Georgia State University - Rampway Yearbook (Atlanta, GA)

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native of Quitman, Georgia, Don Smith graduated from Georgia State University with a de- gree in English, he was also the originator for the Lyceum Film pro- Don Smith 8c Two of GSU's gram. His broadcasting career be- gan at WSFB Radio in Quitman, and, later, he joined WXIA-TV in At- lanta in the production Department as a film and drama critic. Subse- Most Distinguished quently, he was promoted to week- end news producer, li p.m. news producer, 6 p.m. news producer and executive news producer. He produced the pilot show for TV5's PM Magazine and was appointed executive program producer. ln addition to winning dozens of awards from Associated Press, United Press International, Sigma Delta Chi Journalism Fraternity, Re- ligion in Media, and the New York Film and Television Festival, Don has won fifteen Emmy's from the Atlanta Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. For Paradise Saved, a special about Cumberland lsland, he won the George Foster Peabody Award, broadcasting's most presti- gious honor. Don is a member of Sigma Delta Chi, and almost every museum that gives a discount to members. He's also president of the Atlanta Chap- ter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. 28fStude nt Life

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known affectionately to students as the Bite and Die, the natural result was pre- made hamburgers that would alleviate some of the crowding and frustration dur- ing the peak hours such as lunch or dinner. Hamburgers could be made at dawn and kept warm until they were actually con- sumed by the unsuspecting student or fac- ulty member. What could not be foreseen by the inventor was that the bread would stick to the patty, creating a rather unap- petizing mess that would have to be surgi- cally corrected before the application of condiments such as ketchup, mustard and pickles. Hamburgers, that would probably taste pretty good in spite of the fact that they are prepackaged and frozen, became the object of derision and the focal point of questions concerning the applicability of the words, bon appetit. Certainly, the originators of this particu- lar form of torture were thinking, What can you really do to a hamburger, anyway? lf you undercook it, you have Steak Tar- tare and that's gourmet. lf you overcook it, you have a hockey puck and that's athle- tic. How can you go wrong? That concept was probably right on the money. The average student would rather slog down a drawerburger anyway, than to stand in line and miss part of the soap opera on the televisions in the student lounge. After all, what is food compared to the next installment of Does the Planet Revolve? ls missing a half hour of heavy breathing and impossible social situations worth waiting for a quarter pound of choice sirloin? Never! If the weather is nice, your GPA fGrade Point Average for the uninitiatedl is up, and you are into a warm relationship with the person of your dreams, what do you have to complain about? You got it institutional food. We realize that it isn't like the meals that Momma serves up, un- less, of course, you live at a fast food joint. Then you might have some basis for com- parison. Georgia State is no different from any other place that has a cafeteria serving thousands of people each day. The focus for student complaint has al- ways been, and is likely always to be, the Drawerburger. When THE SIGNAL ran a contest listing a free drawerburger as the prize, students ignored the contest en masse. Nothing could tempt them to at- tend the basketball games that year and certainly nothing could tempt them into eating a drawerburger. The concept was a failure, no matter how you looked at it and the project was not revived the next sea- son, Drawerburgers will live in the hearts and ulcers of GSU graduates forever. For those who have never tried them, they will re- main a legend. For those foolhardy enough to have actually consumed one, these sta- ples of campus life will remain high on the list of memorable moments. Either way, the beef patty has it. . ,.,.-,. . . i..,...,,,,,,. vi I K dl ws' x xx ,an Photos by S Tilghman 22 .- P . I U, .5.?4 f'3 'f cas' if T I ' Y' .'- X , K ' 1 L-Q': l. ' ' V' Fd ' .. - .' ' . rl bf V A-,lr . t i '- J - 'E I' ... -' 3 ' ,,g,,.A,-X . -- -V -X27 1 . ', 2 of ?n .ill I I h J 1 A X '1 1, Student l.ifeef27

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Richard elcher Alumni in the World of Broadcasting ichard Belcher is a graduate of Georgia State University where he received his BBA degree in mar- keting. Prior to joining TV5's news organization, he worked as a report- er for a year at WGST Radio, Atlan- ta, and two-and-a-half years at WXIA-TV, Atlanta. He is married to the former Stephanie Mewborn of Clarkesville, Georgia, and has two daughters. He enjoys tennis and basketball. Belcher is known to WAGA-TV5 viewers for a string of major stories that span a decade. Among them are breaking the story of wide- spread cheating on Atlanta police promotional examinations, which led seven months later to the firing of the public safety commissioner, coverage of the disappearance and murders of thirty Black youths in Atlanta and the subsequent two- month murder trial of Wayne Wil- liams, and investigative projects fo- cusing onthe National Guard, local anti-poverty and housing programs, and the failure of a local prosecutor to take action on drunk driving cases. A ten-year veteran of the WAGA- TV5 news staff, he is one of the South's leading reporters, having won every major journalism compe- tition in the state including a nation- al Radio and Television News Direc- tors Association Award for cover- age of the Atlanta Missing and Mur- dered Children tragedies, and nu- merous Sigma Delta Chi fprofes- sional journalism fraternityj awards in its annual thirteen state regional competition. ln addition to two Emmys for in- vestigative reporting, he has won nine awards for reporting excel- lence from the Georgia Associated Press Broadcasters Association, four from the Georgia Llnited Press Broadcasters Association, four Sil- ver Gavel Awards from the State Bar of Georgia, and numerous hon- ors from the Atlanta Bar Associ- ation and other organizations awarding journalists. WAGA-TV News Director Jack Frazier said, Belcher is probably the best investigative reporter in the South. What makes Belcher so effective, according to Frazier, is that Belcher has lived here all of his life, was educated here and his work reflects the genuine concern he feels for the community. Student l. fef29