During my first year at Penn State when I was living in Pinchot Hall, I encountered a lot of different kinds of people. For example, there was Tom, a third year Pre-Med major. Tom was, how shall I say this, a terrifically good-looking fellow, smart as a whip, and just a genuinely all-round nice guy. … Continue reading The Pre-Med Major
Penn State
The Gift of the Kiln
I was trying to remember the name of the instructor of that play writing course, and I’m pretty sure it was Mark Berman, at least that’s the first name that popped into my head. Somewhere, I’m sure, I have a copy of an assignment with his name on it, but I can’t find any right … Continue reading The Gift of the Kiln
7 Up
I wrote before about the playwriting course that I took during my first year at Penn State. And here’s the thing: I’m pretty sure that I can remember each of the other students who were in that course, eight of us altogether, all of the others Theatre Arts majors naturally, although I can’t recall any … Continue reading 7 Up
Some Acquaintance Should Be Forgot
Mike Bibbo was another freshman who lived on the tenth floor of Pinchot Hall during my first year at Penn State. Imagine all the worst negative clichés of a frat boy and you’ll probably come pretty close to picturing Mike Bibbo. Because he was very tall and thin, someone gave him the nickname “Dildo”, but … Continue reading Some Acquaintance Should Be Forgot
Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot? — Part 4
For my fourth and abortive final year at Penn State I moved off campus to the Southgate townhouse apartments with Carl, Terry, and Perry. Our next door neighbors were three fellows from Philadelphia: Gary, Dickie, and Howie. Good fellows all of them, but it was Howard Fatell that I became especially friendly with. Well, … Continue reading Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot? — Part 4
Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot? — Part 3
One of the first friends I made at Penn State was Mike Carr, a fellow freshman who hailed from the Pittsburgh area. Mike and I shared an interest in theater; in fact, he had played El Gallo in his high school production of The Fantasticks, a production in which the word “rape” had been changed … Continue reading Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot? — Part 3
The Drinking Incident
The envelope was addressed to Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Troutman with a return address of the administration offices of the Pennsylvania State University. My mother tore open the envelope and read: Dear Mr. and Mrs. Troutman: This is to inform you that your son, James, was recently involved in a drinking incident in his dormitory… … Continue reading The Drinking Incident
Diane and Bryce
It was during the first term of my second year at Penn State and I was going to one of Tim and Ed’s Saturday night parties. Tim Toward of Tower City (that’s easy to remember, right?), a Pre-Med major, and Ed Stutz of New Philadelphia, majoring in History. I had met them the previous year … Continue reading Diane and Bryce
Paper Scissors Rock
Sometime during my second year at Penn State, probably during spring term but I’m not really certain, I took a poetry writing course. “What’s that?” I hear you say. “Why did you take a poetry writing course? I thought you didn’t like poetry.” That’s true. I’m not particularly a fan of poetry, and I have … Continue reading Paper Scissors Rock
The One With the Asimov Post Card
About five years after I spoke to Isaac Asimov on the phone, I sent him a fan letter. I was now living in State College, PA, and the previous year, in April 1970, Dr. Asimov had made an appearance on the Penn State campus to speak at Schwab Auditorium about a week before the first … Continue reading The One With the Asimov Post Card