CLASS OF1951Plans are already under way for a galafiftieth class reunion in mid-200l.Those completing the reunion portion<strong>of</strong> the latest questionnaire havevoted seven for a dinner, five for abrunch, and five for a retreat <strong>of</strong> oneor two days. More significantly, thefollowing have been named to thereunion committee: Ann Stodden-Mayer, Bill Birnie, George De Roy,Ken Holland, Don Von Mizener,Milton Zerin and Volney Brown. Thefirst question for the committee toconsider is whether George De Royshould be asked to pay for the wholething. See infra. We report with deepregret the passing <strong>of</strong> BruceEngelhardt on February 7, 1999. Hewas a distinguished pr<strong>of</strong>essional, agood friend and he loved <strong>USC</strong>. Wewill all miss him. On a much happiernote, those contending for the IronMan Trophy by continuing to practicelaw include Martin Abrams(about nine months <strong>of</strong> the year), DonBrown (“still somewhat alive andpracticing”), George De Roy (“part <strong>of</strong>a team which obtained a judgment <strong>of</strong>$454,000,000 (sic) in Georgia”), RoyMann (“alive and well and practicing”),Fred Flam (who, BernieSchulh<strong>of</strong> says, is “living in Bonsall,playing bridge and practicing parttime”) and Art Wasserman (“Nochange, still practicing.”) The last <strong>of</strong>these wins the trophy, to be presentedby a surviving classmate, ifany. There has been some activity inthe who-saw-whom department. JoeCapalbo spoke with Herb Kalmbachon the phone and met Bill Birnie at aHalf-Century Club dinner. Both are“very well.” Bill Jekel took RoyMann to breakfast and reports thatthe latter is “living a life <strong>of</strong> gracefulsemi-retirement; relaxed, goodhumoredand as perceptive as ever.”Sid Rose ex ux “somewhat regularly”CLASS NOTESsees Leonard and June Weinberg fordinner, bridge and occasionally, golf.“Leenie and our dog, Oscar, revel inour summers in Colorado.”Weinberg, for himself, admits he hasbeen seeing Sid, as well as MikeFranklin and Stu Hillman, who are“all well.” John Anderson has notseen any classmates because “theyare not conveniently located” inrespect to his Kihei, Hawaii home.(Now that you have mentioned it,John, we will all just drop in). Joseph(Roy) Ventress has not met any classmates,but he would be “delighted”to take one to lunch. Your ClassReporter has recently served on aCitizens Commission on U.S. DrugPolicy under the aegis <strong>of</strong> the Institutefor Policy Studies and Loyola <strong>Law</strong><strong>School</strong>, which found that the “waragainst drugs” has been lost andmade certain recommendations,copy upon request. Responding classmatesapparently concur. Sixteensaid that the “war” can never be wonvs. three who said that it still can bewon. Ten thought the war was notworth the cost. Fifteen thought fundsshould be spent primarily on treatment,as against seven for enforcement.Food for thought: Asked whatsingle law they would most like tohave repealed, responses includeddrug laws (several), three strikes,drunk driving statutes, redundantlaws, tax loopholes for the superrich,the estate tax (the favorite),solicitation <strong>of</strong> prostitution, SecondAmendment, the Endangered SpeciesAct, income tax and the law <strong>of</strong>diminishing returns. MISCELLANY:Of 25 responses received, golf wasspecifically mentioned only fourtimes and travel seven, but these arepredominant activities. . . Dan Leedygardens when not visiting with his10 grandchildren. . . RichardMcWilliams has just returned fromBermuda. . . Bill Jekel has built anew home in Maryland. . . JoeCapalbo has homes in Sedona,Arizona, and Columbia, SouthCarolina. . . 68 percent <strong>of</strong> respondentsprovided e-mail addresses. . .“Roy” Ventress has been awardedItaly’s highest decoration for his legalcounsel and cultural support. Savethe year 2001 for our fiftieth!Volney Brown, Jr.Class ReporterCLASS OF1952Our class seems to be doing a goodjob <strong>of</strong> maintaining their enthusiasmfor living and taking to heart theadvice <strong>of</strong> an English poet known onlyas Marsden. He penned a poem entitled,“What is Time?” He answeredhis question in many ways. Two <strong>of</strong>them, I think, our class has taken toheart. First: “I asked an aged man,with hoary hairs, Wrinkled andcurved with worldly cares; ‘Time isthe warp <strong>of</strong> life,’ said he; ‘So, tell theyoung, the fair, the gay, to weave itwell!’ ” Second: His second responsebuilt upon the first and put it thisway: “I asked my Bible, and methinks it said, ‘Time is the presenthour, the past has fled; Live! Livetoday! Tomorrow never yet on anyhuman being rose or set.’ ” Edward C.Cazier, Jr. is still active in the practice<strong>of</strong> law in Los Angeles, althoughin some respects he feels somewhatredundant, -- simply because <strong>of</strong> age.He is <strong>of</strong>f the board <strong>of</strong> Maytag Corp.on grounds (presumably spurious) <strong>of</strong>being “superannuated.” He was“term-limited” <strong>of</strong>f the CaliforniaArts Council, and “emeritized” bythe Practicing <strong>Law</strong> Institute. All thatdespite the fact that he “doesn’t looka day older!” He takes some consolation,however, in the fact that he wasrecently appointed to the board <strong>of</strong>Music Center Presents, which ischarged with filling the halls whennot otherwise occupied by thePhilharmonic, opera, etc. A year ago,he traveled to Hanoi, where he stayedat a hostelry he had enjoyed in thefall <strong>of</strong> 1945, when Ho Chi Minh wasour ally. Ed has a new grandson, Max,born April 19, 1999, in London. Henow has his choice <strong>of</strong> being theholder <strong>of</strong> a passport issued by theUnited States, Austria, Great Britainor the European Community.<strong>Law</strong>rence R. Frankley has a LosAngeles address, and another onewhich is most interesting and tells itall: Boarded Barn, Old Coast Road,Ormesby St. Margaret, NorfolkNR29 3QH, England. Larry is comfortablyensconced in retirement, oras he puts it, he “long ago quitwork.” From his residence inEngland, he has visited “all <strong>of</strong>Europe,” and spends his Februariessunning and surfing in Hawaii. Hehas avocations “too numerous tolist,” but they include membershipin the Honolulu Outrigger CanoeClub, the Olympic Club in SanFrancisco, and the Carlton Club inLondon. Don Olson devoted almosttwenty years as a city attorney(Culver City, 1958-1968, andInglewood, 1968-1977), followingwhich he retired and moved toNewport Beach, where he wrote abook with the tantalizing title, HowYou Can Quit Work and Have theMoney to Do It. He must havefound the magic key, for hehasn’t practiced law or worked eversince, spending his time enjoyingretirement at the Balboa Bay Club.Now if Don would only come upwith a successful book entitled, Howto Attain and Retain Good Health,our retirement cup would truly runnethover. William B. (“Bill”) Jones,who has retired from service in theState Department at the ambassadoriallevel, still maintains two residences,one in Washington, D.C. andanother in Santa Monica. He is amember <strong>of</strong> the board <strong>of</strong> directors <strong>of</strong>the Center for Public Excellence.He is currently Ambassador inResidence to Hampden – SydneyCollege in Virginia, an all-male liberalarts college founded by PatrickHenry and James Madison in 1776.At Hampden-Sydney, he teachesDiplomacy, Common <strong>Law</strong> andAfrican-American Culture. Since1997, he has also been a visiting pr<strong>of</strong>essorat Pepperdine <strong>University</strong><strong>School</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Law</strong>, teaching <strong>Law</strong> andForeign Policy, and Diplomacy in theundergraduate program. He continuesto travel (Vienna and Paris) whenhis busy schedule permits. As previouslyreported, Jack R. Levitt retiredfrom his position as a San DiegoCounty Superior Court judge. But,contrary to an earlier article, he isstill enjoying life in Bozeman,Montana with his wife, Kay. Inreporting on our class’s 45th reunion,it was erroneously stated (in effect)that Jack was in a position to be presidingover a class action brought bya group <strong>of</strong> disgruntled applicantsdenied passage through the PearlyGates. Jack has continued his activityin Freemasonry in Montana andCalifornia. He and Kay spend theirwinters in Texas, interspersed withvisits to California. He is active inpro bono settlement work for thecourts <strong>of</strong> Montana. Leon Mayer isfinally “winding down” his trialpractice in Glendale, which has consisted<strong>of</strong> “fighting the ‘evil insuranceempire.’ ” With the exception <strong>of</strong> onedaughter, Jennifer, who is in her secondyear as a music major (violin)at California State <strong>University</strong>,Northridge, his children are out <strong>of</strong>college and pursuing their owncareers. Leon is thinking <strong>of</strong> trying hishand at writing, presumably centeredon his considerable trial experiences,although we don’t knowwhether he will side with Belinda orLady Brute. “BELINDA: Ay, but youknow we must return good for evil.LADY BRUTE: That may be a mistakein the translation.” (JohnVanbrugh, The Provoked Wife[1697]). Charles H. “Chuck” Olderand his wife, Kitty, have three childrenand five grandchildren. Retiredfrom the Los Angeles CountySuperior Court, Chuck plays golffairly regularly with another distinguishedalumnus <strong>of</strong> the <strong>Law</strong> <strong>School</strong>,Malcolm Lucas, Chief JusticeCalifornia Supreme Court, Retired.You will recall that Chuck was one<strong>of</strong> Chenault’s “Flying Tigers” duringWWII. He recently attended areunion <strong>of</strong> that group, held inMidland, Texas, with the“Confederate Air Force.” PaulEugene Overton, another <strong>of</strong> ourretired superior court judges, lives inSan Diego with his wife, Naomi.Apparently mindful <strong>of</strong> judicial limitationson the length <strong>of</strong> briefs, hecapsulizes his life since law schoolwith these succinct words, “Happyin retirement, visiting children(three daughters and one son), grandchildren(six: two girls, four boys),friends and relatives — traveling ‘allover.’ ” Berne Rolston is still enjoyingthe challenge <strong>of</strong> a full-time practice,half <strong>of</strong> the time in land use matters,and the other half representinglawyers and law firms in their“internecine relationships.” One sonand one daughter died at an early age,but he has three surviving sons,Matthew, Adam and David, whohave not, as yet, endowed him withgrandchildren. His wife, Annie, diedin 1995, but having had the “goodfortune <strong>of</strong> finding a significantother,” some <strong>of</strong> the pain is eased.Berne “suffers from good health.”Extensive travel, especially walkingtours abroad and outdoor naturetrips, have enhanced his life and ledhim to conclude that “Life is a memorableexperience.” Harry L. Root, aspreviously reported, is retired andinvolved in various civic activities.Contrary to my first report, Harry’spractice and residence since 1978was not, and is not, in San On<strong>of</strong>re. Itwas, and still is, in that enchantingseaside resort, San Clemente. In conclusion,while it may be a little latefor some <strong>of</strong> us, there is this advicefrom Albert Einstein: “If A is successin life, then A equals X plus Y plus Z.Work is X; Y is play; and Z is keepingyour mouth shut.” (In the Observer,15 January 1950)Jack T. SwaffordClass Reporter48 <strong>USC</strong> LAW • SPRING 2000<strong>USC</strong> LAW • SPRING 200049
CLASS OF1954ReunionClass <strong>of</strong> ’54 reporter Bob Holtzman (right)gathering column material at the reunionwith Angela and Leon Altman ‘00I didn’t send out questionnaires thisfall and am going to forego the usualformat <strong>of</strong> this column, which doeslittle more than replicate whateverresponses I receive. A small group <strong>of</strong>us attended our 45th reunion dinnerat the Ritz Carlton Marina del Rey inSeptember. A brief report <strong>of</strong> what wesaid and did may be <strong>of</strong> some interest.Mostly, we seized the opportunity toput our three years at the <strong>Law</strong> <strong>School</strong>into historical and personal perspective.The school was founded as theLos Angeles <strong>Law</strong> StudentsAssociation in 1896, incorporated asthe Los Angeles <strong>Law</strong> <strong>School</strong> in 1898and affiliated with <strong>USC</strong> in 1900.Measured from today, we cameaboard in 1951, at about the halfwaypoint; the history <strong>of</strong> the schoolreaches back and forward almostequally from then. Associate <strong>Dean</strong>John G. “Tom” Tomlinson, Jr. who isequally dean and <strong>Law</strong> <strong>School</strong> historian,joined us at dinner and talkedabout the history <strong>of</strong> the school (youcan find one <strong>of</strong> his many historicalarticles in the Fall 1999 edition <strong>of</strong><strong>USC</strong> <strong>Law</strong>). He also talked about hishistorical project, which hasincluded interviews with many <strong>of</strong>our classmates and information onour pr<strong>of</strong>essors. There was somesolemnity as we reminisced aboutthe growing number <strong>of</strong> those who areill or deceased. But for the most part,Class <strong>of</strong> ’54 reunionwe talked about our favorite instructorsand our more ribald fellow studentsand about the incredibly funnythings that happened to us in the old<strong>Law</strong> <strong>School</strong> building. On the facultyside, an informal poll showedPr<strong>of</strong>essor Springmeyer as our favoriteinstructor by an inconsequentialmargin, closely followed by <strong>Dean</strong>Evans and Pr<strong>of</strong>essors Wickes, Burby,Hancock and Jones. Although we areadmittedly no longer youngsters, Icame away from the anniversary dinnerconvinced that we are still a vital,active, interested, and interestingbunch. And we have a common bond<strong>of</strong> affection for the faculty and institutionthat served us well for threeyears nearly a half century ago andgave us a foundation <strong>of</strong> learning thatput us on the right road for the next45 years, and still counting.Bob HoltzmanClass ReporterCLASS OF1959Reunion1999 was the fortieth anniversary <strong>of</strong>the Class <strong>of</strong> 1959 and we celebratedwith a fortieth year reunion at theRegency Club. The location wasboth elegant and comfortable andthere was plenty <strong>of</strong> good food anddrink. While we didn’t have 100%attendance, it was a great opportunityfor us to “catch up” with thosepresent and learn more about thehappenings involving those not present.Don Clark remains the seniorpartner at Clark & Trevithick, whichhe founded over 22 years ago. Donand Sally have three daughters, allmarried, and six grandchildren. Donhas been active in civic and communityactivities, serving as vice chair<strong>of</strong> the board <strong>of</strong> the Music Centeroperating company; director <strong>of</strong>Hillsides; and director <strong>of</strong> The ValleyHunt Club, where he is slated tobecome president for years 2001 and2002. Don and Sally have a secondhome on Whitefish Lake inMontana, where Don pursues hisleisure time activities <strong>of</strong> golf, tennis,reading, bridge, dominos, wine tasting,quail hunting and fly fishing.Sounds like Don needs to retire tohave more time to truly enjoy hismany interests. Michael Berg hasrecently retired as a superior courtjudge. He now has more time to pursuehis outside interests <strong>of</strong> travel,reading history and piano practice.He and his wife have two adult children.Classmates needing a good“rent-a-judge” could probably persuadeMichael to serve them in thatcapacity. Larry Booth is still heavilyinvolved with his plaintiffs litigationpractice in San Pedro with great success.Larry and his wife, Joann, whohave to be two <strong>of</strong> the youngest lookinggrandparents around, have threechildren and seven grandchildren.They live at the beach and bothremain in great shape by running forexercise. Bob Carter is still activewith his law practice in Pasadena,specializing in real estate law. Heand Mary Bett have two children andfive grandchildren. His outside activitieshave been boating and traveland he writes that Bob Peterson ispresently Of Counsel to his firm.Milt (Franklin) Condon is still practicingin Marina del Rey, specializingin real estate law. His current outsideinterests involve skiing, sailing,scuba diving and riding his motorcycle.He is still pursuing his primaryobjective <strong>of</strong> achieving a full andactive retirement which willundoubtedly happen when he practiceslaw just a little more. DickDu Par continues as a solo litigator,specializing in both general litigationand personal injury matters. Heclaims that the only thing he hasbeen doing for fun since law schoolhas been occasional travel and thathe is still practicing because he can’tafford not to. We all know Dick hasClass <strong>of</strong> ’59 reunionhad a lot more fun than that. Dickhas served as president <strong>of</strong> the LosAngeles chapter <strong>of</strong> the AmericanBoard <strong>of</strong> Trial Advocates, as well asserving on its national board <strong>of</strong> directors.Dick has two children and onegrandchild. Dick Eamer is retiredfrom his position as chairman andCEO <strong>of</strong> National Medial Enterprises.He and his wife, Eileen, have twochildren and five grandchildren.Having served on many corporateand charitable boards, he has alsopursued a number <strong>of</strong> hobbies includingskiing and raising horses. Dickwisely counsels his classmates to“have fun — there isn’t a lot <strong>of</strong> timeleft.” Mitch Egers continues hisJoe Poliner (left) and Richard Du Pardiscussing their “differences” at theClass <strong>of</strong> ’59 reunion, which took placeat the Regency Clubcriminal practice in downtown LosAngeles as he has since his early dayswith the district attorney’s <strong>of</strong>fice. Hewrites that he is continuing practicinglaw due to “force <strong>of</strong> habit” andbecause “travel, investing and threegrandchildren don’t take up all <strong>of</strong> mytime.” David Finkel continues tolive in Santa Monica, where heserves as a municipal court judge,which he has done since his appointmentin 1991. David and his wifehave four children and three grandchildren.David writes that theaccomplishment <strong>of</strong> which he is boththe proudest, and the least proud, is“being associated with the legal system.”Marvin Goldsmith and hiswife, Adele, have four children andtwelve grandchildren. After years <strong>of</strong>service in the Attorney General’sOffice trying eminent domain cases,he is presently Of Counsel toBergman & Wedner. Marvin writesthat he enjoys pursuing travel, skeetand trap shooting, and philanthropicendeavors as outside activities, andthinks that it would be fun to domore traveling. He says that he isstill practicing part time to “supportmy stamp collection.” LloydHamilton has recently retired as asuperior court judge and lives inPlacerville. He served as districtattorney before being appointed tothe bench and, although retired, hestill sits occasionally as a judge.Gordon Hunt remains active as asenior partner in his firm, specializingin the field <strong>of</strong> construction law,in which he is an acknowledgedexpert. Gordon and his wife live inArcadia and his practice is inPasadena. He has two children andwrites that he has one grandchild“on the way.” Gordon pursues hisoutside interests <strong>of</strong> traveling, investingin real estate, tennis and golf, andhopes to spend more time in the nextdecade traveling and playing golf.Stan Jacobs continues his primarypursuits <strong>of</strong> being a successful triallawyer and raising children. His primarilyplaintiffs’ civil litigation practiceis flourishing and his childrenare ages 36, 34, 30, 16, 14, 13, 11 and50<strong>USC</strong> LAW • SPRING 2000<strong>USC</strong> LAW • SPRING 200051