NORMAN TYLER

Before Amelia Earhart, there was Harriet Quimbythe daring journalist turned aviatrix who conquered the skies.Harriet Quimby was once one of the best-known women of the early twentieth century. An international celebrity, she achieved many firsts during her lifethe first New York journalist to capture the world with a camera; an early woman driver capable of serving as mechanic for her 1905 Cadillac Runabout; one of the first silent-film actresses, who authored screenplays for director D.W. Griffith; the nations first woman to earn a pilots license; the first woman to fly solo over Mexico and across the English Channel; and a celebrity paid a handsome fee of $100,000 to be the featured flier in the 1912 Boston Air Show. Amelia Earhart said of her predecessor, To cross the English Channel in 1912 required more bravery and skill than to cross the Atlantic today. . . . We must remember that, in thinking of Americas first great woman fliers accomplishment.Harriet was clearly a risk-taker in all aspects of her life and career: a gutsy, passionate, woman with fire in her eyes and unwavering resolve, living in a mans world and loving every minute of it while keeping her striking femininity smartly intact. The tragedy of her all-too-brief life encompasses much of historical interest and mirrors one of the most interesting eras of American history.