Well, I Finally Signed Up

I wasn't certain about attending a 40th reunion. The 25th reunion had been a lot of fun; but that was 30 lbs and a lot of hair ago.

Should I go? It will probably be the last time we'll be getting together....

I was still on the fence, when John Klish called me and said he was going to be there, along with Pradeep and Jake and George. That sounded good; but, was it too late? Happily the time for housing registration was extended and event registration is still open. The Newton Marriott was pretty well booked up; but I found an alternative in Framingham and I'm good to go.

Signing up online for "The Way We Were-1968" and the "40th Class Party" was easy, along with the class gift, which can be designated for your choice. I enjoyed my time at BCLS, so I hope every little bit helps.

Dean and centenarian

Rita Kelleher was dean of the School of Nursing at BC from 1948 to 1968. She was among those receiving an honorary degree at our commencement. In March, Dean Kelleher celebrated her 100th birthday. That means that when she received her honorary degree that day she was 60 years old. She was younger then than just about all of us are today. Ho ... lee ... cow.

James Woods, SJ, dean of the Woods College of Advancing Studies (known in our time as the "Evening College"), wrote a very nice article about Dean Kelleher that appears in the current edition of The Voice, the magazine for graduates of the Connell School of Nursing.

It's all happening at ...

Members of the class distinguished themselves by acting somewhat raucously at BC basketball games. Then again, some of the behavior was viewed as "undistinguished." The Heights of Feb. 11, 1966, for example, reported that several campus groups had complained about "profane signs" posted by the '68 fans at the game with St. Joseph's on Feb. 2. Even Coach Cousy was quoted as saying some of the signs were "tasteless" and he expressed some regret that the game had been televised nationally. The Class of '68 "zoo" was an apt and heartfelt self-description.

For some more pictures related to BC sports during our years, click on the image below.

Sports68

Maybe it was because I worked on the Heights, but I always found the little messages that served as "bookends" for the front page title (the "flag") interesting. I've recreated a few from 1966 and 1967 that may elicit a few memories, smiles, groans, etc. You can see the others by clicking on the image below

Heights bookends

Name that cast!

That's Alan Borsari, front, center, and left to right, among some of the cast of the Class of '68 skit at the School of Ed. Can people name the rest of the cast?

The skits were cancelled in the mid-'90s as not befitting the academic stature of the School, which is now the Lynch School of Education. A lot of people still miss them.

You can see pictures of a few other extracurricular activities--the Chorale, Dramatics, Lewis Drill Team, and WVBC--by clicking on image below.

Extracurriculars

Omygawd, college!

When we arrived at BC in September, 1964, it was a heady time for us -- college! -- and near the beginning of what many people consider a particularly turbulent time in US history. It was less than a year after the assassination of President John Kennedy, who had been speaker at BC's 1963 centennial celebration about 16 months before we arrived (link to text). Essayist Lance Morrow said of that time, “The real 1960s began on the afternoon of November 22, 1963. It came to seem that Kennedy's murder opened some malign trap door in American culture, and the wild bats flapped out.”

Our moods, despite the circumstances of the world around us, were likely not very dark. There was a lot new for us to digest and many new people to meet. Roommates who weren't brothers or sisters, classes instead of "school days," more freedom, etc. Here are some Heights headlines and items from the fall of 1964 that give a flavor of that time.

September 25, 1964

"Fr. Hanrahan Appointed
Director of Resident Men"

Hard to believe that he was new. To freshmen and to all resident men, he seemed a spectral figure. He was known to appear suddenly, at night, to intercept wayward and usually inebriated students seeking to return to the dorms after curfew. What awesome capabilities must he have had? Talking with him about that many years later, he pointed out that drunken young men have a great deal of difficulty being quiet trying to "sneak" into a dorm, often urging each other to "Be QUIET!" and cursing at the typical stumble. All he had to do was be awake and listen. His main "power" was sobriety.

October 1964

Evangelist Billy Graham appeared at Roberts Center.

October 23, 1964

“McCrossen Flays Commies
Liberals Seen Shuddering”

The Heights editors, as was their wont, had some fun with the headline for the article on the annual Young Americans for Freedom lecture, presented that year by Vincent McCrossen. Prof. McCrossen was an outspoken political conservative, on what was, as we would see displayed in several ways during our time at BC, a pretty conservative campus.

November 6, 1964

“Fr. Drinan Sees
Hard Years Ahead
For Civil Rights”

Got that right.

November 13, 1964

“B.C. School of Ed. Says
No Marriage for Women”

Notice the rule did not apparently apply to men. While nearly everyone would consider this incredibly sexist, based on our current mores, note the context. In the opinion of administrators such as Mary Kinnane in the School of Ed, higher education for women was the objective and marriage was then an impediment to a young woman finishing college. As with so much else at the time and in the culture of the place, negative reinforcement was the method of choice. Remember, too, this was during a time when a pregnant teacher (of course, married) could not teach in a public school while she was "showing."

The topic of women at BC was such a major issue, in so many ways. There will be many other points of discussion on that topic.

Good sports from the start

One could argue that the past few years have been the best ever at BC in terms of sports. Multiple winning seasons, NCAA tournament appearances, and national and conference championships in football, basketball, and hockey. (Let alone growth in Olympic sports and the development of women’s sports, which is a completely different topic we’ll address in another context.)

But things certainly weren’t bad in our day, even as freshmen. Remember our first football game as freshmen, when we operated as a card section for the first and, as far as I can remember, only time? BC played Syracuse, then considered perhaps the strongest team in the East and one of the best in the country. With 12 seconds to go and the score tied (a moral victory already), Larry Marzetti threw a wobbly pass to Captain Bill Cronin. He caught it on the 25 yardline between two Syracuse defenders, who collided and fell down. Cronin staggered into the endzone (or is that exaggerated memory) to win the game for the Eagles.

BC then lost its next two games, against Army and Tennessee, but won five of the next six to finish the season 6-3. Notice only nine games, three to four games fewer in a season than the modern Eagles play. The schedule that year also included Miami (the other loss), Cincinnati, Air Force, Villanova, Detroit, and, of course, Holy Cross. It is also interesting to note that our classmates played that season on a freshman team, as freshman were not eligible, and that some on the varsity played both offense and defense.

Basketball went 22-7 in 1964-65, Bob Cousy’s second season as coach. Sub Turri of 1965 called it BC’s best team ever. John Austin, then a junior, averaged 26.9 points a game, gaining all-America honors (third team) and setting BC’s career scoring record after only two seasons. In more than half their games (15 of 29), the Eagles scored more than 90 points, including nine games with more than 100 points. Twice they scored 120 points. Remember, this is without a shot clock and without three-point baskets! Run and gun! BC finished the season in the NIT (only 23 teams, mostly conference champions, went to the NCAA tournament then), losing to St. John's.

Hockey finished #2 in the country freshman year, losing to Michigan Tech in the NCAA final. They opened with 19 wins in their first 22 games, including a 5-4 win over BU for the Beanpot, and finished 24-7 (no ties!). Funny to note now that the Eagles got to the NCAA final with a 4-3 win over … North Dakota. Even then! Jerry York, current BC coach, was a sophomore on the team, finishing seventh in scoring. Scoring leader was the great John Cunniff, with 31 goals and 36 assists in 31 games.