Issue 4B: June

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Presenting:
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The performing arts at Townsend Harris
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·Have they been forgotten?
,byAlexandra Beller
'," A s a Hurnamties
.. high
:'.,
school, we deserve better perfor, JII.lIIlce facilities!" Anna Azrieli, a
veteran actress at Townsend Harris, declared vehemently. "After
all," she continued, "there's more
, to education than Latin and Physics. The arts are an integral part of
education and the only way to
leaIll' about them is by experienciJig them fully."
r Anna is not alone in her opinion. Many students at Townsend
Harris have raised the same question: Have the performing arts
been forgotten amidst the academics? Certainly, Townsend Harris
has exhibited an exemplary academic record. Winning the honorary title of School of Excellence
There's no place for threepeople to
do anything. Basically, we then
have to put everybody in larger
groups that may not be specifically
what they want."
A
good example of this is
Townsend Harris' lack of any
Dance department, elective or
Enrichment. "We have only one
performance space, usually reserved for the play or Sing or the
Talent Show," explained Mr.
Boulanger." ~e also only have one
gym, which cannot be divided and
is overcrowded as it is. Therefore,'
we had to put the dance
Enrichment in a regular classroom.
Even with all of the desks pushed
aside, there was simply no room to
move . Also, they couldn't perform
because the stage was taken up by
dience with limited size potential.
Alex Whitten, a Townsend Harris
junior who yearns for a more spacious place to dance, said of the
Talent Show, "It doesn't even come
close to giving us a place to perform, One night a year.does not a
performance program make." It
may not be close enough, but it is
the best that Townsend Harris students will get until the new building is ready .
Is it true that nothing will improve the perfonnance conditions
at Townsend Harris until the
school is at Queens College? Yes
and no; The lack of facilities won't
change until the school is moved to
the college, That is true. Mr. Boulanger, who coordinates all of the
performance activities, said, "Un-
Townsend Harris, student support
is vital. Susan Chiu, a frequent audience member, said, "The fact
that the audiences at Townsend
Harris performances are usually
close to capacity is an indication
the students have faith in the performers," Anna Azrieli, who is one
of the performers, does not share
Susan's sanguine view of student
support of the arts. "The students,"
she said, " have a great lack of interest because they know what
we're up against and so they feel
that Townsend Harris perfonnances can never be as good as those at
some other high school." A lack of
support from the students may not
only manifest itself in audience
turnout, but also in the limited interest in performing itself. "The
students don't pet
!imlllTP.n
on hv th p.
Dance, Karate, Body Building and
a full time environmental enrichment, " Mr. Boulanger said, "Until
that day though , we'll just have to
continue to make do with what
we've got."
With all of the technical difficulties to overcome, it sometimes
seems wondrous that Townsend
Harris puts on a single show all
year. Ms. Blechman, and Mr.
Davis have both f ound ways to
compensate for the limitations inherent to the small building.
"We've adapted to what we have,"
explained Ms. Blechman. "Generally, we fmd really good plays,
usually very funny , that don't require a lot of props and scene
changes or anything really elaborate." Mr. Davis added, "It's very '
.T he limited space may be a
problem for some, but others find
it a blessing. Scenery artist
Stephanie Helmeyer remarked that
in Townsend Harris , "it is easier 'to
draw the backdrop because there is
about one-third th~ stage space that
we usually have to"cover." As are.
sult, artists f~d it ~asier to add
more details anet$end a lot of
time on each set Of course, things
aren't always eliSy for the scenery
makers either. Katen Lemmey,
who also helps 'in' creating the
"scenes behind the scenes," said
that the one hard thing about making the sets is t~at they "have to ,
work while th~ Drama Club is
practicing, so ipaking noise and
using a lot of space is impossible."
H l:av ;n n t~ n~/?"rl'n,",,?"
th?"C' ?"
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1""'''~'''''''15
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must conquer.
T
he crime is that Townsend
Harris students are bursting with
potential but have few places to
vent their talents. The culprit, as
usual, is limited space. Townsend
Harris' 29' x IS' x 15' stage is less
than half of the average 65' x 45' x
stage of most New York high
sChools. Generally, high school auditori
bo
b k
itonums ast a generous ac stage area, dressing rooms, an or-
-
35'
chestra pit or attic, and a prop/costume storage room. Townsend
·
Harris is devoid 0 f these 1uxunes.
•
~e audience space is incapable of
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hosting the entire student body, not
tQ, mention parents.
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ainly, what all of these tech-
ni~al problems translate into is no
sniall interest groups, no musicals,
and less fulfilled potential. Enrichment coordinator Arthur Boulanger
explained: "We have no room for
small groups. To give somebody a
room, there have to De thirty peaple interested in something. Because we can't have small groups,
a lot of kids who have special talents don't get a chance to perform.
\)y Scott Karp
,
A play in which the lead character is a six-foo t-tall invisible rab,bit may be a bit much for some
folic:s to swallow. It must have
Come as quite a shock to Broadway
patrons back in 1944. Neverthe~ess, Harvey was a huge success .
Now some forty-five years later,
the Townsend Harris High School
Players proved once again that
they can perform a classic with
style and grace. Their production
of this unusual comedy by Mary
.Ghase was nothing short of out.standing, and as all great comedies
should be, hysterically funny.
I
r. The plot revolves around EI-wood P. Dowd , a sociable yet simple man whose closest relation is a
' ~'fictitious ," six-foot-tall, invisible
-rabbit named Harvey. Unfortunate(ly.for Mr. Dowd, no one else is
,able to see his furry friend, a situation which has created a great deal
,~f turmoil among his family mem'bers, To his socialite sister, Veta
LOuise Simmons, Elwood is a
source of constant embarrassment,
iand her daughter Myrtle Mae at,-I
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ways and we never could really
warm up or have any space to
move around." Despite the limitations, Dr. Largmann remarked that
the administration "is trying to get
Mrs . Agin to come back and teach
dance again if she can work it into
her schedule. "
M
.
h Mr W 1
USIC teac er
" a ter
Davis elaborated on the lack of
space. "Because space is so limited, there's no place to practice. We
don't have that luxury. There is no
time during the day when a musician can go and rehearse. Wonderful music escapes us because we
don't have' the space;",
<
Since small interest groups are
impossible, students are forced to
blend into the majority interests. In
. other words, the closest a dancer
may be able to come to the perfect
Enrichment is aerobics. This is a
loss for everyone, both the student
whose potential goes untapped and
seeing the performance. The Talent ·
Show, which was held this year in
early June, is the one place where
anyone in the school can "do their
thing"- on a small stage for an au-
involved in the programs, more
programs might be made available.
"It's up to the students," Mr. Boulanger explained. "If enough students want it, we can try to get it
for them."
What can you expect when
you attend a Townsend Harris per~? S
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d
th
rormancet orne lee ,as oes e
Drama adviser, Ms. Harriet Blech"all f th
-"
man, th at
0
e perrormances
h
bee
d d thev conti
ave
n goo an
ey continue
' to be good." Sophomore Karen
Lemney thinks that "the performances at Townsend Harris are
just as good as those at any other
,
school." Mr. Davis, however, sees
the limits of his facilities as a great hindrance to a good performance.
"Acoustics are horrible in the cafetorium and so our performances
don't sound as good as they could,"
he said Whether you go expecting
to see a good , bad or moderate
show, don't ever go expecting to
see a musical because, as Mr. Boulanger explained, "they simply
cannot be done. This school can't
be adapted for musicals. "
In
'
a school as small
as , '
.
pend upon more than just student
support . Administrative support,
too, is crucial. Most students and
teachers feel that, as Sera Congi
says, "there is no lack of administrative support." The arts, they
agree, are not getting shortchanged compared to every other
aspect of Townsend Harris; the effects of Townsend Harris' handicaps are just more apparent in the
performance programs. Mr. Bou1 bo ed "Th dmi
langer e a rat:
e a inistration does as much as they can
with what they've got. Townsend
Harris is like that circus car where
they keep trying to fit more and
more clowns into the car. We have ,
all of the clowns that we can fit
right now, at least until we get a
bigger car...or a bigger building."
Everybody at Townsend Harris
has grown accustomed to the excuse, "if only we had a bigger
building ..." Many wonder: What
will Townsend Harris' perfor- '
mance program be like in the new .
building? "I would like to do a musical," said Ms . Blechman. "I ' .'
would add about ten new
Enrichments including Modem
,
cumstances is very telling of llie
f th
d
d f ul
e stu ents an ac ty.
nature 0
Dr. Largmann said, "We have
learned to work under less than
ideal conditions and it probably
btings out the best in us. Considering how we do under adverse con ditions, it leads me to feel that we
would mount spectacular performances if we had real facilities to
work with."
T
he performers themselves
diisagree ab out the e ffiects 0 f the
l' .tat'
S
C
.
imi Ions. era ongi, a
T
dH .
id
ownsen
arns actress , sal ,
"Th 1 k f f ili
all
e ac 0 ac lues ows us to
tr t
h
.
concen a e on our c aracters ind fAn
' bili
stea 0 props .
actors a I ity
depends upon how well he improvises, which we have certainly had
to do." Her positive outlook is by
no means shared by all of the performers. Liza Elkin, a fellow actress,said that, "in general, we are
limited in what we cando, so we
can't fulfill our potential." Anna
Azrieli agreed with Liza. "We
work less because the lack of facilities makes us feel as if we will
never be as good as another school
could be," she added.
' ,
facilities that the-Drama department faced did nothing to prevent
them from putting on a top-notch
performance. Faeing hardships has
brought the performers together in .
a very tightly bonded and determined group. When asked about
how they had overcome the difficulties they faced in mounting this
year's production of Harvey, the
Drama Club decided to demonstrate instead of merely answering.
They fell into their own hair-raising renditi on of "America the
Beautiful," complete with dissonant harmony and all. As the
Drama Club hummed the last
dying notes, Ms. Blechman stood
up, and speaking for all of them,
declared, "We're Americans; we
settled the prairie; we can do anything!"
T ownsend Harris students can
do more than just anything. The
lack of space and facilities may be
appalling, but determination and
perseverance run deep in the
school and, as Mr.Boulanger so
wisely stated, "We shall overcome!"
Harvey lands smashing success
tributes her own dimming social
life to her uncle's peculiarities.
A t last Mrs.
Si~mons decides
to commit her clearly unstable
brother to an insane asylum. Trouble, however, arises as a result of
several misunderstandings concerning Elwood, who is constantly
escaping harm as if protected by
some magical luck. Several amusing sub-plots arise as the staff of
the asylum searches for Elwood
when he is suddenly discovered to
be missing. As the play reaches its
climax, the characters begin to flirt
with the idea that magical creatures
known as "pookas" actually exist,
and Dr. Chumley, a renowned psychiatrist, becomes convinced he is
being followed by a six-foot-tall
rabbit.
The truth is that ~lwood is actually the lead character, and the
role seemed to be second nature to
veteran Townsend Harris actor
Paul Jannicola, who captured perfectly the charming, candid nature
of Mr. Dowd. Liza Elkind played
the snobbish Veta Louise Sirrimons
with style and poise and her bratty
daughter, Myrtle Mae , was played
to a tee by Anna Azrieli. Carol
Cheng must be praised for herhigh
society accent which was quite effective in her role as Mrs. Chauvenet.PiaAlexander was charming
as Mrs. Simmons' other daughter,
Sally Rae, and Alona Bach did a
'
fine job as the maid.
The staff of the asylum was .
quite amusing as the sexual tension
between Dr. Lyman , played by
'Charlie Redell, and the flitatious
nurse Kelly, played by Sera Congi,
created some very funny moments.
Alec Pollak was dignified as the
renowned psychiatrist, Dr. Chumley, and Annette Artus gave a solid
performance in'the role of his wife.
Some of the most hilarious one-liners in the play came from Josh
Proujansky, who was quite amusing as Wilson, one of the asylum
orderlies . Rodney Eric Lopez did a
fine job as JUdge Gaffney and
Donald Louie had some funny ad
libs as the cab driver.
well cast and stands as another [me
performance to add to her list of
successful shows. One can be sure
that Forensics teacher Arthur Boulanger had his share of input as As- '
sistant Director. Another aspect of
the play that is deserving of high
praise is the scenery, which was
extremely well done, and the original set design proved to be effective for the scene changes. Natalie
La Duca, Jerome Tomaselli, and
Stephanie Helmeyer, who worked
under the supervision of art teacher
Anthony Morales. should be complimented for their dedication and
great artistic ability.
. H ar vey was definitely a
standout among all past Towsend
Harris productions. It certainly
succeeded as a comedy, with the
audience laughing throughout the
entire play. Considering the limited
stage facilities, it was very professionally done and all who were involved deserve a big round of applause.
Again to the credit of drama
teacher and Director Harriette
Blechman, Ha rvey was extremely
How did Harvey grab me? To
borrow an ad lib by Donald Louie,
,"It grabbed me right there."
Rodney Lo pez, Charley Redell, Lisa Elkind and Paul Jannicola discuss the enigma of the invisible rabbit.
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The Classic
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l li llllilill!I!I!I:
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reviews
June 1989
Ancient tale fizzles in Firebrand
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Do
Ivan Borodin plays guitar at the Talent Show in June.
SING '89 finds queen and success
"
by Jodie Lasoff
Once upon a time
At Townsend HarrisHigh
A tale was toldof KingLargeman
That madeall laughand cry.
His advisers set out across the land
A suitable bride to find
The result was a very funny tale
Told by the cast of SING '89.
On Friday, June 2, SING's quest
for excellence was fulfilled and the
show kept audiences laughing
throughout It began as Grandpa
(Michael Detweiler) started to tell
his granddaughter Paula (Gayle
Faust) the tale of the quest the residents of Townsend Harris Castle
undertook to fmd a queen for King
Largeman (Jon Isler).
The King's three advisers were
called upon to do this task. Dalia
Lacks _as Mrs. Powerwitz, the
power-hungry, forever dictionarycarrying history teacher, gave a
truly great performance. Ms.
Kicks, played by Deborah Sachs,
was a sadistic gym teacher bent on
physical torture. Josh Sipkin was
brilliant as the bumbling, confused,
yet loveable (and the name says it
all) Mr. Lostman.
As the advisers broke up into
groups with their mentees, they
were directed by Mr. Stencil's
(Ross Hartman) maps.
Oranges
and
Lemons:
Ms. Kicks, Mr. Cebrillo (Alli- Halpin, the bus pass lady. The part
son Hollander) and Mr. Handsome was played with spirit by Danielle
(Rodney Lopez) went to Palm Smith.
Springs, California, retirement
One of the highlights of
home of former gym teacher Mr. Lostman's trip was the encounter
Allman, to fmd the most athletic with the M&M dealer (paul Jannigirl for the King.
cola). Paul had the audience laugh- Allison's Cebrillo was overly ing as he tried to unsuccessfully
concerned with his image, and she sell M&Ms to Deirdre Mike and
played the part well. Rodney's per- Edward Good. He finally tried to
formance as Handsome was very sell them to Lostman, resulting in
funny and very good. His never- more laughter.
Jane Gorayeb was terriffic as
ending argument with Kicks over
whether excercise or good nutri- Babette, Lostman's love interest,
tion are better for you, dramatized who tried to give him a quick eduin song, provided a good source of cation in the facts of life. Josh
Proujansky was on the ball with
amusement.
At the same time, Mrs. his performance as Mr. FrederickPowerwitz and her entourage head- son. Catisha Marsh displayed the
ed to the Cloisters. Her group of feelings that the attendance lady
Mr. 'Manischevitz (Erika Brown),
must experience every day when
Mr. Ketchup (Melissa Paoloni),
no one is ready for her to collect
and Mr. Couch (Dien Taylor),
the attendance sheets. Now we
searched for the most intelligent know why she wears sneakers with
woman. Erika was delightful as a business suit.
Manischevitz, a true "leader."
All the performers, those menKetchup's role was a small one,
tioned above and those not, were
but Melissa played -it to the utmost.
great. SING '89 fulfilled their
Dien was hysterical as a scatterquest. The show was terrific and
brained Couch. Lisa Tovin, Kristen
the set was spectacular. CongratuIglesias, and Hillary Goldrich were . lations to Ms. Lynn Greenfield,
good as the three fmalists under
Ms. Linda Mandell, Mr. David
Powerwitz's scrutiny.
Briskin, Mr. Tony Morales, all the
Lostman needed a bus pass to performers, writers, and artists.
get to his destination, Main Street. The only trick now is to keep it up
for SING '90.
For several years now, XTC has
been hailed as the epitome of
..thinking man's pop." This trio
from Swindon, England, was virtually unknown in the States until
1986, when their song "Dear God"
got airplay on mainstream radio
and MTV. Ironically, this song
wasn't even intended ,for I release;
but was put on the b-side of
"Grass," the first single from their
1986 album Skylarking. This gave
XTC some well-deserved recognition.
Now, three years after "Dear
God," comes XTC's second chance
at cracking the top 40. This chance
comes in the .form of "Mayor Of
Simpleton," the first single from
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Kristin Iglesias and Melissa Paoloni. seek a queen.
-
Lemons. Singer/songwriter Andy
Partridge tells the story of a man
who" ...can't have been there when
brains were handed 'round...," but
he's confident that .....when their
logic grows cold and all thinking
gets done, you'll be warm in the
arms of the Mayor of Simpleton..:'
Bassist Colin Moulding plays an.
intricate melody that weaves with
tars.
"Mayor" is not the only good
song on this double album. In fact,
every cut has something special
about it. This album is in the psychedelic vein, like XTC's alter ego,
the Dukes of Stratosphear. In fact,
a lot of these tunes have Beatlesque vocals ("Hold Me Daddy";
"Chalkhills and Children"; rich irn-
XTFIl. I!e~\:~b~, ·.9~tll,g~ .an~'-: j I D:~~~\{qr,~g~r:x:s ~~~ering g~~~~,,:,~g~~ ~'~M~t:~~y, . ,a -:~~':;, ..:'~cr~~~ .. ,
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XTC tries for Top 40
by Jodi Shapiro
-- - - -
the Trojan War as a result of
by Brett Freese
lust for Helen, whom he kidm
The Firebrand, (pocket!
The beautiful Helen of SPl
$8.95 ), by Marion Zimmer Bradley, is a retelling of Homer's The though, is not the stone-r
Illiad, as seen through the eyes of temptress she's reputed to be, b
Kassandra, daughter of King Priam compassionate woman and
and princess of ancient Troy. Kas- loving mother. Even so, the
sandra is born with the "second tremely feministic slant in '
sight" but nobody believes her Firebrand becomes armoy
prophecies after she is cursed by a rather than an enhancement t?
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wrathful immortal. Therefore, this book.
The Firebrand is Ms. BJ
prophetess is unable to prevent the
downfall of her ill-fated city of ley's failed attempt at trying to I
ate a literary masterpiece whic
Troy and its inhabitants.
The underlying theme of The based on a literary masterpii
Firebrand concerns the struggle Partly due to the author's banal
between matriarchal and patriar- of prose, the aura and ambianc
- chal religions: the cult of the Earth legendary Troy is lost in this n
Mother goddess is gradually being elization. The women -- no ma
replaced by the worship of domi- how kind or valorous they may
- nant male gods. Ms. Bradley ex- -are lackluster and undifferentis
presses enmity towards this event to the point where the reader cc
by portraying the men in her novel easily mistake one character
as brutes, cowards, or rapists, and another; Ms. Bradley's portraya
characterizes the women as either their male counterparts would
fiercely independent, sympathetic, enough to give poor old Horm
or ultimately more intelligent. For coronary. The Firebrand is
example, Paris, Kassandra's twin type of novel that makes a pen
brother and the "firebrand" of the wish. that writers would just le,
story, proves to be the instigator of the classics alone.
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this Ahtheap"), and a bit of so
commentary ("Here Comes PI1
dent Kill Again"; "Scarecrow P
ple"),
This album is upbeat, wi
smart, and most of all, filled J
some great songs that will k
your spirits up and make you'
XTC fan for life. Getting tl
back catalogue is worth the tr
9l.e" " ," . " ' N .
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The Classic
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June 1989
Young ambassadors journey,to Japan
'longer have any need for military
by Mary MaCarthy
ceremony.' I was confused but
"Nihonni yokoso" (Welcome to
agreed with whatever she was sayJapan) were the first words heard
ing. I suppose she meant we didn't
by Diane Duffy, Johanna Lasker
and Heidi Moon as their airplane
have to be formal towards each
landed in Tokyo and they began
other anymore. I also think she
wanted my laundry."
their two-week adventure in the
Although Johanna said, '1 was
Land of the Rising Sun.
having too much of a good time to
The three Townsend Harris stulearn anything, "both Heidi and
dents, who are all in a second year
Japanese language class, were acDiane felt that, besides being a lot
companied to Japan by 21 other
of fun, visiting Japan was a learnNew York City high school stuing experience.
dents. They first became' involved
"I learned a lot more about the
with the program late last spring
way of life," explained Diane. 'W e
when they were asked to try for the
see Japan in a good light, and there
Japanese exchange by filling out
were a lot of great things there, but
an application, writing an essay on
life isn't as easy as it appears. They
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Ambassadors Diane Duffy and Johanna Lasker share umbrellas and a walk in the rain with their host
don't have many of the comforts
why they wanted to go to Japan,
students.
that we do. They live in close quar- .
and later being interviewed. After
they were chosen as one of the impression of school. "It wasn't as also amazed the Townsend Harris pointed to the toothbrushes and ters, traveling is a hassel, and they
lucky two dozen students, the next strict as I thought it would be," she students. "Only the big cities had said, 'So the toothbrushes are sun- work very hard. We never saw
step came last fall when they and stated. "Students talk during class any litter," said Heidi. "I lived in a shining' and asked if I understood. Mikka's father. By the time we
their families hosted Japanese high and don't pay attention just like .pretty small town. It was really When I said I didn't, she repeated, woke up , he was gone and when
school students from the Tokyo they do here." Heidi added, "When clean and orderly. When I compli- 'It's a fme day so the toothbrushes we went to bed, he hadn't come
area. Finally it was April 12 and I think of Japanese schools, I think mented the students on how clean are sunshining.' Things were run- home yet He was very hardworktheir dreams of going to Japan be- of uniforms and everyone concen- their School was, they were very ning through my head, like 1 wish ing. And the trains were so crowdcame reality.
trating and sitting up straight. But surprised. They thought it was my sister could hear this' or 1 wish ed, you wouldn't believe it. It's
"What surprised me most about it's not like that. They have lots of dirty. Then I described American Johanna was standing here next to twenty times worse than New
Japan was that, although I knew it afterschool activities that everyone schools, how they have graffiti on me.' I wanted to laugh hysterically York. It's not that easy a life."
"By going to Japan, I've now
was a homogeneous society, I attends. I'm sure some do go home the walls and gum under the desks, but I knew I couldn't because 'her
didn't know they would be shocked to study, and go to cram schools, and everybody was amazed."
mother was trying so hard. Finally, decided what I want to do with my
by me," said Diane. "You don't but it's not like all they do is
Diane followed on the same line when she repeated it again, I just life," Heidi confided. '1 have a
know what you're going to face. study." Cram schools are the Japa- of thought as she described the said 'Okay, okay.' A few days later, goal. I've always been interested in
People are always looking at you; nese version of SAT prep courses. train stations. "There were these I told Mikka what had happened. international business and now I'm
it's scary." However, this feeling of
Diane also had a lot to say about arrows on the ground and when the She laughed because she knows certain that's what I want to do. I
uniqueness was not felt as strongly the Japanese methods of teaching train stopped, its doors would be English very well. Then she went want to study in Japan. I can't wait
by Johanna and HeidL
and the students' learning environ- lined up exactly with the arrows. to the dictionary and found that her to go back." Thinking back over
"When I went to school no one ment. "Certain classes, I wonder The people would stand in two mother meant sterilization, instead their experiences, all three girls
knew I was American," recalled how they could sit through every straight lines behind the arrows. . of sunshining. It seems that the sun had something special that they
Heidi, a Korean-American. "On day. For 40 or 50 minutes, the When we were standing on line, I sterilizes the toothbrushes and wanted everyone to know.
"People should know that the
the first day, I sat in the back and teacher would lecture without one wanted to push to the front but that's good for you."
One of Heidi's most memorable Japanese are willing and anxious to
when the teachers would announce person raising his hand or talking. I Mikka, my hostess, told me that
situations also had to do with the learn about us. And I think it's im there was an American student vis- don't know how much you can no, we had to wait"
iting, everyone would look around learn that way. I'm not sure how
Soon two weeks of adventures problem of understanding. "When portant that we do the same,"
and no one knew it was me. Since good a system it is. But one won- and new experiences had become I talked to my hostess' mother, we urged Diane. "They're. lot like us.
I'm Asian and I was at a public derful thing is the great pride thay two weeks of interesting, funny, would both sit there with our dic- We don't realize how much like
school, where there are no uni- take in their school. Every morning and exciting stories to tell. Diane tionaries, her with her Japanese- . us."
Johanna ~d:'Japan is the best
forms, there was no way to distin- . they sing the school song. And the was the first to jump right in with English dictionary, me with my
grounds are beautifully taken care her most memorable one. "One day .English- Japanese dictionary, to try place. Everyone should go."
guish me from anyone else."
Laughing, Heidi added, "The
Caucasian Johanna wasn't both- of. The government knows how Mikka and I came home from and understand each other. One
ered by looking different. "I was important the students will be to school. We were standing in the time .. saw her frantically looking teenagers are just like us. They just
really well-prepared," she ex- society, .so they make the school bathroom and her mother said to through the dictionary for some- want to have fun."
In retrospect Johanna had to
plained. "Everything was pretty very nice. This makes people want me in English, Today is a very thing, so I knew that she wanted to
admit,
"The worst part of the trip
to
go
to
school
and
to
learn."
fme
day.'
I
told
her
that
yes,
it
was,
much how I expected it."
tell me something. Finally she
The overall cleanliness of Japan it was a beautiful day. Then she came up to me and said, We no was coming home."
All the girls agreed with Diane's
:~ ._.'
. : ,:~ -;- . "
. :.~;:.::;
'-'- : :;:~ : ;:;:;:~ :;!I-~ ~ S
-·~~:~llilSB'BiSB
Seniors reflect on Soviet insights
by Hayley Thomas
For almost half a century,
Americans and Soviets have regarded each other as inevitable enemies, separated by an "iron curtain" that allowed each country to
speculate on how dastardly the
other was. But in the last few
years, encouraged by President
Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet
Union has opened the curtain,
allowed democratic reforms and
invited Americains to take a look
at the Soviet Union.
In March, 1989, Senior Coordinator Rhoda Weinstein, Queens
College Liason Robert Haan, and
18 Townsend Harris seniors accepted the invitation and embarked
on a 10-day journey through the "the clerks were rude. They didn't
Soviet Union. The students en- seem to have any motivation or pacountered a lot of what they had tience," said Jessica.
expected to fmd and much that .
Lani Muller suggested that
they did not expect.
the Soviet workers' lack of incentive on the job is compounded by
"Through my visit to Russia, I national alcohol abuse. "The only
observed that domestically, they lines we really saw were for bars.
are a Third World country in so far People were willing to wait for
as there is no food for people to food and liquor," said Lani.
eat," noted Matthew Psichoulas.
Other students had different
Jessica Harris said that though
she and her friends went "shop- observations of the Soviet Union.
ping" in Red Square, there was "As obvious as it sounds," said
nothing to buy. Consequently, the Michelle Exposite, "Russians are
Soviet Union has a large number no different from us. They search
of friendly black marketeers eager for love, justice and happiness, just
to get their hands on American like us."
money. But in the state-run 'shops,
Jessica was surprised ' that
most of the Soviets she met spoke
English. The existence of numerous synagogues and cathedrals also
surprised many who were taught
that the Soviet Union was intolerant of organized religion. The students even witnessed the wedding
of an interracial couple in Red
Square.
They found the Soviet Union
to be less race-conscious than the
United States, though Lani pointed
out that there was tension between
the individual republics. But she
explained that in Moscow, for example, there was no ethnic
diversity - no Chinese or Italian
restaurants or anything of that sort:
Jason Dineen commented on
that fact "The people were nice
and I had a good time, but the food
was bad," he said.
"The most wonderful experience of our trip was visiting the
country in a time of change," said
Spenser Weltman, and many students were glad that glastnost
provided the opportunity to visit
the other "super power."
But though they valued and
enjoyed getting to know the Soviet
people and their country, most
. agreed with James 'Marina, who
said that the Soviet Union was "a
.nice place to visit, but I wouldn't
want to live there."
ne ·CIassk
141featorel
- JUDe
1989
·
,
Devoting time"e~ergy and effort:
Community service.teaches valuable lessons
[ ~
,
by Mary MaCarthy
It's 5e"en AM. Saturday morning. Nothing is stiIrlng but b~ a '
few mailmen., and Patricia Cega-,
Girl Scout leadrz in-training and
community volWlteer, abeady, on
ha' way to work. .
Patty is only one of the !Dally .
Townsend Harris students who
dedicate much of their free time
each week to helping people and
giving something back to the COID- •
munity that nurtured them.
"I always worked at the church,"
explained Patty. "Since I was about
six or ei8ht. I helped out at SWlday
school, set Up the coffee hoW', and
. organized baking and rummage
. sales."
Now Patty is doing that plus
much more,' contributing two to
three days a week to the Girl
Scouts and all day Saturday to hel'
church. Last semester alone, she
did over 200 hours of community
serv ice.
they look pretty."
While Patty, Johanna, and
Happy all work withiri their COJD- '
munity, Elaine Yam chooses ' to
wom. outside her n,eighborhood.
For a year and a -half, Elaine has
been a volunteer at Flushing Hospital. Once a. week, she visits the
hospital to help out the nurses and
wom. with the babies and Y01mger
children.
Elaine first got started in junior
high school when her class visited
the hospital once a month. When
they asked for volunteers, she was
only too happy to sign up with a
group of friends.
Satisfaction
-
' It makes me feel good .'
a'
'4!
"I started out doing these things
basically because no one else was
doing them and it annoyed me that
things were being left undone,
Next thing I knew, I was organizer
extraordinaire!' recalled Patty.
Not only does Johann a have an
Johanna Laskar, another
.
Townsend Harris volunteer, helps enjoyable time helping out in her
out at a homeless shelter on neighborhood, but she also comes
Roosevelt Island, where she lives. into contact with a lifestyle quite
her ownI and learns
A few times each month, she visits . different from
.
the shelter to make dinner, serve something from it everyday.
"Most people say th~re's us and
food , and talk with the men staying
then
there's homeless people. But
there .
"It makes me feel good. And it's they're the same as you are," stated
a lot of fun!" Johanna admitted. '1 Johanna. "They want your friendlike talking with the people. These ship. They don't know where their
homeless men and I can just sit and next meal's coming from, or where
they'll sleep the following night.
talk for hours."
Coo
e
i=
I I
i=:
That makes it an entirely different
way of thinking. We always say
we're going home; they don't even
have a home. "
Johanna is glad she works at the
shelter. "I come home happy.
Happy and depressed , but more
happy," she said .
Sophomore Happy Li is also
glad she's a volunteer, and finds
nothing extraordinary in doing service. "It's just part of life," she stated. "You see people need help ana
you help them .
In her own community, Happy
enjoys doing favors for people.
Buying groceries and getting the
mail for her elderly neighbors are
jus t some of these daily contributions . If sOmething need s to .be
done , Happy is glad to do it
"At church we have these cardboard offering boxes," related
Happy. "They didn't look very nice
so I decided to decorate them with
bright colors and ribb 'ms, Now
..
"You get a satisfaction from
helping people," explained Elaine.
"And the nurses are a lot of fun. I
do have to sacrifice going out with
my friends and having spare time
to do miscellaneous things. But it
is really all worth it when you see
a sick little kid smile because of
something you did or said."
Patty agrees with Elaine that
community service isn't always
easy. "It's a lot of work," she insis ted. "I don 't have time to go out
with friends or to the movies. I
even have to go to bed early because I have to get up early. But
what I do makes me feel pretty
good. Recently I was making palm
crosses and the priest brings these
to shut-ins. It makes me feel so
good to know that they have these
crosses."
"We don't realize how much we
take for granted," observed Johanna. With that though t in mind,
Happy said, "I think more people
should get involved with community service."
-
PTA contributes to Harris family
Activities organized by dedicated members
by Lorraine Holland
the teachers are really involved.
Teens are notorious for taking This year, appro xima tely 90% of
advantage of their parents. It is rare , the faculty are dues-paying memfor a teen to thank his parents for bers. There are also a great number
all the time and energy they give to of active members who are teachhim. Student members of the ers. The P.T.A. expresses its
Townsend Harris family also thanks to them every year on
sometimes forget to say thanks to Teacher Recognition Day.
'
their big help - the Townsend Harris Parents and Teachers AssociaSchool functions
tion.
The P.T.A . coordinates the ef"That is what makes Townsend
forts of parents, teachers and administration to organize events Harris special....We can look to be
which will help the sehool. Some supportive to each other like a
primary goals of the P.T.A. arc to family," said Co- Chairperson
further parent involvement in Clementine Butts.
Townsend Harris, and to foster
Mrs. Butts feels that the P.T.A.
communication between the par- is always helping in the many acents and teachers. "It is a parent tivities of Townsend Harris. 'We
outreach group which enables staff are constantly looking to be into have liaisons with parents," said volved in all the school's functions
Co-Chairperson of the P.T.A .', . and to bring as much help as
Charles Puglisi.
possible," said Mrs. Butts.
Townsend Harris has one of the
This year, the main theme of the
few P.T.A.'s in the city in which . P.T.A. was "Human Rights." In
December, theP.T.A. and Archon
held a joint celebration for the 40 th
anniversary of the United Nations'
passage of its Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the school
cafetorium. The P.T.A'- provided
desserts and beverages for the occasion.
The P.T.A. also has a large involvement in the annual Townsend
Harris International Night, which
is co-sponsored with Foreign Language Coordinator Robert Goodman and the Foreign Language Department Parents prepare food,
decorate, and help serve the buffet
of foods from around the world.
The P.T.A. also funds the event,
supplying table cloths and decorations.
College Night, which is cosponsored with Francis Lewis
High School, is another annual
P.T.A. activity. Parents also help
out at orientation for the incoming
students.
In April, the P.T.A. met with the
judges of the School of Excellence
competition to give them the parents' view of the school. The representatives talked about their involvement in the schoo l and their
feelin gs about Townsend Harris.
On April 27, the P.T .A. had an
open meeting on the topic of "Adolescence, A Parental Challenge."
The director of family treatment
center at Long Island Jewish
Hospital, Mr. Bruce Goldman
spoke about adolescence, substance abuse, and suicide. The
Secretary of the P.T.A., Mrs.
Susan Schiff, felt that the speaker
gave her an understanding of the
period of hostility bct.ween parents
and adolescents as teens try to separate from their parents.
At its May 25th meeting, the
P.T.A. presented a panel discussion on the college experience.
They talked about the pros and
cons of a liberal arts college educ ation .
Membership dues are collected
in order to meet the financ ial needs
of the P.T.A.. They sponsor many
events including the senior party,
the ' Arista .induction and the
Founder's Da.,y~.ceremony. They
also contribute money to such
things as Enrichment activities, the
audio-visual department, lab needs,
the library and the mu sic department.
Every year at the Commencement exercises, the P.T.A. gives
out three awards. "The Arlene
Carroll Humanitarian Award for
Excellence" is a $500 award given
to a graduating student with outstanding school and community
service. Two additional non-monetary awards are given to the students who demonstrated the most
courageous effort and the greatest
improvement.
The·ClassIc
.-
J une 1989 '
Harris honors
Asian-J ewish
heritages
by Ani R eisig
Both Asian and Jewish cultures
were celebrated on Thursday, May
II, with a special presentation designed to create a better understanding of the two heritages,
Coordinator of Student Activities Myron Moskowitz and twelve
students organized the festivi ties.
Along with the presentation, an
ethnic food sale was held. The
money raised from the sale was
used to buy four books about
Asian and Jewish cultures, which
were .then donated to the
Townsend Harris library.
The presentation started with a
karate demonstration. 'Health Education teacher Keith Hanson and
guest, Lamont Jordan, both members of the United States Karate
team, dressed in traditional karate
robes and broke wood boards with
their hands and feet.
Mr. P.H. Than, the first guest
speaker, was born and raised in
China. He discussed how his "Chinese background helped him to
achieve in life." He explained, "In
Asia, doing your very best is emphasized." He said that in America
there is a "constant generation
gap" and that "today's generation
is losing their culture."
The second guest speaker was
Freshman Zakia Farouq, who was
eight years old when she came
from Afghanistan to the United
States with her family . She noted
that her family still keeps the
strong, traditional customs of her
Muslim faith. She said, "I would
not mind changing to the American
customs, but I would defmitely
teach my children all about the culture I grew up in, because I would
not want it to be lost."
The last speaker was Sophomore Judy Luong, who was born in
Vietnam. She came to Thailand in
1979, traveling in a small .fishing
boat for three days. She lived in
Thailand for six months, until her
grandmother, a United States citizen, sponsored her family, thus enabling Judy to come to America.
Judy noted, "My family and I
adapted to the American lifes"ll
tyles." However, she added; "It's
o
hard to follow the old traditions in
o
/
0
.
the U.S. because we're living in a
of
.\
>
different culture.".
!"
Judy felt that . Asian-Jewish
~
If
week was a success. She said, "1
think that it was good because we
COSA Myron MoskoWitz grades a paper.
learned about each other. Most students don't know much about
Asian people. They can't distin.guish the difference in nationalities." She explained, "For example,
everyone in this schoo l would by Danielle Steinmann'
Moskowitz teaches at a camp. "I manties: literature, history, maybe
guess that I'm Chinese. They
The walls of the dungeon are only have about ten days over the writing," he explained. He is
would never guess I'm Vietnam- being dismantled, bit by bit. Each summer free," he said .'
interested in writing about his
ese,"
day, a few more pieces disappear.
Mr. Moskowitz decided to teaching, and the Jewish-American
Sophomore Rochelle Lee em- Poems, posters, photographs, and take this break in the 1989-90 experience.
phasized, "I hope we can establish essays are being taken-off the walls school year for various reasons .
''I have mixed feelings about
a .tradition in which we celebrate of Mr. Myron Moskowitz's office, ''It's all very logical. My children leaving," says Mr. . Moskowitz as
Asian-Jewish Heritage Weekevely commonly called the "dungeon" are at the right age. I wouldn't be he looks around at the students
year."
because of its size and windowless . able to afford it when they go to crammed into his tiny office. "Is it
Many students were Surprised at walls. Each piece of paper is evi- college," he explains, referring to possible to fit any ffi2re people in
. the coupling of the ;two heritages. dence of the love that the students the sabbatical. He also feels that here?" he asks sarcastically. "It
However, Mr Moskowitz pointed feel for their Coordinator of Stu- his role as C.O.S .A. has been well . will feel strange not to be in here
out, "The two cultures have much dent Activites. But Mr. Moskowitz established at the school. "I feel with them," he says sadly. "So
in common and both stress hard must take everything home now that I've invested five years into . don't leave us Mosko! It's not fair,"
work and strong family ties." He because he will take a year-long this school, and everything is well a student cries out. "Whenever I
added, "Israel is in Asia...and there sabbatical next year.
organized," he said. He feels com- leave it would be sad. I do love this
are remains of Jewish communities
''I want to come .. back re- fortable about giving the job to Dr. school. But it's good to get a new
in both China and India. "
freshed, gain a new perspective,' Michael Manson, history teacher, perspective, " he responds. He asMr. Moskowitz ended the pro- . said Mr. Moskowitz. He started for a year, because "he's a nice sures the student that he will return
gram by thanking all those who teaching at age twenty-one, and guy, and is very well qualified," for her junior year. "There's no
had helped to organize the ' Asian has never taken a sabbatical, al- according to Mr. Moskowitz.
place I'd rather be. This is my
Jewish Heritage presentation. He though he has been. eligible for
During his sabbatical, Mr. home and I helped to build as
asserted, "Townsend Harris is a some time. During the summer, Moskowitz will be taking courses much of this place as I could," he
special place. We celebrate each when most teachers enjoy two at a college near his home. "I want says. 'Then he repeats, "I do love
months out of the classroom, Mr. to take courses I enjoy in the Hu- this school."
other just by being here."
.
n*""
~w
Mosko to take year off
Altman bids Harris farewell
]
!
.:
.\
..
to use his athletic talents to build
by Kelly Drapkin
up
the sports and physical educa. Look out, Palm Desert. California! Here comes Don Altman, . tion department. He had taught at
several other schools, including
soon-to-be-retired gym teacher.
Mr. Altman will be heading Wingate High School in Brooklyn,
out to his Palm Desert home on where he coached the boys' track
July 10, ending his 32-year teach- team for 27 years.
When asked about his most
ingcareer.
memorable
experience
at
Mr. Altman's desk drawers Townsend Harris, Mr. Altman reare cluttered with high school and plied, "The entire experience was
memorable. Assisting in the develcoll~ememorabiliadocumenting
his athletic achievements. Awards
opment ofa successful athletic
and articles adorned with his Rame program, from the single original
and picture serve as reminders of I team to the present 20 teams, and
his participation in football, bas- organizing the athletic dinner for
ketball, baseball and soccer teams four years , have been my greatest
throughout his high school and col- accomplishments." He also said
lege years .
Mr.
Altman
came
to that he felt good about contributing
Townsend Harris in 1984~ ~I!ing !O the growth of a new school.
"I won't miss teaching, but
I1l miss my relationships witll the
students," explained Mr. Altman.
He plans to replace tuching with
relaxation, golf, tennis , and getting
in shape. From his home in Cali fornia, he intends to keep close ties
with students. He says he will return to New York to be a part of
future proms, athletic dinners, and
graduations of former students.
Mr. Altman will depart with a
"so long" and a resolution to
"never eat M&M's again" after his
retirement party, which will cost
devoted friends and co-workers
$50 ahead.
When asked who would succeed him upon his retirement,
Mr.Altman exclaimed, "No one
can take my place!"
features
ea- ures
Thetlassic
l6
:·:·:·:,w~:<·~'><
::;::::::<:%:::::::~:
~~~~tIf~1~~f~*
'~ I !I I I!I !I!I !I!l l l l l!I!1 1 !1 1 1 1 1!1 !1 1 1!1!1!1 1 1 1 1: ~:.:.:.
June 1989
"'""
Juniors explore
twentieth century
Health Fair
informs and
educates
by Elizabeth Loewy
The first Townsend Harris
Health Fair was held in the school
gymnasium on May 16, 1989. Students visited the fair during their
lunch, gym or Health bands
throughout the day.
The idea for the fair came
from the Child Abuse Neglect
Committee, chaired by Judy Biener. "We were first going to have a
speaker just for this (child abuse),
but later decided to encompass all
health issues," she said. .
Many students found the fair ti
very interesting and helpful. Soph-'i
omore Geraldine Lloyd said, "I ~
thought it was a good idea. They ~
should have it every year, but in- Q
crease the number of booths and ~
vary they subjects. They shoUld;:!!
also split down the larger sub- ~
jects." Freshman Heather Lazziro a
also enjoyed 'the fair, and com-,g
mented that it "was informative Q"
and educational."
GETTIN' HEALTHY: Health teacher Keith Hanson discusses Sports
Some students received spe- Medicine with students at the first Health Fair.
cific help at the fair. "Freshman . ing. She related, "It had interest- "fact that there were people there
Jennifer Puglisi said, "I liked the ing facts and taught me things I who could answer students' quesbooth on alcohol and drugs." She . didn't know about smoking."
tions. Ms. Biener thought that the
Keith Hanson, health teacher fair helped raise awareness. "If
explained, "It appealed to most. "
teenagers and gave a realistic and presenter of the sports medi- you had a problem, once awareview." Heather Lazzaro also had a cine booth, found the fair to be a ness came you could try to solve a
favorite booth, the one on smok- success. He credited this to the problem."
By Justine Eisenstein
Leszczack's pictures of her grandIt .appeared to be a scene at a parents from the 1940s.
Another presentation was per.1920s. night club. In actuality, it
was the opening number of the formed by juniors Anna Azrielli,
first Townsend Harris Decades Ayanna Barrow and Alexandra
Fair.
Beller, who danced the Charleston,
The fair, which was an out- much to the delight of the audience
growth of collaterals done for En- who clapped heartily when they
glish 6 classes, took place on were finished. Musical selections
Wednesday, May 29, in the cafeto- from the decades were played, inrium.
eluding Glen Miller and Al JoOOn
The presentation, which was songs.
coordinated by English teachers
Most agreed that the fair was a
Lynne Greenfield and Steven Mer- success and "besides," said junior
melstein and the English Depart- Allison Hollander, "it was the best
ment, included exhibits on music, collateral we ever did."
dance, clothing, and memorabilia I
from the 1920s, '30s, '40s, '50s
and '60s. Ms.Greenfield explained
that it was "something that everyone would be interested in seeing
and sharing in."
One of the presentations at the
fair was a videotape made by students who had done their projects
on the 1950s. It included a news
program recapping all the important news events of that decade,
such as Stalin's death, the climbing
of Mt. Everest, and the Rosenberg
spy scandal.
Other exhibits included stock
market crash headlines from the
'20s, a "Gone With the Wind"
poster from the '30s, a poster of
James Dean from the '50s and
Flapper
Beatles memorabilia from the '60s.
Also displayed were junior Renee
I
Adolescent suicide:
Pressure pushesteens over the edge
Depression manifests itself in major problems for today's teenagmany ways. For instance, if a ers, also play a significant role.
teenager begins to isolate himself Feelings of depression and hope- .
Among teenagers, this despon- from his friends, family or activi- lessness are often spurred on by
dent cry has been echoing more ties, this could be a sign of serious abuse of mind-altering drugs and
and more frequently each year. depression. This is particularly alcohol, which can act as an exDesperation drives them to commit true if the teenager is usually an tremely powerful depressant. Irrasuicide, creating a very real prob- outgoing person. A lack of con- tional thoughts of suicide can stem
centration, increased irritability or from this abuse.
lem in today's society.
Suicides also tend to occur in
behavior
changes, appetite disorIn 1986, a total of 30,904 teenclusters.
In a Kansas survey taken
ders,
crying
for
no
apparent
reason,
agers between the ages of 15-19
in
1984,
40% of those teenagers
and
thinking,
writing
or
talking
comniitted suicide. The rate of
suicides for teenagers between the about death can also signify that who had attempted ·suicide had
friends who had previously atages of 15-24 has risen 300% since the teenager is depressed.
tempted suicide. Only 9.4% of the
1950.
.
did not know anyone
In an article in PARENTS mag- teenagers
Guidance counselor ' Sheila
who had commited suicide before.
Orner said that this rise is due to azine, Joe Sanders, M.D., chairman
the fact that "teenagers today have of the committe on adolescence of
Societal glamorization of death
more pressures on them to suc- the American Academy of Pediatceed. I think that there are a lot of rics, said, "The only clear, consis- has also beert cited as a factor that
societal pressures - drugs, family tent factor [in teenage suicide) is may influence' teenage suicide.
problems, higher divorce rates - depression, coupled with some "Heavy metal" music, violent telethat teenagers in previous years did triggering event.". When this oc- vision shows, and programs showsevere depression can result .ing death as a "romantic escape"
not have." She added, "Teenagers
now are more susceptible to and may lead to the actual suicide from conflict have all been critiattempt.
cized for allegedly causing suicide
stress."
The most frequently cited rea- ideation.
.
The main cause of teenage suiSuicide attempts, whether suecide is considered to be severe de- son for suicide ideation are breakpression. If the depression esca- ups in either family or personal re- cessful or not, leave many lasting
lates, it can lead to suicide ide- lationships, whether they occur scars, most significantly on the
ation: thinking about suicide. This through death, divorce or disagree- family and friends of the suicidal
in turn may lead to the planning of ments.
youngster,
"Survivor guilt" is
the actual suicide attempt.
Drug and alcohol abuse, both ' often felt by the parents and
by Alicia Salmoni
"I wish I'd never been born."
J-.....
curs,
--.
friends of the individual. Mrs.
Orner noted that the major effects
of a teenage suicide are "devastation, anger, despair of not having
noticed it, or not having been able
to help. There are often feelings of
self- incrimination...."
Feelings of rage and abandonment occupy -the minds and hearts
of the family and friends of the suicide victim. Yet however devastating the suicide ' may be, the recovery process does ultimately
occur. The four stages of denial,
anger, and finally acceptance and
resolution, will help to heal the
pain.
It is important in this recovery
period for those affected to express
their feelings of depression, guilt,
and anger: -Professional help is
available and can often relieve
some of the hurt caused by the sui·cide.
According to Mrs. Orner,
school guidance counselors "are
required to take action of any suspected suicide. We talk to students, try to allay some of their
fears, try to encourage them to
contact their parents." She added,
"If they refuse, it is our responsi-
-
-
-
-
-_ . _ .
~
bility...to get the parents to take the
teenager to a psychiatrist or to a
hospital. No professional should
take a threat or innuendo of suicide
lightly."
Guidance can also come from
spiritual advisers such as a priest
or a rabbi.
There are various hotlines
available such as the Suicide (Save
a life) service, the information line
offered by the American Association of Suicidology and the Suicide
Prevention Helpline 1-212-5322400, that can provide emergency
counseling.
..
Mrs. Orner feels that a measure
that may prevent teenage suicide is
"making kids aware of the fact that
there are people that they can talk
to. I think that schools should be
working with parents on being
aware of their kids. School should
teach coping skills, how to deal
with crises or changes."
Junior Heidi Brody asserted,
"What is important to remember is
that suicide is not a real answer to
your problems; it is only an escape
from them. Suicide is a permanent
solution to a temporary problem.
"Suicide is a permanent solution to
a temporary probleIIl.'"
The Classic
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Jl1ne 1989
H
Haan
creates
domination
. by Jordan Dressler
There's a war going on. It's
being waged on a grand scale and
many people are involved. But this
war is not being fought on a battlefield, It 's being fought on a computer screen
through, a game
called Domination - The Struggle
For Control of Renaissa nce Italy
Beginning in 1494. . This new
game is important to Townsend
Harris students because it was
written and developed by Dr. Robert L. Haan, the .Queens College
Liaison to Townsend Harris.
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To fully understand the game,
one must first know a little about
the setting. Domination
takes
place in 1494, when Italy consisted
of several major city - states and
many smaller, weaker city - states.
The country was not unified, and
so there were many attempts by ;
France, Spain, and city - states
within Italy to take over the land.
The goal of the game is to dominate as many city - states as possible. During a game, which can last
for as long as a week, a player
types different commands onto the
computer. Players control such
areas as Milan , Florence, Venice,
and the Papacy . The winner of the
game is the one who gains the
most city - states through alliances,
invasion, and betrayal. Domination
is completely authentic in terms of
actual occurrences, so a player can
actually "rewrite" history!
Dr. Haan began developing the
game several years ago to use in
his History of Modem Europe
class. Domination was originally a
board game played jnclass to help
students learn about the Italian
Wars. "Then," Dr. Haan says, "I
received a book on computer programming from a friend." What
was once a simple board game
soon became a complicated pastime. The game is still being
changed and improved. A big step
will be the introduction of graphics
onto the computer screen. Computer fans will have to wait, though. It
will be awhile until the public sees
Domination in stores.
A test group that consists of
Townsend Harris students has been
playing the game for some time
now. It has been through them that
Dr. Haan has gotten most of his
feedback about Domination. They
are aware of the fact that the game
will not be in competition with the
Nintendo game. Junior David
Rozsa, who always plays Spain; is
. not worried. He asserted, "If it is
marketed, Domination will be
very successful." With Dr. Haan as
writer and a group of Townsend
Harris students as the test group,
anything is possible.
~
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At::
Pow! Bam! Zowie!
Batmania swoops through Harris halls
by Jordan Dressler
old and alcoholic Batman returning
He's or, posters. He's on t-shirts. from retirement fifty years into the
.He's on notebooks, He's even on violent and crime ridden future.
tatoos. Who is this mysterious per- The critical and commericial sucson? Is it a famous rock star? No. cess of the novel proved that the
Is it a famous literary character? world was ready for a tougher,
Not quite. It's Batman, the Dark- meaner Batman .
night Detective, the Caped CrusadThis new Batman. however.
er, that Guy with the Pointy Ears. does not compare in meaness with
The bat-phenomenon is defini tely the evil and manical Joker, played
present in the halls of Townsend by Jack Nicholson in the new film.
Harris. The excitement wiil ex- Missing from Batman is Robin.
plode at the end of this month The directors say that he is being
when the long awaited Batman saved for a sequel.
motion picture makes its debut at a
What does this all mean to
theatre near you. But what is the Townsend Harris students? Apsecret behind Batman's success? parently, it means a lot. Dozens of
To find out one must know some students own t-shirts with either
bat-history.
Batman, the Joker, or the famous
The character of Batman was bat-signal emblazioned on the
created in 1939 by Bob Kane for chest. Pins are also popular with
D.C. comics. Bruce Wayne was an the students, who wear them on evorphan who witnessed his parents' erything from notebooks and bookmurder by a mugger. Hoping to bags to shorts.
stop crime, Wayne adopted the
Why the Batmania? "It's cool. I
identity of Batman. The Batman think the colors of the shirts are
of fifty years ago was a dark, grim nice," freshman Daniel Loewy said
character who was quite violent, referring to the dark blues.ipurples
but the success of this Batman was and blacks that set the mood fot'
limited to the comic books. How- the upcoming film. Others, however in the mid 1960's , there was ever, disagree. "It's a fad. It will
something of a bat-renaissance. Bat- . eventually die out, " declares freshman was reborn on the television man Brett Levinson, "but I am
screen in a campy, humorous, and going to the movie." Plans like
sometimes satirical show on ABC. these will probably make Batman
Batmania was rampant all over the one of the summer's bok office
country. Along with his trusty blockbusters. A full-page adversidekick Robin, Batman defeated tisement for the film in the New
his arch-enemy, the Joker, in mil- York Times on Sunday; June 11
lions of homes nationwide. The was a popular topic of discussion
visual effects Of "POW!", "ZAM!", in school the next day.
and "ZOWIE!" are still rememBatman has been around for
bered today. The movie Batman more than 50 years, but he has
of this year, however is very dif- never been more popular than he is
today. Many Townsend Harris
ferent from this TV version.
• In the movie, Batman, portrayed students participate in this batmaby Michael Keaton, is once again a nia, while others shy away from it.
Either way, Batman and his popugrim and violent creature of the
night. The recapturing of the origi- larity are around for the time
nal flavor is a continuation ofa
being, and only time will tell if the
mood created in a novel a few
phenomenon will continue. Until
years back, entitled "The Dark
next year, same bat-time, same batKnight Returns". It portrayed an
channel!
.....-....::
Tbe Classic
8
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June 1989
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The Classic
Girls' swimming captures championship
!
1
~
Swimmers take the plunge.
The Girls'Swim Team captured the Queens Division
Two Championship this season.
The Hawks, led by Stephanie Cherry, Sera Congi,
Caroline Wong, and Debbie Benik, compiled a record of
8-2 during the regular season. ' The team lost to Bronx Science in the first round of the City Championship Playoffs.
Girls' softball breaks even
I
'.
'. '
"
•
June 1989
Young girls track shows potential
Senior Cassandra runs in relay at a Queens developmental meet.
least popular Sport in the school,
events. , " ,
by Lena Jones
Rising stars, broken records, and
Efobi, whom HO!Il deems tc be One of the reasons Coach Hom
award-winning performances dis- one of the top freshman runners in gives is thatit is "the most difficult
tinguished the Girls' Outdoor the city, set school records in the sport to train and compete in" beTrack season. This year, the 100 and 400 meter hurdles, and cause unlike team Sports, you canHawks have won trophies and two will be running in those events in not rely on teammates. Also, Hom
runners qualified for the City , the City Championships. She also points out that unlike tennis or volwon a trophy in the 800 meter run.
leyball, track and field isn't a
Championships.
. Hollander also qualified for the "country club" sport.
At one point during the season,
the Hawks were probably the best City Championships in the 100 and '
in their division in the 100 and 400 400 meter hurdles but will not be
However, Girls' Cross Country,
meter hurdles, according to their able to run because of a hairline the strongest of the track seasons,
coach, Joe Hom. Freshman Ngozi fracture in her foot.
is growing in popularity. For the
Efobi, a newcomer to the track
last two years, that team has finteam, won two trophies in the 100
Since the team had a lot of ninth ished in fifth place and made the A
meter hurdles and one in the 400 and tenth-graders, Coach Hom City Championships.
Hom
meter hurdles. Junior Allison Hol- feels it will "probably develop into projects that next season's team
lander has also distinguished her- a very competitive team" if they will have over 35 members and
self in the 100 and 400 meter hur- return next year.
could move into the top three in
' dies, winning trophies in both
Right now, track and field is the Queens.
Opposing viewpoints:
Columnists debate interleague competition
.I..
!
~
i
.::;:\;.;.::»: ::::::....
Junior Angelica Roma stands on first base after hitting a single.
The Girls' Softball Team placed fourth in their diviTheir season
sion, finishing with a record of 7-7.,
ended on a positive note when they won a double-header
against Queens VocationaL During the second game, Leah
Mauro, the team's usual shortstop, pitched a shutout.
Most of the players will probably return to the team
next year since the majority are underclassmen. Only four
players, Mauro, Phonekeo Sarang, Cannelina Pagano, and
Justine Stem are graduating, and some promising new
players, such as Freshman Lauren Ciaccia, will fill in their
spots next season.
Boys' volleyball explains losing record
"Inconsistency" and "not coming together until the
end of the season" are the reasons Captain Oliver McIntosh gives for the Boys' Volleyball Teams' losing record.
The Hawks finished the season with two wins and six
losses, placing fourth in their division.
One of the highlights of their season was their victory
over Flushing. However, the Hawks' most memorable moment was their late-season victory against Aviation right
before that team was to compete in the playoffs.
The subways were packed for Darryl Strawberry, Orel Hershiser,
the exhibition series between the or Tony Gwynn.
Mets and Yankees. Both stadiums
As of now. each league has a
were sold out ' and the city was different rule concerning the ninth
alive with the excitement of Spot in the batting order. Inter"friendly" competition. Imagine league games would allow Nationthe reaction if the games were al League clubs to try the designated hitter and American League
played during the regular season.
. competition Clubs to give the pitchers a chance
, Interleague
throughout the nation would add to hit.
more to our national pastime. BeThe major professional leagues
sides the World Series atmosphere of football, basketball and hockey
of a Mets versus Yankees game, all have interleague or interconferthe Cubs and the White Sox would ence play. Last season's Jets versus
collide in an intra-Chicago series, Giants game was a big success,
Texas would enjoy an Astros ver- drawing a large crowd and stirring
sus Rangers showdown, and the a lot of excitement. Why shouldn't
Cardinalsversus the Royals would baseball be the same?
be an anticipated Missouri matchInterleague action would be a
up. California clashes would in- major plus for baseball, creating a
clude games between cross-bay ri- national epidemic of baseball
vals Oakland and San Francisco , fever.-- Jonathan Perry
and a Dodger versus Angels game
would feature the glitz of HollyAs Red Auerbach said, "If it
wood.
These rivalries would add inter- ain't broke, don't fix it." For almost
est to a long 162 game season, of 100 years, baseball has been our
which many games seem unimpor- national pastime. Now baseball libtant Although some people think erals actually want to remodel the
there are already good rivalries, league system. Would interleague
such as the Mets and the Cardinals, play really benefit baseball? I
how can these games be special doubt it.
when they meet eighteen times
Of course interleague play
each season?
would create new rivalries, such as
-Interleague action would also the Yanks versus the Mets, but
allow fans to see players from the soon, these games would become
other league.
Now, National as routine as a grounder to shortLeague fans miss the talent of Jose stop. For example, Ranger-IslandCanseco, Roger Clemons, and Don 'ers and Knicks-Nets games are enMattingly, and the fans of the joyable, but not extraordinary.
American League don't get to see There are already great rivalries
like the Mets versus the Cardinals
and the Yanks versus the Red Sox.
Interleague action would simply
diminish the glamour and magnitude of a potential World Series
match up. Let the Mets and Yankees meet in the Fall Classic, not
the dog days of summer.
Interleague games would not
give fans a better idea of the great
teams. Two years ago, the Atlanta
Braves won the majority of the
games against the Mets. Does that
make the Braves a better team?
The best team 'is the one that wins
the World Series. That's all that
counts.
Why should baseball copy the
other sports and go to interleague
play? The present system makes
baseball unique. The , American
League and the National League
have developed their own ia'entity
and their different styles create an
even bigger rivalry. They should
only meet two times-during the
All-Star Game and the World Series.
The only reason owners are proposing to reorganize the leagues is
to save' travel expenses. For instance, during the regular season,
the Los Angeles Dodgers play
eighteen games against the Atlanta
Braves since they are in the same
division. However, they are 3060
miles apart.
But the fans don't care. Baseball
owners sure "ain't broke." Keep
baseball
the
way
it
is.
-- Nuri Kodaman
June 198'
...~
by David Chan'
The Boy's Tennis Team continued its winning ways, finishing
the season with a 10-0 record. The
Hawks earned first place in their
~
division and competed in the City
e
-g
Championship Playoffs.
•
t:
"Our Boys' Tennis Team has
been strong for the last couple of
~
is
years," former Boys' Tennis Team
Senior Cassadnra H anley and Kasandra Robinson wait on the sidelines before a game at FliIshing
Coach Michael Anzel said . This
Meadows.
was the second consecutive year
_~tIl~Wks were undefeated
durmg the regular season. In their
first game and victory, which was
(
the second half, the Hawks' offense teammates, since ~y came so against Jamaica, the doubles team
by Lena Jones
\
The whis tle blew and the Hawks improved but neither team scored close to victory.
consisting of Rajiv Saxena and
and the game went into overtime.
silently walked to the sidelines
"It's over for us ," a disheartened David Richards was defeattd. but
"Let's go Harris!" a spectator Esther Soffer said as,she sat on the in the second game between those
with faces as gloomy as the cloudy
sky .
While their opponents, yelled as the Hawks took their po- grass with her knees against her two teams, Corey Ackerm an and
Bronx Science, celebrated in the sitions on the field. The Hawks chest. She, .like several other se- Scott Kossove, who moved up to
background, Hawks coach Wanda certainly did "go" in the first ten niors, was faced with the grim re- first doubles, avenged the earlier
Nix tried to cheer them up by re- minu tes of the twenty-minute over- ality that this was the last game of loss by defeating their opponents
time. 'After toughening their de- the season and their high school 8-3.
minding them what a great season
they had had. Yet, even her enfense and offense, Hawk Aimee soccer careers .
The Hawks ' other victories
couraging words couldn't dispel
Kazan scored the first goal of the
Guerrier feels the team "played were against teams from John
the overall feeling of sadness they
game, putting them aheadI-O.
really hard this year," especially Adams, Far Rockaw ay, Beach
However, this lead was lost in since this season was the last time Channel, and VanBuren.
had after their loss in the first
the second ten minutes. Afte r the many of the starters would play on
round of the playoffs.
Bronx Science played a very . Hawks scored, Science penetrated a team. The Hawks' hard work did
aggressive game, keeping the ,ball their defense and scored two goals. ' pay off since they compiled a 5-2in Harris territory for mos t of the While diving to save the second 1 reco rd and captured second place
first half. However, Hawk goal ie goal , Ramos hit her head on the in their division.
'
Chris Ramos kept them from scor- ground and got a minor ' concusAlthough this season and loss
ing with several diving saves.
symbolized the end to many of the
sion.
"You're playing like you're
"We should have won this one ," Hawks, Guerrier sees -it as a conafraid of them ... You've got to play
Martine Guerrier said as she tinuation. "I'll always be a Harris
them hard, " coach Nix said to the walked towards the sidelines. That Hawk,"
she
said , with
a
Hawks during half- time. During feeling was shared by most of her smile.
Girls' soccer season ends an era
This year's team, like
year's, was also eliminated ir
playoffs. In the first round, F.
Hills defeated the Hawks, win
the match 3-2.
The Saxena and Riel
doubles team won its match
and Ronnie Sussman won:
match 10-4. Unfortunately fo:
Hawks, the other doubles t
Scott Kossove and Jon New
lost 10-5 and David Klienm ar
Steve Sussman lost their Sll
matc hes .
"They were a tough te
Richards said about their FI
Hills opponents. "Overall,
played poorly," he added.
Klienm an, also disappoi
about the defeat , felt that we J
have gone all the way."
The Hawks' Coach ,
James Murray, said , "It W l
tough match for us and our pla
didn' t play well. We had a !
season..and I'm look ing fOTWaI
next year."
Girls' tennis advances to playoff
Jr. varsity softball routs opponents
by Jonathan Perry
.. Their season began with a five
run rally in the first inning and the
scoring never stopped. By the end,
the Girls' JuniorV arsity Softball
Team outseored their opponents
72- 13 and finished in first place
with a record of 3-0.
"We ran, hit, stole, batted, and
fielded well. We did everything
right to win," said sophomore Joy
Joseph. "It's too bad we had only
three games because we're on a
roll," said Sophomore Lisa Spardel.
Helped by the pitching performances of Joy Joseph and Holly
Sage and Stacy Helmeyer defense,
the team won their first game
against Bryant, 19-4. "That game
showed that we were the team to
beat," said sophomore Alexandra
Lutz. "It gave us tremendous confidence ."
complete game and Lisa Spardel
led the offense with a homerun.
Everyone contributed in their 33-3
win. "It was a great way to end the
season," said sophomore Cynthia
Wong. "It was like this season repeated last year's success."
Mr. Keith Hanson coached the
In the second game, Joy Joseph's
two- run homer and freshman Bev - team to their undefeated season.
erly Leano's solo shot led the team- - "He's a great coach and one of the
to victory against Hillcrest, 20-6. many reasons for our success,"
Holly Sage pitched a complete said Wong.
- Lisa Spardel summed up the
game to get her second win .
However, the biggest blowout season by saying, "We enjoyed
playing every game. The season
came in game three against Newtown. Meme Chung pitched a was a lot of fun."
Boys' outdoor starts well
(oJ
by David Park
The Boys' Track team got off on
the right foot, faring well against
the competition at the first two
meets this season.
At the fustQueens devclopmental meet, the Hawks upset Newtown in the 4 x 400 meter relay.
They won even though lead runner
Devon Williams, wasn 't read y
when the referee blew the whistle.
"I felt cheated at first, but it didn't
bother me or the team," he said . The team also pl aced fourth in
the 4 x 800 meter race.
The team also did well in their
second meet.
Junior Mark
Schwartz finis hed the mile run in
6:17 desp ite his not having had a
decent warm- up.
Freshm an David Spitzkoff and
junior Fred Ceraso followed, running in the 400 meter dash. Spi tzkoff finished in 1:13 and Ceraso in
1:06, edging man y experienced
runn ers from other schools.
Shot putters also showed improvement. Freshman Dav id Kucharsky threw the shot 26 feet, and
freshman Joshua Kamens broke
the 20 foot barrier for the first
time.
However, the highlight of the
meet was the exciting four-man
distance relay, led by junior Dan
Shrage, Williams, and anchorman,
sophomore Eric Weiner.
The
Hawks were edged out by Flushing
High School for third place. "We
ran a good race, and we could've
won. I think we'll do better. ne xt
meet," said Weiner.
Reflecting on this season.Coach
Wal ter Davis said, "The team will
be doing much better in the futur e,
with more training in endurance.
Senior Tami Hared
by Scott Kossove
"We tried our best," Emily Krietman sadly said after a heartbreaking loss to Bronx Science in
the second round of the City
Championship Tennis Playoffs.
In the ftrst round of the playoffs,
they faced Roosevelt and won 3-2,
with Tami Hared, Alina Ratner,
and Jacki Loeb leading the way.
'In the second round, they met
Bronx Science who defeated Harris with a 5-0 victory. "It was a
sad loss bec ause I wanted to see
the seniors go out in style," Kim
stated.
Thi s year, the Girls' Tennis
Team came into the season with a
tough act to follow. Despite losing
some key players last season, the
team compiled an 8-2 record and
took second place in their division. ,
Junior Ann Kim stated, "There
a lot of team spirit. We did l:
than we thought we would do.
Anzel did"a great job."
The team was led by sen
Tami Hared at first singles, F
Cadette at second sing les,
Randi Tannenbaum and N
Elias at first doubles.
The team had tw~ tough 1<
to arch rival Cardozo. In
matches, the score was 4-1,
ftrst single Tami Hared win
each of her matches.
Although they didn't make
the top, the team is still prou
their performance. Emily K
man summed up their year by
ing, "It was a season of hard VI
ing and dedication which paii
with not only a good record,
also a lot of fun."