University of Texas Austin - Cactus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

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Summer Issues Burn Every summer passes by too quickly and 1977 ' s was no exception. No sooner had graduation taken place than did thou- sands of summer school students and orientees arrive on campus. Classes started on June 1, and to fill in the time not spent in class or at the lake, the Texas Union offered noncredit classes. While many students were either vaca- tioning, working or going to summer school, Austin hjayor Carole McClellan had to face proble ns dealing with energy, the budget and housing. Mayor McClellan fought in favor of the Fair Housing Ordinance which in its revised form declared that housing cannot be denied to anyone on the basis of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, physical handicap or religion. The Austin Board of Realtors endorsed McClellan ' s version which was passed on Aug. 25. Controversy cropped up in Dade County, Fla. surrounding a vote on homo- sexual rights. Anita Bryant, the Florida orange juice queen led a vigorous cam- paign to have the present laws repealed. With the results of the voting tabulated, the gays lost their battle by a 2-1 margin. Although Bryant lost some popularity, she continued doing her commercials. Juice makers said she could continue unless they noticed a decline in orange juice sales. Students returning to Austin during the summer were somewhat shocked and sur- prised to find that Nothing Strikes Back, the popular ice cream parlor had closed. High bills and ambivalent attitudes of the owners led to its doors closing. The shop was opened in 1972 and was decorated by black light posters while paint was splat- tered on the walls, floor and ceiling. Black lights provided all illumination. A watchful eye was kept on Texas Will Van Overbeek H . H Elvis pauses in the midst of his S.R.O. concert in Austin last spring. Supreme Court Justice Don Yarbrough who was indicted for forgery and perjury and released on $5,000 bond. Yarbrough, who defeated several write-in candidates in the previous election, confessed making a mistake, but stated he felt forgiven. Although he said he had no intention of resigning, he gave up his fight on July 15. Outlaw Blues starring Peter Fonda and Susan St. James and filmed in Austin during spring, 1977, opened with medio- cre reviews. Many Austinites, especially those living in the UT area went to see if they could catch a glimpse of themselves. Meanwhile, at the Kent State campus in Ohio, disturbances arose when officials wanted a gymnasium built on the sight where four students were killed by National Guardsmen on May 4, 1970. The opposition group, known as the May Fourth Coalition erected a tent city in protest of the proposed gymnasium. A judge issued an injunction to halt con- struction after 194 group members were arrested. At The University of Texas, several appeals were made and protests were staged, but students had more to do with summer activities and school. One activity which almost came to a standstill was swimming at Hippie Hol- low. On July 19, a resident of Comanche Trail filed suit to close the popular skinny- dipping resort. The suit filed against the Lower Colorado River Authority cited such things as nudity, lewdness, litter and drug abuse as problems and urged the area closed until rules could be drawn up to control the problems. According to Sheriff Raymond Frank, no changes were made in policy towards the swimmers as long as they were within the swimming area. An injunction to close the area was denied while the plaintiffs continued to attempt to improve conditions. The Board of Regents appointed E. D. Don Walker as president of The Uni- versity System and chief operations offi- cer. Walker had been running the day-to- day operations of The University System since last year when he was appointed Deputy Chancellor. Walker ' s new posi- tion brought a broad range of powers. Walker may now recommend changes in Regent ' s Rules and Regulations. Many women in the Austin area lived in fear during the summer as the man who became known as the Choker-rapist was roaming the city. The victims, after being approached, were choked by an electrical cord and raped. Over a four- month span, the Choker attacked 10 women: nine of them were University stu- dents. Thomas Earl Grettenburg was later 20 Summer Feature

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. Longhorn hysteria prevailed in the fall as the Texas football team conquered team after team. In a compromise decision, the Board of Regents preserved one of three buildings of the historic Little Campus; the 17,000 seat Special Events Center attracted big names like John Denver and the Beach Boys.

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apprehended, tried and found guilty of a rape which was committed in mid-August. He was given a 33-year prison sentence. The University community as well as the rest of the city was saddened to hear of the death of Elvis Aron Presley on Aug. 16. Memories of his S.R.O. concert held in Municipal Auditorium last spring lingered in the minds of many fans. Although Elvis did not invent rock ' n roll, he did innovate a style and tone that many subsequent groups and singers reflected. He was rock ' s first and most important icon, prov- ing to young people that they had their own music and mode of living. Throughout the rest of the summer, work continued on the Special Events Center and the Perry-Castaneda Library. The $29 million SEC, which seats approximately 17,000, opened for the first home basketball game on Nov. 29. When bleachers had been used in Gregory Gym, only 8.000 fans were able to be seated. Construction on the PCL was finished and the new Library opened on the first day of classes. At a cost of $22 million, the library vaguely resembles the shape of the state of Texas and can store 3,250,000 vol- umes in its 70 miles of stacks. A Comanche Trail resident tried unsuccessfully to close Hippie Hollow, citing litter and nudity as reasons. Nothing Strikes Back ice cream parlor was a popular hang-out for students until its closing June 20, due to ambivalent attitudes of the owners. Summer Feature 2 1