Category Archives: Uncategorized

Town and Gown Celebrity Series: Louis Armstrong, Alvin Ailey, Arthur Fiedler and more!

In the 1960′s, the University of Detroit presented a series of performances from classical, popular and folk artists. “Town and Gown” at U of D was an innovation started by Rev. Herman S. Hughes, S.J. in 1964. Throughout the school year various artists were scheduled included such names as (in no particular order): Louis Armstrong,  Carlos Montoya, the original Broadway cast of the Spoon River Anthology, Dave Brubeck, Duke Ellington, Ed Ames, Erroll Garner, Roger Williams, Arthur Fiedler conducting the...

Odds and Ends in the Archives

There are various items that get donated or I pick up on ebay that relate in some way to Mercy College or University of Detroit. This is just a sample of some of the things. If you have any odd thing that happens to have the Mercy College of Detroit or U of D name on it, please consider sending it to the University of Detroit Mercy Archives. The only thing I do not need are U of D Tower...

Love and Marriage at UDMercy

Since June is a popular month for weddings, I thought I would check through the archives for any wedding activity.  The chapel at Mercy College was often used for wedding ceremonies. There was an enclosed area in front of the library and next to the chapel where the bride and her attendants would wait before the ceremony.  I remember seeing one wedding party with a medieval theme complete with the groomsmen dressed like they were part of King Arthur’s round...

Lights! Camera! Action! Light Up the Land! A University of Detroit 1952 Musical Production

The University of Detroit Mercy is one of the sponsors for the “Light Up Livernois” being held Friday, May 31 and Saturday June 1, 2013. The event is to celebrate local businesses and culture on Detroit’s Avenue of Fashion. Activities include a fashion show, music, and art from the neighborhood. On Saturday there will be a theater performance by the Extra Mile Playwrights. Back in 1952, the University of Detroit had a similar theme in the theatrical production entitled “Light...

Aces Wild 1927 University of Detroit Student Opera Musical Comedy

In an alphabetical browse through the theatre files of the University of Detroit, the first file that shows up is “Aces Wild”.  It was the second production by the Student Union Opera group and with the established success of theatrical director of London and New York, John Harwood and musical dance director Max Scheck, there was no doubt that it would be a critical success. James S.. Pooler, a student in the College of Arts and Sciences wrote the book...

Golden Memories for the Class of 1963, University of Detroit and Mercy College of Detroit

The good old days in 1963–gas was 29 cents a gallon, a new car cost $3,200, undergraduate tuition at University of Detroit for full 16 hour credit load was $768. In music the Beatles were just starting to take off with their first album “Please, please me” and some of the popular TV shows included: The Flintstones, Mr. Ed, The Avengers, and The Dick Van Dyke Show. At the 35th Academy Awards, the Oscar went to Lawrence of Arabia for...

Marian Day to Honor the Mother of God, 1931-1965

The first Marian Day celebration at the University of Detroit Stadium was held May 17, 1931, sponsored by the Detroit Catholic Students Conference. Nearly 16,000 people heard the Reverend John P. McNichols, S.J., President of the University of Detroit, deliver the principal address. One of the more notable speakers  to address the Sodalists in 1935 was the Reverend Charles E. Coughlin, pastor of the Shrine of the Little Flower, and noted radio speaker on the subject of “Religion as the...

James T. Callow Folklore Archive-Some Unexpected Finds

Many times when I am looking for something in the archives, I come across something that is just too good to be left hidden in some file cabinet, such is the case with these pictures. There is no indication as to who drew these, but they have notes on the back to indicate they are examples of the use of geometric designs and shapes in a culture. Can’t help it, but this mask reminds me of the helmet for the...

Finals: The Beginning of the End or Start of Something New?

My initial thought for this blog was to see how students handled the stress of final exams. As I was browsing through some old Varsity News to see how students handled finals at the University of Detroit in the past, I began to notice other things that were not necessarily about taking final exams. In 1965-66 year,  UD changed the academic calendar to tri-semester so class would run September-December, January-April and May-August. Up until 1966, UD commencement ceremonies were held...

Author! Author! Joyce Carol Oates (Smith), Instructor and Elmore Leonard, Alumni at UDMercy

At the University of Detroit Mercy you never know if the instructor in front of you or the scrawny kid sitting next to you could be a future famous writer. That was the case at the University of Detroit. Elmore Leonard earned a degree from the University of Detroit in 1950 and has written many novels, some have been made into movies that include: Get Shorty, Mr. Majestyk and 3:10 to Yuma . His most recent work includes working as...

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