This first part is from the remainder of the Chronicle of Nu Beta, which takes the story up to mid-60's:
As seemed to be the tradition, the varsity football squad found a strong contingent of Fijis on the roster in the 1959-60
academic year. Bob Clark, Bill Pulley, Jim Rogers, Paul Benke, Sam Mudie, Dick Webb, Bob Vecchio, Sal Sedita, Pierce Fravenhein,
Marv Engle, Bill Libby and Jay Kowalski made up this contingent. Tom Scheer was the head manager. One the lightweight team,
seven Fijis were among those listed.
Fiji oarsmen Al Bugg and Chuck Torpy were mainstays on the crew team, while Fred Muller was our contribution to the soccer
team. The captain of the Rutgers swim team was Bob Fenstermaker, who went on to break the school record for the 100-yard
individual medley; Bob Lehman was also a Scarlet merman. Cross country had the services of Bob Gordon. On the mats were
Jim Sierk and Richard Janish, who was intercollegiate champ as a sophomore. The traditionally fine lacrosse team was dominated
by seven Fijis: John Leeds, Paul Benke, Sam Mudie, Bob Vecchio, Jay Kowalski, Sal Sedita and Bob Clark. Hal Klug and Bill
Russell were two of the Rutgers nine.
With the big push on scholarship a big improvement was seen as we jumped from nineteenth to tenth.
Campus politics and activities were, as usual, Fiji-filled. Tom Weber was senior class president and president of Cap and
Skull. His junior counterpart was Paul Benked who was president of the junior class as well as Crown and Scroll president.
Three Student Council reps were of the black diamond: Sam Mudie, Tom Weber and Paul Benke. That year we were even represented
in the band with Dick Waugh and Jeff Heinig. Jim Van Orden was station master as well as editor of the Scarlet Letter.
Doug Saarel and Bob Meeker were our voices in the Glee Club.
At the Spring Convocation it was announced that Bill Pulley won the Upstream Award for outstanding lineman.
Once again when the selections to Who's Who
were announced we found five of our boys on the list: Jim Van Orden, Al Bugg, Bob Clark, Tom Weber and Paul Benke. Five
Fijis also found themselves on honor societies: Hal Klug in Pi Tau Kappa, the ME society, Fred Lange and Al Bugg in Pi
Mu Epsilon, Tom Weber in Keramos, the ceramics society, and Tom Scherr in the economics honor society.
The new and ably elected cabinet that spring included Chuck Torpy, Bob Gordon, John Leeds, Don Van Dyke and Gary Van Dyke
as president, treasurer, recording secretary, corresponding secretary, and historian.
Tom Weber graduated after being president of his class for four years.
We suppose you all remember that J.P. weekend when the Brothers Four came and entertained the hood. Quite a social event.
Also to be remembered is Julio Martin, the Ph.D. exchange student who enjoyed Fiji hospitality for five weeks.
The initiation of twenty-three new brothers and the replacement of Wils Andrews '53 for Hank Evans as Purple Legionnaire
marked the end of the year.
When the 1960-61 year began and the Nu Betas returned to the Banks, there was a strong contingent of Fijis already there
for summer (football) camp. There were sixteen of us that played a part on that year's squad: Sam Mudie, Paul Benke,
Lee Curly, Marv Engle, Joe Anstatt, Pierce Frauenheim, Jay Kowalski, Bill Libby, Dick Webb, Sal Sedita, Bob Yaksick,
Bob Vecchio, Tom Rankin, John Olishney, Denny Rogers and Ron Egan.
The military department at Rutgers was dominated by Nu Beta's men that year Walt Hersman commanded the flight program,
was secretary of the Arnold Air Society and commanded Scabbard and Blade. Steve Hall was squadron commander with captain's
rank. John Leeds and Doug Saarel were co-commanders. Marv Engle, Pierce Frauenheim, and Bob Vecchio were junior officers.
The Army song group, the Regimental Singers, were led by Doug Saarel, while John Leeds received the Old Queens Ribbon
for outstanding cadet. The Queens Guard was commanded by Fiji Ken Tuso.
Once again the Nu Betas had several selected to Who's Who. This year there were six---Paul Benke, Chuck Torpy, Ed Tramont,
Ken Iuso, Drew Kowalski and Sam Mudie. Several other honors were bestowed upon brothers that year. Joe Baumgarden was
selected to Phi Tau Sigma, the Mechanical Engineering honor society; Joe Kowalski was a member of Alpha Zeta, agricultural
honor society, and Skip Smith was a Henry Rutgers Scholar and also a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship winner.
Scholastically we were 11 out of 27 on campus. Much emphasis was placed on scholarship with a $50 cash prize for the
best scholarship team. The Fiji faculty provided a seminar room for study at the library.
Scarlet Letter was run by Ed Tramont (editor-in-chief), with Ken Iuso assistant editor and Gary Lauten and Bob Vecchio
as junior editors.
Elected to run Nu Beta for the coming year were Sam Mudie, Bob Meeker, Jay Kowalski, Rich Policka and Pierce Frauenheim.
This able group provided the leadership to keep Phi Gam on top for the remainder of the 1961-62 year.
1961-62 was quite a year for Rutgers. It was the year of the undefeated football season. 19 of us were on that squad:
Sam Mudie, Bill Bennett, Lee Curly, Marv Engle, Joe Anstatt, Pierce Frauenheim, Jay Kowalski, Bill Libby, Dick Webb,
Sal Sedita, Bob Yaksick, Bob Vecchio, Frank Hausner, Dwain Painter, Drew Corolla, William Herring, Jon Paulson, Jimmy
D'Antonio, Frank Kuch, Paul Strelick and Ron Egan.
On other athletic fronts: Jud Ferguson and Sal DiFranco were on the 150 lb. football team, and Rich Congdon was goalie
for the soccer team. Tom Wirth, Bob Meeker, Ron Egan and Hans Geisecke were four of the starting eight oarsmen on the
crew team. W.C. Russell and Lee Curley were on the R.U. diamond while Jimmy D'Antonio, Bob Vecchio, Jay Kowalski and
co-captain Sam Mudie wore the scarlet and black for the lacrosse team. Track could boast Dick Webb, Denny Rogers, Chuck
Hennings, Bobby Bell and Carl Woodward on the cinders.
Cap and Skull, Crown and Scroll honor societies, ROTC, politics and many others were some of the activities that the
men of the diamond participated in that year. Sam Mudie and Don Lehman were Cap and Skull members. Tom Wirth was on Crown
and Scroll as well as Ledge Council. The vice president of the junior class, the president of Scarlet Key and the vice
president of Crown and Scroll were all one man, one outstanding Fiji, in Jeff Reinhardt. Roger Woodworth was president
of the sophomore class while Rich Policka was president of the ceramics club. Richard Waugh served as president of the
Ledge Council.
Exemplifying Fiji diversity, high academic achievement combined with all this extra-curricular achievement. A good number
of brothers were in honor societies. Joe Baumgarden was a member of Tau Beta Phi ( engineering honor society ) as well
as Pi Mu Epsilon (math) and Phi Tau Sigma (mechanical engineering). Don Lehmin presided over Pi Mu Epsilon while Rick
Policka was in Karamos and Sam Mudie in Phi Tau Sigma. Jay Kowalski and Pete Kusulas were in the Ag honor society, Alpha
Zeta.
The new cabinet selected in Spring of '62 were Rich Sieredzki as "E", James Petrozello as "T", W. Jeff
Heinig as "G", Reed Tupper as "Ep" and Tom Wirth as "I".
Three men made Who's Who: Sam Mudie, Don Lehman and Jeff Reinhardt.
Don Slowinski ('57) replaced Wilson Andrews as Purple Legionnaire that Spring. Don was on the Rutgers staff in the admissions
office.
1962-63 was again a very successful year here at Nu Beta. Represented in all forms of campus life, the Fijis continued
to be number one on the Rutgers campus.
The varsity football squad had 16 of our men on the roster with five more on the 150 lb. team. Cross country saw Fijis
Bobby Bell and Carl Woodward running. Don Peterson was MVP on the basketball squad and honorable mention All-East.
The scholarship of Phi Gamma Delta on campus also had prominence as we finished tenth of twenty-eight. Any houses which
did better in that realm couldn't match up in the other areas of our long list of activities.
The five Fiji GIs included Major W. Jeff Heinig, third in command of Army ROTC. Jeff Reinhardt was student council treasurer
and member of Cap and Skull. Roger Woodworth was member of Scarlet key and Crown and Scroll. Carl Woodward and William
Lawton were in Glee Club.
Once again the honor societies had several Fijis, but due to incomplete records the only two we could find for the '62-63
year were Pete Kusulas in engineering societies Tau Beta Phi and Eta Kappa Mu (where he was also vice-president.) Jimmy
D'Antonio was a member of Tau Beta Phi as well.
As is done each March, five men were elected to lead Nu Beta. This outstanding group included were Jon Paulson as "E",
Roger Woodworth as "T", Larry Ciancia as "G", William 'Bo' Bennett as "Ep" and Paul Strelick
as "I".
More glories were added in the 1963-64 year. We finished eighth scholastically which was outstanding considering the
large number of outside activities the brothers were involved in. Our varsity gridders did an excellent job and four
of five awards went to Fijis that Fall. Dave Stout received the MVP award, Frank Kuch was picked as the most improved
player, Bob Norton was elected captain for the coming year and Jimmy D'Antonio was named to the football scholar All-America
team. On the 150 lb. front, Bill Bennett was All-American. In other varsity athletics, Don Pike was selected as outstanding
varsity wrestler. Larry Jones captained the swim team, on which Marty Flickinger and Dave Feigley turned in record-breaking
performances. Throughout the year Jimmy D'Antonio, Mike Bach and Bob Mudie made up the first midfield for the lacrosse
team. Four Fijis saw action for the varsity nine: Bob Norton, Travis Hutchinson, Dave Thorn and John Mink. Chuck Hennings,
Carl Woodward and Frank Hausner were stalwarts on the track squad. The crew team had Hans Geisecke.
The Who's Who selection committee selected five Fijis: Jimmy D'Antonio, Jon Paulson, Dick Waugh, Bob Mudie and Roger
Woodworth. Bob Mudie was president of Crown and Scroll. Jon Paulson, Dick Waugh and Roger Woodworth were on Cap and Skull.
John Corcoran and Dave Schuller were members of Scarlet Key, while Carl Woodward added Scabbard and Blade to his accomplishments.
Skip Gaunt was elected the new president that spring with his cabinet of Bob Mudie as treasurer, Larry Boresen as recording
secretary, Chuck Hennings as corresponding secretary and Bill Jones as historian.
The National Ceramic Society, Keramos, had Dick Waugh and Tom Rankin on the list of honor students. Jimmy D'Antonio was
elected to Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering society, and Frank Hausner in the national E.E. fraternity of Eta Kappa
Nu.
The year culminated with the initiation of twenty-one new brothers.
The Nu Betas began climbing to new heights in the year of 1964-65, chapter tone was running high coupled with spirit
and long lists of extra-curricular activities. The year, however did not start off on the right foot because on the return
to the Banks the brothers each found themselves assessed $50 to overcome the $3700 deficit from the year before.
After this small setback, the Fijis began to roll. On the intramural front it was the Royal Purple all the way,
capturing the Keller Trophy by the largest point score ever of 110. The "gentleman jocks" chalked up an undefeated football
record and then matched this with basketball and softball. Two other championships in cross country and track and a second
in wrestling made us undisputed champions of the fraternity system. Those who were there will never forget Bob Mudie's
35 yard pass to Pete Richdale to clinch the sudden death playoff with Lambda Chi Alpha.
The varsity sports program was also experiencing Fiji talent that year. Bob Norton captained the football team backed
up by Dave Stout and Charlie Mudie.
Lou Tepper, Marty Frankiewicz and Walt Stasiak added three more Fiji members to the Rutgers eleven. Besides Norton, the
Phi Gams claimed two other captaincies with Marty Flickinger and Chuck Hennings leading the swim and track teams respectively. Dave
Feigley was runner up on the three meter board in the Easterns. Bobby Bell and Carl Woodward helped Chuck out on the
track team while Tony Peters and Walt Stasiak were on the R.U. mats. The lacrosse squad had three of the natives on the
squad: Bob Mudie, Charlie Mudie and Mike Bach. John Bannon and Doug Clark received letters in basketball.
Bill Nigh's contribution:
The tumultuous '60s brought a caesura to the earlier, more genteel character of our country. Most institutions were shaken.
One of the most significantly influenced was the university, and the fraternity system was no exception. The old
system of 'in loco parentis' was giving way, as policies toward visitors in the dorms and other personal areas changed.
We still wore our freshman beanies on the first day---remember?
This was the decade when rock music exercised its most powerful influence in our culture, and Hugh Hefner's sexual revolution
stances were well known to the collegian dormitory. Several of the brothers went to see The Who's ground-breaking
rock opera "Tommy" on a Manhattan 'road trip', among them Angelo Iantosca and John Furcolow, possibly our only Nu Beta
from Kentucky. Several forays were also made into the City to visit the Playboy Club, whose walls were festooned with
centerfolds. On TV, the nighttime king, Nebraska Fiji Johnny Carson would occasionally flash the sign and intone 'for
those who know'.
In August 1969, a number of the brothers were able to attend Woodstock. This author recalls Eddie Zito and Murray Bakst
were there, (but of course, if you were actually there, you could be forgiven for not remembering much of anything). Others
would venture into NY to attend concerts at Fillmore East, such as Procol Harum. Janis Joplin played the Asbury Park
Convention Center---believe it or not!
Rutgers was still all-male, and the football schedule included Columbia, Princeton, Bucknell, Colgate, Delaware and similar
schools. (The Columbia marching band was a sarcastic blast in those days!) The Douglass campus was a bus ride, and
a world, away. Going to the 'libes' at Douglass was for many of us an exercise in frustration. (As if we needed
to exercise feeling
frustrated!) The FIJI house was dominated by jocks, but also among us were Henry Rutgers Scholars like Gus Mavroudis
and a future minister, Imre Bertalan.
Here is a recently-discovered photo of the den at 78 Easton; man, that was a nice fireplace; sigh. Remember what the
chain symbolized?
Some things that were carried forward from the early decades of the century were in retrospect quaint, almost dear, in
the way they reflected on human nature, and the way the generations got along (or didn't). For example, the House Mother;
we had Mrs Lumpkin (for you would not presume to say 'Ms' to someone her age).
Pledging, and that certain ineffable concoction
How many of us remember that special ingredient of 'gradoo' which helped to make the whole pledging experience unforgettable? All
I can tell you is that one unsought but profound learning experience has enabled a lifelong ability to recognize the
taste of cloves. Say no more. Please.
Here are two letters from Ed 'D' Zito from the Summer of 1969:
July
8, 1969 Since Dave Bugen has gotten out of the hospital he's been working on the books and
paying recent bills with incoming money. I've been working in close contact with him about the upcoming assessment.
Our plan of action is as follows: |
August
23, 1969 Dear Fellow Brothers: I once again hope this finds you and your family in good health and enjoying the summer. I also hope you enoyed the last letter; and I'd like to thank those brothers who wrote return letters to let me know how things were going with them. Well August has been sprinkled with many beautiful events: Aug 5-6 We all received our assessment notices from Dave who had worked very hard with Mr. Cunningham all summer. As indicated in Dave's letter everything was done in accordance with the motion passed at the last meeting. It would certainly alleviate some of our financial burdens and aid Dave in efficiently planning this year's budget if we can all send the requested amount of $25.13 to Dave by September 1 as passed. Aug 9 Was certainly a wonderful day for 2 of our graduated brothers. Don Pray was married to Liz Wiese and Matt Couzens was married to Donna Decker. I know all the brothers who weren't able to attend wish Donny, Buzzy and Matt all the best in the world. Aug 15,16,17 Seems to have been Nu Beta's Summer Exposition at Woodstock. To all those brothers that (believe it or not) found each other up there, I hope you all returned home safe and sound. Except for Murray's insurmountable "Dirty Dance" performance during Janis Joplin's set, they were truly 3 beautiful, uncomplicated and unhurried days. Aug 25,26,27 Just about wraps up the month with 3 more "uncomplicated unhurried days of peace and tranquility" at the Fiji Aquarian Academy at Bloomington, Ind. Dave, Bob Stewart, Carl and myself are getting ready to attend. Full reports will be given to you at our first meeting. With all the enjoyable events that went on this summer, enabling many brothers to keep in contact with one another, many have expressed a real intangible optimism about the coming year in every aspect of our fraternity's affairs. Now don't get scared - I've done a lot of thinking this summer, with some brothers down in N.B. and alone at home, and I really firmly believe that this intangible optimism can be turned into reality, hopefully in every aspect of fraternity life that it touches. There's a big challenge ahead for all 50 of us. It can't be met by the same few brothers all the time. It MUST be met by all! Because if you're not part of the solution then you're part of the problem. I'm asking for your own individual commitment over the next 3 weeks. A commitment not to me or even the name Phi Gam but to yourself and the people, the men you chose to be the closest to you throughout your college experience. Dave is going to an accountant to audit the books and find our net loss incurred this year. He will then make up a complete income statement for the past year and send one to every brother with the assessment figure. It might be a good idea to start putting $3-$5 away each wee until we find out the figure. I'm very optimistic about things running smoothly this year, if we can alleviate this financial burden. Of course, this depends on us working as a unit. Some good news on the Intramural front. Frank Brunetti, cross-country coach, wil be getting in touch with those who signed up for the team. There's word going around that Richie Green and Bill Nigh have already started training and plan to finish 1,2. Also intramural wrestling has been moved up early in 2nd semester, giving us the advantage, since Stoney will be able to wrestle for the house and then go out for the varsity. Paul Brankovich, our veteran star quarterback has reconsidered his announced retirement when he was promised part ownership in Joe Namath's night club 'Bachelors III'. Branko also 1969 R.U. Open Intramural Golf Champ has been working on some new turf devices to insure one of us the title again next year. Russ Adsit has been playing handball 3 nights a week in Colo. Mike "Earl the Pearl" Monroe is leading a summer basketball league in scoring with a 23.8 per game average. Well, that's it for now. I'll try to get another letter out to you in mid-August. Have a great vacation. Peacefully and Fraternally yours, Ed (D) Zito PERGE!
|
Sing along:
Yo ya, yo ya, Hermon men are we.
Yo ya, yo ya, ____________ is a yo-yo.
Remember that one?
Remarkable Decade, Remarkable Men
Even though living in remarkable times, the brothers in the house lived lives also characterized by joking, service
and friendship, and in this way the FIJIs of the sixties were no different than any other decade.
Photos:
Composite, 1968 (click on picture to see full-size version, 4 times larger)
Soph Hop, 1968 (click on picture to see full-size version, 4 times larger)
Christmas Formal, 1968 (click on picture to see full-size version, 4 times larger)
Fiji Island, 1969 (click on picture to see full-size version, 4 times larger)