Queens College - Silhouette Yearbook (Queens, NY)

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The Crown issue of that week was devoted to news of college mobilization, pledges of service and equipment, and President Klap- per's request that we go on as before, pending authoritative Hdirection to our effort. The same issue carried the story of the appointment of the Queens College Scholars. They were Stanley Birnbaum, Alberta Friedman, Helga Henrichsen, Lillian Lari, Mike Santopolo, Larry Smirlock, and Diana Zingher. Most of us registered for civilian defense work, some enlisted in the army or navy, only slowly did the college go back to routine. Registration in February was a joy. Hardly any classes closed out, hardly any classes to take, seniors contented themselves with putting in an appearance at school now and again merely for the principle of the thing. The first major event on the social calendar was the senior class party, where the gals bought their escorts at so much a foot . . . demonstrating the inferiority of quantitative to qualitative analysis. Queens went on a three year schedule. Wouldn't you know it would be in our senior year? Inflation threatened in the form of a Crown price rise, a listening post gave an excuse for the people in Mr. Knag's office to listen to the radio all day, the SAO held a dance i for the USO Qtickets sold CODQ , the Insti- tute series were postponed, defense lectures and courses began, Kathleen McGreevy became the Crown's Victory Book Campaign Girl, and Queens College pledged itself to buy a thousand dollar defense bond, the Dean announced a C average as a prerequisite for graduation, after our graduation. Looking back, it seems C's didn't grow on trees. Looking back it seems maybe good times, nice teachers, good-egg students did. We Wonlt forget the classes on the campus, torn up grounds, the figures of Tommy Gilmartin, and Rascal, who went to as many or more classes than we did, the mirage-like towers of New York silhouetted 60

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college resembled nothing so much as the waiting room of a maternity hospital while the fate of the Brooklyn Bums hung in delicate balance. The men working in front of the administration building had a gay good time moving the road back and forth as the spirit moved them, though nothing seemed to move them very much. For months catching the orange bus was like a 440 dash over hurdles. The Playshop pro- duced Bird in Hand, and The Fan, the latter giving Ambrose Gariano a chance to strut his stuff which he made the most of. Gabby Fontrier made with the famous Jabberwocky, and Mary Innes and Sol Berkowitz gave out with music they thought up out of their own little heads. All of which had the net result of bringing down the house. A national defense theme made no considerable difference to collegiate life. College radio programs were orientated around the theme of consumer problems, and under the guidance of Dr. Persia Campbell the first consumer conference, gathering together local captains of industry, was held. People stopped forgetting to pick up their Times or Tribune in the morning, but all in all, no one was sufficiently upset to be prevented from having a wonderful time at the Winter Wonderland Dance that Milt Matthews and Bob Peterson worked over. This was Friday, December 5. Monday morning was traditionally reserved for a detailed discussion of who came with whom, what was worn, what he said, and the ways of a man with a maid. But these locker room conferences hit a snag. On Monday morning there was everywhere one topic of conversa- tion, one theme of thought, one frame of mind. The attack on Pearl Harbor knocked everything else from our minds, and to a man the college gathered about radios to hear Presidenti,Roosevelt's address, a declaration of war on japan. On Tuesday student representatives gathered for a Defense Rally in the auditorium, and outside many more stood to listen to an address over the P.A. systems, by Dr. Klapper and Dean Kiely. The full implications of what was happening hit home with a bang when Dr. Klapper interrupted the Dean's talk to ask stu- dents to take all your belongings and go home. At first we thought it was a joke, but the concluding - and may God be with you was too convincing. Quietly and quickly the students obeyed. Doubling up in cars, running for buses, thumbing rides down by the gate, every person in the school was off the grounds in fifteen minutes. 59

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M r. Kicfuzer, AI r. H a 11 11, and M iss Slazfin being gay al tlzc Class Party. against the sky, the visits of alumni, of students who transferred, of boys in uniform, the exclamations over news of engagements, and jobs, and weddings, and babies. We Won't forget four years of Widening experience, enriched growth, Wiser maturity. We w0n't forget Queens College, and the Class of june '42, Class affiffrs: Alargrf Collins, Tom lVial1'r, Alike Saalojnolo, Lil- lian I.ari, Al IValll11'r.