After spending half of my life's work career in the GAF & KODAK Camera & Photographic film processing industry...until around the 1970's, the photography arts began their decline & crash landings due to the brand new age of computer digital arts....
BUT...A BIG BUTT!!!the final nail my work coffin...
was to be quickly informed that my GAF Camera and film processing corp had just sold off their world wide Photo photo units and camera sales division to a NW wholesaler for around 10 cents on the dollar----
worse yet---would no longer need their staff of outside commission sales force.
BEING A DUMB SALESMAN our outside sales staff had signed a NON COMPETE 2year contract when we first joined GAF.....
IT WAS TIME TO FIND A NEW WAY TO MAKE A LIVING IN A HURRY..
In those days I was often "encouraged" by a few of my long time CLPA addicts who were also gifted model designers and model maker employee's at the Boeing Wind Tunnel model shops that I should think about becoming a journeyman model maker for that short period of time...until those 2 years were finished.
However I GOT REAL LUCKY..just before leaving GAF...
I QUICKLY CONTACTED AND TRANSFERED THE MAJORITY OF MY LOCAL NW CAMERA AND DRUG STORE ACCOUNTS over to a local processing plant here in the Seattle Area and still made my monthly commission checks.
SO WHY NOT TAKE UP THAT INTERESTING OFFER by my Wind Tunnel model maker friends to sign onto the Boeing Model shop as a journeyman Grade 6 modelmaker...at least until my 2 year non-compete contract offer was over.
LONG STORY
THAT 2 YEAR NON-COMPETE TIME QUICKLY PASSED...and I finally found something that I so much enjoyed....from that day forward I decided to stay for almost 29 years longer until retiring from the Phantom Works Special Projects Artist group in the summer of 2004....
Better yet...
I would still be available not only for the new Boeing windtunnel model shop projects but also enjoyed working with Boeing Corp. on recognition projects as well as commissions from other well known aviaition partner groups and from my own home studio here in Gig Harbor.
bye the way...here is a photo of my later design, build projects that I gathered a team of model makers and facility helpers to install a new entrance to our brand new building that was just across the street from the Boeing Control towers.
here is a photo of that project.....and that kid with the green shirt standing on the finished project is me with a gaggle of my windtunnel model shop Boeing co-workers on that grand opening day.
Topic: A look back in the early Boeing Wind tunnel model shop daze days. (Read 3539 times)