By The Public is invited aboard the Queen Mary’s to celebrate its 80th anniversary on Sept. 26, and the event will offer free admission to the ship and will feature a 20-foot cake replica of the iconic Long Beach landmark.
Construction of the ship began in 1930 in Clydebank, Scotland and launched on Sept. 26, 1934, on Scotland’s river Clyde, according to the Queen Mary’s website.
The website also said it wasn’t until Oct. 31, 1967 that the Queen Mary arrived in Long Beach permanently.
The landmark has a dynamic history, and some students on campus have their own accounts with the carrier.
A popular event frequented by students at Cal State Long beach is The Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor, which occurs every Halloween season.
“I went with my friends to explore during Halloween,” Isamar Vega, a senior majoring in health science said. “They made the older parts of the Queen Mary stand out to show the historical parts of it, and modernized it by putting props from our era.”
Kerry Larick, a junior technical theatre student once worked at the Boiler room about the boat as an operator of a maze for Dark Harbor.
“I thought it was kind of creepy even without the added effects during Halloween,” Larick said. “My favorite memory was when I operated in the maze by pushing a lever, and the skeleton popped out and shattered a light bulb. The whole maze had to be stopped because of broken glass.”
Other students have visited the ship as part of a class assignment.
“I only went [on the Queen Mary] twice for my Theatre 113 class to watch plays,” Sabina Rangel, a senior majoring in Health Science said. “I liked the displayed pictures of the Queen Mary from the past and the model of the Queen Mary.”
There is never a shortage of events at the Queen Mary; some visitors have even experienced milestone life events.
Sara Peterson, a senior nutrition student, reminisced about her high school senior prom, which she thought was arranged “nicely.”
Events at the Queen Mary can be memorable for many reasons, including the emotions the experience can evoke.
“I was at the Queen Mary for my cousin’s wedding reception about five years ago,” Garrett Taylor Computer Science major said. “I remember how grand it felt. It made me feel prominent.”
Johanna Felix, a spokeswoman for the Queen Mary, said there will be special tours on the day of the anniversary and discounted parking will also be available.
Entrance to the ship will be free from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; at 4 p.m. the Grand Ballroom will open to the public, Commodore Everette Hoard will read King George V’s letters which were read at the vessels launch in 1934 and will feature remarks by Mayor of Long Beach, Robert Garcia, Felix said.
