Class of 1972 Memories

Class of 1972 - Class of 1972 Memories Classmates, H. Kell Yang was the second classmate to register for our 40th reunion. I vividly remember one of my friends calling me after he also signed on and asking, “Who the hell is Hank Yang?” (The H stands for Henry). Little did I know that in the last 10 months I would be spending more time with Kell than almost all of the members of the Class of ’72. Kell introduced himself to me after the parade/picnic and we ended up having breakfast at the same table the next day. Since we both had an enduring interest in Penn basketball and a concomitant distaste of Princeton, we became instant friends. Through Kell, I have become a mentor in two programs he sponsors – one for both the men’s and women’s basketball teams and the other for Presidential Scholars at Penn. In addition to his financial generosity, Kell devotes a tremendous amount of time and energy to Quaker-related activities. While at Penn, Kell was a biology major. He subsequently graduated New York Medical College and was an eye surgeon before launching a second career in the surgery center business. He and his wife Nancy Weaver have two daughters, Brooks (24) and Kelsey (22). Kell and Nancy live in Columbia, Missouri and Aspen/Snowmass, Colorado where they frequently alpine ski. Kell is also an avid tennis player. I hope you will enjoy his memoir, “The Empire Strikes Back.” This is the sixth in our series of memoirs. I currently have in hand pieces by Margaret Rose Ryan, Mitch Rofsky, Mick McCue, Alan Kennedy, Gayen Thompson, and Ron Malzer. I am awaiting promised memoirs from Edgar Bates, Sara (Kleppinger) Fornaciari, Andy Baum, and Nick Spitzer (how is this for a pressure tactic?). Regardless, we are well short of the goal of 45 for our 45th. If you would like to contribute to this project, please email me at [email protected]. Best, Jeff Rothbard President, Class of ‘72 PENN / PRINCETON PALESTRA BATTLES - My College Memento My Phi Kappa Sigma brother Dave "Swede" Tritton (W '72) very vividly recalls his first day of practice as a member of the frosh basketball team. Our highly acclaimed team, which finished the season undefeated, was coached by future celebrity, luminary "Digger" Phelps (so named because his father was a funeral director). Phelps intones "Gentlemen, you have only one purpose. And that purpose (pause) is to BEAT PRINCETON (uttered frenetically)". That explains everything a Penn student needs to know about the importance of this rivalry. The Ivy League was formed in 1956. For the following 56 years, either Penn or Princeton has won or shared the title 47 of those years. I clearly recall an April 1st joke edition of the DP disclosing that the Evil School had engineered a furtive trade for the vaunted All-Ivy Tiger guard Brian Taylor. I would not have made that trade as I had the distinct displeasure of meeting him during a summer session at The Lawrenceville School where I witnessed that he would brown nose those whom he thought he could use and put down all others. Never have I met a more haughty soul. Nevertheless, Taylor could ball. Those Brian Taylor - Ted Manakas guard match-ups against our Corky Calhoun - Coins Kotler backcourt are emblematic of Penn-Princeton battles that will forever shape my college memories. Before I met Brian Taylor, I had the honor of sharing another summer session at Lawrenceville with Columbia forward and eventual Los Angeles Laker Jim McMillian. In contrast to Taylor, he was personally secure and it showed. While watching a Penn - Columbia frosh game together, he teased me "Because your freshmen are beating ours, we're going to take it out on your varsity." This was presented in good cheer, absent a sense of vitriol. That evening, Steve Bilsky, Dave Wohl, et al prevailed in spite of strong performances by Jim and his close friend and teammate Heyward Dotson. Funny how cheesesteaks at Pat's (self-proclaimed King of Steaks) or chicken salad hoagies at the now defunct Ronnie's with now deceased Brent S. (C'76) or Mike Lake (W '72) seem more sumptuous with the added garnish of victory over the Evil Empire. The best of all those celebratory meals came in January of 1971 when Princeton built a 7 point lead at the Palestra with only 2:19 left. Calhoun finished the Quaker comeback by knocking in a jumper with 1 second on the clock to send the game into overtime and Good triumphed over Evil with a 66-62 win. I remember that I could hardly walk to the Palestra without shaking, so tremulous were my legs at the thought of the magnitude of this event. Once inside, we Penn fans were loud, raising the temperature in an already overheated Palestra with every Bobby Morse jumper or Corky Calhoun blocked shot against Princeton. It was positively thrilling. The experience is one to be felt, absorbed rather than comprehended. After graduation I have continued to do whatever I can to help the hoopsters beat Princeton. As a member of the Penn Basketball Board, I co-chair a mentoring program to assist the Penn men's and women's players with career guidance. In this program, we sponsor formal conferences twice a year, but we have individual mentoring on a continual basis. This includes arranging job shadowing at venues such as Goldman Sachs, The Vanguard Group , physicians, attorneys, etc. I have also been privileged to augment the recruiting budget and renovate the locker rooms and coaching offices. Athletic Director Steve Bilsky (W '71) has been kind enough to recognize my support by naming an electronic scoreboard in the Palestra after me. Ironically, over 35 years after graduation, my daughter also was admitted to an Ivy League school. While she was very active during her college years and very social, (she even joined a sorority), much to my surprise she never attended a basketball game at --- the Evil Empire. I still love her but not as much on those two nights every winter. By H. Kell Yang Class of 1972 .

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