William T Larkin.....the guy that took many of the pics of WWII aircraft graveyards. is here in the top photo with the Flying Seal, which was made too late for WW2, so it was sold as scrap and bought by the National Motor Bearing Company for board members transportation. Thanks Scott K!

 

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/vintage-shots-from-days-gone-by-part-2.1154030/page-1400#post-14182243

Civil Registration: NL66548 

 Model(s): B-25J Mitchell, The Flying Seal

History: Built for U.S. Army Air Force as 45-8829, August 1945. - 

Not accepted by air force. - Delivered new to Reconstruction Finance Corp, Walnut Ridge, AR, October 31, 1945. 

Registered as NL66548. - Converted to executive transport for the National Motor Bearing Company. - Flown as The Flying Seal.

San Francisco in 1948

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/b25registry/b25-458829.html

https://www.airhistory.net/photo/44247/NL66548

the National Motor Bearing Co was originally founded in 1920 in San Francisco, by Lloyd A. Johnson,  who had built his company from scratch, and went on to invent and patent in 1936 the process of making laminated shims.

the National Motor Bearing Co produced "shims and oil seals", for transportation - trains, planes, automobiles, ships, subs - you name it. It was a key defense industry during WWII and one of, if not, the major employer of the city at that time. It also had 2 subsidiaries: the Arrowhead Rubber Co., and National Seal Co. 

the National Motor Bearing Co hired Arthur Radebaugh for the Marketing & Advertizing Dept., and was greatly rewarded by his amazing art style:

You might not recall the name, but you'll probably remember the futuristic art on the cover of MoToR Magazine in the 1930s from my post in 2016

His creative talent and futurist imagination had been well honed by his stint in the army when in 1942 he went to work for the Pentagon's Ordnance Office, heading up an R&D department of Design and Visualization, designing weapons of the future, and other useful things.

 He worked with fellow artists and industrial designers (notably, Will Eisner was working in the same office!), designing weapons of the future.

 In 1956, the company merged with Federal-Mogul Bower of Detroit which propelled NMB as one of the top 300 companies of the country.

https://friendlyhistorycorner.blogspot.com/2011/09/where-are-my-flying-cars.html#more

https://friendlyhistorycorner.blogspot.com/2011/08/national-motor-bearing.html

but the tractor he designed is till my favorite https://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2021/03/a-tractor-painting-by-arthur-radebaugh.html