January – 2011 – Blog Down to Washington | Stories & Conversations about the University of Washington

Archives: January, 2011

January 11, 2011 | Meet

UW alum Michael Druxman revisits Hollywood in memoir

By Derek Belt

UW alum Michael Druxman revisits Hollywood in new book When Seattle hosted the 1962 World’s Fair, Elvis Presley traveled to the Pacific Northwest to film “It Happened at the World’s Fair,” a musical about cropdusting buddies lost in gambling debt. Michael B. Druxman, a UW student at the time, wanted to be part of it.

Druxman went to the filming not for the experience as an extra, not for the $10 and a box lunch, but because he wanted to pick himself out on the big screen. Of course, the only way he could do that is if he got close enough to the film’s star. The director put him at the back of the scene, but young Druxman inched his way toward the front. As he sidled up next to Elvis and struck up a casual conversation, the assistant director stepped in and said, “You don’t talk to Elvis.” So to the back of the set he went. For the moment.

If you see the movie today, you can spot Druxman in the scene where a little boy (ironically, Kurt Russell) kicks Elvis in the shin. Druxman’s there in background, walking from one side to the other. Hi, Mom!

My Forty-Five Years in Hollywood and How I Escaped Alive is Druxman’s memoir. Beginning with his boyhood in Seattle, it follows him to Los Angeles where, without any show business contacts whatsoever, he creates a successful career for himself as a publicist, playwright, screenwriter, director and Hollywood historian. From Jimmy Durante and Elvis Presley to Jack Lemmon and Cary Grant, the book is filled with amusing stories of Druxman’s life in Hollywood.

Watch the book’s video trailer on YouTube.

UW’s Nancy Pearl is 2011 Librarian of the Year

By Derek Belt

UW's Nancy Pearl is the 2011 Librarian of the Year University of Washington iSchool faculty Nancy Pearl is the 2011 Librarian of the Year, a prestigious honor given out by Library Journal, which has tracked library activities for 133 years.

Pearl, who teaches at UW despite retiring from the library system in 2004, was honored Jan. 7 in San Diego at the midwinter conference of The American Library Association. Read the full story from the Seattle Times.

Winner of a Washington Humanities Award and the author of four books, including her latest “Book Lust To Go: Recommended Reading for Travelers, Vagabonds and Dreamers,” Pearl previously served as executive director of the Seattle Public Library’s Washington Center for the Book, and founded the “If All Seattle Reads the Same Book” program.

She was also the model for an action figure put out by legendary Seattle retailer Archie McPhee. It looks just like her. Pearl also starred in the now-famous Lady Gaga spoof produced by UW Libraries. She makes a cameo at the 1:32 mark.

Congratulations, Nancy, on a job well done!

Now, on to this week’s Dawg Treats:

What if the Internet had a delete button, so a future boss or mother-in-law was never able to see that photo of you wearing a garbage-can hat on New Year’s Eve or read a teenage status update about illicit drug use? UW researcher Tadayoshi Kohno is working on a program to do just that.
Husky play-by-play announcer Bob Rondeau was named Washington state’s Sportscaster of the Year for the eighth time. Read a feature story on Rondeau from the Columns archives.
UW alum Assunta Ng, founder and publisher of the Seattle Chinese Post and Northwest Asian Weekly, is the 2011 recipient of the University of Washington’s Charles E. Odegaard Award. Ng has devoted her life to promoting and mentoring women and youth.
Read more…

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January 7, 2011 | Learn, Meet

Movie magic: UW alums make hit documentary

Graduate from college. Form a production company. Premiere films at some of the biggest festivals in the world. Sounds like a dream children have as they picture growing up, right? For Travis Senger, this dream is reality.

After graduating from the University of Washington in 2005 with a degree in creative writing and drama, Senger went on to direct films and produce them with fellow UW alum Michael J. Mouncer. Together, they founded Lincoln Leopard Films. Their most recent work is White Lines and the Fever: The Death of DJ Junebug, an award-winning documentary on the life and death of the famous Bronx DJ from the 1980s.

With a Short Film Competition Special Jury Award at the Seattle International Film Festival, a Special Jury Prize at South by Southwest (SXSW) and the win of Best Documentary Short at the Tribeca Film Festival in Lower Manhattan, White Lines has definitely made an impact.

In addition to the White Lines documentary, Senger’s team has produced a Sesame Street look-alike music video and a Seattle-based sci-fi short film.

The Great Rose Bowl Hoax of 1961 – Fifty years later

By Derek Belt

Fifty years ago, a group of pesky Cal-Tech students hijacked the University of Washington’s halftime “flip-card” stunt in a Rose Bowl prank for the ages.

The Los Angeles Times tells the story of Lyn Hardy, the ringleader behind one of the greatest college football stunts of all time. UW fans on one side of the stadium were given flip cards that were supposed to spell out “WASHINGTON” but instead read “CALTECH.” It’s a marvelous tale, and you can read the full story here.

Hardy, now 69, says he learned how the stunt worked from UW cheerleaders. Upon learning the Husky Marching Band and Cheer Squad were staying at Long Beach State dormitories, Hardy—a Cal-Tech junior at the time—posed as a reporter for the Dorsey High student newspaper and walked right in. When everyone left for dinner, Hardy and another of Cal-Tech’s legendary “Fiendish 14″ swiped a card-stunt instruction book and headed back to Pasadena, where they made some 2,400 copies.

Jack Briggs, Washington’s 1961 student body president, said at the time that the prank was “not in the best of taste.” Fifty years later, though, it’s still a classic.

Of course, Washington beat top-ranked Minnesota that day 17-7.

Enjoy this week’s Dawg Treats:

UW alum Nick Handy is departing his post as Washington’s state elections director after leading widely praised reform efforts that have boosted voter turnout.
A study by UW researcher Daryl Haggard explores the future of the Milky Way’s central black hole.
UW students win $40,000 to help make water safe to drink.
Former UW President Mark Emmert, now the head of the NCAA, is profiled in this piece by the New York Times. The story focuses on overseeing integrity and the threat of income in college sports.
Read more…

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January 4, 2011 | Act, Learn, Membership

A new year means new stories for UW alumni

By Derek Belt

For me, New Year’s Eve is a big disappointment. Unlike Thanksgiving—in which I expect a big meal and get more that I hoped for—expecations are rarely met on the last night of the calendar year. Hopes are high. The reality is a bit different.

The one thing New Year’s Eve has going for it, however, are the resolutions. I love New Year’s resolutions. Some people hate them, but I look at these as a chance to set goals and start fresh. For example, when I was 13 I wanted to play less video games. My resolution was to find other ways to be creative. Believe it or not, that’s how I started writing.

This year, one of my resolutions is to better connect this blog with the values we all share as UW supporters. That means telling more stories, meeting more graduates, and defining the value of a UW Alumni Association membership. And just like former Husky star Tim Lincecum on the cover of Sports Illustrated, we’re going to be all smiles in 2011.

Did you know there are more UWAA members than UW students? More than 50,000 alumni make this organization one of the nation’s biggest and best, and I’m committed to telling those stories in new and exciting ways. My goal is to show you the value of staying connected to the University of Washington. That’s my resolution, and I’m excited about the prospects.

Happy New Year, Huskies! Let’s make it a great one.

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Archives: January, 2011

UW alum Michael Druxman revisits Hollywood in memoir

UW’s Nancy Pearl is 2011 Librarian of the Year

Movie magic: UW alums make hit documentary

The Great Rose Bowl Hoax of 1961 – Fifty years later

A new year means new stories for UW alumni

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