15 Years of the TalkMail Newsletter — See the First Issue

T hree days ago marked the fifteenth anniversary of the official newsletter of FlyerTalk known as the TalkMail newsletter — and I thought I would celebrate that milestone by posting a link to the first issue which appeared on November 5, 1999.

One glance and you will notice that it harkens back to a different time as noted by a few examples listed below:

  • Randy Petersen was in charge of FlyerTalk at that time. BoardingArea would not be launched for another eight years; and Milepoint — the current version, anyway — would not be introduced for another 11 years.
  • FlyerTalk member AusTXHiker was named as the winner of the now-legendary Party in Paradise sweepstakes.
  • Hosted on the WebFlyer.com servers at that time, FlyerTalk was getting ready to be switched to its own Internet web site, which it occupies today.
  • The first TalkMail Tip was imparted by the late Paula Fischer, who was known as FlyerTalk member TravelWeary. She passed away on February 19, 2009.

 

I suppose it goes without saying that frequent travel loyalty programs were far more rewarding 15 years ago than they are today — as well as earning elite level status.

Here is a little bit of trivia for you: at least two people who currently “blog” at BoardingArea have written and edited the TalkMail newsletter at different times during its history. I am not going to reveal who they are, as at least one of them prefers to remain anonymous even though it is a loosely-kept secret.

If you would like to catch up on every single issue of the TalkMail newsletter, be sure to click here for all issues from May 9, 2005; and click here for all issues from November 5, 1999 through May 11, 2005.

How was your life different 15 years ago than it is today — especially with regard to frequent travel?

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