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Wilson Aero Corp. photograph album
7045  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Historical note
  • Content Description
  • Conditions Governing Access
  • Conditions Governing Use
  • Preferred Citation
  • Immediate Source of Acquisition

  • Language of Material: English
    Contributing Institution: USC Libraries Special Collections
    Title: Wilson Aero Corp. photograph album
    creator: Wilson Aero Corp.
    Identifier/Call Number: 7045
    Physical Description: 1.29 linear feet. 1 box
    Date: circa 1932
    Container: 1

    Historical note

    The Wilson Aero Corp. was founded by borther Tave and Roy Wilson, two of the biggest names in early stunt aviation. The Wilson brothers owned the only airport ever licensed exclusively for motion picture work. Tave Wilson was a camera pilot and his younger brother Roy was a stunt pilot. Roy's career took off after his work on Howard Hughes' Hell's Angels (1930) at which point he and Tave were able to open their airfield. Roy Wilson died during the filming of War Correspondence (1932) while attempting a stunt flight. Tave Wilson quit flying shortly thereafter and sold the airfield in 1937.

    Content Description

    Photograph album with 24 photographs depicting Wilson Aero Corp.'s motion picture work. Photographs include on the set images of Dawn Patrol (1930), the comedy short Plane Crazy (1930), and Paul Sloane's War Correspondent (1932) starring Jack Holt. The album documents much of the activity of the Wilson Aero Corp. and may have functioned as a sales tool--glamourous images of film shoots, various planes, and photographs of the turret camera mount that allowed for 360 degree in-air tracking shots. The cover of the album reads "Jimmie Clark/Wilson Aero Corp.,/The Home of Aerial Movies./Burbank, California". Some of the planes highlighed a Thomas Morse, a Speedwing Travelair, a Fiske with a 180 H.P. Hispana Suiza engine, and a Special C-3-B Stearman.

    Conditions Governing Access

    Advance notice required for access.

    Conditions Governing Use

    All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

    Preferred Citation

    [Box/folder no. or item name], Wilson Aero Corp. photograph album, Collection no. , 7045, Regional History Collection, Special Collections, USC Libraries, University of Southern California

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Purchased from The Bookshop, March 20, 2017.

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Aerial photography -- California -- Photographs
    Air pilots -- California -- Photographs
    Airplanes -- California -- Photographs
    Motion picture cameras -- Photographs
    Motion pictures -- History -- Photographs
    Stunt performers -- Archival resources
    Los Angeles (Calif.) -- History -- Photographs
    Photograph albums
    Wilson Aero Corp. -- Photographs