Showing funny sides of genius
Play: Columbia's Rep Stage ends its season with Tom Stoppard's time-travel mystery "Arcadia."

By R.N. Marshall
Special To The Sun

Published on March 11, 2004
© 2004- The Baltimore Sun

Playwright Tom Stoppard, author of such classic works of theater as Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead, The Real Thing, Rough Crossing, Travesties and The Real Inspector Hound, among others, is best known for his erudite wit and delicious command of the English language.

As a screenwriter, his films, such as Empire of the Sun and Shakespeare In Love, have earned high praise from critics and audiences.

Columbia's Rep Stage, the professional theater in residence at Howard Community College, is ending its 2003-2004 season with Arcadia, another Stoppard gem.

Set in the early 1800s, as well as present day, Arcadia takes the audience on a fascinating journey back and forth between eras to discover answers to an intriguing mystery of love, history and deception that centers on the romantic poet Lord Byron.

Clues surface that point toward a scandal, torrid love affair and duel that may have led to Bryon's mysterious disappearance. A group of contemporary scholars and intellectuals descend upon scientist Valentine Coverly and his ancestral home of Sidley Park in central England to investigate.
Audience members have the unique perspective of seeing events as they happened in 1809, then watching present-day characters as they debate and search for answers in archives and letters.

The original London and Broadway productions of Arcadia in the early 1990s won glowing reviews from critics. Michael Coveney, from Britain's The Observer, wrote that Stoppard's Arcadia "may be his finest work to date, a novelistic, Forsterian epic of painting, poetry, imperialism and literary reputations."
Director Kasi Campbell describes the play as "restoration comedy" and the thrill of a modern "who-done-it mystery." Arcadia has elements of a British sex farce, but is presented with greater subtlety. For example, characters suggestively refer to "the action of bodies in heat." However, this double entendre is, in truth, part of a discussion regarding the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

Despite the highly academic themes of Arcadia, Campbell assured "so much of the fun is from laughing at these scholars as they are trying to piece it together, but getting it all wrong." Much of the theatrical intrigue is "waiting to see how the characters figure it all out." The farce becomes a "poignant and touching romance," Campbell said. "We are taken to a wonderful place and are given the chance to reflect on the very continuum of existence."

Actor Bruce Nelson, a Columbia resident who plays Ezra Chater (based on the real-life "minor poet" who lived in the 1800s), said that although there are some "densely worded themes, very much like George Bernard Shaw," the messages are moving and profound. One theory in the play is that "you can't stir things backwards," said Nelson. "Once you start moving forward -- in physics and life -- once there is momentum, you can't go back. We all have to carry on."

"This is straight out of Oscar Wilde" said Karl Miller who plays Hodge, also a mathematician and tutor. In defense of his highly intellectual character, Miller said that "geniuses are misunderstood, often seen as too serious or with conflicted, infantile behavior."

Stoppard's Arcadia shows "how funny can genius be," he said.

Arcadia opens tomorrow and runs through March 28. Performances are at 8 p.m. Fridays, 2:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Sundays. A Thursday performance is to be held at 7 p.m. March 25. A post-show reception will follow Friday's performance, and a post-show discussion will follow the March 19 performance. Rep Stage, Smith Theatre, Howard Community College, 10901 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia, MD 21044. Information 410-772-4900 or www. howardcc.edu/repstage

By R.N. Marshall
Special To The Sun

Published on January 22, 2004
© 2004- The Baltimore Sun

Feminist writer and publisher Virginia Woolf and poet-novelist Vita Sackville-West shared a complex, tempestuous, passionate and inspirational relationship for 20 years until Woolf's suicide in 1941.

The saga of these two women's lives together, based on their correspondence, has been beautifully crafted into a play by acclaimed actress Eileen Atkins. Vita & Virginia will be presented by Rep Stage, the professional theater company in residence at Howard Community College in Columbia, beginning Jan. 30. Premiering off-Broadway in 1994, Vita & Virginia was directed by Zoe Caldwell with Atkins in the role of the sensitive and often emotionally troubled Woolf and the adventuresome and brash Sackville-West played by Vanessa Redgrave.

The Rep Stage production will feature two engaging Maryland actors, MaryBeth Wise as Sackville-West and Paula Gruskiewicz as Woolf. They have worked together before, and their friendship facilitates the growth of their relationships in the play. Each says she envisioned the other in her role before auditioning.

"I had seen the New York production and was inspired by these characters," Wise says. She immediately thought of Gruskiewicz as Woolf, whom she identified with the author's gentle nature.

Both women speak of their onstage personas with the same enthusiasm and joy for language and visual expression that Sackville-West and Woolf shared in life. One finishes sentences of the other, as close friends do.

"Richness comes from how these women constantly painted pictures with words of what they were seeing," Gruskiewicz says. "Vita clearly inspired Virginia, and her writing uses a language of vibrant images."

Sackville-West wrote: "The waterfalls in Switzerland were frozen into solid incandescent curtains of ice hanging over the rock; so lovely. And Italy all blanketed in snow."
"Vita clearly inspired Virginia, and her writing uses a language of vibrant images," Gruskiewicz says. "They fueled each other's imaginations and creativity," Wise says.

Members of the Bloomsbury group in London, Woolf and Sackville-West met at a dinner party in 1922 given by art critic Clive Bell. Their friendship quickly turned into a love affair. Although both were married, Sackville-West was "a pronounced Sapphist," according to the diary of Woolf, who had her share of extramarital affairs.

Director Lisa A. Wilde, a fifth-season resident dramaturg and literary manager for Rep Stage, points out that the years of her relationship with Sackville-West coincided with "a period of great creative productivity" in Woolf's career.

That period was primarily after the writing of Mrs. Dalloway, and the character is not the Woolf portrayed in the film The Hours, the director says.

"Vita & Virginia covers a much happier time in Woolf's life," Wilde says.
Vita & Virginia is brought to vivid life through detailed and spectacular words often written "while on a train gazing out a window, or sitting on the back of a camel," Wise says. "We don't write letters anymore," Wilde says. "Today's e-mails are drafts of dry data, mostly informational. These letters had passion, advice, solace and great humor."

Atkins has masterfully intertwined text from the original letters so that the 20 years presented in her play flow seamlessly through scenes, monologues and retrospectives.

The set design by Holly Highfil will use hand-painted screens with vivid silk patterns, reflecting the era of the story and changing subtly during the action.

Vita & Virginia will be presented from Jan. 30 to Feb. 22 at Rep Stage, Theatre Outback, Howard Community College, 10901 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia. Performances are scheduled for 8 p.m. Fridays, 2:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Sundays. There will be no Saturday matinees Jan. 31 and Feb. 7. Tickets are $13 to $22, with a $2 discount for senior citizens. Students with identification pay $10. A reception is planned after the Jan. 30 performance; a discussion will be held after the Feb. 6 performance. Information: 410-772-4900 or www.howard cc.edu/repstage. MaryBeth Wise (left) portrays Vita Sackville-West, and Paula Gruskiewicz plays Virginia Woolf in Rep Stage's production of "Vita & Virginia" at Howard County Community College.

Man of multiple Talents
Thespian: Actor Larry Munsey is also an accomplished costume designer, educator and administrator who thrives on all aspects of theatrical arts.

By R.N. Marshall
Special To The Sun

Published on November 27, 2003
© 2004- The Baltimore Sun

In the current Arena Stage production of Lerner and Lowe's Camelot in Washington, D.C., a certain "Knight in Shining Armor" hails not from the bright lights of Broadway, but from right here in Howard County. Lawrence Brimmer (his professional Actors' Equity name), has been better known to local audiences at Toby's Dinner Theatre in Columbia, until recently, as Larry Munsey.

This charming, soft-spoken man of multiple talents carries an impressive list of credits. As a leading actor he has played the title roles in such shows as The Jazz Singer and Joseph And The Technicolor Dreamcoat for Toby's. He appeared as the lead in Tommy for the Maryland Arts Festival and has toured nationally in Me And My Girl for Maryland based Troika Entertainment, as well as with John Davidson in State Fair. Munsey has also performed in Las Vegas in top shows such as Jubilee at Bally's and Andrew Lloyd Webber's Starlight Express.

Munsey is also an accomplished costume designer, educator and administrator who thrives on all aspects of theatrical arts.

For Toby's recent spectacular Ragtime, the Broadway quality costuming, over 250 outfits, were all Larry Munsey originals. His costumes for other Toby's productions include, among others, the popular and critically acclaimed Wizard of Oz, Annie, Damn Yankees, plus multiple Young Audience shows.

Born in Silver Spring, Lawrence grew up in Gaithersburg where his parents live today. As a child "he had to be the center of attention" his mother said. "He'd do cartwheels around the house".

It was a production of Ice Capades that caught young Larry's imagination. "It was so magical" he remembers. But curiosity went beyond the spectacle. "I would look for the ice skate blades under the curtains, wanting to know what was going on backstage."

His mother took Munsey to Ice skating lessons and practice sessions, many at 6:30am. He excelled and won several competitions, but hung up his ice skates at Gaithersburg High School to do plays.

Drama coach, Charlotte Hehn, played a pivotal role. "She made me feel it was OK to be me and encouraged me to go for it, against the odds"

"Theatre is generally thankless and doesn't pay well. But there was clearly a spark there" Hehn says. "Larry would rather starve to death than not perform. He was always willing to go the extra mile."

A distant moonago, Toby's Dinner Theatre was short one dancer for its big tapping musical 42nd Street. Munsey showed up to audition, although he had never tapped danced. Director Toby Orenstein and choreographer Ilona Kessel were impressed by his ability to pick up the moves quickly and he got the part..

Although Munsey took acting classes at Montgomery College, he credits his mentor, Toby Orenstein, for most of his acting training "She's a wonderful educator" he said..

Orenstein said she has seen enormous changes in Munsey's ability over the years. "He started as a chorus kid and grew. His singing got stronger as did his acting" she said. "Larry has a great eye. He knows the difference between good and bad. He can see the mistakes so he can fix them. That's very important for any actor".

Munsey continues his behind the scenes work with Toby and the Columbia Center for the Theatrical Arts, an educational offshoot of Toby's theatre organization.

"As a teacher the kids love him" Orenstein said. "As an artistic coordinator his vision is terrific".

Munsey officially became Lawrence Brimmer when he first worked for Arena Stage in last season's South Pacific. Hearing about the casting call from a friend, he auditioned "in front of that table of executioners" as Lawrence calls the intimidating line-up of Director and production team that actors must face.

"Auditioning is always the very worst part of this business. It never gets easy" he said.

Even though Munsey has known and worked with Toby for years, he admits he finds it more difficult to audition in front of friends. "With Toby, I hold her opinion in such high regard that I don't want to disappoint her if I don't do a good job. The pressure is higher" he said.

Working with Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith on Camelot has been "an amazing ensemble experience" for Munsey.

"I am honored to be working with such a high caliber of actors on Camelot" Munsey said.

This cast features Broadway professionals such as Matt Bogart (who recently appeared in Elton John and Tim Rice's AIDA) playing Sir Lancelot, Steven Skybell as King Arthur (his credits include The Full Monty), and Kate Suber as Guenevere (her credits include the musical Titanic).

Munsey prefers living in Howard County and after touring in shows is always happy to be back. "I really like the community. We have great stores, restaurants, activities, and theatre. We're so close to New York and DC, and the beach is only two hours away" he said.

"It's like the character Pippin", Orenstein said in agreement.. "Everything is in your own back yard."

Munsey says he is driven and has to have many things going on at once. He might have picked up that trait from Toby Orenstein, who said, "One thing I think he learned from me, and I don't know if that is such a good thing, is to juggle all those balls."

Munsey says he is learning it's ok to have some downtime. But for now, it looks like his career is only onwards and upwards.

Toby's 25th Anniversary season starts with Meet Me In St. Louis which opens November 27th and plays through February 8th, followed by Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats. Toby's Dinner Theatre, 5900 Symphony Woods Road, Columbia, MD 21044. Information: 410-730-8311 or www.tobysdinnertheatre.com. Camelot plays through January 4th 2004 in the Fichandler Theatre at Arena Stage, 1101 Sixth Street, SW, Washington, DC. 20024. Information: 202-488-3300 or www.arenastage.org

REVIEW

Company's surreal take on classic
Opener: Chesapeake Shakespeare starts its second season with "The Comedy of Errors".

By R.N. Marshall
Special To The Sun

Published on November 13, 2003
© 2004- The Baltimore Sun

Step into the intimate black box theatreµ at the Howard County Center for the Arts in Ellicott City and enter a world that artfully blends Federico Fellini and Salvador Dali with vintage Flash Gordon, plus a dash of The Wizard of Oz. You have stumbled into the realm of William Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors, a second season opener for the exceptionally professional and fledgling Chesapeake Shakespeare Company.

Originally based on an ancient Roman play, titled Menaechmi by Plautus (a Neil Simon of his day), Shakespeare adapted The Comedy of Errors as one of his earliest works. This farcical writing also holds the distinction of being one of Shakespeare's shortest plays.

It's a simple enough tale in structure that grows convoluted as the plot thickens. An old man from Syracuse named Egeon has broken the law by stumbling into the forbidden city of Ephesus in search of his son and his son's personal slave. He finds himself before a powerful Duke in defense of his life. Making his case, Egeon tells how he and his wife once bore identical twin boys, both named Antipholus. Subsequently, they also bought a pair of identical twins, both named Dromio (a cruel twist of dramatic fate), from a poor family to rear as servants for their sons.

The family members separated when their ship split open in a storm. Egeon (with one son and slave in hand) lost his wife, the other twin son and his slave. Years later, Egeon's now grown son, Antipholus, believes his missing brother and mother to be alive and takes his slave, Dromio, off in search of kin.
Meanwhile, the separated son lost long ago (the other Antipholus) is still with his slave (the other Dromio) and has since ended up as a wealthy married and highly respected citizen of Ephesus.

Here is where the real fun begins. The Antipholus from Syracuse shows up in Ephesus and is immediately confused for his affluent brother. This mistaken identity leads to complete mayhem as matters go from bad to worse. A litany of characters (wives, merchants, policemen, even the two Dromios) are convinced that their Antipholus (pick either one) has gone insane. Mounting situations contradict one another and attempts at explanation are completely misconstrued.

Perhaps the plot is too contrived or obvious? Forget not that this 400-year-old play is the great granddaddy of them all. Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors has clearly been the basis and inspiration for centuries of comedy and drama. Plot twists resound loudly with contemporary echoes of The Parent Trap, Blood Brothers and The Prince and the Pauper. Films such as Big Business come to mind with Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin as separated twins mismatched at birth by a nearsighted nurse.

Comedy of Errors director Christopher Marino paints his theatrical canvas with great attention to detail, creating a constantly moving visual arena. He and his creative team bring to life a completely different world that is colorful, energetic and vibrant. This Commedia Del Arte vehicle is rich, employing painted faces with darkened eyes (adeptly created by costume and makeup designer Melanie Lester) instead of using traditional masks. Marino's cast members are truly classic clowns with stylistic physical aberrations, yet very real at the core.

Simple set and lighting design by company technical director Dan O'Brien uses colorful doorframes mounted at oblique angles that open into an endless array of locations. Half a clock, oddly numbered, with curled hands suggests Dali's melted timepieces pouring over tabletops. Lighting often illuminates the actors from footlights, creating a vaudeville atmosphere.

Sound design, also by director Marino and artistic director Ian Gallaner, employs carnival-esque music and sound effects that enhance the surreal, almost circus-like, society with a Twilight Zone quality. It is not unlike a ride through the funhouse at a boardwalk amusement park.

There is not a weak performance from the lot, for here is an ensemble full of energy where each actor invests great passion in his or her role. Some of the evening's broadest humor bubbles forth from the two Dromios, played deftly as wee Scottish lads. In reality, one twin is actress Judith McSpadden; the other is actor Charles Drexler. So close as a pair that no second thought appears they are not identical brothers. These dutiful and devoted poor souls bear the brunt of their master's wrath in true Punch and Judy style - for doing exactly what told to do by their misidentified superiors.

Saskia de Vries is deliciously fierce as the sultry and controlling psycho wife of the well-heeled Ephesian Antipholus. Her wicked portrayal is reminiscent of Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest. Hand her a coat hangar and she is Joan Crawford on a midnight raid, complete with white face cream and oversized blood-red lips. Angelo, the Goldsmith, played by Jonathan Judge-Russo, is a comedic cross between Wilmer Valderama's character Fez on television's That 70s Show and the mayor of Munchkinland.

For non-Shakespeare scholars, the language may at first come across as foreign; however, in no time the ear adjusts. Physical interpretation adds so much to the translation that helps dissolve all barriers. A brief pre-trip to the Internet for a more detailed synopsis, although not required, may only enhance the play-going experience.

The Comedy of Errors runs weekends through Nov. 22 with Friday and Saturday performances at 8 p.m. and a Sunday matinee at 2:30 p.m. Nov. 15. Information: 877-639-3728 or www.chesapeakeshakespeare.com.

Constellation Dreams

By Robert Neal Marshall

Published January 1999
Airways Magazine

I thought I was going to be chopped to pieces! It's one of those fond childhood memories that haunts me still. LaGuardia Airport. 1965. 12:23pm, Gate 4B. My mother held my hand as we walked across the tarmac to a waiting TWA 727, our biannual trip to visit the grandparents in Chicago. A thunderous growling roar approached us from the right. I turned and saw the massive propellers of a Lockheed Constellation tearing towards us. I was only five, but I knew my little body in its blue Sunday School traveling best and buster browns would be mince meat in seconds. I tried to scream, to warn my mother of our impending doom, but she obviously could not hear me above the howling. She kept on walking, that motherly vice-like grip on my hand. How could I save her? Save us? Luckily the rotating machetes sputtered to a halt just as we reached the bottom of the steps to our plane. We had been pardoned.

How, you may ask, did I know at the tender ripe age of five, that we were traveling on a 727 or for that matter, that the carnivorous beast pursuing us was a Lockheed Constellation? I hadn't a clue. It was not until years later that my passion for airliners and my obscured traumatic memories gave me the answer. The Lockheed Constellation, or "Connie" as she was affectionately known, was one of the finest and distinctive airliners of her time. Famous for more than her exquisite service and movie stars that flew upon her, this "Rolls Royce" of airliners past was unique because of her sleek figure and massive triple tail. "Fly the Finest" was Trans World Airline's slogan. And she was a beauty. From my fragmented memories of the "LaGuardia Incident", the one image that stood out in my mind was that strange triple tail. The three vertical fins in red and white. My keen sense of forensic logic proved it had to be TWA, and no other plane but the Connie. I also remembered the distinctive T-tail of the jet, which I later knew to be a Boeing 727.

I never had the chance to fly on a Connie. It only scared me out of my skin. Perhaps it was an early twinge of sadomasochism, but the roar of those four radial engines cranking massive propellers truly excited me. From that moment, I knew I had to fly on this amazing machine. Every generation wants to relive its past, those wonderful years when life was good and simple. We all are so desperate to hold on to some vestige of the past, to experience life as it was. No doubt, all our memories have softened the edges a bit. Nostalgia is in. Those cruddy vinyl and chrome kitchen dinette sets that our legs stuck to in the early 60's are now selling for thousands on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. 1950's posters, clothing, art, even old toys fetch high prices on the open market. For many of my generation, the TV station Nick-At-Nite is booming by playing old reruns of "I Love Lucy" and "Petticoat Junction". Even the movie Grease has poked out its retro head! And whose parents or grandparents don't become misty eyed at hearing that wonderful old love song they used to dance to? We have a desperate need to travel back in time. But, of course, time travel is impossible……or is it?

James Cameron has ignited the world's fascination with the Titanic by literally re-creating the majestic ship down to fine details. As viewers of the film, we can witness walking down the corridors, or see what it was like on the poop deck, but it is still only a movie. For those lucky enough to have worked on the film, they practically journeyed back to 1912 by setting foot on Cameron's massive set. It was the closest thing to actually walking on the decks of Titanic again. A consortium is building a scale replica of the Titanic, accurate to all details except that this new version will have enough lifeboats and modern navigation. To travel on this new ship would be the closest thing to really being on the original Titanic. To travel in time.
What would it be like to actually go back and meet Marilyn Monroe, or talk to John F. Kennedy, or even more simply, to go back to the 1950's?

My "impossible dream" was to fly on the Connie. I remember in high school we had to write a paper: "What would you do if you knew you only had 24 hours to live?". In addition to saying goodbye to all my friends and loved ones, odd as it sounds, one of the experiences I penned was to fly on a Constellation.

You see, I was born with the jet age. Eisenhower was still president, but a young Jack Kennedy was about to change history. Marilyn Monroe would soon make her last motion picture and the world was about to become a different place. The high speed "Astrojets" were already in service cutting transcontinental flights down to five hours rather than an all day journey. The Jumbo Jet was still a decade away. "Flying in style" and the Lockheed Constellation were both suffering the premature end of an era.

By the mid 1970's most Constellations were long gone from commercial passenger service. A few were left in military and cargo runs in out of the way places. One airline, Aerovias Quisqeyana, still flew a few in and out of the Dominican Republic. But do you really think my parents would allow their 15 year old to go to Santo Domingo and fly on a twenty five year old reciprocal airliner? Not in this lifetime!

The only thing left was the joy of old photographs and a few clips from old movies and newsreels. All those movie stars walking down a red carpet towards the streamlined triple tailed "Starliner". Everyone dressed to the nines. Men in suites and ties. Ladies in hats and gloves. It was elegant. Passengers would climb the stairs to be greeted by the stewardess. Remember when flight attendants were stewardesses? Remember those military styled uniforms and the little winged hats? Movie Stars would, of course, turn towards the cameras (and to all their adoring fans) for a quick wave. They would then bend over slightly so as not to hit their heads on the small oval door as they entered the aircraft. That's where the film ended. What was it like beyond that door? What did it look like inside? What were the sounds and the sensations?! Only those who had been there the first time around would remember. It was an impossible reality to recapture. Gone forever was the Constellation. Like the desolate grounds of the 1965 World's Fair, the only remaining vestiges of what was once the "only way to fly" are the derelict aircraft stored in remote desert locations. Homes for birds and rattle snakes.

Save a Connie is a non-profit organization in Kansas City, a long time base and maintenance hub for TWA. The dedicated members of this organization found in the desert an L1049H Lockheed Constellation. It is this aircraft that they have lovingly, and by no small measure of accomplishment, restored to full airline flying condition, and newly christened the ""Star of America"". Connie number N6937C was delivered in 1959 to Slick Airways, a former air freight and charter operator. This particular model "H" was a later version that allowed for quick transition from a freighter to a passenger ship. With the onset of jet service, this particular plane only saw a few years of service. She went from a cargo carrier, to Vietnam transport, to a horse freighter, then to a bug sprayer in northern Canada. After that she lay in Mesa, Arizona for years gathering dust and stray animals in the dry protective southwest climate.

In 1985, Paul Pristo bid for the airplane at an aviation "yard sale". This was only 26 years after she was built! There are jets today over 30 years old STILL flying in airline service! No one would start the bidding and when the price of the aircraft went from $25,000 down to an embarrassing $5,000, Paul Pristo bid $4,000 to get others to join in. No one had any interest in the forsaken hulk. That night, Pristo ended up explaining to his wife how they were the proud new owners of a useless derelict Constellation.

Meanwhile, Larry Brown and Dick McMahon shared a vision of one day restoring an old propeller driven airliner to flying condition. They eventually met Paul Pristo and a deal was struck. 37C was brought back to life by the dedicated work of volunteers, many former TWA employees who actually worked on the Connies when they were in service. The planes themselves may have been put out to pasture, but most of the people who build, flew, and maintained the Constellation are very much alive. We often think of the past as if it were not only another time, but an entirely different set of people who lived "back then". We forget that many of those people are still around. They have just moved on to other things in their lives.

Membership, donations, and air show tours have kept Save A Connie and the ""Star of America"" alive and well. SAC has also expanded their revival of other classic propeller driven airliners to include a twin engine Martin 404 and a venerable old DC-3, which was the workhorse of airline fleets in the 1930's and '40's. I eventually joined the Save A Connie team as a member. Living on the East Coast did not allow me the luxury of volunteering to work on the plane, which is based at the old Kansas City downtown airport. Periodic newsletters fill us in on local operations and meetings. The real secret is that as a member, one can get on a special "Standby" list and actually FLY the "Star of America" to air shows around the country. One criteria is that you volunteer to work at the air shows selling "Connie" souvenirs, giving tours of the plane, or taking tickets at the door.

My first year of membership was mostly during the winter, which did not offer any flights. The aircraft is restricted to warmer weather flying. To my amazement and delight, I got a call from Captain McMahon asking if I'd like to fly with them to Muscle Shoals, Alabama for the Spirit of Shoals Air show. My heart leapt at the incredible, unbelievable opportunity to step aboard the plane of my dreams, which, for all intents and purposes, I had long ago written off as an impossibility. In a few short days I was again at LaGuardia Airport. This time I was jetting my way to Kansas City with my buddy Craig for the experience of a lifetime.

As we drove up to Save a Connie's building at KC's Downtown Airport, the sight seemed unreal. Towering high above the roof loomed the unmistakable triple tail of the Constellation, the red and white paint bright and new in the mid-day sun. It could have been 1957 and a TWA flight was awaiting passengers for another routine trip. Like a little kid, I couldn't wait to pay the cab driver and rush out to the plane. To see it for real, to touch it. After a brief introduction to some of the Connie crew, I was told I could wander out and take a look.

I have seen old prop airliners up close, even walked on a few. Years ago, there was an old Super G Constellation sitting on the tarmac at the Ft. Lauderdale airport. Some guys in greasy overalls were working on an engine. The plane was in really sorry shape. We pulled the car over and called across the fence to one of the mechanics who was happy to give us a tour. This particular aircraft used to fly for Lufthansa, served as a cargoliner, and had been lying derelict for ages. These guys were trying to get her to fly again. The inside was piled up to the ceiling with rusty spare parts, oil cans, tires, rags, and boxes filled with mangled wires. The walls were stripped bare to the metal airframe with the exception of yellowing, rotting pieces of old insulation hanging about. There was not a hint of the old glory "bygone" years. Much later I read how this plane did make it back in the air. Trying to fly North, she put the fear of God into inhabitants of a small Florida community trailing smoke as she came in for an emergency landing! At the Hartford Airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, there used to sit an old Connie L-749 in the colors of Capital Airlines (later bought by United Airlines). You could walk up to the plane and look in the old yellow and cracked windows. The inside, barely visible, was barren and faded. One summer a twister did away with this static hulk as well as several other aircraft and a few houses.

The "Star of America" was entirely different. Through special permission she had been newly painted in the original colors of a Trans World Airlines Constellation, circa 1957. This factory new job had been done in preparation to fly 37C to Europe in celebration of TWA's 75th Anniversary. This Connie never made the Trans-Atlantic journey, cut short by the tragic crash of TWA flight 800.

But there she stood, as if she had just landed, brighter and cleaner than the modern jet I just flew in on. I felt as if we had taken a quantum leap back in time, through a portal where we could step into the past. Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell were in Hollywood at that very moment singing in Technicolor about Little Rock and Diamonds. People were yelling "We Like Ike!", cars had fins. Hoola Hoops were hot, and kids were sock hopping to Elvis. The McGuire Sisters and Connie Francis were crooning sentimental songs and the world seemed a simpler place. I was finally able to walk up to a Trans World Airlines Lockheed Constellation - no longer afraid! Its magnificent triple tail gleamed red and white in the morning sun, towering above the tarmac. As in so many old black and white photos and movies, I too could now climb up the stairs and into a world out of reach and out of time

But she was silent, solid, and statuesque, like so many of the other old airliners at air museums around the world. This could be the Connie "Star of Switzerland" at the Pima Air Museum in Tucson, Arizona. Duxford Air Museum in England has an old VC-10, a Britannia turboprop, even a prototype Concorde that you can walk on. They all have seats and galleys, but the engines are frozen, never to run, never to fly again. All static displays.

Inside, the "Star of America" was in amazing condition. You enter into the Galley at the rear of the aircraft with the lavatories aft. As you head forwards, you enter the lounge. Save A Connie found and installed not only the original lounge banquettes and tables, but the distinctive wall murals found in their original cardboard tubing from Lockheed. I recognized it all from vintage magazine ads in old Saturday Evening Posts! Just past the lounge, you enter a small cabin section with overhead berths which were used on long haul flights. Beneath the berths are two rows of facing coach seats. Unlike today, social interaction seems to have been the style back then.

Next is the coach cabin. Here are multiple rows of seats that came off of a modern DC-10. SAC is still seeking original Connie coach seats, and these were the only coach seats available that would fit the floor tracks. Next is First Class. SAC found original first class seats in excellent condition. The company in Switzerland that manufactured the upholstery for TWA found in their basement the looms for all the original Constellation fabrics. They told SAC that they would re-weave the fabrics if SAC could pay for the shipping. A gentleman who formerly maintained the fabrics for TWA's Connies, found the original patterns and re-made all of the seat covers and curtains to specification.

It was as if this plane had just come out of the hanger for the first time. I had only seen old black and white pictures and was pleased to learn that the light gray seats in the photos were actually a deep gold with fine brown lines, trimmed in a yellowish cream. This movie set "like" remake was remarkable. Even the cockpit and navigator's table still had all of the original dials and radios. Of course, there were some modern devices tucked in among the old, but it did not matter. The inside was as beautiful as the outside. It was amazing to consider the massive amount of dedication, time, hard work, and love these people put into restoring this ship.

Thirteen of us were to go on this flight. Captain Dick McMahon, one of the original founders of SAC, was teamed with Foe Geldersma as co-pilot. We had two flight engineers, retired TWA employees, plus an extra flight engineer "in training". The passenger list included spouses and friends, all of us Save A Connie members.

At first, 37C was at rest, like any museum display. The propellers frozen in space, the body silent. But magic happened as we took our first class seats and buckled in. The armchairs were comfortable and inviting, the picture windows were large, surrounded by gold and green curtains. We were informed that we had to be towed away from the terminal to start up the engines. If not, the terminal would be covered in oil! One messy hazard had not changed since the 1950's: these huge Wright 3350 piston engines collected up oil in their cylinders. Once fired, these monsters spurted out healthy helpings of black motor oil. Towing us out a way saved a nasty clean up job!

As Captain McMahon briefed us on safety measures and our flight plan to Muscle Shoals, I didn't even notice that we were moving. I glanced out of the window and saw the hangar slowly drifting away. This static museum piece was coming to life. So peculiar, museums in motion! The best was yet to come!
The dead silence of time was broken as the electronics and gyroscopes in the nearby doorless cockpit came to life. With the application of electrical power, the ship began to hum and whir. The sleeping giant stirred awake. After a few moments of anxious anticipation the inboard propeller on the right wing, known as number "3", slowly started to turn. These massive blades were just behind where I was seated. Willie, the Flight Engineer, called out as each blade swung around the top. The engine was being primed for start up. "One-Two-Three-Four-Five….."up to a count of eight. A shout "Contact!"

The Engine sputtered then suddenly cranked faster with a large muffled belch of bluish gray smoke. With a sudden kick and shudder a huge orange flame shot out of the engine exhaust, followed by a fog of smoke that swirled into multiple vortices in the prop wash. There was a noticeable shimmy in the cabin. Eventually the smoke dissipated as it was blown back. To my surprise, it was really never all that loud. We could hear a throaty rumble as the blades picked up speed. Next in turn was number "4", the outboard engine on the right hand wing. The remaining engines spewed to life, each with a muffled, shuddering explosion of smoke and flame. Finally, the rhythmic rumbling shudder became smooth and comfortable.

As we taxied to the end of the runway, we could see waiting members of Save a Connie who had driven their cars down to see us off. These could have been '57 Chevy convertibles parked by the runway on a Sunday afternoon to watch the planes take off.

I watched the engines do their pre-flight run-up (something not seen on jets). Wow! Here was the first taste of true power. All four mighty radials revved up to nearly full throttle. The thrust was so strong that the Connie strained against her brakes. Held tightly in place, she shook and pulled, trying to break free and leap into the air. As each engine was tested, I could feel a drop in the power which quickly rose back into a muffled roar. With almost a sigh of relief the "Star of America" calmed as she was pulled back to idle. The power and stability of these huge props felt reassuring and solid.

We were ready for departure. So far, this had all been unreal. It was as if I were watching a movie. Captain McMahon announced over the P.A. "We've been cleared for take-off. Cabin be seated" The words perplexed me. "Take - Off?" "Wait a minute! This machine that I am sitting on, this airplane that is now almost forty years old, is going to race down a runway and take to the sky?! My God!" I thought, "What am I doing!?" A strong surge of adrenaline pounded through my veins.

As soon as we turned onto the active runway all four engine rose together in a thunderous deep roar that was accented by a high pitch whine. You could feel the mutual synchronization of the blades as they teamed together at over 13,000 horsepower. Up until now it had been sights and sounds, but I was safe on the ground. Now we were going to travel on her, thousands of feet in the air. I prayed this was not going to be a terrible mistake, a terrifying, exhilarating last flight into oblivion! With a sudden wave of peace, perhaps the kind described by people as they are drowning, I gave in with my entire soul. I was so excited to be here, to be sitting in this seat, looking out of the window at the mighty props churning. To hear and feel that power rumbling up from the floor, through my feet, and into my body. Exhilarating! I knew there was no turning back now, no jumping up and yelling "STOP!" I went with it, and it was magnificent.

Takeoff roll was smooth and powerful. The Kansas City Downtown Airport sped past the window as 37C picked up speed. I was mesmerized by the massive propellers drilling the air, straining to fly. Physically, you cannot see that kind of power in the motionless tubes of jet engines. We lifted gently, almost imperceptibly, off the runway, not climbing steeply as a jet does. Rather, we simply, gradually, got higher and higher. The engines droned like a fleet of bombers in an old World War II movie. The sound then abruptly changed, softened, and deepened as we ascended.

What a glorious image! It took my breath away. Out of the window, I could see the sleek shadow of a triple tail Lockheed Constellation sweeping across downtown Kansas City. The distinctive shape lumbered across roads and buildings, the long narrow nose gear folding up into the underbelly. Caught in the moment I forgot where I was. I thought "How beautiful....Look! There's a Constellation out there!" Then it hit me. This was not some other plane. This was our shadow. I was flying aboard a Connie! The impossible was real! We were smoothly climbing up to our cruising altitude in a most vibrant and living flying machine. Captain McMahon turned off the seat belt sign as we headed south across the Midwest plains.

After flying on the Connie, I gazed back at the photos I had collected over the years from all those old books and ads. I was struck by how different the same images looked today. The Connie was no longer a series of unfamiliar black and white stills from a bygone era. She is a comforting reality; a connection to our past, an amazing place to go and enjoy.

Realizing a lifelong fantasy is phenomenal, but also sad, for you lose the mystery and child-like wonder. However, once you have flown "Star of America", a deep personal connection is forged. More than just a machine, or an old photograph, this beautiful plane is now so familiar. She is a very comfortable, caring friend that comes awake and alive for those who know her. It's a great gift gained in return.