Montana State University Bozeman - Montanan Yearbook (Bozeman, MT)

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I had no idea. You have to have grades but you have to be a kind of willing, active person and I had no idea. I was completely floored when my name was called. I was going with the brother of the president of the Spurs at that time and I got back [to Hamilton Hall] and there were a dozen red roses in the dorm. You know this happening to a freshman, it was wonderful. Not the dozen red roses but that I was elected a Spur. MONTANAN: How many Spurs were selected? JOHNSON: Twenty-two. MONTANAN: Which movie theatres were open then? JOHNSON: The Ellen and then the one across the street. MONTANAN: The Rialto. JOHNSON: Uh-huh. off and on the Rialto was going. [It was] way down town, how far. about a mile and a half. There wasn't such a thing as a coke except down there. There wasn't a cafeteria on campus. Not even anything near it. The Baxter Hotel and the Bungalow were about the only places. MONTANAN: What kinds of movies were showing? JOHNSON: Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Janet McDonald. MONTANAN: What were some of the popular singers and hit songs? JOHNSON: Bing Crosby, big bands. One came to Great Falls when I was a sophomore. Mother let me go up and visit. A big band (trying to recall the name) name some of them. MONTANAN: Tommy Dorsey. JOHNSON: No MONTANAN: Glenn Miller, I know it couldn't have been Glenn Miller. JOHNSON: (After going through some old scrapbooks) I just threw away all the Dance Club letters, all the letters and all the things. If I don’t have them in my head I haven't got them. The one I’m thinking of was the same name as a football coach. Who was the big man in Bart Starr's.. .Green Bay Packers? Well, somebody will remember. MONTANAN: Who played at the local school dances? JOHNSON: We had some really good dance bands like Harlan Bixby's and Dick Nelson's [they were the piano players and like all the others, for example Benny Goodman and Wayne King, were just named after the leader]. MONTANAN: They were all students? JOHNSON: Yes. MONTANAN: And they played at all the dances? JOHNSON: Ah-huh MONTANAN: Was the money situation pretty tight for most of the students? JOHNSON: It's sort of hard to realize that how material things ... there weren't any. Our clothes we made or we didn't have too many. I went with a boy who never had a suit when I was a freshman but he was a tremendous artist, and I'd get the nicest pictures, fun things and you didn't have to have money to have a good time, cup of coffee or a picnic. I wonder what ever happened to him. Firesides didn't cost anything and dances, marvelous dances. It was too small, it was kind of like everybody against the world. I really enjoyed my college years, very, very much. The band was Guy Lombardo's.

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3 MONTANAN: What was it like as a Spur in those days? JOHNSON: I think that one of the most traumatic experiences in college was the fact that my roommate and I, shortly before women's day... we got to talking as roommates do and she said “if I don't become a Spur I’m going to be completely crushed . And I had never even thought about being a Spur. You know. So along came the announcement and my name was [called]. So I was elected and I nearly fainted because 8

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1979 MONTANAN MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY CONTENTS 13 EVERYDAY LIFE 61 SPECIAL EVENTS 93 GREEKS 135 DORM LIFE 183 GROUPS 221 SPORTS 267 SENIORS 301 INDEX RAY ROBISON, Editor DONNA ZOOK, Photo Editor RANDY BOSCHEE, Managing Editor SCOTT WARWOOD, Business Manager STEVE HICKMAN, Sales Manager MIKE MCCARTHY, Assistant Photo Editor Published by the Associated Students of Montana State University All Rights Reserved Robison