1948
The difficulty in finding enough '48 information to give this column some common interest among the membership of our widely spread Class is made more than worthwhile by the occasional unexpected letter or phone call that comes my way from or concerning someone from our days on campus. The memories of the fun and friendships of those times seem to fade as they are gradually pushed aside in one's mental box of recollections by the people and events of more recent days. Thus, it gave this '48 one big jolt of pleasure and recall, as a result of a paragraph about Fritz McTarnahan a few months ago in which '48s lone Arizona resident regretted not having heard from his old Hanover buddies in many years, to receive a letter for Fritz from one of those, his close friend, Emil Hudak 50 of Rockville Centre, Long Island. I forwarded the letter to Fritz, and with the writer's permission am printing here some of Emil's words which make those undergrad days vividly reappear.
"Your name in the '48 notes naturally brought back memories to me and, I'm sure, many others of us who came to Dartmouth upon the conclusion of WWII. I know I wore out my Navy P-jacket in Hanover. Gosh, names like Dave Anthony, Howie Westney, Dick Barlow,Pete Norton, etc. are great to see again. I'm sure you remember the laughs at the Phi Psi house with the likes of Eddie Leede, West Field, Pete Schaeffer, Randy Gilmore, etc.... At times it is difficult to believe we have hit the half-century mark because it is so easy to remember when we were in Hanover... in good health with no complaints but that we cannot continue friendships made in Hanover. Man, you just cannot find nicer people than Lou (restaurant), Herb West, Red Merrill, Prof. Choukas, to name a few.... Many years ago I spoke with Joe Holzka, while I bump into Dave Krivitski on Fifth Avenue once in a while. Saw Billy Biggs and Red Rowe somewhere. Fritz, you and many like you were part of why most of us enjoyed our four years in Hanover... this small trip down memory lane." Emil, a modest guy who will always be remembered for his P-jacket and for what almost certainly was the greatest basketball shot ever made by a Dartmouth man, ended in the hope "that some letters will go back and forth," which thought this scribe earnestly seconds. Thanks, Emil, for your letter and hope you hear from the friends you mentioned.
Lloyd Krumm, one of the more active '48s in Dartmouth alumni affairs who completed two years on the Alumni Council last June, writes thoughtfully about our Class as follows. "I get up to Hanover fairly often, what with both our sons being there ('77 and '80); transporting prospects for Jake; attending meetings of fraternity corporation officers; and going to a couple games each fall. The one thing that has bothered me has been our inability to get the Class to do much of anything other than reunions. It was my idea that we have a mini-reunion the weekend of the UNH game this past fall, and, at my suggestion Barney Hoisington lined up the Tom Dent cabin. The event had to be cancelled since we only got five people who indicated they would attend. Having talked to John Van Raalte and John Hatheway among others, none of us has been able to come up with a solution to what may be an insurmountable problem."
Lloyd's concern about the apparent lack of interest in the Class by what may be many members of the Class seems well placed. Many hypotheses have been put forth as reasons. Perhaps some '48s have thoughts or opinions on the subject, in which case this column is offered as perhaps a useful place for getting a dialogue going. Let me know. Maybe worth another try in Hanover this fall, Lloyd? The unselfish and time-consuming efforts of Barney and yourself last fall deserved a better fate.
An excerpt from a last October issue of the Hamden Chronicle of the Connecticut town of the same name notes that Pete Page and wife Marion attended the most recent Dartmouth/Yale grid match in New Haven and rooted unsuccessfully for a Big Green triumph. Pete, lead us to victory next fall! Old Eli should feel the sting from the Indian hills of Hanover once again.
There aren't many '48s living in the Southwest. Have managed to reach all of them outside California so far except Phil Kelly in Odessa, Tex. Hope I'll call sometime when you're home, Phil.
In a recent column I passed along some incorrect history of Tom Mullins in Hanover in the early years of '48 history. Moon and Lloyd roomed in Wheeler, not Richardson, in that 1944 summer term. Then Lloyd roomed with Ed Curtis in the Gold Coast's Lord throughout the normal two-semester '46-'47 academic year. Those were good years - as were they all.
Followers of jazz have surely followed with glee the progress of pianist Bob Pillsbury and the New Black Eagle Jazz Band. This group, composed of men who play in the band as a sideline, is based at the Sticky Wicket pub in Hopkinton, Mass., where it can be heard and seen on most Thursday nights. That the group is terrific is shown by their success in various international competitions. They have won a Grammy Award, and recently toured Europe. Bob is in the psychiatry field when he isn't banging those 88 keys. He still finds time to be in Hanover whenever he can.
From a more personal standpoint, readers may remember that recently the writer took the position in this column that the approximately three-to-one men-women ratio at Dartmouth ought not to be changed in favor of more women, a position that many women of Dartmouth definitely do not support. It is in spite of my position on the matter that I had to be proud of my Class of '79 daughter, Susie, who joined a group of about 35 undergrads in parading in front of a Boston building on February 18 where the Dartmouth Trustees were meeting. The quiet parade protest's purposes were to express disagreement with the recent Board decision largely to maintain the ratio and to request more interest on the part of the Trustees in seeking student opinion on matters of College policy. There's probably some deep morale in this, but for me it was simply pleasure and pride in the fact that Susie felt strong enough about the matter to become responsibly involved. Perhaps other '48s who have experienced similar situations may appreciate the point.
That's about it for this time. Before closing, though, hope that by the time you read this you will have taken the time to participate in this year's Alumni Fund. As a Class, '48 had one of the lowest percentage participations last year. We should do better than that this year if a few more of us will only take the time to maintain our share of the alumni burden for our College on the Hill. Bob Munson works hard and merits your support.
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