The Conservancy's weekend of festivities events kicked off on Friday night with the dedication of the recently installed SS United States display in the Queen Mary Story Gallery's Rivals and Running Mates exhibit. Conservancy Board member and former SS United States crew member Joe Rota dedicated the new installation with a series of humorous and heartfelt remarks.

 

Saturday's all day program was moderated by Conservancy Board member Richard Rabbett who opened the morning session with an overview of the Conservancy and its many accomplishments. As a special treat, he played two recently restored public address system announcements from the SS United States that were recently discovered among ship artifacts donated to the Conservancy by the estate of the late Ken Schultz. Morning presentations included: filmmakers Robert Radler and Mark Perry playing DVD extras from SS United States: Lady in Waiting, Bruce Vancil of the Steamship Historical Society's Southern California Chapter presenting an overview of the Queen Mary's 40-year history in Long Beach and Greg Norris giving an informative overview of the history and significance of the Blue Riband. The afternoon session began with Susan Gibbs reading from her manuscript, Secrets at Sea, followed by an amusing session of crew reminiscences led by Joe Rota. The afternoon session closed with noted maritime author and historian Bill Miller giving a spirited talk on the SS United States and her American contemporaries. The Conservancy was also pleased to announce a new online article Save Our Ship: Passionate Preservationists Fight for a National Treasure, graciously timed by John Griffin at ABCnews.com to coincide with the documentary's premiere on May 3. Be sure to follow the link to recent photos of the ship also on Abcnews.com.

 

Following the conclusion of the Saturday's daytime program, attendees reconvened via red carpet in the Queen Mary' Story Gallery for the Gala World Premiere of SS United States: Lady in Waiting. Filmmakers Bob Radler and Mark Perry spoke of their collaboration on the film and a hush quickly fell over the room as the lights dimmed and the highly anticipated film began. At its conclusion the crowd gave a standing ovation to both the film and the filmmakers. The Conservancy is very proud to have had the opportunity to collaborate with Bob and Mark on their fantastic achievement which will no doubt play a major role in helping to ensure that the SS United States is preserved for the enjoyment of future generations.

 

At the conclusion of the film screening, guests retired to the Britannia Salon for a festive evening of dinner and dancing. Following dinner, the Conservancy honored Bill Miller on his 60th birthday with a very special cake and a refrain of Happy Birthday. 

 

In particular, the Conservancy would like to thank the following individuals for their help and support during this remarkable weekend of festivities: The Hotel Queen Mary, Bob, Kitty & Ben Radler, Laura Franklin Dunn, Phillip Buehler, Robert Wogan, Bruce Vancil, the Steamship Historical Society and its Southern California Chapter, Bill Miller, Bonnie Davis, Amanda Norris, Mark Knowles, Lina Milligan, Steven Ujifusa, James Ducker, Tom Nicolai, et al.

 

Again, we thank you for all of your support and look forward to welcoming you to our upcoming SS United States: Lady in Waiting screenings in Norfolk and New York City in the weeks ahead.

 

We include a few images from this weekend's festivities (below) for your enjoyment!

 

Best regards,

 

Feel free to contact us with any questions at www.ssunitedstatesconservancy.org.