Hughes H-4 Hercules: The Spruce Goose

Howard Hughes' iconic H-4 Hercules (AKA the Spruce Goose) is the centerpiece of the Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Oregon. As soon as you enter the museum this massive plane dominates the space. It's the largest flying boat ever constructed, and to this day has the largest wingspan of any aircraft ever built. While all of the planes at this museum were incredible, it's not every day that you get to see such a memorable piece of aviation history up close.

Howard Hughes' H-4 Hercules was built between 1943-1947, and was dubbed the Spruce Goose because it was made largely out wood. Metal was in short supply during the war, but despite the plane's nickname it was actually made out birch - not spruce. The H-4's only flight took place on November 2, 1947 in the Long Beach harbor, where it flew approximately 70 ft. above the water piloted by Howard Hughes.

Inside the cargo bay of the Spruce Goose.

Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California

With a massive collection spanning the history of the automobile, the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California is truly a sight to behold. As one of the world's largest automobile museums, the Petersen's collection features everything from classic race cars to vintage concepts to iconic vehicles from the big screen.

Not unlike America's Car Museum in Washington or The Henry Ford in Michigan, you could easily spend days browsing the exhibits at the Petersen Automotive Museum. 

Highlighting design, innovation, engineering, and car culture at large, the historic impact becomes quite profound when standing face to face with some of the most extravagant cars ever made. From LACMA across the street to the Petersen's galleries, this stretch of Wilshire Boulevard (AKA Museum Row) is a great place to examine an array of masterpieces.

View the complete series of images: Part 2 | Part 3 

Aston Martin DB5

Bugatti Veyron

Steve McQueen's Jaguar XKSS.

1989 Batmobile.

VW Bus from Little Miss Sunshine.

Walter White's Aztek from Breaking Bad.

Exterior of the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles.