Lillian Boyer
![]() Lillian Boyer in 1922 | |
Personal information | |
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Nationality | American |
Born | Hooper, Nebraska | January 15, 1901
Died | February 1, 1989 San Diego, CA | (aged 88)
Sport | |
Sport | Wing walking, airplane stunts |
Lillian Boyer (January 15, 1901 – February 1, 1989) was an American wing walker who performed numerous aerial stunts that included wing walking, automobile-to-airplane transfers, and parachute jumps between 1921 and 1929.
Wing walking career[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Lillian_Boyer_doing_the_breakaway_cph.3b18662.jpg/220px-Lillian_Boyer_doing_the_breakaway_cph.3b18662.jpg)
Working as a restaurant waitress but eager to fly in an airplane, in 1921 Lillian Boyer was invited by two restaurant customers to take an airplane ride. On her second flight, she climbed out on the wing thus beginning her career as an aerial performer.[1]
In December 1921, she began five months of training with pilot Lt. , former World War I pilot and barnstormer.[2]
She performed many daring stunts and achieved great public acclaim until 1929 when federal regulations on low flying and unsafe planes forced her and many other barnstormers into retirement.[3]
Her performances included
- 352 shows in 41 US states and Canada, most of them wing-walking
- 143 automobile-to-plane changes
- 37 parachute jumps (13 into Lake Erie)
See also[]
- Air Commerce Act, 1926
References[]
- ^ TheHenryFord.org, Lillian Boyer, "Empress of the Air" p.1 Archived 2010-06-15 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ TheHenryFord.org, Lillian Boyer, "Empress of the Air" p.2 Archived 2010-06-16 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ TheHenryFord.org, Lillian Boyer, "Empress of the Air" p.3 Archived 2010-06-19 at the Wayback Machine
External links[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lillian Boyer. |
- Image of Lillian Boyer Flying Circus
- Lillian Boyer (1922). Hold Your Breath! (Newsreel). Pathé. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21.
- 1901 births
- 1989 deaths
- American stunt performers
- Wing walkers
- People from Hooper, Nebraska
- American entertainer stubs