Notable Memories

Ceramics were being fired and baked in a brick kiln over on the grass.

At one happening, a four-piece rock band was playing Led Zeppelin “Immigrant Song” very well. The lead singer was wailing, and bassist was playing ascending sixteenth notes with dexterity sounding as good as the original album, maybe better.

The art history class used slides to teach about famous paintings and they often left the door open in the hallway. I could see the presentation on the screen, but at that time was not much interested in painting.

The Media Department had an advanced fleet of movie cameras and I was able to learn every button, control, and function on them. Never run the camera at 54 frames-per-sec, slow motion, without a roll of film in it. You might break the motor. These cameras were incredible tools for someone studying film. I took one to the Renaissance Festival with a tripod and just filmed all the stock I had. A pro newsman asked if I wanted to trade as he was carrying a 40-pound video camera while I skipped around with my potent little rig.

We had teachers like John Brooks who once warned us of the dangers of handling optics and cameras with “frito hands.” For me, he was like a guide and tool in the order of a magnetic compass.

Pat Coakley told us that he thought pens and ink wells were a good idea because it allowed the writer time to think while he was dipping his point.

The army set up a recruitment booth across the street at HCC to lure High school-ers. Tim Guinee, from Drama, found an army helmet and some kind of a wooden rifle and was standing guard duty at the entrance to our campus. It was the funniest thing I saw when walking through that area when he told me, “Halt! You got a pass?”

Glenn Mondshine
1981 Media