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Luna, Mary (audio interview #3 of 3)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the final interview with Mary Luna, conducted in the kitchen in her comfortable, immaculate home in Gardena. As in the other interviews, she was relaxed, open and seemed to enjoy the interview process. This interview covers her family life and work in the postwar years. The audio quality of this interview is good. 2/16/1981
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- 2021-07-26
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- SUBJECT BIO - Mary Luna's employment at Douglas Aircraft in 1942 was her job, following graduation from high school. Her father was a field worker, and the family was in rather tight financial straits until she went to work at Douglas. Her employment there also helped to expand her social world. She met and became friends with Mexican women from other parts of the city, as well as her future husband, who she married in 1949. Her job at Douglas also increased her self confidence and she was proud of her work. She continued working at Douglas until her daughter was born in 1951, re-entering the work force again a few years later. Luna remained employed in aircraft production at various facilities, until her retirement in 1978. Her husband also retired at a relatively young age and they enjoyed spending time with each other. Luna contacted the Rosie the Riveter Revisted project after reading a newspaper article in the Los Angeles Times, after which three interviews were conducted with her. The interviews, conducted by Cindy Cleary, were recorded sitting at the kitchen counter in Luna's immaculate older tract home in Gardena. She was a helpful and willing participants and expanded on her thoughts with little prompting from Cindy Cleary, who interviewed her. TOPICS - courtship and marriage; husband's family background; relationship with mother-in-law; marital relationship; gender roles; division of labor in household; pregnancy; daughter; childcare; health; domesticity and mothmotherhood and domesticity; daughter; gender expectations; gender roles; daughter's education and career; postwar work at Douglas, North American, and Honeywell; and job responsibilities;Honeywell application process; job responsibilities; wages; unionism and union stewardship for the Teamsters; economic status; working conditions; husband's work; marital relationship; household management; retiremfuture plans; friendships; long term impact defense work on her life; attitude towards the women's movement and abortion; and life review;
- *** File: rrrmluna7.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-3:07)... Luna talks about how she met her husband and their courtship. (3:07-9:59)... Luna discusses her husband's family background. When they started dating, he had just got out of the service and was working for American Can. They dated for almost three years before they married. They were married by a Justice of the Peace in downtown Los Angeles. Her mother-in-law did not accept their marriage because they were not married in the Catholic Church. Luna and her husband honeymooned in San Francisco. (9:59-12:33)... When Luna married, they moved into a duplex apartment next to her mother-in-law. Luna discusses her mother-in-law's personality and her strict adherence to the Catholic faith. (12:33-15:19)... Luna and her husband planned that she would continue to work after they married. Even so, she was responsible for managing the household. Her mother-in-law eased the burden by doing certain things for them around the house. (15:19-21:30)... Luna gave birth to a daughter in 1952. The pregnancy was not planned. However, the only form of birth control Luna used was a douche. Luna thought her morning sickness was caused by the stomach flu. The company nurse sent her home on two or three occasions and advised her to see a medical doctor because she was probably pregnant. She took a leave of absence at Douglas and decided to stay home after she gave birth to her daughter. When her daughter was a little over a year old, she went to work for Northrop. She worked there for about nine months. She and her husband worked opposite shifts and they shared childcare responsibilities. (21:30-25:45)... Luna left North American because she was diagnosed with ovarian cysts and required surgery. She returned to Douglas when her daughter started school. She was laid off again in the late 1950s. She stayed home for about three years before she went to work for Honeywell. She worked there for seventeen years. (25:45-29:21)... Most of the women in Luna's neighborhood were housewives and mothers. They socialized often and took care of each other's children. Once a month, they got dressed up and went to a nice restaurant to break up the "monotony" of their lives. Once their children left the nest, most of her neighbors went back to work. End of tape. *** File: rrrmluna8.mp3 (0:00-5:30)... Luna attended a PTA meeting on one occasion, but decided not to get involved because the mothers seemed competitive about their children's performance in school. When her daughter was an adolescent they spent a lot of time shopping and going to the movies together. Luna helped her daughter with her homework every night. Her brother interested her daughter in the Baptist Church and she was baptized at the age of sixteen. Her daughter later converted to Catholicism after she married. Luna discusses her daughter's education and career interests. (5:30-6:47)... Luna consulted Dr. Spock's book on child care when her daughter was sick. She found the book helpful and reassuring. She talks about her daughter experiencing a period when she was a baby. (6:47-9:01)... She discusses her daughter's childhood and the activities she enjoyed when she was a young girl. Luna believes that her daughter is more feminine than her because she things like cooking, sewing, and jewelry. (9:01-15:20)... Luna encouraged her daughter to take academic courses in high school in preparation for college. When she graduated from high school, she noticed a sign recruiting Chicanos [sic] at UCLA and decided to enroll there even though it was not the school of her choice. Luna discusses her daughter's education at UCLA. (15:20-19:33)... Prior to attending UCLA, most of her daughter's girlfriends were American (sic). When she started going to UCLA, she met more Mexicans and got involved in campus politics and Chicano issues. Her daughter met her husband while working for Job Corps. Luna discusses her son-in-law's background. She encouraged her daughter to pursue a career in teaching because it offered the flexibility necessary when raising a family. Luna believes it is getting harder for people to manage their work and family responsibilities. (19:33-22:28)... She describes her job responsibilities while employed at Northrop. The tasks she completed there were far more difficult and required more skills than her work at Douglas. (22:28-30:04)... When Luna tried to get a job at Douglas after her surgery, the plant was only hiring men. A neighbor who worked at Douglas got her into personnel and when the foreman met her he told her that he expected a man. There were only two women working in the department where she was assigned. She describes her job responsibilities. In a short time, she was promoted and her wages increased. She was laid off because of a recession and spent the next three years at home. She then went to work for Honeywell and did the same type of work as she did at Douglas, except she did not have to rivet. End of tape. *** File: rrrmluna9.mp3 (0:00-3:15)... When Luna applied for a position at Honeywell she was required to take a verbal and written examination. There were several women applying for positions at the plant. Luna was hired over these women because of her aircraft work. The labor force at Honeywell was predominantly women. She worked in assembly work, which required her to work faster and harder than her work in the aircraft industry. Her pay was less and she worked six days a week from 6:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. (3:15-9:53)... Honeywell employees were covered under a "sweetheart union." She was dissatisfied with this arrangement and helped other employees organize for the Teamsters. The union improved their wages and benefits. She agreed to attend a class to become a union steward. She describes her activities as a union steward. Luna explains that the working conditions at Honeywell were strenuous because employees had to work fast. She began experiencing chest pains and decided to retire in 1972 on the Teamsters early retirement program. (9:53-11:48)... Luna's husband worked at American Can until the plant closed. Her husband received a severance package and a full pension for his thirty years of service at the company. Her husband was happy to retire because the working conditions were poor and the work was getting difficult for him. (11:48-15:22)... Luna decided to learn how to drive after her daughter was accosted by a man while waiting at the bus stop after school. Initially, her husband tried to teach her how to drive, but he was too impatient with her. She enrolled in the California Driving School and received proper driving lessons in four hours. (15:22-25:23)... Luna and her husband make decisions about financial and household matters together. However, she initiates discussions on these matters. She digresses regarding their decision to purchase a new home in Gardena for $8,100 and monthly payments of $57. When she wanted a bigger house, she saved her paychecks to accumulate enough money for a down payment. Her husband was hesitant to purchase a new home until he saw the model. They sold their old house in three weeks and paid cash for their new house. (25:23-29:24)... Luna enjoys retirement. She probably would not have retired had the working conditions been better at Honeywell. She occasionally thinks about getting a part-time job because she feels like she should be working. She talks about her retirement activities and how she spends her time. (29:24-30:24)... In terms of her future, Luna wants to continue to enjoy life while her health is still good. She enjoys spending time with her grandson and would like to work part-time in a capacity that gives her chance to help people and feel needed. End of tape. *** File: rrrmluna10.mp3 (0:00-2:10)... Luna continues to discuss her plans for the future and her philosophy towards life. She talks about her girlfriends who are still employed. (2:10-5:02)... Luna maintains many of her friendships with some of the women she worked with at both Douglas and Honeywell. She discusses the lives of some of her friends. (5:02-6:37)... Defense work changed her life because she met different types of people, made many friends, and was able to earn a living. Working gave her a feeling of confidence. The skills she learned at Douglas helped her get jobs in the future. She started at Douglas as a shy and insecure young woman and her work "built me up and showed me I was worth something." (6:37-8:05)... Luna supports the women's movement and believes that it is time for women to have equal opportunities and equal pay in society. She discusses her attitude towards abortion. (8:05-9:23)... The happiest times in her life were raising her daughter and retirement. If she had to change anything about her life, she would have learned a skilled trade instead of returning to defense work. End of tape.
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