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CLASS NOTES
Michael Hausig
In June, we held our 40th class reunion. About 100 classmates, spouses, children and significant others got together for a most enjoyable weekend despite wet weather. Our attendance exceeded all reunion classes except for 1991. Bill Binderman and the planning committee put together an excellent program, including a talk from Jim Shenton '49 at our Saturday night dinner and a visit to an award winning building on the lower west side designed by Phil Smith. The finance committee, ably headed by Burtt Erlich, raised over $200 000 for the class gift. On a sad note, we learned of the passing of Don Heise in March 2000. Don was an opthalmologist. Our condolences go out to his widow, Joanna.
Ed Pressman
I had the distinct pleasure of two wonderful conversations with arguably our most famous classmate, Art Garfunkel. Art, with his partner Paul Simon, wrote and performed music that became, in the opinion of this writer, anthems for a generation of Americans. Art is presently living in New York City with his wife, Kathryn Cermak, and their 10-year-old son. He continues to perform in both the U.S. and abroad. Art will tour Japan this autumn, with 19 shows scheduled. His repertoire will include vintage Simon & Garfunkel plus Art's own hits. His own material includes works written with two colleagues. He performs these concerts with his own four-person band. They have completed approximately 75 concerts together. His wife, Kathryn, sings professionally under the name of Kathryn Luce. This past summer, she performed on the East End of Long Island. They have sung together during Art's concerts. Kathryn is originally from Minnesota. After many years associated with Columbia Records, Art has signed a contract with Atlantic Records. His first two albums with Atlantic will be issued in January 2002. Art wrote a wonderful book, Stillwater, published by Dutton-New American Family in 1987. It is a work of prose and poetry dealing with general philosophical feelings. Two themes highlighted in the book deal with Art's personal feelings concerning being in show business, and the loss of a particular woman. One of Art's accomplishments was his walk across America, in which he traveled by foot from New York to the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon. He is currently duplicating that feat with a walk across Europe. He began in Ireland, with a goal of reaching Istanbul, Turkey. He is extremely proud of this activity, which gives much time to reflect and create. Art's music has transcended our generation as it continues to be played in many different venues and settings. My grandchildren constantly request and listen to those memorable songs. One last anecdote I'd like to report. Art and Paul had recorded two hit songs under the name of Tom & Jerry, when we were students at Forest Hills High School. Art was also a member of the King's Men while at Columbia. While walking with him on campus to a rehearsal of the King's Men (I as a listener and he as a participant) one evening, I asked whether he and Paul would ever sing together again. He responded with an emphatic no! I respond with an equally emphatic "the world can thank its lucky stars" that there was a change of hearts.
Sidney P. Kadish Many reports in the media lamented the fact that Bob Dylan had turned 60. Of course, Dylan is a symbol of all of us burned-out hippies who are turning 60 this year. We will omit the trite references to "the times they are a-changing" or "how does it feel?" and move on to something more appetizing. David Alpern, still a senior editor at Newsweek, is pleased to report that the weekend radio show he runs for the magazine with a crew of bright undergraduate interns from the College, Newsweek On Air, won a Program of the Year award from the International Association of Audio Information Services and a Crystal Award of Excellence from the National Communicator Awards. We ran into Fred Hochberg this summer, dining at one of the fashionable spots in suburban Boston. He is practicing neuro-oncology at Massachusetts General Hospital and boasting about grandchildren. In April, we had dinner with old roommate Bernard Kabak on the upper West Side, with his lovely wife, Ilana, and their energetic, 8-year-old son Gabriel. Gabe is a fierce Yankee fan and future Yankee prospect. Please continue to send your news. While it may or may not be too late to write in about professional accomplishments, for the next issue I invite your medical reports: your aches, pains, ills and triumphs. Be well and enjoy
Norman Olch Barry Bley has embarked on a fourth career. After working for Greyhound, then as a high school teacher in New York, then as a lawyer in New York, he is now in his second year as chair of the history department in a high school in Westminster, Colo., a suburb of Denver. "I am living happily with my companion, Cindy, whom I first met at Chock Full O'Nuts at 116th Street in 1963. What a long, strange trip it's been." From Oakland, Dan Beagle writes he is "shocked" that an earlier column reported only three classmates at last year's homecoming. He has been at the last two homecomings, fruitlessly looking for familiar faces. "After never once setting foot on Baker Field during my four years at Columbia, I have become a very enthusiastic booster type because my daughter, Julie, a sophomore at Barnard, has been playing for the Columbia women's soccer team for two years." Dan spent 20 years as editor and then communications director for the International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union, and is now an independent communications consultant to unions. He has "four great kids" and says he is "agitating for grandkids, and deeply saddened by the death of Kenny Haas." John Cirigliano reports from Palo Alto, Calif., that he and Al Butts were also at last year's homecoming. Steve Rosenfeld is the recipient of the second Curtis Berger Award, which was bestowed by The Bridge, Inc., a 45-year old Morningside Heights program that provides residential facilities and support services to the mentally ill. Steve practices law in New York, and with wife, Naomi, delights in the development of his two daughters. One is an art historian in Chicago, the other a third-year student at Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass. As many of you realized, the Marriott International senior vice president and associate general counsel in my last column is Jim Akers. His name was changed en route to print. Please write or e-mail. I will do my best to see that other names stay the same.
Leonard B. Pack Michael Cook has been made a fellow of The American Bar Foundation. Membership is limited to one-third of one percent of the lawyers licensed to practice in a state "whose professional, public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the welfare of their communities and to the objectives of the American Bar Foundation." Steven Danenberg is the headmaster of The Country School in Madison, Conn. The school has about 300 pre-kindergarten through eighth grade students. Steve's wife, Mary, is a speech and language pathologist in the Montville public schools. Dean Gamanos reports that his ad agency, the Retele Company, is celebrating its 15th anniversary. Retele recently picked up the New York Krispy Kreme account and does work for a number of restaurants and retailers. After living in Park Slope, Brooklyn, for many years, Dean recently moved to Greenwich, Conn., where he purchased the 1888 Patrick O'Connor house. Dean has been active with the Business School's New York Alumni Club, which he serves as co-president. He was happy to run into classmates Larry Guido, Derek Wittner, Elliott Wolff and Jay Woodworth at the College Alumni Association's recent annual lunch at the Columbia Club. The late John Huemer's brother, David Huemer '81, wants classmates to know of John's wishes that donations in his honor should go either to the John Huemer Scholarship at the Columbia College Fund (475 Riverside Drive, Suite 917, New York, NY 10115) or to the John Huemer Fund for the Columbia Wrestling Program (c/o coach Brendan Buckley, Dodge Physical Fitness Center, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027). Jeff Krulwich and his wife, Linda, are delighted that their son, Michael, has been accepted to Columbia and will be attending the College this fall. Writes Jeff, "I have interviewed high school students for Columbia for over a dozen years and know how competitive the admissions selection has become." Isn't that what they were saying when we applied for admission? Leonard Pack, your correspondent, had the pleasure of attending the Inaugural Dinner for the Kraft Family Center for Jewish Student Life on May 17 in Lerner Hall. Columbia has now joined the rest of the Ivy League in having a Jewish student center of its own.
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