Vintage Fridays: Airline Training Books
Having a piece of history like these vintage airline training books in our possession can be intimidating. When we have a whole stack of something old, sometimes I wonder: “Should we really split all of these things up?”
These little slices of history are so charming, from the vintage attire of the pilot and stewardess to the fonts used throughout the books. Our collection currently includes twenty-one of these books with titles ranging from “Sales Tools” to “Telephone and Ticket Counter Manners” and “Telephone Sales Techniques.” I can just imagine being a stewardess in those days, slipping on my girdle and pencil skirt and reading up on “International Route Structures” before I catch my next flight to Rio de Janeiro.
As with all ‘lots’ of vintage goods, selling these books individually means that they will most likely go to many different homes. But we do get the opportunity to keep these resources alive by supplying them to many different people who will be inspired by these ephemeral artifacts. Maybe one will go to someone whose mother or grandmother was a stewardess in the 1950s and one will go to someone who adores airline history and will add it to her collection. Maybe one book will go to a designer who is inspired by the woodcut design on the cover or the use of a vintage typeface.
Whatever the reason, I am constantly inspired by vintage design and artifacts — and that’s what we hope to do for others at the Brooklyn Art Library.
For more information on these books, please visit our online shop here.
-Sara
Notes