The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA)
has named nine inductees to its first-ever CLIA Hall of Fame,
created to honor travel agents, executives and other individuals
who have made extraordinary contributions to the success of the
modern-day cruise industry.
CLIA’s initial class of inductees includes four
travel agents, three cruise-line executives, one publisher and a
former CLIA executive. The inductees are:
The late Ted Arison, founder, Carnival
Cruise Lines. Arison was a pioneer of modern-day cruising,
and a visionary who made cruising accessible to everyone, not just
the wealthy. Arison launched Carnival Cruise Lines with one
converted transatlantic ocean liner. He retired in 1990, after
building his company, the publicly traded Carnival Corp., into the
world’s most successful cruise operation.
The late Richard Revnes, president, Royal
Cruise Line. Richard Revnes was an education and sales
expert who taught cruise sellers to capitalize on the profitability
of groups. A former travel agent, he taught retailers to increase
their group sales by working with “pied pipers” professors, radio
DJs, community leaders and others to urge friends and family to
cruise together. Revnes also pioneered the “gentleman host” concept
at Royal Cruise Line by hiring retired professional men as dance
partners and friendly companions for unescorted female
travelers.
Warren Titus, co-founder, Royal Viking
Line; president and former chairman, Seabourn Cruise Line.
Titus played a pivotal role in the creation of modern-day luxury
cruising as president and chairman of Royal Viking Line (RVL) and
later Seabourn Cruise Line. Under Titus, RVL set the standard for
modern luxury cruising. After retiring in September 1987, he
returned less than two months later as founding president of
Seabourn, another luxury-market player. Some of his most notable
accomplishments, however, include helping to establish CLIA,
serving as its first chairman and shepherding the fledgling
organization through its first years.
Marvin Davis, CEO, Cruise
Planners. Davis entered the travel industry in 1956 and
has been the owner of a full-service travel agency for more than 30
years. As one of the founders of Cruise Planners, Davis has helped
develop the company into a significant cruise retail force of more
than 500 franchisees in 42 states nationwide. With more than $85
million in sales, Cruise Planners has become one of the cruise
industry’s largest home-based businesses.
Joe Ewart, vice president, sales, marketing
and recruitment, CruiseOne/Cruises Inc. A 28-year veteran
of the cruise industry, Ewart has played a key role in the
development of the cruise retail marketplace through his
development of numerous marketing campaigns and agent turnkey
programs. CruiseOne, with more than 400 locations coast to coast,
is today part of Boston-based NLG, one of the nation’s largest
online and offline leisure travel companies.
Robert and Judy Falcone, founders, Cruises
Inc. The Falcones founded Cruises Inc. in 1981, a company
that pioneered the cruise-only retail distribution segment. Today,
Cruises Inc. is recognized as a trendsetter, with a network of more
than 450 independent cruise specialists across North America. The
company is part of NLG, and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale,
Florida.
Joel Abels, editor and publisher, Travel
Trade. Abels has been at the helm of Travel Trade Publications
for 43 years, and is a former recipient of the American Society of
Travel Agents Hall of Fame Award.
The late Robert Kwortnik, director of
training, Cruise Lines International Association.
Kwortnik, a 25-year CLIA veteran, laid the groundwork for what
would become the cruise industry’s foremost travel agent training
curriculum. Kwortnik developed CLIA’s Cruise Counselor
Certification programs and the highly regarded CLIA Institute.
The CLIA Hall of Fame members will be inducted at a
gala ceremony during cruise3sixty, CLIA’s first-ever global event
for travel agents, scheduled for Sept. 30-Oct. 2 at the Greater
Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center in Fort
Lauderdale, Fla.
www.cruising.org
