Memories from Miss Port of Long Beach

Debra Haines during her time as Miss Port of Long Beach.

For a good chunk of the Port's history, from the mid-'50s through the late 1980s, a young woman was chosen to be Miss Port of Long Beach for a year.

Not simply a beauty contest title, Miss Port of Long Beach would be called upon to represent the port at functions throughout the harbor and the wider community.

Our records and photographs of Miss Port of Long Beach are unfortunately a bit scanty. Among the names and photographs we do have are Diane Olson, who was Miss Port when the current administration building was dedicated in 1959; 1975 titleholder Theresa Marino, who was recently interviewed for our documentary "Faces of the Port" and who just retired from the Long Beach Health Department, Mary Ann McHenry, who was Miss Port in 1955 (and who may have been the first), and a few others.

So we were especially glad to hear from Debbie Haines Seccombe, who now lives in Washington state but who, as Debra Haines, was Miss Port of Long Beach from 1976 to 1978. She sent us some photos, clippings and reminiscences to share:

"I had the honor and privilege to serve as Miss Port of Long Beach from 1976 through 1978. I can remember attending many functions along side the then Mayor Tom Clark, including the arrival of the Tall Ships sponsored by Cutty Sark celebrating our country's bicentennial. (Ironically, the one thing I can remember the most is the Tall Ships event because it was where I first tasted scotch!)

With Mr. and Mrs. Lorne Greene.

"I also have a photo with actor Lorne Greene and his wife at a dinner onboard the Queen Mary and attended several functions inside the Spruce Goose hangar. My most memorable experience, however, was flying in a helicopter over the Port of Long Beach. That was a very fun time!

"Because they liked me, I was asked to serve as Miss POLB for two years instead of the traditional one. The basis for my selection was strictly an interview. I often attended events with Miss POLA and Miss International Business.

"My roots were in the port since my dad was a chief in the merchant marines during WWII and took me to Pierpoint Landing and the shipyard to see his 'big boats' as a little girl … the seals at PPL were well worth the trip.

"Although I was raised in Long Beach and attended school there K-12, I moved from there after I left for college and never returned but for a couple of Wilson High School reunions and to visit with my parents.

"My oldest son is also connected to the industry indirectly. He graduated from the USNA in Annapolis, MD and is currently serving as a Naval aviator in the squadron assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (very well-known due to recent events)."

Thanks for sharing your memories Debbie! We'd love to hear some more stories from or about Miss Port of Long Beach -- you can reach us using our Share Your Memories form.

You can see more photos here.

The Bicentennial Tall Ships

The Port's highest honor

President Dwight Eisenhower receives one of the inaugural Honorary Port Pilot Awards in 1954.

Since 1954, the Port of Long Beach has recognized extraordinary contributions to the world of international trade with the Honorary Port Pilot Award. The port's highest honor is named for the harbor port pilots who are entrusted to safely guide cargo ships in and out of the port.

The first group of awardees in '54 included President Dwight Eisenhower, Emperor of Ethiopia Haile Selassie, California Gov. Goodwin Knight and the secretaries of the Navy and Interior.

Awards over the years have gone to notables like the Prime Minister of Japan, President Ronald Reagan, and many other elected and appointed officials. Closer to home, three executive directors of the Port have been honored, and also Capt. J.A. Jacobsen and Richard Jacobsen of Jacobsen Pilot Service, the only father and son to receive the awards.

This year, the award is going to Jon F. Hemingway, CEO of SSA Marine. You can read more about his award here, and you'll find a complete list of recipients at our Port Pilot page.

Click here to see a photo gallery of some past recipients.

The Miss Universe Pageant

Harbor Commissioner John P. Davis with Miss Universe Hillevi Rombin of Sweden at Disneyland's Golden Horseshoe Revue, Nov. 8, 1955.

The Miss Universe Pageant? What does the Port of Long Beach have to do with a beauty pageant? Well, the Port for many years has been heavily involved in sponsoring major civic institutions and events -- today the Port sponsors the July 4 fireworks, the Long Beach Sea Festival, the Grand Prix, and literally dozens of other festivities and programs, large and small, throughout Long Beach.

In 1952, one of the newest and biggest civic events was the Miss Universe Pageant, which was first held here at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium (Armi Kuusela of Finland won the title, and the Miss USA Pageant was held at the same time). Miss Universe held eight pageants in Long Beach before moving to Miami for a long stint; now the ceremony moves among the participating countries.

The Port of Long Beach Miss Universe float, 1955.

Naturally as a civic supporter the Port did its utmost to boost the contest; it ran a float in the annual Miss Universe parade along Ocean Boulevard and hosted the contestants on harbor cruises, at Disneyland and at various events around town. In fact, after Miss Universe left the Port continued to host contestants in the International Beauty Congress competition -- you can see a photo of some of them feeding the sea lions at Pierpoint Landing here.

The Port archives don't have any photos of the ceremonies (although there's a lot of film on YouTube of crownings), but the other events offer great snapshots of Ocean Boulevard, early days at Disneyland and of course some glimpses of 1950s fashion. Enjoy!

You can read more about Miss Universe here.

See a photo gallery of Miss Universe and the Port here.

The 1955 parade rides past "The Seven Year Itch" playing at the Fox West Coast on Ocean.

Angels at the Port

Many films, television series and commercials use the Port of Long Beach as a location -- we'll be featuring some of them in upcoming blog posts.

Reader Robert Aguilar, Jr. worked on one of those productions and wrote in with this memory:

"My first visit to the Port of Long Beach was during the filming of Charlie's Angels - Full Throttle in 2002, where I worked on the production staff. In this photo you will see the Angels in the coal fields riding motorcycles. It was a great scene and the people at the Port were fun to work with. In this picture: Drew Barrymore, Long Beach local Cameron Diaz, and Lucy Liu."

Those "coal fields" are just a memory now, too. Not too long after this photo was taken, all the petroleum coke stored at and shipped through the Port of Long Beach was covered up or enclosed to drastically reduce the release of polluting dust into the air. The coke facilities are still in operation on Piers F and G.

Moving the Spruce Goose, Part 2

The hull of the Spruce Goose on the Pontoon Bridge
heading to Terminal Island, June 1946.

In 1946, despite the end of World War II, Howard Hughes was continuing development of a massive flying boat, designated the H-4 Hercules and popularly known as the Spruce Goose.

The massive plane was constructed at Hughes Airport, just southwest of Culver City. But now it was time for final assembly of the plane, followed by testing, and the Port of Long Beach was chosen for this stage of the project, specifically Berth 120 on Pier E, at the southeast end of Terminal Island. (This is part of Pier T today.)

On June 11, 1946, Star House Movers began driving the 160-foot-long wing sections on a 28-mile route to Terminal Island. From the 15th to the 16th, the hull of the plane was moved. Utility companies had to raise or cut 2,300 power and phone lines along the route, which took the hull down Santa Fe Avenue and eventually over the Pontoon Bridge onto Terminal Island.

The assembled plane at Pier E, Berth 120.

Once in place, the pieces of the flying boat were assembled over the next year, until it was time for taxi tests on November 2, 1947. During the tests, Hughes opened up the throttles and the plane lifted off the water briefly for the plane's only flight.

The Spruce Goose (a name disliked by Hughes, plus the plane was made mostly of birch) then was returned to its hangar where it remained under wraps until 1980, when it was moved out in preparation for its move to the dome next to the Queen Mary.

Read about the later moves of the Spruce Goose

Photo gallery of the Spruce Goose's 1946 move and 1947 flight

The wings are moved down Seaside Boulevard. The Cyclone Racer
and other Long Beach landmarks can be seen in the background.

Video of Elvis at the Port

The kind folks at the USS Potomac museum in Oakland sent us a link today to the website of an Elvis fan named Keith Flynn -- Keith has a piece of video of Elvis and Danny Thomas at the Port of Long Beach in 1964 for the handover ceremony for the presidential yacht. The pair discuss the Beatles a bit, too.

Maybe someone eagle-eyed will recognize where the Potomac is docked in this clip...

Watch the video

Keith Flynn's Elvis site

See our original post on Elvis at the Port

Elvis at the Port, 1964

The Potomac, looking somewhat the worse for wear, at the Port of Long Beach in January 1964. Port of Long Beach photo.

Famous vessels and famous faces are no strangers to the Port of Long Beach. The Port has welcomed the USS Constitution and the Queen Mary, for instance, and notables including Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter and Arnold Schwarzenegger, just to name a few. But only one chapter in the Port's 100-year history involved both a president and a king, or rather The King.

For a short time in the early 1960s, the Port of Long Beach was home to the Potomac, a 165-foot-long vessel that from 1936 to 1945 was the presidential yacht of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. For part of the Potomac's brief stay in Long Beach, the yacht was owned by someone arguably even more famous than FDR: Elvis Presley.

After FDR's death in 1945, the Potomac passed through a number of hands and ended up in early 1964 -- in a somewhat dilapidated condition -- here in Long Beach.

Danny Thomas and Elvis Presley aboard the Potomac for handover ceremonies at the Port of Long Beach, February 3, 1964. This was the only time Elvis set foot on the yacht. Photo courtesy of the USS Potomac Museum, http://www.usspotomac.org.

Elvis Presley bought the Potomac in January 1964 for $55,000, intending to present the vessel to the March of Dimes, the charity founded by FDR in the 1930s to fight polio. The March of Dimes ended up refusing the gift because of the upkeep involved.

Elvis then offered the yacht to the Miami Seventh Coast Guard Auxiliary, who accepted; presentation ceremonies were planned in Long Beach. But then the Navy got wind of the Auxiliary's plans for the Potomac, which were to sell it for scrap and purchase a new clubhouse, and blocked the donation.

With two avenues closed, attention turned to a favorite charity of Elvis': St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn. February 3, 1964 was set for a ceremony to hand the vessel over to another famous name, Danny Thomas, founder of the hospital.

From Walter Jaffe's book "The Presidential Yacht Potomac":

After months of neglect the Potomac was in poor condition and had to be cleaned up for the ceremony. A few days before the event [Elvis' manager] Colonel Parker contacted [the Port] asking how much it would cost to have the boat cleaned up and painted for the dedication. He was told it would take at least three days and $18,000 to make the Potomac presentable. There wasn't that much time. The Colonel then asked, "How much if you just paint the side that faces the dock?" He was told that for $8,000 they could do what he wanted and rope off the unpainted parts. The Colonel said, "Do it."

The handover ceremony was held in Long Beach as planned on February 3, with Elvis (the only time he set foot on the boat), Thomas, members of Elvis' "Memphis Mafia," the media and fans in attendance. St. Jude's originally planned to take the yacht to Memphis and turn it into a floating restaurant, but the logistical and financial impracticalities of that led the hospital to sell the yacht, which left Long Beach and continued on its unusual journey.

The vessel passed through a succession of owners -- at one time it was seized as a front for drug smugglers -- before being abandoned in the East Bay Estuary near Oakland.

Shortly before the one-time "Floating White House" was due to be sold for scrap, it was purchased by the Port of Oakland and turned into a museum; today you can tour the vessel and even go on cruises aboard what's now a National Historic Landmark.

We'd like to extend a special thanks to the Potomac Museum in Oakland for providing much of the material for this article. For more information about the museum and the historic vessel, visit their website at http://www.usspotomac.org/.