Cloaked in cardinal and gold, USC celebrated its 125th anniversary Oct. 6 with a convivial mix of speeches, picnics, performances and a grand birthday cake.

Thousands of students, parents, alumni, faculty, staff and neighbors helped the university mark the milestone by attending myriad events during the first of a four-day celebration.

A Festival 125 pavilion and center stage stood in Hahn Plaza, where exhibits, booths, videos and artifacts illustrated the anniversary’s twin themes “Inventing the Future, Honoring the Past.”

An academic convocation kicked off the festivities, with the USC School of Theatre and the USC Thornton Jazz Orchestra, led by conductor Shelton Berg, launching a program of speeches, faculty presentations and a celebratory salute to the Trojan Family.

USC President Steven B. Sample, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, USC Provost C. L. Max Nikias and four professors spoke about the future and the past, topics represented by the anniversary theme.

Sample said that although USC is in its infancy compared to many institutions, it has come a long distance in a short time.

“Over the last 125 years, USC has proven that chronology is not destiny,” he said. “Thanks to people such as you, USC has come farther faster than any other research university in history. And, as you will see today, we are well on our way to becoming a pacesetter for universities around the world.”

Villaraigosa talked about USC’s commitment to Los Angeles: “I want to say how lucky we all are to live in a city with a research university like USC. There is no university that has played such an important role in the lives of its residents. You can take my word on that, because I graduated from the school down the street,” he said, referring to UCLA.

“You don’t have to be a Trojan to respect USC’s uncompromising commitment to Los Angeles.”

Nikias said the university has looked to the future from the beginning when its founders “saw a land of vast potential.”

“At USC we invent the future by combining timely innovation with timeless values,” he said. “Our faculty performs work that is relevant, that leads to breakthroughs.”

In addition, Maja J. Mataric, associate professor of computer science in the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, spoke about artificial intelligence; William Deverell, professor of history in the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, talked about Los Angeles and USC growing up together; Donald B. Kohn, professor of pediatrics and microbiology in the Keck School of Medicine of USC, discussed stem cell research; and Hilary M. Schor, professor of English in the College, talked about the essence of the university.

The program ended with music by the Fresh Start Community Choir and the USC School of Theatre.

As the large crowd filed out, it heard the sounds of USC’s Marching Band prior to a spectacular, Hollywood-style cutting of the birthday cake and a picnic in Alumni Park.