Prostrate with Laughter
As a USC MBA holder, a member of SPELL (Society for the Preservation of English Language and Literature) and a six-year survivor of prostate cancer, I had to laugh at a typo in a statement in the article “Attacking Diabetes” (Summer 2001, p. 23)
You stated: “It is the most-diagnosed disease in the country, with more new cases than prostrate, breast, colon and lung cancers combined.”It should have read “prostate.” I guess spell checkers just can’t do the job completely.


Walter B. Kerr MBA ’72
Murphy, NC

Prized Pupils
The timeline you published in the summer USC Trojan Family Magazine about the university’s accomplishments in the past decade (“Decade of Distinction,” p. 40) was well worth reading, but it missed some of the student accomplishments which have brought us greater national and international visibility.
During the past dozen years, USC students have been increasingly successful in winning major national and international fellowships such as Rhodes, Marshall, Fulbright, Luce, Rotary and others.
In competing for 32 American Rhodes Scholarships annually, USC students won none from 1939 until 1966, when James O’Toole, later a distinguished USC business professor, won a Rhodes Scholarship; and 1975, when Patrick C. Haden, a lawyer who is now a USC trustee, won this scholarship to study at the University of Oxford.
But in the last 12 years, three USC students have won Rhodes Scholarships. Two were brilliant women from LAS – in 1989, international relations major Holly Wyatt; in 1990, Tara Silvestri, now the Kansas Rhodes Scholarship secretary and a classics professor at the University of Kansas. Then, in 1995, engineering major Desmond Koh won a Rhodes Scholarship; he now lives in Singapore.
In competition for the 40 Marshall Scholarships awarded annually, in the past half century only one USC student won such a scholarship. Then in 1991, Andrew Oros won a Marshall to study in England, and in 2000, Jacob Chacko, that year’s witty USC valedictorian, won a Marshall on which he now studies at Oxford.
Our outstanding students are ever more successful in competing for these scholarships, other major national awards and entrance to the world’s top graduate schools in every field. They deserve our applause.


Bryce Nelson
Professor of Journalism
campus

Many thanks to Professor Nelson, who chairs the USC Advisory Committee on National and International Graduate Fellowships, for the detailed description of USC’s prizewinning graduates. Although it proved extremely difficult to include all of USC’s accomplishments in our limited space, careful readers will find that we did indeed cite Desmond Koh’s 1995 Rhodes Scholarship, the third awarded to a USC student in just six years (p. 42).

Urban Legend
Thanks for the article on Mr. Jon Jerde, architect extraordinaire (Summer 2001, “Urban Legend,” p. 30). Mr. Jerde’s whole language of placemaking, heartmaking, communal experience and pluralism is the poetry in architecture of our architectural age. It is wonderful to see such vibrant, well-designed projects. As an architecture alum, I am more than happy to see Mr. Jerde in USC Trojan Family Magazine, an article long overdue. I am sure the present students, as well as faculty, will have a blast with him as a contributing design architect in the studio classroom.
Bravo, and grazie!

Nancy Harper ’85
Las Cruces, NM

McKay, the Player
John McKay gone! We hardly knew him. But I remember him before he coached USC football. In the 1948 season McKay was a halfback for the University of Oregon, playing against our varsity that had Jim Powers, John Ferraro and coach Jeff Cravath. We won the game that day, but McKay was a workhorse, carrying the ball many times. He showed endurance, determination, and he taught these traits of character to his players while coaching ’SC to four national titles.

Morris Schulatsky ’50
Los Angeles, CA

Our tribute to John McKay begins on page 26; an obituary of John Ferraro is on page 78.

Trojan Memories
In the 1940s I used to walk the campus of USC. I lived about a mile away, near Exposition and Western. I went to Foshay Jr. High School and then to Manual Arts (late 1940s and early 1950s). My mother went to USC, and a family friend went to USC in the early 1950s. I made a promise to myself that I would also go to USC.
My first two years at college were at Los Angeles Community College. Afterward, I got a scholarship to USC. It was 1956 and I was able to save the cost of $19 per unit. I got my B.S., M.B.A. and a teaching credential from and through USC. It was a dream come true. My mother started her education in the 1920s. She finished her USC degree in 1957. My sister got her USC degree in 1963. I have been a member of the Alumni Association in the schools of Education and Business.
I bring my college classes (that I teach at Los Angeles Trade Technical College) to USC. Now in my mid 60s, I continually visit the USC campus.
As you can see, USC has surrounded my life. This has been a blessing.

Timothy B. Taylor ’81
San Diego, CA


It was so sad to see the name Beatrice Perham Krone in the obituaries (Spring 2001, p. 70). It brought back so many memories.
Mrs. Krone was my music teacher at USC. She was a fantastic person. She must have taught us a hundred songs we could use with our classes. I used them for 40 years in my classroom.
One day Mrs. Krone asked us if we would like to learn how to conduct. All of us thought that was a great idea. She asked her husband to come and teach us. He was dean of the USC music department. He was also a conductor. We had a great time. He was just as good as his wife. This all happened over 50 years ago.

William E. Buckley ’50
Lakewood, CA

I very much enjoy your magazine. It truly has become an excellent read during the past several years, particularly the occasional article that takes me back to my time at the university, during the late ’40s.
With a view toward encouraging the inclusion of more articles recalling the past, I am enclosing a copy of the October 25, 1951 Daily Trojan, with a picture of ’SCs defensive team a week after they had upset the unbeaten Cal Bears at Berkeley. Cal boasted Johnny Olszewski on offense and the great Les Richter on defense. ’SC had its own in the form of Frank Gifford on offense and Pat Cannamela on defense, who took Johnny “O” out of the game. This was the biggest upset for ’SC since the 16-14 win over Notre Dame in South Bend, of Rockne’s last team before his untimely death. And it would be another decade or so before ’SC pulled off a comparable upset with Craig Fertig and Rod Sherman coming back from being down, 17-0 halftime, to beat Notre Dame in 1964.
Or, you might review the 55-24 win over Notre Dame during the Pat Haden years… that is one to savor.

Lawrence Guild ’50
Punta Gorda, FL

Notice Board

The Trojan Marching Band invites all of its tuba and percussion alumni to march in the halftime show of the 2001 Homecoming game vs. Oregon State on Nov. 3. All Band alumni, regardless of instrument, are invited to join the current band for the post-game concert on field.
If you marched in the band at any time during your time at USC, please call the Band Office at (213) 740-6317 to insure that you will receive the information for this and other great Band events!

Hugh Milstein ’88 and Troy Wollwage ’91
Campus

As part of the USC History Project, the USC Alumni Association encourages alumni and friends to donate their USC “archives” back to the university.
We are particularly looking for photographs, sketches, layouts etc. of Widney Alumni House. It is our goal to display some of the more interesting items in the Alumni House on a permanent basis.
If you have any materials (such as yearbooks, programs, pictures etc.) that you would like to donate, please contact Kristy Swanson at the USC Alumni Association, (213) 740-2301.

Gerald S. Papazian ’77
USC Alumni Association
campus

 
Previous Last Word Answers
We welcome letters from readers, although we do reserve the right to select and edit for space. Send letters to:

Mailbag, c/o USC Trojan Family Magazine, University of Southern California,
Los Angeles, CA 90089-2538, fax: (213) 821-1100

And of course, by e-mail at magazines@usc.edu