Grover Loening was a big name in early aviation.  This is a picture of his Flying Yacht.  From Wikipedia:

 “His work on the Loening Flying Yacht won the 1921 Collier Trophy. His noteriety increasing in 1927, Loening dated Elizabeth Nast, a Vogue model twenty years his junior with an affinity for flying. Loening would test fly his own aircraft. Among his employees were Leroy Grumman, William T. Schwendler, and Jake Swirbul who would go on to form Grumman Aircraft Engineering Company on Long Island in New York.”

Sometimes the tail number of an airplane results in being able to search some of its history.  One of the first interesting tail numbers (and the selection was entirely random) was NC-50V.  The picture was of a little single engine amphibian.   In researching the FAA database, I discovered that the plane was a Sikorsky S-39 and the number was current.  Pretty amazing considering I estimated the original photo to have been taken between 1934 and 1940.

My research led me to an email address and a couple of web sites.  The email belonged to Dick Jackson.  I sent him two photos and his reply was:

“The S-39 ,NC-50V, is restored and recently purchased by Kermit Weeks , and will be on display at Fantasy of Flight in Florida.

I spent many years with help rebuilding the airplane from junk. It is the oldest Sikorsky flying in existence.

If you haven’t already, check the Spirit of Igor website.  

I only have one original picture of 50V before WW2,and that was just before it went to Alaska in 1944.Most of it's life was spent in Ohio, and was first owned by the newspaper the Cleveland Co.”

The guy on the right is Walter; no idea who the other one is.  

Since the last edition of this website I received a forwarded email from John Underwood who was able to fill in a lot of blanks for me, thank you John.  The identity of this airplane was unknown to me.

John’s comment about this was, “Unnamed biplane is 3-place Commandaire, popular with bootleggers of the early '30s. It could haul a lot of hooch.”

Do I think my father was capable of hauling hooch?  Uh, yeah!  I remember him speaking of various planes that would bring back “hooch” from various places.  Prohibition was not repealed until 1933.