It's February 11, 2010, and we're on our way to tour the Cavanaugh Flight and the Mary Kay Ash Museums in Addison -- not far away.
The Cavanaugh Flight Museum was founded in 1993 by Jim Cavanaugh and has 50,000 sq. ft. of enclosed facilities. They plan to build a new one with 200,000 sq. ft.
Sheila and Bob Hetler browse the museum's extensive collection of prints and oils depicting aerial battles.
The Gallery has one of the largest collections of signed aviation artwork in the southwest.
Jimmie Roberts, Linda Stopani and Dale and Dolores German find signatures of pilots and crews including Chuck Yeager's as a young pilot.
Jon Campbell and Charles Balazcin head for the first hanger.
The museum has 51 planes and over 40 are air worthy and fly periodically which is why this is a "Flight Museum".
One of the first flight simulators.
Our guide is a retired IBM salesman who serviced TI. He was a font of interesting facts and stories.
Charles was a pilot but didn't fly one of these B-25J Mitchell's. The original painter was brought in to refresh the picture.
The B-25J is in imaculate condition and has won many awards at air shows.
PT-22 World War II trainer.
This is the World War I triplane, the Fokker D.Vlla. Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen a.k.a. The Red Barron (and Snoopy) flew one just like it.
On to the outdoor exhibits and the second hanger. Our guide is pointing out the various planes which remain outside.
Most are Cold War era aircraft.
The F104 "Starfighter" was known as "a missle with a man in it."
The Spitfire fighter was flown by the Tuskegee airmen. This is the only restored, working P51C in existence.
Len Mathews reads about the plane and its pilots. Six Tuskegee Airmen are still alive and visited this museum recently to sign books and pictures.
Planes, planes, planes!
You can actually fly this Stearman biplane for 30 minutes (with an instructor, of course). They have several planes available for a private aerial adventure.
The "Skyraider" is known for it's leaks (see the cardboard under the plane to absorb the fluids?)
Our guide explains that he is 5'4" and he needs a "butt boost" to get in some of the planes.
They don't make cars with steel bodies any longer.
A very shiny 1941 Special Deluxe Chevrolet convertible which our guide had just waxed.
A beautifully restored 1937 MG. Who knows what MG stands for? Well, it's "Morris Garage" which built them.
A hand-pump gas station when gasoline was 14 cents a gallon.
This is a World War II fighter, the Spitfire Mk. VIII.
A German medium-sized bomber. Hitler had one for his personal use. Germany didn't think the war would last more than 18 months so they had no strategic aircraft plan.
How about a Super Sherman tank that actually is drivable?
The 1953 jeep acts as an escort when the tank is taken out for display.
Ronnie worries about the noise!
A two-seated 55 mm. artillary gun. One gunner controlled it vertically and one kept the horizontal setting correct.
Korean War helicopter.
Which is scarier -- being shot at or being strapped to a stretcher on the outside of the helicopter flying back to a MASH unit?
On to the heavy bombers -- the B-24 Warbird barely fits in the hanger and requires two wingmen to guide it in or out! You can ride in this for $450/trip!
And now on to the Mary Kay Museum. It highlights the dream that began in 1963 and has been enriching people's lives ever since (both men and women).
The lobby wall shows locations of Mary Kay directors all over the world. Currently, China is their largest market.
But let's eat before the tour. "Lipstick" columns decorate their cafe.
Mary Kay Ash and her son, Richard Rogers. He loaned her $5,000 to start the business and is now the CEO. She always liked this painting because it made her look skinny.
Thousands of items are displayed in the Mary Kay museum.
There are so many items that they cannot all be displayed at one time and are rotated in and out.
Past product lines are arranged by year.
Historical career jewelry given to sales directors.
Mary Kay always made a grand entrance at each convention.
She loved pink -- the color of her favorite eye shadow and her Cadillacs.
Flags and memborilia from various countries in which they operate are on display.
The Mary Kay Ash Memorial Wall behind Sheila, Bob and Jon honors directors who suffered untimely deaths.
Hugh Farrell and Peg Ripple were impressed with the solid wood in the Board Room -- and all over the building.
The Cross of the Millennium was a gift to Mary Kay and depicts the birth, death and resurrection of Christ in a single work of art. It was moved to her home during the last weeks of her life.
The Eternal Flame sculpture (in pink, of course!)
The table in the board room is in the shape of the first compact made by this company in 1965.
Copper walls led from the elevators into Mary Kay's office. There are 13 elevators, 13 floors and 600,000 sq. ft. in this beautiful building.
She brought back this metal peacock from a Mexican convention and hung it in her office.
She had her own powder room -- in pink, of course.
A beautiful, large Egyptian cartouche hangs on her office wall.
Her desk was really two desks so she could sit on either side to avoid the sunlight at certain times of the day. She kept slippers in both sides but never went out in public without high heels.
She had a beautiful view of Addison from her office -- with pink couches and walls.
Dolores German tries out Mary Kay's desk, pen and even her glasses!
Mary Kay liked to collect porcelains and many were gifts from her friends and associates.
Every one on the tour was given a very nice gift of a Belara eau de parfum wand -- just in time for Valentine's Day so the guys appreciated it very much.
Len models his Kuskegee airmen hat on the way back to TI.
No tornadoes on this trip but we just missed the snowstorm-of-the-century by 12 hours!
A show lady is all dressed up and ready to go. Wonder if she uses Mary Kay cosmetics?
