1954

News from the Lone Star State is as follows: When it came to recommending the very best restaurant in Dallas, Tex., Don Swanson came to my rescue in a big way back in April. Don is still with the same law firm he started out with after graduation from Southern Methodist University Law School and is still very pleased with this association. Don keeps very busy what with coaching YMCA basketball, family ski trips to Vail, and a recent big party celebrating a 20th wedding anniversary. His oldest daughter, Susan Lynn, is a freshman at S.M.U. (medical and engineering). It seems that Don had to come all the way to New York on a business trip in order to bump into his closest neighbor and classmate Rock Grundman, also of Dallas. Rock does a lot of anti-trust seminar work with Dressor Industries.

Don also is in touch with Dick Wheelock up in Tyler, Tex. Dick and family recently joined the Swansons for lunch in Dallas while on a shopping spree, which I'm sure included a stop at Nieman-Marcus, the his and hers camel and car place.

Don reports that most Dallas residents are not the greedy, immoral millionaires depicted on the television show Dallas. The show was originally resented by Dallasites, but the current attitude, according to the New York Times, seems to be, "Well, hell, it's just a soap opera." Incidentally, intelligence relates that the awesome Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, largest in the world, is called the "air harbor." My informants tell me that Swanson, Grundman, and Wheelpck are the only '54 graduates in Texas at present.

An important news release from the Department of the Interior announced that our own newsletter editor, David K. Martin, has been appointed public affairs director for the Water and Power Resources Service. The release continued, "Mr. Martin has broad experience in journalism, public relations, and education. Now more than ever before, the public needs to be better informed about our federal water, land, and energy activities which are crucial to the future of the 17 western states."

Dave, a native of Kearney, Neb., will direct the WPRS's office of public affairs in Washington and its public affairs service center in Denver, where production facilities and environmental education and public involvement components of the service are located. He will also coordinate public affairs activities with the seven regional offices of the Water and Power Resources Service. Nice going, Dave.

Fred Alpert sent me a three-page article from the March/April 1980 Harvard BusinessReview written by Maurice G. Wilkins Jr. Maurice is vice president and treasurer of Textron Inc. His article delved into inflation and how it affects corporate borrowers and the desperate need for innovation in their borrowing procedures.

We were delighted to hear that Robert 0. Collins, dean and professor of history at the University of California at Santa Barbara and leading scholar on the history and culture of the peoples of the Upper Nile, was invited to the Sudan by the nation's president, Gaafar Mohammed Nimeirr, to be especially honored for his research and writings.

Bob was one of seven scholars, and the only American, to receive the "Order of Sciences Arts, Gold Class," .and a handsome gold presidential order medal. Bob has built his reputation as a Sudan specialist on his research on African history. He has written a dozen books, five of which are authoritative works on the Upper Nile area. Bob and his wife Janyce live in Carpinteria, Calif.

Did you spot the fun article in late February by Craig Claiborne, the New York Times food editor, about maple syrup, doughnuts, and dill pickles? Noel Perrin, a Dartmouth professor, was quoted that the ingredients are simple and that you can eat an astonishingly large amount of this strange-sounding combination of items. I'll forward. the recipe to anyone who is interested.

Dick Barker has alerted us to the fact that his first grandchild, Christopher Dale Barker, was born in Shreveport, La., on January 10, 1980. "No! It doesn't seem possible," said Richard. How many '54 grandchildren do we have at this point? It's a logical question. Who is the class's youngest grandparent? Let's hear from you.

Have you seen the new United Technologies Corporation advertising campaign entitled "Keep it simple?" In this rather unorthodox campaign, which has been appearing in the Wall Street Journal of late, assorted homilies and inspirational verse are presented in large type with lots of white space and with no mention of product or profits. For example:

Strike three. You're overdrawn. Get your hand off my knee. Yes. No. You have the account. Mother's dead.

The ad concludes with, "Basic events require simple language."

In respect to Dartmouth days, I thought a few simple, striking words and phrases might sum up our experiences back in the fifties, as we faced up to certain basic events:

Great Issues. She can come to Carnival. Dartmouth 14, Harvard 10. The keg is out. You passed. If you have any words or phrases that might fit into this category, let me hear from you and I'll work them into another column.

We were saddened to hear of the death of classmate John Varnum. An obituary will appear in this or the next issue of the ALUMNI MAGAZINE.

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