Events Calendar
In This Section
Hobo union picks Akron for national convention
'Docs Who Rock' delivers excitement
Cuyahoga Valley volunteer center to be dedicated
Tell us your ornament memories
Two remarkable people enter centennial spotlight
Older adults can take steps to prevent abuse by their relatives and hucksters
Most Read Stories
Family found dead in Ohio home
Man gets 3 years in prison for having sex with horse
Brown still testing Cavs' lineup
Kosar would be wrong call as GM
Take comfort in knowing Browns could be bigger losers
Sex-toy study at Duke University raises some eyebrows
Akron man turns himself in after authorities turn up heat
Robbers order bar patrons to empty pockets
Blogs:
Pets:
Humane Society telethon short of goal
The Heldenfiles:
"Mad Men" Season Finale
Patrick McManamon:
There's no argument against Holmgren; it just has to happen
Akron Zips:
The morning after
Tribe Matters:
Tribe makes roster moves
Cleveland Browns:
Lewis doesn't like boycott
Kent State Sports:
Kent State falls to Akron, 20-28
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs at Knicks
Buckeye Blogging:
Weekly ‘B’ Deck Report – New Mexico St.
Varsity Letters:
Wrestling, bowling teams prepare for season
All Da King's Men:
If It Looks Like Islamic Terrorism…
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Dems Message To Women: Don't Enjoy The Sex
Akron Law Café:
Health Care Financing Reform: (62) The Stupak Amendment
See Jane Style:
Muffle Your Muffler
Car Chase:
Perfect Weather for an Autumn Drive
Let's Talk Real Estate:
RUMORS: Downtown Restaurant Explosion
Ohio Travels with Betty:
Jack is looking for a trip to Southern Ohio the week of November 16.
Sound Check:
The Black Keys to perform benefit concert at Musica on November 27
HRLite House:
Personal Rant – Why People Do Not Live in Northeast Ohio
Akron Gamer:
New 'Call of Duty' could set entertainment record
Exhibit shows Akron man's balloons for Macy's
By Jim Carney
Beacon Journal
Published on Friday, Nov 09, 2007
Bill Ludwick liked Popeye best.
Of all the balloons he designed for Goodyear in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade during a career that spanned more than three decades, it was the spinach-eating sailor cartoon character who was his favorite, said his widow, Audrey Ludwick.
''I think he was partial to Popeye,'' she said.
Beginning at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Bill Ludwick's collection of photographs from his balloon-designing days will be on display at the Akron-Summit County Public Library, 60 S. High St., as part of a Lighter Than Air Society event.
A panel discussion — Inside Macy's Parade — on Goodyear's role in creating the helium-filled balloons will be at 1:30 p.m. in the library.
The panel will include Macy's longtime balloon designer, Manfred ''Manny'' Bass, and Bill Smith, whose Smith Special Balloonworks has provided balloons for parades for more than 10 years.
Four of Smith's balloons will be part of Akron's Holiday Parade on Nov. 24 in downtown Akron.
Goodyear supplied balloons for the Macy's parade for more than 50 years, starting in 1927.
Bill Ludwick, who died at 82 in 2002, was a Navy Seabee dur
ing World War II.
After the war, he went to trade school and was hired at Goodyear in the early 1950s.
He was a project engineer, and one of his jobs was to design the big balloons.
On Thursday, Audrey Ludwick sat at a table in her Akron apartment and leafed through dozens of black and white photographs of his work.
''This is kind of cool,'' she said as she looked at a photograph of a Bullwinkle balloon.
Along with the photos were old newspaper articles, blueprints for some balloons and a few photo albums full of other pictures related to her husband's work at Goodyear.
Because he was so involved in the Macy's parade, he was out of town every Thanksgiving, she said.
Her husband did not spend most of his time on the balloons, but worked on many other projects, including fuel cells for Goodyear's Indianapolis 500 race car business, she said.
On 12 pages of graph paper, written in long-hand, Ludwick wrote an explanation of how the balloons were made.
If all of them get past the NBC television cameras, he wrote, ''you can start to relax and you get the good feeling of accomplishment.''
He described a humorous situation that happened with the Popeye balloon when it rained during the parade.
There was an indentation in Popeye's sailor hat, he wrote, and when it rained hard, water would fill up the indentation, pour off the balloon and onto pedestrians watching the parade.
Ron Syroid, a member of the board of directors of the Lighter Than Air Society, called Ludwick's collection ''a unique, precious treasure trove.''
Syroid said he could tell that Ludwick had a passion for the work by reading his writing.
''Here is a guy who was thoroughly involved with it,'' Syroid said.
Another event planned by the Lighter Than Air Society this weekend is an annual fundraising dinner for the society at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Martin Center, 105 Fir Hill St., on the University of Akron campus.
Ticket prices are $35 and $50 for patrons.
For more on the Lighter Than Air Society, go to http://www.blimpinfo.com.
Jim Carney can be reached at 330-996-3576 or jcarney@thebeaconjournal.com.
Bill Ludwick liked Popeye best.
Get the full article here.
