had a hard time finding us! It was such fun chatting with them while taking in the wonders of our surroundings.

A few passengers were whispering that movie actress Simone Simon was on board, as well as Kitty Carlisle and financier Bernard Baruch."

[Kathy Reed]

I should note that these events were taken from the pages of my aunt's trip diaries, plus a long travelogue type letter that she wrote to a friend a few months later. This is not a novel. Each day of the two months features her diary entries, starting out with DATE: PLACE: and the WEATHER:
Kathy

[Timothy Trower]

Kathy,

Although the Normandie is generally not a ship I pay much attention to (concentrating on White Star and other British liners) my interest in the ship was whetted by John Maxtone-Graham's recent magnificent book, and I'm looking forward to acquiring a copy of your book (maybe even for review in the Commutator if the schedule allows). Thanks for sharing that excerpt.

[Kathy Reed]

You're welcome... I appreciate your input. This was written in 1938 and "ship" may have been the vernacular of the time, or the place. LOL

It came from a diary, so I tried to stay as true to her wording as possible, but keeping in mind the reading ease of the reader as well. I *do* draw the line at using the word "boat" however. LOL

Take good care, Kathy Viva La Normandie!

[Tyler J Frederick]

Hi Kathy.
I would like to get the book someday. I'm sure it's really good. but right now, I trying to save money, so I can go to the Titanic Centennial Memorial. If I see you there, maybe I can get it from you. I LOVE Normandie, I wish she wasn't destroy. Normandie was such a beautiful Ocean Liner.
Sincerely,
Tyler Joshua Frederick

[Tyler J Frederick]

The One thing that makes me the most angry, is what our Navy did to Normandie. Normandie was the beautiful ship of all time. And to see her destroy like is to me, unforgivable. Normandie would have been a gorgeous hotel right now. Carelessly destroying the world's most beautiful ship is so unforgivable. Just because they lost ships at Pearl Harbor, is no excuse for burning Normandie.
Tyler Frederick

[Kathy R]

Well, from what I understand ( I keep reading here and there to add to my knowledge) the burning was an accident (although some say that sabotage was involved!)

The ship was being transformed into a badly needed troop carrier, and the RMS Queen Mary endured the same transformation, carrying soldiers from Australia and New Zealand to Europe to fight. Luckily she did not burn.

On the Normandie, a welder was welding near a huge pile of life jackets, containing a flammable stuffing, and a spark ignited it all. You can see how much dark smoke was pouring out of her in videos on YouTube. Unfortunately too much water was sprayed into one side of her, making her tip. I read that the designer begged for them to take his advice so that she would sink straight down, partially submerged, and then after the fire was out, there were methods by which she would be raised again...so sad. But it shows that it is difficult to exactly place the blame.

I have completed my paper model of the Normandie, except for a couple of small details. This is the model I bought on Ebay, that is a replica of the one given way by Kellogg's Cereal back in the Thirties. It was frustrating, but was printed correctly so eventually all the tabs were in the slots, etc. I tell you - you had to keep your patience, working with hundreds of creases, tabs, slits, etc. You can't force anything that is made of paper! LOL

The paper model is over 2 feet long! I am going to use it to give talks about my book. Already have a booking at the Library, the senior center, the Kiwanis Club..so that's a good start.

I think I should take a photo and try to post it here.

[Tyler J Frederick]

At least somebody understanding how I feel. I understand it was a accident, but it was a accident done by carelessness. Arigato Kathy.
Tyler