Murray State University - Shield Yearbook (Murray, KY)

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o with me. se your imagination and de- lde what the next few com- ients were. All right, l'll go by myself. One brave soul jumped off ie stage and went up to the alcony. The auditorium was ark. The blue lights were shin- ig on the stage. He stumbled around the bal- any and finally he made it to ie dilapidated seat on the top nw. See, there's nothing wrong 'ith it, he said, as he picked it Model Dale Stephens 4l1- 1-1- up to show his audience on the stage. Turn the spotlight on itl Okay. Again he stumbled around the seats as he made his way to the center of the balcony to the two spotlights. Which one is He never finished his sentence as one of the large spotlights aimed to- ward the balcony seats sudden- ly came on. lts beam was shin- ing on the unhinged chair in the upper corner. The next scene was one of mayhem. The brave soul sud- denly turned coward as he tripped, ripped and tore his way out of the balcony yelling, l didn't touch it, l didn't touch it'!1 They never looked back. The Chisolm Trail had nothing on this stampede. These incidents, whether true or imagined, explainable or unexplainable, are all definitely one thing, undeniable. No two people can dream the same dream or hallucinate the same hallucination. But so far, the things that have happened in the Fine Arts complex have been harmless and no one has been nosey enough to try to disclaim or verify the rumors. But the next time you hear footsteps and see no one, or the next time the elevator takes you to a floor you didn't re- quest, remember, that so-called presence in the Fine Arts Com- plex has been on campus long- er than most of us and will pos- sibly remain as long as there are people here to tell about it. l Ghost Bustm

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hy did I ever apply for this job? groaned a Racer Patrolman as he pushed the button for the elevator. Stop complaining, let's get this over with, said his part- ner. the small elevator reached the lobby of the Fine Arts Build- ing. The two walked inside. lt's just not worth what Llni- versity Work Study pays to stay up until two in the morn- ing, continued the first. The other said nothing, but pushed the sixth-floor button as they began their inspection to put the building to bed for the night. Finally after the standard 30- to-45 second wait for the eleva- tor doors to close, they began to ascend. The two watched the num- bers flash as they passed each floor.1 1U 2 then the elevator stopped. The doors opened onto the usually closed maintenance floor 2Ll. The door was unlocked and open. They looked at one an- otherg they walked into the cor- ridor. The door to the lighting booth for the R.E. Johnson Theater was also unlocked and open. Somebody must be working late, said one patrol- man to the other. lt sounded more like a question wanting a reassuring agreement rather than a statement of fact. They walked into the booth. The cov- er was off of the control panel and the ghost lights were on. After investigating, they de- termined no one was there. I guess we'd better lock up, Campus Life -.l- glwggyfzil' said one of them. One patrolman locked the doors, the other began to put the cover back on the panel, he didn't finish the task, he glanced out of the window at the stage. Holy C:-D-1f'Z18! What? I saw something on the stage! What? ldaknow! Let's go. Keeping in mind their sacred duty as members of the Racer Patrol to protect our campus, they ran out of the booth and down the spiral staircase into the auditorium. Okay, where's the ghost? asked the skeptic. I saw some- thing, I know I did, said the other. The two became quiet. They looked. They called. They listened. Then, they heard. There was a noise back up in the booth. They ran upstairs and met an unbelievable sight. The doors they had locked were again unlocked and stand- ing open. The cover, which had been off of the panel, was re- placed. They glanced at the panel, the ghost lights were off. Incidents such as this are not new to the Price Doyle Fine Arts Center. Since its comple- tion in 1971, the things that go bump in the night are not few and far between. In fact, they have become a permanent part of the routine for the students and professors in the music, ra- dio-TV, art and theater depart- ments. The elevators seem to have a Q I tlfr 1 d f - - M- - - lk.. ,1- ' Q 'HEL' '35-4 . ' 'Q - 2, L Y' K v -gg Y . wife-, K, I 'mf 11105 -ev. E I ,I-Et - 4 I - 'iw 11 A E fi 1 ', M ' 'Wi IIE ' .if .M 'W ' ' Wi i- ,ew ,M-.M ji.-my -:ft-if IWW V '-.Maxx I- -.W 1. . its Y . ilisf 5 L 'r w, ..t.1 32:255- B y Dannie Prather mind of their own. People who request a car either verbally or mentally, but never push a but- ton, are miraculously granted an elevator on the spot. Coinci- dence? Right. Disorganization runs ram- pant in any situation, but how could theater students consis- tently lose and find props or mysteriously lose all control of lighting and sound equipment that has been checked, double checked and triple checked? Are theater students mentally defective? Perhaps, but have all theater students since 1971 been mentally defective? Doubtful. How is it that RTV majors see a man in a flannel shirt and blue jeans walk down a corridor with no unlocked exits and nev- er return the way he came? And the poor dear souls on campus security who hear the machinery in the art and design shops running but when they open the doors of the shop, all is quiet. Are these people hallu- cinating? Maybe. I don't believe it! What's wrong? I left my knapsack backstage after the performance. Let me guess, it had your notes in it, right? Of course, you go on, I'll catch up with you later. The weary theater student retraced his tracks to the stage to find his books. He could hear his footsteps reverberate in the empty auditorium. Who's there? he called as he saw a plaid shirt disappear behind the curtain. He went backstage and called again. There was no an- swer. Unlike himself, he could hear no footsteps crossing the floor. Come on now, you're just tired, he thought as he turned back. lt was just a tough performance, nobody's here. Then he saw the curtain gently swaying back and forth where he thought he had seen the man pass. Halloween offers a different element of intrigue and opens whole new doors of possibilities for incidents Since music students harbor a special relationship with the feelings and forces in the arts, several students decided to tryj their hand at ghostbusting. I After a trip to Asbury Ceme-I tery, approximately a dozen: students decided to take a tour. of the Fine Arts Complex to see I what they could see. Their trek ended rather abruptly in Lovett Auditorium, which is not im-. mune to the coincidences of fl the rest of the complex. Most of the stories that have '- originated in Lovett deal withl- one lopsided balcony seatt which, no matter what, will not: stay erect. Because of this, the- upper chair on the far left side: of the balcony is never occu-- pied during a performance. Surely everyone has heard of reserved seating. You know those theater guys said the chair fell over twice after they set it up? Ah, C'mon. Get real. I don't believe it. l'll go up there if someone willt 4

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---,U ayfzhle 'v-V5 M Robin C ono ver Lambda Chi Alpha Finds S, yy The Fun In Fundraising A ' ' 3' Reason For . . WHAT'S HATCHlNG? Lambda Chi's Tim Wannemuehler and Stu Warren find that watermelons are not only good to eat, but also make good seats. Robin Cono ver he afternoon was hot and humid. Rain lightly sprin- kled the ground and a rainbow appeared. People started arriv- ing at Cutchin Field filled with anticipation of the upcoming event. Before long, girls started singing, dancing and chanting, We want Bust We want Bust. Finally, two Lambda Chi Al- pha fraternity men threw a wa- termelon from the roof of the Curris Center to splatter on the sidewalk. The 12th Annual Lambda Chi Watermelon Bust had begun. Preparation for Watermelon Bust began during the summer. Campus Life tin E Loose Da vid Manion SAY CHEESE! Miss Watermelon Bust contestant Lisa Heussner smiles prettily for the judges. She won the '84 competi- tion. By Pamela Reynolds Mike Griffin, chairman of Bust, said he ordered the watermel- ons, reserved Cutchin Field and appointed a fraternity brother as coach for each sorority. As emcee for Bust, Mike Wallace made sure everyone knew when each event started and did his best to reduce the chaos. The Lambda Chi alum- ni also participated in Bust by serving as the judges for the Miss Watermelon Bust contest. 'Watermelon Bust was unique this year in many ways. WPHD-AM kicked off its sec- ond season with a live broad- cast of the events. WPSD-TV 6 also made an appearance and not only covered the radio sign- on, but also summarized the Bust activities for the evening news. The Delta Sigma Theta so- rority participated for the first time in Bust history. Dawna Ross, a member of Delta Sigma Theta said, We had a great time, they fthe Lambda Chi'sJ said they would look forward to seeing us next year. The Alpha Gamma Delta so- rority also made Bust history by becoming the first sorority to win first place in all the ac- tivities, - the spirit competi- tion, the events and the Miss Watermelon Bust contest. Lisa Heussner, a junior from Pekin, Ill. was the AGD representative. The Lambda Chi's sponsor Watermelon Bust not only to promote Greek unity, but also for a good cause, The Christian Children's Fund. Griffin said, ln the past we haven't made money, we now have an entry fee and the money goes to our philanthropic project. Jennifer Collins, a Lambda Chi little sister said, l think it's great that they have a philan- thropic project everyone on campus can participate in. Patty Ringering, also a little sis- ter, summed up Watermelon Bust by saying, It's a good time for a good cause. I