Class Notes: May/June 2023
By John M. PinneyDespite the unseasonably mild winter in Maryland, after a two-year absence due to COVID, Donna and I resumed our custom of escaping to Mexico for several weeks. We’ll be home in a few days, eagerly anticipating the departure of the geese.
The ’65 Zoom team continues on a roll with an excellent program in February that featured Dr. Beverly Gage, professor of history at Yale. Her topic “G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century” gave a fascinating look at how Hoover influenced federal law enforcement and domestic intelligence activities today, and how the FBI reflects his personality, character, and personal views. The session was ably facilitated by classmates Bill Cole, who spent a major portion of his career at the Justice Department, and Bob Spiel, a veteran of more than 20 years as an FBI special agent. The March program featured a discussion close to home for those of us with joint replacements: “Major Surgery in Older Adults . . . Am I Too Old to be Operated On?” Geriatrician Dr. Thomas Gill and surgeon Dr. Robert Becher, both from the Yale School of Medicine, shared their insights on outcomes and recovery from major surgery for us octogenarians. Classmates Steve Guss MD and Dick Stasney MD facilitated the discussion. Stay tuned for more from the team of Dave Roscoe, Bob Hammond, and Dennis Mack as monthly sessions roll out this year.
Brief notes: Jim Acquistapace circulated a near-angelic photo of our roommate Marshall Bell taken when Marshall entered the Army. A far cry from the anxiety-crazed officer Marshall played in Starship Troopers or the rebel leader in Total Recall (with a mutant head growing out of his chest). Richard Hoey wrote: “Nancy and I are retired in Longboat Key, Florida, looking out over the Gulf of Mexico. Thirty-eight years after my first bypass I am shocked and pleased to still be here and healthy.” Doug McPheters has a new business Facebook page for McPheters Books—please visit.
Hugh Levick will have a third CD of his music recorded by Radio France / Signature in the fall of 2023. In 2011 Hugh created HEAR NOW, a festival of new music by contemporary L.A. composers. In its twelfth season, HEAR NOW 2023 took place April 13–16 in Los Angeles. Larry Houghteling reports that he has recently moved to Towson, Maryland. Finally, I missed a note from Richard Bienia in the last notes: “My wife Bari and I attended the 160th reunion of the Yale Glee Club. That is the first time I’ve been back to Yale in 57 years.” Perhaps we can lure him back again for our 60th.
Bill Brewster Y’67 sent sad news about our classmate Ric (Cedric) Brady: “Ric passed away of glioblastoma on October 20, 2022, at age 80. I knew him and his wife Susan for more than 40 years as we both lived here in Orinda, California. I did not know it at the time, but Ric was a sprinter on the Yale track team. In fact, he was on the relay team which set a national record.” Please visit yale1965.org and post remembrances of Ric and other classmates we’ve lost in recent months.