Class of '64 (July-August 2004 issue)

This is my last column as Secretary and I gave myself a pleasant task for this last submission: To read and comment on Roger Simon's latest Moses Wine detective novel, Director's Cut. After a winter's diet of Sue Grafton (I've made it from A to J so far), it was to fun to get to know a new detective. Mr. Wine begins his timely multinational adventure with a reluctant admiring statement about John Ashcroft. Soon he finds himself in Prague and gets kidnapped by terrorists along with a movie star; this was a great read, funny, smart, and highly recommended whether you're familiar with the Moses Wine series or not. The 40th reunion will have come and gone by the time you read this. My contribution to the reunion auction on Sunday night was a rare, perhaps unique, copy of The Dartmouth, issue of Thursday January 24, 1963, in which the incoming Directorate (editorial board chairman Bob Woodruff, president Jerry Reichwald, managing editor Burt Alimanski and business manager John Whitmoyer) made rude gestures to the camera for a very limited (10 copies max) edition of the newspaper. Following this brief moment of youthful exuberance, the regular gentlemanly picture was taken and this was what the student body saw the next morning. My only regret is that none of these worthies are seeking high public office at the moment; who knows the extent to which the class coffers might have benefited as one or more of them raised the bid to keep this artifact out of circulation. Other memorable auction items included a painting by Herb West (1949 - "Mallard in Flight"), donated by George Fesus, and a Winter Carnival poster from 1963, plucked from eBay (remember the one with the rabbit leaping over the fallen skier? - no, I didn't either until I saw it on the auction page). At this point (late April), more than 50% of our classmates have made a special reunion- year contribution; the number is growing. We are a class used to breaking records and this year's contributions promise to continue the tradition. The next column will detail the new class officers. In closing, I want to thank Steve Blecher and Ed Williams for their support and helpful communications during the last five years, and the 140+ classmates who have sent me information to use in the column over the same period. It's been a trip and I hope it is as much fun for the next secretary as it has been for me. I'll continue as Webster (the College's name for Web Master) under the new regime. Let me know how to make the Class Web page more useful.
Gus Buchtel gusb@umich.edu or www.dartmouth.org/classes/64/news.html