1955

We have a magnificent first-hand report on the world-wide peregrinations of Bob Leopold. In December he and Peg completed three and a half years in Buenos Aires, where Bob was assistant Naval attache. "It was a tour," Bob writes, "which saw us living through a number of revolutions and attempted revolutions," but he says they whipped their Spanish "into real good shape" and enthusiastically "learned and lived another culture first hand." Bob comments, "this for me was one of the most intellectually stimulating experiences I've had." In addition he found time to encounter Ed Willi while they both were waiting in their cars for a train to pass a street crossing. Ed is at the busy General Motors plant in Buenos Aires and he reported to Bob, "I'm working my tail off." Bob and Peg saw much of Ed and Cecilia for a couple of years, and the men teamed up in a jazz combo and opposed each other in Embassy -vs.-GM softball games.

In March Bob, now wearing two and a half shiny gold stripes, took over as commanding officer of the "U.S.S. Pluck," an ocean-going minesweeper based in Long Beach. Bob says receiving the challenging assignment was a bit surprising since he had been "driving nothing more exciting than a desk for four and a half years," but, he adds, "as it turned out, I hadn't forgotten much and have had no trouble running the ship hither and yon." The ship has a crew of five or six officers and 60 to 65 enlisted men. Itching for a fight, Cap'n Bob immediately whisked his vessel off to the South China Sea for a shot at the Viet Cong. He's been patrolling the Vietnamese coast for several weeks, but now is due home very shortly, with stops along the way in Australia, Moumea, New Caledonia, and Pago Pago. "Unfortunately," the skipper reports, "we will be steaming merrily between Pearl Harbor and Long Beach just about the time you all tap the first keg at reunion."

Bob also adds that he and Peg had their second boy, Ricky, in Buenos Aires, and a daughter, Barbara Lynn, just after returning from Argentina. He becomes the first '55 to announce publicly, with the unerring wisdom and certainty befitting a commander officer, "we have both decided there will be no more."

Also in the foreign department, Roy Hill confesses that he's paid no income taxes while hiding out for the past five years with the Colgate-Palmolive forces in the mountains of Guatemala. Just like Castro. But Roy is back in income tax-land now, stationed in San Juan after being promoted to Caribbean area manager. "The job," he says, "is similar to what I've been doing in the Central American Common Market but this is a bit more complex because of the geography, economics, culture, and language differences." He's responsible for a half-dozen subsidiaries and selling operations scattered around all the exotic islands you've seen in the Sunday travel sections, but promises to make the effort to tear himself away for reunion.

Before we leave the Latin latitudes, BillKofoed writes that he spent ten days this spring in Panama and Colombia. In Colombia he covered a convention of COTAL, the Latin American equivalent of the American Society of Travel Agents, for Travel Trade Magazine, and also represented the Miami Seaquarium ("one of the country's top tourist attractions," he reminds us), which is one of his accounts as a public relations man for the Hank Meyer agency in Miami. Bill discovered that Colombia's tourist director, Luis Zalamea, is a Dartmouth graduate, class of 1942.

Chet Gale has abandoned selling lowmarkup, highly competitive industrial products for Brand Rex and turned to exploiting the high-markup, highly competitive consumer market. Gripped by an enticing offer, he's now beating down druggists' doors in Michigan and Illinois for WTS-Pharmacraft, a pharmaceutical division of Wallace & Tiernan, Inc., to push such necessities as Caldesene for diaper rash, Desenex for athlete's foot, and Fresh for - well, the commercials don't say exactly where you do put it. This is a six-month orientation period with the company for Chet, before he moves on to headquarters in Rochester, but he and Debbie and their two boys are making the most of the Chicago summer - in the usual high Gale style - by taking an apartment in suburban Evanston fronting on cool, blue Lake Michigan and a sandy beach.

Our class walked off with all top honors when Gene Elsbree was elected president of the Dartmouth Alumni Association of Northern California and Nevada, and WayneCliff was chosen vice president. Gene writes that the Association's annual meeting in April, at which President Dickey spoke, was attended by the two officers-elect and George Fenzl, Tom Hamilton, Nelson Jones,Jack Palmer, Mark Starr, and Matty Weinberg. Gene also reports that he and Marcy had their second son, Mark, on March 27.

Other new arrivals: Allen and LillianPalmquist welcomed their second child, first son, Allen Jr., April 2 in St. Louis. Allen comments that "both of our children were born on Friday evenings which made it very convenient for their old man." Aceand Dort Hall had a daughter, Elizabeth Anne, April 9.

Dick DuBoff, an assistant professor of economics at Bryn Mawr College, spoke in March to the Bryn Mawr Group of Fairfield County (Conn.) on "The Balance of Payments." In announcing the talk, the organization's program chairman stated, "because his specialty is the economic history of American and Western Europe, Dr. DuBoff is eminently qualified to discuss this topic." Jack Fitzgerald, who teaches science at Cheshire (Conn.) High School, was one of 32 teachers throughout the nation awarded a plaque by the American Association of Physics Teachers for his performance on a four-hour examination. Dr. LarryMetz, a neurologist in Springfield, Mass., spoke in April to the Massachusetts chapter of the American Physical Therapy Association on rehabilitation, including speech therapy, of patients paralyzed by strokes. The talk was given at Providence Hospital in Holyoke, where Larry is a member of the staff. Port Sesnon became engaged to Linda Baker of Orinda. Calif., a graduate of the University of California.

Dave Page, who's a lawyer in Detroit, became engaged to Andrea Burdick of Detroit, a second-year law student at Wayne State University Law School. To "complete the legal orientation of the Page family," Dave writes, Andrea's father is a judge. The wedding is scheduled for July.

Don't forget to cough up all available dollars for the Alumni Fund and reunion, and if there's anything left feel free to feed and clothe your family.

Dave Grogan '54 (l) was appointed director for new products of the GlenbrookLaboratories of Sterling Drug Co., forwhich Dave Goss '53 is advertising accountsupervisor. (See '53 class notes.)

Secretary, 69 Brier Street Winnetka, Ill. 60093

Class Agent, Citizens Trust Co. 1 Cranston St., Providence, R. I.