VICTOR BEALS (1895-1975) FIRST AIR CRUISE IN HISTORY! / NORTH GERMAN LLOYD. 1928. 23 1/2x16 1/2 inches, 60x42 cm. Condition B+: abrasions in image. Silkscreen on board. An extremely rare image for one of the earliest air tours in history. Time Magazine, on May 14th, 1928, reported that the "air-minded steamship line, the North German Lloyd . . . announced last week the 'first air cruise in history.' It will begin in the middle of September at Bremen, cover Europe between Bremen, Berlin, Vienna, Munich, Zurich, Paris, London, allowing passengers stopovers to attend the International Aeronautical Exhibition and the great plane factories of the Continent." The North German Lloyd company itself advertised, "Luxurious giant transports of the air . . . official receptions all along the route . . . all expenses on land, water and air included . . . $1,290 up . . . reduced rates for aeronautic students . . . September 8, leaving New York via flagship Columbus." Interestingly, two weeks later on May 28th, Time Magazine printed a retraction, in light of the fact that another tour group, based in New York, was organizing an air tour two months prior to North German Lloyd. Regardless, this poster represents a milestone in tourism history. Beals designed travel posters for clients such as Italian Line and Cunard, as well as posters for the Santa Fe Railway. previously unrecorded
