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Comparatively, the Queen Mary was less glamorous, possibly less
stunning, and certainly less pretentious. She too was a Deco liner, but
British Deco. She was welcoming, warm, and a classic British liner:
comfortable and even cozy in places, decorated in polished woods, swirl
carpets, sconce lamps, soft chairs, and lots of linoleum floors. While the
decor of the Queen Mary was once described as ‘Odeon cinema,’ it
greatly appealed to the ocean traveling public. While the Normandie
was Champagne and caviar at midnight, the Queen Mary was tea and
cakes at four in the afternoon.”
The Queen Mary also had, by far, the longest career. It sailed for
the Cunard Line for thirty-one years, until 1967, and crossed the
Atlantic one thousand times. Afterward, the ship found life as a
hotel, museum, and collection of shops and restaurants moored in
Los Angeles harbor to this day.
There were, of course, many other Art Deco liners. Holland’s MS
Nieuw Amsterdam, commissioned in 1938, had splendid interiors.
Flying the British flag, the RMS Orion of 1935 introduced Art Deco on
a route east of Suez: From London to Sydney. And three American

The bedroom of the Rouen Suite aboard the Normandie liners–the SS Panama, SS Ancon, and SS Cristobal, each built in 1939,
Versailles, sat one thousand guests, and offered some three hundred and used in New York-Caribbean service, made great use of stainless,
items on the dinner menu. The bronze doors outside led to a vestibule sleek, armless chairs, and touches such as clock dials without numbers.
lined with Algerian onyx. There was an indoor, one-hundred-foot Without question, Art Deco on the high seas was high style.
pool of tiered, lighted levels and a winter garden complete with fresh The late maritime historian, Frank Braynard, once noted, “Deco liners
greenery and live birds. There was a chapel, the first movie theater at were like the Waldorf Astoria except they moved!”
sea, an extensive library, a grill room, various salons, and the very finest
suites and penthouses on the Atlantic. The penthouses even had their CREDIT:
own music rooms and private dining salons. In first class, no two cabins This article originally appeared in the Art Deco Society of New York’s
were alike – including one decorated in Louis XIV and another in red June 2018 issue of the Art Deco New York Journal. For more
lacquer. Even the dog kennel had its own sun deck. There was a florist, information on the Art Deco Society of New York and its journal, visit
chocolate shop, and tailor onboard who could prepare a man’s suit www.ArtDeco.org/journal.
within the crossing period. The Normandie was indeed a floating city.
In 1938, there were plans to build a
super Normandie, another advanced
design but bigger still, of some 90,000
tons and dubbed Bretagne. Plans were
scrapped because of cost, but mostly out
of concern for the looming war in
Europe. The Normandie was a great
success for the image of France, but was
not an economic success. In its four years
of service, the Normandie sailed at only
59% capacity; many travelers did not
have the means for such luxurious travel.
With the exception of the Queen Mary,
all of the large, new superliners of the
1930s were less than economically
successful. The Empress of Britain was
simply too big for the Canadian run and
the mid-Atlantic service to the
Mediterranean for the Rex and the Conte
di Savoia had yet to fully catch on.
The exquisite Normandie was docked
in August 1939 at New York, owing to
the uncertainty of the political situation
in Europe, never to sail again. The ship
caught fire at its berth at West 48th Street
in February 1942, then capsized, was later
salvaged, and the remains were finally
demolished in 1947.
The main first class lounge on the Queen Mary
Pride and Profit: AUTHOR BIO:
The Glorious Queen Mary
Bill Miller is considered an international authority on the subject
The 81,000-ton Queen Mary came into service in the spring of 1936 of ocean liners. Called “Mr. Ocean Liner,” he has written over 100 books
and was immediately the greatest rival to France’s Normandie. While on the subject: from early steamers, immigrant ships, and liners
the French flagship was more innovative and certainly more lavish, at war to other titles on their fabulous interiors in postcard
Britain’s Queen Mary was in contrast a great financial success, sailing in form, and about their highly collectible artifacts. He has
its first years at 98% of capacity. written histories of such celebrated passenger ships as the
“The Normandie was the most extravagant, luxurious, and celebrat- United States, Queen Mary, Rotterdam, France,
ed liner of her time,” said the late maritime historian Everett Viez. “But Queen Elizabeth 2, Costa Victoria, Super Star Leo,
the Normandie was most likely too luxurious, too Art Deco extravagant. and Crystal Serenity.

24 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles