1933

We move now to America's Heartland and a chat with Henry B. Pierpont, the investment whiz of Omaha and environs. Having created the investment department of the U.S. National Bank, Hank ran it for years and retired "early," but "voluntarily" in 1971. He had reached a stage of competence where he and Polly are able to "eat every day." After leaving the bank, Hank devoted himself to fundraising for eleemosynary boards, which keeps him busy. His work for Hastings College earned him an honorary degree. He feels that some of our Dartmouth Trustees might have kept a closer watch on administration, faculty, and student goings-on. He walks two miles a day which "keeps him even." One grandson, David Vaccaro, is a junior at Dartmouth and is the fourth generation of his family at Hanover. A granddaughter runs a Gap store in New York City. Obviously, Henry is not overstating it when he say that he is "having lots of fun."

We have belatedly received from Milt Neaman the news that Gene Kaplan had suffered a stroke last summer. Millie Kaplan has described the blow as massive, affecting the cerebellum, but says that Gene has come back a long way. He has difficulty in ambulation, but his mental processes are clear. He retired from practice some years ago and had been painting in abstract style for ten years. With true Kaplan grit, he has gone back to painting with his good arm and hand.

Judge Bill Quinn reports in from Canton, Ohio. He is now in retirement after three terms, totaling 18 years, on the Ohio Common Pleas Court. Although he used to dominate the fairways and greens north of Rope Ferry Road, he has diabetes and most of his exercise now, like that of fellow townsman William McKinley, is on the front porch. When your correspondent asked him if he had been a "plaintiffs man" while on the bench, he averred that he had always tried to "call them right down the middle." We have no doubt that this is true. Rosemary and your correspondent had a delightful lunch with Paul Weston and JoStafford at the Bel Air Country Club in L.A. in April. Both were in fine fettle and are enjoying moderate activity, she with programs for handicapped children and he with golf and merchandising their old masters on CDs. We talked of musical Hanover and of classmates, especially Bobby Burns, one-time manager for Tommy Dorsey and Frank Sinatra. Paul and Jo have produced an uproariously funny Corinthian Records CD in which under the pseudonyms, Darlene and Jonathan Edwards, they parody third-rate singers and accompanists with off-key notes and messed-up arpeggios.

Jarve Chapman finds life in New Canaan rewarding as he looks forward to the approaching end of college tuitions for his last two children. With nearly record achievement, he has produced two sons, a stepson, and two grandsons for Dartmouth. One of the latter is co-captain of football. At the same time, as with other classmates, Jarve still feels the sting of the refusal of admission to his daughter, then at Hotchkiss, now doing well at Denison. Jarve spends some time overseeing his cottage and the acreage which he and Ted Okie cannily acquired 20 years ago on Great Wass Island, off Jonesport, Maine.

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