Archives of the Lowell Newspaper

In his bio, Greg Hook, Fall '68, writes: " For those who may not know, archives of the Lowell newspaper are available at http://www.thelowell.org/content/view/185/52/. Scroll down, way down, to find our years."

Thanks, Greg!

What Was Your Senior Ambition?

Here's a sampling of ambitions we had in our 1969 senior yearbook:

• Art and dance
• Law
• Merchandising
• Psychology
• Work with children
• Psychology
• To expand my consciousness
• Find happiness
• Peace Corps or stewardess
• Architect
• Social worker
• Aeronautical engineer
• History professor or emperor
• Dental technician
• To find truth
• To become another Helen Karlsberg
• To achieve peace of mind
  

Makes you want to know if anyone's ambitions came true, doesn't it? Come to the reunion and find out!

The World as It Was in 1968 and 1969

To give you a better sense of what the world was like in 1968 and 1969, here are some resources.

Time Magazine has digitized all of its archives going back to 1923. Here are two starting points:

• June 7, 1968 issue; cover story: "The Graduate 1968"
• June 20, 1969 issue; cover story: "Starting to Come Home" [from Vietnam]

Information Please almanac:

• 1968: Tet Offensive and My Lai incident in Vietnam; Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
• 1969: Withdrawal begins in Vietnam War; Woodstock and Altamont music festivals; first walk on the moon

Wikipedia's detailed list of events:

• 1968
• 1969

Whew! Kind of hard to read this stuff.

Academy Awards, 1968 and 1969

What movies were we watching in 1968 and 1969?

Here are the Academy Award nominees for Best Picture for 1969 (for films released in 1968):

• Oliver! (Winner)
• Funny Girl
• Rachel, Rachel
• Romeo and Juliet
• The Lion in Winter

• Nominees for all categories

Here are the Academy Award nominees for Best Picture for 1970 (for films released in 1969):

• Midnight Cowboy (Winner)
• Anne of the Thousand Days
• Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
• Hello, Dolly! [starring Lowell alum Carol Channing]
• Z

• Nominees for all categories

Top ALBUMS of 1969!

The Beatles' White Album is still on the Billboard Top Albums list for 1969. Here's the list - with covers! - courtesy of the Now Channel. (Wikipedia breaks it down by week, but without cover artwork.) To see what songs are on each album, just click on the album's title, which will take you to Amazon.com's listing.

1969: 13 Weeks		Hair - Original Cast
1968: 1 Week 1969: 8 Weeks		The Beatles (White Album) - The Beatles
1969: 8 Weeks 1970: 3 Weeks		Abbey Road - The Beatles
1969: 7 Weeks		Blood, Sweat & Tears - Blood, Sweat & Tears
1968: 1 Week 1969: 4 Weeks		Wichita Lineman - Glen Campbell
1969: 4 Weeks		Green River - Creedence Clearwater Revival
1969: 4 Weeks		At San Quentin - Johnny Cash
1969: 2 Weeks		Blind Faith - Blind Faith
1969: 1 Week 1970: 6 Weeks		Led Zeppelin II - Led Zeppelin
1969: 1 Week		TCB - Diana Ross & The Supremes and The Temptations

Top 10 ALBUMS of 1968!

Were you wondering where the Beatles were on the list of Top 10 Hits of 1968 and 1969? Well, they're here, on the Billboard Top Albums of 1968 and 1969. The White Album, remember?

Here's 1968's Top Albums - with covers! - courtesy of the Now Channel. (Wikipedia breaks it down by week - but no cover artwork.) To find what songs are on each album, just click on the album's title, which will take you to Amazon.com's listing.

1968: 9 Weeks		The Graduate - Simon & Garfunkel/Soundtrack
1968: 8 Weeks		Cheap Thrills - Big Brother and the Holding Company
1968: 8 Weeks		Magical Mystery Tour - The Beatles
1968: 7 Weeks		Bookends - Simon & Garfunkel
1968: 5 Weeks		Blooming Hits - Paul Mauriat and His Orchestra
1968: 4 Weeks		Waiting for the Sun - The Doors
1968: 4 Weeks		Wheels of Fire - Cream
1968: 2 Weeks		Electric Ladyland - Jimi Hendrix Experience
1968: 2 Weeks		The Beat of the Brass - Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass
1968: 1 Week 1969: 8 Weeks		The Beatles (White Album) - The Beatles
1968: 1 Week 1969: 4 Weeks		Wichita Lineman - Glen Campbell
1968: 1 Week		Time Peace: The Rascals' Greatest Hits - The Rascals

Update from Reunion Planners

Note: Reunion planner Nancy Ligon de Ita sent this message to everyone who has signed up for the reunion so far. As a reminder, the original announcement is on the Lowell Alumni Association Web site:

http://www.lowellalumni.org/reunions.shtml#1969. Tell your friends!

Aug. 31, 2009

Dear Classmates:

We have 140 people so far! If we can get 80 more people we can take over the entire upstairs of the restaurant. By the way there are two elevators. The best one that avoids any steps is inside the gift shop.

We will be setting up the room in tables of ten. We would like to have a yearbook at each table, so please put a label on your yearbooks with your name on it, and bring them to share. Also feel free to wear your Varsity sweater, Band sweatshirt, scroll cap, cheerleader outfit, or just red and white.

We would like to know if you would like the event to be videotaped and whether you would want to pre-order a copy of the DVD for $10 or so. Just email me so I can get an idea of whether to hire the videographer.

Best,

Nancy Ligon de Ita

nancydeita[at]aol.com [substitute the @ sign]

[Substitution made to prevent spam.]

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about This Blog

Here are some FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) about the blogs, and the reunion blog:

Q: What's a blog?

A: A blog (short for "Web log") is a kind of interactive Web journal, with "posts" written by the blog owner, and a Comments function so visitors can participate in an online "conversation" about each post.

Q: What's the point of a blog for the reunion?

A: First, it's a great place to get updates from the planners, and share them with classmates who might not know about the reunion. As a big bonus, if enough people participate (by visiting regularly and posting comments), then an online "community" will form. Imagine submitting a comment asking if anyone knows where a "missing" classmate is, and having another Lowell grad - maybe someone you didn't know very well then, or haven't seen since - responding with his or her own comment, telling you where (city, state) your classmate now lives. Or think of the fun we could have sharing memories of music, events, teachers, sports, school dances and proms - anything, on campus or off, from "back in the day."

Q: Is the blog hard to use?

A: The reunion blog is extremely EASY to use! ANYONE can SEE anything on the blog without registering or signing in. You only have to register ONCE to submit a COMMENT. ALL INFO AND HOW-TO'S ARE ON THE BLOG, AND EASILY FOUND! Basic instructions are in the welcome message on the home page, including a link to "How to Register for This Blog."

Q: How is a blog organized?

A: The newest entry (or "post") is at the top of the page, with older posts below it; older posts are usually accessible through an archive. Because of this structure, the blog changes all the time, which keeps it fresh but also makes it harder to find what you just saw yesterday, or share it easily with a friend. But you can find any older posts easily, either through the Search function or the Archives, both of which can be found on the home page.

Q: What are comments?

A: A comment is simply a text box where you can type in your own message and post it to the blog, in response to a particular post. Blogs are usually set up so the blog's visitors can comment on any post - and that's how the Lowell Reunion blog is set up too. You've probably seen or participated in a blog without knowing it. Huffington Post is a very sophisticated blog; and most major newspapers' Web site have blogs led and written by reporters or columnists, which readers can comment on. In fact, any time you see "Post a comment" on a Web page, it's probably set up as a blog.

Q: Why do we have to register to submit a comment?

A: We limit participation to registered, signed-in users so we can screen out potential interlopers, who might post a nasty comment just for the thrill of it, even though the interloper knows nothing about Lowell High School or our reunion.

Still have questions? Sign in and submit a comment with your question, or email me at lowell40reunion[at]gmail.com (substitute the @ sign), and I'll do my best to answer.