1935

Reunion and vacations are vague memories to be recalled before an open fire while autumn leaves drop scratchily across the window pane. The sky is close and gray. The air is smoky-smelling and clear and tingling cool. Football fills the weekends and Hanover peerades begin their exuberant trooping to Boston, New Haven and points west. But now my open fireplace fades into an open type writer—we're off.

To begin with a saddening note, there are two casualties to report. Dick Montgomery, fellow-Comptonite and lover-of-life, while weekending in Framingham last August, fell in love with the New England countryside and promptly wrapped himself and his car around an unbending oak. He broke many a bone including his nose, an'ankle and assorted ribs. But Dick is now in excellent condition (or at least in as good condition as before), and by the time this issue hits the newsstands, should be back at work. Numero duo is Bob ("The Beard") Naramore who writes, "After surviving Bud Childs' beer-bottle barrage without a burp or a bruise, I broke my ankle quite badly a couple of weeks ago playing softball (sic) and will be wearing cast and crutches for a couple of months. I am thus able to offer a dual selection in my Break-of-the-Month Club, namely Of Human Bandage and Forever Ambling. (This sort of thing should demonstrate how one's mind is affected by physical injury—possibly I'm still in shock!)"

Ardent Life readers must have noticed the edition of that mag dated August 5. Bob Sellmer contributed the feature story on Justin Dart, United Rexall's youthful president, which included a report on Tom Lane, Advertising Director. A few pages later Dick Lauterbach appeared with a report from Russia on the pains and problems of train travel. Dick, by the way, has recently been awarded a Nieman Fellowship for a year of study at Harvard. Editor lif Publisher, highlighting the award, described him as"one of the most versatile and resourceful of war correspondents. He served with distinction in both Pacific and European theaters in the war and after. He will study China and Russia as preparation to report in those areas." Sellmer, when he isn't pounding around the country on a story, sleeps soundly and late in a glorious sth Avenue apartment, with McCarty as a roommate. Little Mac gets in his share of travel organizing Adman Douglas Leigh's airfleet of six ex-Navy blimps which will wear gleaming "spectaculars" on their sides and will follow the crowds closer than a pickpocket from seashore to mountain. He, too, received a pat on the scapula recently in the form of a letter of Commendation from General Vandergrift, Commandant of the Marine Corps. On reading over the citation, typically crisp and factual, I gather that "Marine Corps Combat Correspondent Milburn McCarty" spent a great deal of his time during the Okinawa campaign sticking his neck out for first hand stories, pleasing the General no end and the public with some excellent reporting.

Bill Clark, who helped us trim the daylights out of '33 at Reunion with a home run or two, called a halt to the twelve-month teaching routine this summer and treated himself and wife to a lazy and pleasant vacation in Ossippee, N. H. Fitzy Donnell, Merchandising Manager for the Hawaiian Broadcasting System, brings us up to date on his recent past:

I was sent to Pearl Harbor in July of '44 and have been here ever since. I liked the place so well that family ties, etc., couldn't get me to leave. In December of '44 a young lady whom I met in New Orleans got a job with Civil Service and came out here. Result: we were married in January of '45 and both of us plan to remain.

We'll miss you at the football games, Fitzyboy, but we sure envy you your climate.

Word of Al Conklin comes via a letter from his father:

He enlisted in the Naval Reserve in 1941 and has been in Europe since January '44. To the best of our knowledge he is in Rome, or has been since last December. Al was married in March 1941, to Jessica Jenkins of Montreal, and they have a son, Geoffrey, aged 3½ years. His home is in Purchase, N. Y.

Thank you, Mr. Conklin for bringing us up to date.

It has been some time since we had word of Jim Dickinson. Recently, however, he was appointed Assistant Dean of Men at the Carnegie Institute of Technology and immediately his life became an open book. "Doc" Dickinson, following his A.B. at Dartmouth, picked up an Ed.M. from Harvard and a Ph.D. from Ohio State, completing his education seven years behind the rest of us (the dullard). He had several teaching and coaching jobs while gathering his initials and finally entered the Navy as an ensign in 1942, commanding gun crews on merchant ships and acting as gunnery officer on a destroyer. Finally, the brass appointed him Officer-in- Charge of Personnel and Statistics in the Educational Service Program. Old Jim eventually left the service as a lieutenant commander to begin the work of Ass't Deaning. (End of Biog. Another new and exciting true life story will appear next month. Don't fail to miss it.)

Newsclipping from the political front: "Congressman Frank L. Sundstrom of East Orange has announced the appointment of Col. Frank J. Specht as his campaign manager for the general election." This is a little vacation for Frank, who has been breaking his back playing the market and broadening his beam in a Miami deck chair. A note from the Detroit Times: "William D. Laurie Jr. (that's our Bill) has been elected a vice president of Maxon, Inc. He will be account executive on the Gooderham & Worts distillery account. Married, and a resident of Grosse Pointe, Laurie joined Maxon in 1934." And from the Hanover Homefront: The appointment of George Colton as executive secretary of the Dartmouth College alumni fund has been announced by President Dickey. George, who has been Alumni Fund associate during the past year, succeeds Al Dickerson, recently named Director of Admissions. In addition he will continue to serve as executive secretary of the council's committee on class gifts. Many of us have dreamed of returning to Hanover to live quietly under the elms but George and Don Cameron are really working hard at it.

Here are three announcements which may be rather old news but which should be reported: Formation of the firm of Boehm & Fischman which will engage in the practice of law, 60 Broad St., N.Y.C. Robert L. Boehm, partner.

Charles F. Nayor, of Nayor & Nayor, Boston, announces his entering the General Practice of Law at 523 Fifth Ave., N.Y.C.

Sidney A. Diamond, formerly special assistant to the Attorney General in the Antitrust Division, Dept. of Justice, has resumed his association with the firm of Poletti, Diamond, Rabin, Freidin & Mackay, 598 Madison Ave., N.Y.C.

And from Covington, Ky., comes the announcement that Miss Marjorie Wood has become engaged to Mr. Charles M. Drackett, with no date as yet set for the wedding.

Since 1 am still looking for the mythical place to live in New York City and my wife and two children are sitting this one out in Boston I have joined the regular weekend commuters who rush north on Friday nights and rush back Sundays. On a recent trip I ran into Bill Mathers and wife Myra who were heading for a Nantucket vacation, so we all stood in line together for one hour and a quarter to get into the diner. Bill had plenty of time to bring me up to date on his Army career, his three boys, his house in Huntington, L. 1., and his law business in New York, and I in turn brought tears to his eyes describing the Reunion he. missed beer by beer. On a preceding weekend the ride was shared with Hucksters Ferry and Fraser. Bob is now a partner in his own advertising agency and Bud is working with him.

Our Boston contingent had a nice little picnic for itself on September 7 at the DOC cabin in Groton, Mass. It's a cozy and woodsy little spot that furnished a fine background for sandwiches, beer, horseshoes, Softball, beer, football and beer. Present with wives and/or children were Howie Rowe, Bill Rauschal, Mercer Curtis, Doug Ley, Jimmy West, Harry Knott, Charlie Gow, Art Somers and Ralph Colby. Harry Reynolds, the old ambulance chaser, showed up with Miss Gloria Castleman of Louisiana. They-all plan to be married-all in late October. This, of course, will drastically revise Harry's plans for the Fifteenth Reunion. Dick Muzzy, still fighting with his bachelor's back to the wall, managed to spread his attentions as evenly as time and husbands would permit. Apparently everybody had a good time. In a P-S. Ralph reports that Cramp Carrick is now in Albany (permanently?) and that Dick Hurd, still in the Army, is located in St. Louis, Mo. (Cornwell and Kerwin please investigate.)

Someone else reports that Jack Gilchrist is now out of the Washington Navy and heading into the civilian world again. For heaven's sake, Gillie, hurry up and send me those class reports or whatever they are so I can start writing this column. See you all next month.

Secretary, Compton Advertising, Inc. 630 5th Ave., New York 20, N. Y. Treasurer, 2901 North 29th St., Tacoma, Wash.