Columbia University College of Pharmacy - Apothekan Yearbook (New York, NY)

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Th» Madcaps (Jeff fo right): Allen, Pottnoy, Galmsky. Glick, Grisef and Galli — (missing: Solomon). also because of the calm and relaxed atti- tude engendered in the scholar by Mr. Kanig. One especially tricky prescription that comes to mind called for a pint of dis- tilled water to be dispensed in a clean, dry, well-filled, heat-resistant, and dark colored 12 ounce bottle. It seems that the physician intended this Rx as a placebo with no therapeulic effect, but most stu- dents overlooked the obvious incompati- bility and suspended the precipitate with Bentonite of Magma. Of all the intelligent young men in that class, you could recall that only one, Murray Yarin, realized that the distilled water had to be made isotonic with the urine to prevent the development of gastro-intestinal and renal irritation. No amount of retrospection with regard to college days would be complete, you feel, without recalling fondly the benovolent Randolph Halsey. Here was a man to be reckoned with, thought the class during his first lecture back in 1947. How right they were. Lecturing on the sex life of the amoe- ba, drawing the sexual stage of the para- moecium with his right hand, and illus- trating sex life in general with his left — all this concurrently — Dr. Halsey endeavored to educate these budding pharmacists in biology. With infinite patience that was always his hallmark, he introduced you to your first kitten. And the Class of ' 50 felt that it finally had arrived. With the full sophomore year in which to recover, they again met Professor Halsey in junior Physiology. One of the few shame- ful acts that you recall, occurred in the Physiology lab. Arthur Galli, failing to kill a frog by pithing it, drew a revolver and pumped six shots into it. The class was shocked, but Galli observing that the frog was still sensitive, fearlessly plunged a Bunsen burner into its mouth and gassed it to death. But no more of these gory details and fond recollections. Dr. Halsey, in his form-fitting lab coat (with just traces of red and blue stripes here and there for color) They found a home in pharmacy.

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Sam ' s Boy. All these fond memories of chemistry study fall pleasantly on the receptive cen- ters of your brain. But shortly, other thoughts begin recrystallizing to replace them. What then would be more natural to think of after chemistry than another exact and rigorous science encountered in Columbia ' s hallowed confines — pharmacy, of course. Whatever may be said in criticism of Pharmacy, the integrity, preciseness, and technical achievement of the students in the dis- pensing laboratory can never be questioned. Guided lovingly by the gentle hand of Professor Heimerzheim, the charitable Class ol ' 50 was introduced to pharmacy in the raw. Standing there in front of the class, the pedagogue presented an inspiring picture of a man, Grecian in stature, noble of mind and true in heart. Never was it he to ques- tion a fellow human ' s honesty. However, he felt it only his duty to examine all para- phernalia brought by the students into an examination, just to remove temptation from their path. Such suspect items as Kleenex and kilabendals were thoroughly inspected by him. The students, of course, appreciated this interest and their one goal was the attain- ment of the teacher ' s ideal. Especially in laboratory were these ambitions manifested. Each man attacked his work with sincerity and apptitude, never stooping to the low practice of double-quantity manufacturing, rumored to be extant at that time. In all his labors, Professor Heimerzheim had at his side Joseph Kanig, B.S. in Pharmacy and The Spirit ol Modern Pharmacy. a renown label collector in his own right. An astute judge of criminal psychology, it was said in reverent tones, that this same Joseph Kanig once single-handedly cap- tured and brought to justice that most in- famous of public enemies, the desperado that q.s ' d in the bottle. You recalled that it was in this laboratory also that Maurice Solomon perfected the now widely used tecn- nique of decanting the supernatant liquid. This method has been found particularly useful in compounding the prescriptions tested that same morning by Dr. Brown. From here it is only a jump to thoughts of pleasant moments in Mr. Hoffman ' s Jun- ior Pharmacy lectures. For a reason unfath- omable to you, several students persisted in calling this gentleman Mr. Katz. Fortunately he took no notice of these confused individ- uals. Following the exchange of pleasantries with Mr. Hoflman, the Class of ' 50 encount- ered Joseph Kanig again in Junior Dispens- ing. Now an M.S. in Pharmacy and a distinguished purveyor of fine enteric coat- ings; we find that all the virtues of the man we had known as sophomores had not been affected a whit during his phenominal rise in the faculty. As particularly fas- cinating during this semester, remember your introduction to the authentic, prac- tical dispensing exams. These were note- worthy, not only because of the sensible choice of common prescriptions compound- ed every day in drug store practice, but

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patroled the laboratory vigilantly. Little did he suspect that the students were using hopped-up frogs to get their kymograph results. But little did the students realize that it was the Good Doctor himself, who stealthily s ' mudged all the charred recording paper. As a result of this course a serious problem arose in the upper senior year. Four men — Lederman, Tishelman, Rothman and Ryback — were assigned to work to- gether in the lab. However, not until it was too late was it discovered that all of these four had been drum-smokers in their junior year. And, being specialists, they knew nothing about other procedures. The schedule of courses was so expertly planned in the three previous years, that to the astonishment of the faculty, it was found that the only subject remaining to be covered in the final year was Jurisprudence. This was an intolerable situation; therefore, several of the professors huddled together and hurriedly formulated an extended plan of study. Out of this great conclave arose Materiology and Pharmamedica, the Sub- stance of Chemical Medicinals, and a course in Decoctions and Infusions. These hardly would have supplied sufficient stimulus for the cognitive Class of ' 50, so that a little chemistry and dispensing pharmacy were also included. The Dean assumed the reins in the materiology course, and although facing a difficult task, acquitted himself nobly. Instead of wasting the class ' time by ex- plaining accurately and carefully inconse- quential matters such as kidney and gastro- intestinal medications, he concentrated on the vital subject of toxicology. The Class of ' 50 may not know beans about the thera- peutic activity of Ox-bile Extract, but they sure as Hell will come in handy in case one of their customers should happen to be bitten by a snake on Fifth Avenue or drink a pint of cleaning solution. One of the outstanding features of Dr. Charles Ballard ' s course was the examina- tion period. He attempted to eliminate the essay exam by dev eloping a multiple choice type of quiz, thus removing all possibility of ambiguity and assuring clarity of ques- tions. Philadelphia Jack Leuallen came out punching in his senior class lectures, and Maceration a la Nedicks practically kayoed the entire group. One fellow, Small Ed Rothman by name, was so perturbed by the lectures that he devel- oped gout listening to them. The only serious problem faced by Leuallen was a lack of subject matter. The class complained bitterly over the dearth of material to pre- pare for an exam. After you learned a few formulas and proprietaries — what was there? A great honor befell Dr. Leuallen dur- ing the tenure of the Class o( ' 50 as seniors. By unanimous vote he was accorded the almost valueless privilege of wearing a cap to school on Fridays. The infamous group which conferred this mark of distinction was The Men ' s Association for the Development of Character and Aplomb in Pharmaceuti- cal Service, or as it is commonly known, The Madcaps. Suddenly startled from your composure by a noise in the street, you are awakened from your trance, amused and even some- what gratified by the memories which have been passing before you. Of course, there were others . . . many others; but leave those for another evening of pleasant remembrances. Now you are content with a fine wife and family and a successful store — yes, indeed, the men ' s clothing line certainly has been good to you.