1939
No one got down on bended knee to ask for it. It is just out of the goodness of my heart that I shall take you away into the setting sun to see what's brewing (or cooking, if you have an ulcer) in California, magic land of paradise.
As I crawled about under that rug in search of material for this month's effort, I fully expected to find a sheaf of ecstatic notes extolling the virtues of the nether end of that Great State. It was my expectation that '39 would have produced by this time in that enchanted land, a few matinee idols, at least one Omnipotent Oom and several minor prophets, not counting snake healers. But, no! Just three cryptic notes from three staid businessmen, Park Paul, Bob Willheim and Bud Bodge, with no postscript of praise for the land of the invisible sun, nor even one little word of urging to come out and get into my BVDs and begin to LIVE.
Mr. Paul is supervisor o£ Budgetary Control for North American Aviation, Inc., in Los Angeles and in his spare time does nothing more harum-scarum than try to figure out what goodwife Anne, a native of Bergen, Norway, is saying to little bilingual Karin, age 3.
Mr. Willheim is editorial chief of Capitol Records, also in L. A., and the music that he edited cast such a spell that he broke down and finally got himself married to Miss Jeri Anderson. (That was back on August 28, 1954, but you may treat it as hot news.) Since Robert also is a writer of children's records, I presume that he and Jeri by now have produced a little sales insurance. News of the event should appear in this space by 1960.
Mr. Bodge, salesman for Oevices, Inc., not only clisdains to rave about the I.. vV. scenery, be apparently just plain ignores it. lie advises that be spends all bis spare time uncler his car. Ne also reports that be and Helen have one child, 5.
Up in Northern California things seem to be more like they're supposed to be in Southern California. "You're missing a lot when you don't live in California," writes Bill Lyon from Palo Alto, where he is secretary of the Home Foundation Savings and Loan Association. Bill also sends word that, at his own home, he and Barb have founded Barbara Ann, 12, and Margaret Jane, 8, and that he is a "Lay Reader at St. Peter's Episcopal Church, R.C."'
"The San Joaquin Valley is great," writes Howie Snyder, who went forth from Hanover, via the University of Minnesota (M.A. '40) and became superintendent of the Union High School District in Fowler, Calif. He and Jean have Jim, 12, Larry, 9, Susan, 7, and Howie Jr., 5, and make no complaint about school taxes.
Jack Gray, methods analyst for the Bank of America, spends his spare time in Redwood City training dogs, while Beth trains Kathe Jane and Jack Jr. Dr. Harold Robinson practices internal medicine in Oakland and spends his spare time winning chess tournaments, camping in the high Sierras, serving as president of the local Heart Association, having a little old double disc operation on his back, playing do-it-yourself with an old "New Englandish" house, and helping Julie raise Katie, 8, Jenny, 7, and Tom, 4.
Ollie Webb, C.P.A., reports from Berkeley that he has been doing "nothing world-shaking," and then appears to contradict himself by stating that he's Comptroller of the U. of California Radiation Laboratories. O.P. and Peggy have three deductions, Sara, 7, Ellen, 5, and Paul, 4.
Through the courtesy of the Dartmouth Association of Northern California and Nevada, we also learn that Colby Howe is sales manager, in San Francisco, for the Bethlehem Pacific Coast Steel Corp.; that JackLeslie is district sales manager for Kaiser Aluminum Chemical Sales, Inc., in Oakland; that Karl Sax is with the Shell Development Co., in Emeryville; that Lenny Vines is special agent for the St. Paul Insurance Companies, in San Francisco; and that BillWinchester is practicing medicine in San Jose.
And now let us leave the Bear Flag State for a look around the far-Western hinterland. Up in Seattle, Dick Woodward is engaged in the insurance business and probably has sold a policy to every member of the Dartmouth Club of Western Washington, of which he is senior vice president, as well as to his May Anna and their Leslie Louise, 12, Wendy Ann, 9, and Mary Elizabeth, whose age apparently is a family secret. Also in Seattle are Nono and Ken Mac Donald. Ken is a well practiced attorney and a rising Democratic politician, who apparently gave the bug to his pal Dr.Bud Little. After a visit with the Mac Donalds, Bud went back home to Helena, Mont., and got himself elected City Commissioner. When not politicking and handling his general medical practice, Dr. Little is husband to Mary, father to James, Susan and A. Rogers III (12, 10 and 8), skier, mountain climber, photographer and, it says here, a horse breaker.
What Little breaks, Bill Green buys. He reports cryptically from Burley, Idaho, that he and Cullen have 8-year-old Anthony, and that he is a livestock buyer for James Allen & Sons, of San Francisco.
The most regular fellow in the class, if you will pardon the expression, is H. Scott Taylor, the mineral water king of Thermopolis, Wyo. After eight years as superintendent of Wyoming's Hot Springs State Park, Scottie now runs his own warm water pool and as his extra bit toward keeping Thermopolis clean, serves as chairman of the Republican City Committee. He and Ercil and young Scott, Connie and Wedgewood invite you '39ers to drop in any old Saturday night.
So much for the West. Let us leave the Rockies and take a look at the Great Smokies, where we have another rugged individual doing well while doing good. From HenryConkle comes a catalogue of his Carolina Mountain Shop in Cashiers, N. C., made doubly attractive by a cover picture of Hank and Dot and their two handsome children, Nancy and Johnny. The merchandise offered therein ranges from wild mountain fox grape preserves to handwoven plaid couch throws. If you don't have a copy, no doubt Hank will send you one at the drop of a postcard.
Further word on Brer. Conkle is contributed by Edwin O. Grover '94:
"Bright young men leave North Carolina because there is 'no opportunity' and Hank comes in from somewheres Up Nawth [Wayne, Pa. Ed.] and creates a thriving business at a quiet crossroads. ... Some time ago he inserted a notice in his alumni paper saying he would give free a green tie to any Dartmouth man showing up at his shop. Believe it or not, but he's been giving away about a tie a week ever since. Late one day recently a fellow drove up and said that if this was the right place, he'd like to get his Dartmouth tie. Hank didn't know him from Adam and asked for some identification. Yes, the man had some credentials, and he produced them. It was Nelson Rockefeller. He drove a hundred miles to get his tie."
Not getting my petrol for free, like Nelson, I needs must eschew my tie for the present and take my chances with other merchant princes in the class. For example, GeorgeMcllroy forsook Macy's Basement some years back to open his own farm and garden supply store in Huntington, N. Y. I am advised that things are now so good that he spends most of his time sitting on his front porch smoking fifty-cent cigars and giving away bright green Toro mowing machines to visiting classmates.
Space runneth out. I runneth to Huntington....
Secretary, American Bankers Association 200 Madison Ave., New York 16, N. Y.
Class Agent, j. 25 St. Stephen's Lane, Scotia, N. Y.
