xt70k649s085 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dipstest/xt70k649s085/data/mets.xml The Kentucky Kernel Kentucky -- Lexington The Kentucky Kernel 1991-11-21 Earlier Titles: Idea of University of Kentucky, The State College Cadet newspapers  English   Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. The Kentucky Kernel  The Kentucky Kernel, November 21, 1991 text The Kentucky Kernel, November 21, 1991 1991 1991-11-21 2020 true xt70k649s085 section xt70k649s085  

 

 

Established 1894 University of Kentucky. Lexington, Kentucky Independent since 1971 Thursday. November 21 . 1991

Vol. XClV, No. 226

Despite budget cuts, UK coal pile being moved

 

 

GHEG EANS/Kemel Start

A coal pile, which has been located on Alumni Drive for 20 years, will be moved to improve the overall appearance of the area. Despite
budget cuts that recently have begun to affect the University, officials are proceeding with the project.

Pile of coal
on Alumni
an ‘eyesore,’
official says

Stall reports

The ever-familiar coal pile,
which has been on Alumni drive by
Commonwealth Stadium for 20
years, won‘t be in sight much long-
er. Despite recent UK budget cuts,
the agricultural department has
completed the digging of a new 18-
foot coal pit. which is located just

 

 

 

By RESA WRIGHT
tatf Writer

Greg Ousley did not take a
shower for more than a month

“I went 32 days wtthout a
shower and close to four and a
half months without a glass of
milk," said ()usley. a UK junior
who served as a marine in Oper-
ation lksert Storm

But that didn‘t compare to the
fright Ousley faced during the
time he served in Saudi Arabia.

“The most scared time i was
over there would have to be Jan.
18 or 19 at 5:30 am. when the
signal went off for a biological
chemical attack." said Ousley.
who was stationed at Port Jubil.
20 miles from Iraq.

In silence, Ousley‘s group im~
mediately prepared by putting
on protective suits and masks.

This warning was not the only
time Ousley found himself fear-
ing for his life. There were often
Scud attacks that sailed over his
head and he could feel the
ground shake as the bombs went
off.

Greg Ousley. a UK junior who was called to the Persuan Gulf
in December. displays some Items he picked up in the desert.

UK marine recalls
Saudi tour of duty

GREG EANSKemeI Statt

“It was just like a fireworks
show way off in the distance,"
he said.

Things got so difficult at one
tiriie that ()usley called home to
say goodbye to his mother.

“The phone rang at l'lS am
here." said Gloria Bronston, his
mother. “When it rain; and it
was hllll, he told me what he
had been told tiiffitials had told
him 80 percent of his troop was
going to diet~

His mother said he told her he
“wasn't trying to hurt her. he
was trying to help her."

“I‘ve had a good life
you‘ve been a good mother and
you all have taught me right anti
given me a lot." ()usley told his
mother during that call

()usley said, “if I don‘t make
it. don't you take it so hard."

”I was terrified that he would
not make it home." Bronston
said

She said that if it were possi-
ble. she and any other mother
would have taken her son‘s
place on the front line.

See OUSLEY. Page 6

 

 

200 yards behind the old site. Fund-
ing for the relocation project. which
will cost about $9,750, was appro-
priated in July 1989.

The project is being completed
“to make the area a little more at-
tractive," said Donald Clapp, vice
president for administration.

Private contractors were called in
to line the pit with blacktop and

concrete in order to conform to
EPA regulations, which deems lin-
ing between the coal and the ground
necessary

"We started this project before
we got budget cuts, and having
gone this far we can't stop now,“
said Jack Blanton, vice chancellor
for administration. Blanton referred
to the coal pile as “an eyesore."

 

GREG UNS-‘v’n 52'3"

The agricultural department completed the digging of a new 18 foot
coal pit, which is not far from the original site

Ambassadors stress positive University image

By DOTSIE COWDEN
Contributing Writer

David Hasler said he wants to
change UK‘s image of being a last-
resort university.

The University has chosen Hasler
and four other students to travel the
state in an effort to “upgrade the
image of UK and let Kentuckians
know why they should be proud of
their University." said (‘hrista ('ol-
lins‘, an ."it!t"t'l(‘“ senior and stu-
dent ambassador

Out of 73 applicants. Collins.
Hasler, Jon Ragan Jr.. Brad Cham-
bliss and Kimberly Mayo were
nominated by faculty and staff and
then were mtervrewed.

 

”We want to stress the strong points of the
University, such as our increase in minority
students on campus and the fact that we have
48 national merit scholars in this year's

freshman class."

Jon Ragan Jr.
UK ambassador

f

Lach student will each receive a
83.000 scholarship for a vear.

the student ambassadors. who
were announced at a press confer-
ence on campus \fonday, plan to
devote 10 hours a week traveling
the state, practicing public speaking
anti studying the l‘niversity‘s histo-

Students get chance to

By MONICA BRYAN
Contributing Writer

Anyone who has been at UK
long enough has been at their
mercy; boring, aloof professors
who drone on in anesthetizmg
monotone while they lecture about
the joys of academia.

But there are other UK faculty
who truly represent the spirit of
academia faculty who make a
boring subject come to life or who
care about the well-being of their
students.

Project pairs

By GRAHAM SHELBY
Senior Staff Writer

Kenneth blows through his baby
teeth into the tomato soup.

Dunking his cheese sandwich, the
second-grader fears off soaked
bread with his teeth and smiles
openrmouthed at a stranger.

in the cafeteria seat next to him,
UK student Jennifer Anderson
watches him with a patient smile.

Anderson eats lunch with Ken-
neth every week as part of the Big
Buddy program. a joint effort be-
tween the l'K Education Depart-
ment and Maxwell Elementary
School

The program pairs about 130 LK
students with children whose teach
ers feel they would benefit from ad
ditional adult interest.

“All these kids think they 're spe
tial 'l'hat‘s what we want them to

From now until Dec. 6. students
can repay these faculty by
nominating them for the 1WD
(ireat 'l‘eaclier Awards.

Each year, the i K ‘\lullllff
Association recognizes outstanding
members of the LJK faculty for their
superior teaching techniques, their
involvement in the academic
community and for their concern for
students.

The purpose of the (neat leather
.\wards is to show faculty that
alumni appreciate their efforts and
the fine job that they do, said Bob

Yy. its‘ admissions process and l’;
progress

The biggest thine we want iii get
across are the positive CiliillL’t‘\ hap-
pening all K." aid Ragan ai- aeri-
tulture junior. ”We want it
the \irtlflL' points t‘i the triist-rsirx
such as our increase in minoriis szii

site‘ss

wits camp." .ir.‘; :h- .:i.. :z' .4
-’ e 4" ria‘uoi .if nix-7': st‘m'

i
‘h-s «sar‘s tint-roan wt "

I“: .iitihri-sa-‘rir (“Timur ‘~
sfcfem imam/a.
ri ('oflet‘izins ’i' 5.. inches i"

,t, :fr'ntjr‘

rtension of {h

hate Usauhert»
‘iassador ilti‘.f\;‘T
med tor a r" ' x. i s
' rt in. h'irig -h,

“it" Lit-3 AI? t." ’. ‘-

tiz‘d‘asxitfors s... f
\ZK't’lA ti htgt;
admin .i my »
tfi ii ii|\i\t' «UV 4 '
i'j‘Hfit.:"i:iit‘~ i. 1 y

. ititt' 1L~ '

name ‘great teachers“

Whitaker.
Affairs

Since {it
itiiplenientttf 1 f sear.
.great teachers ifi‘lll tw-tfi 'L is arid
the (oiiiiiiuiiity t‘olfeet \Ksteiii
have ttcciwd the honor

An) tiigitm
llt)[lllll..llc' A it'tlLilk‘l, tlilti skit il \ltltit'iil
orgarii/ation also is pt'ri..it.t'ti ti
make a selection.

\oiiiinalions art
()iiiicron Delta Kappa, ii .i.itiori.ii
leadership honor \t‘tls‘i}.
liinior Honorary. .:ii

director t.; ’\fLilllill

ptogtatti was

siLli, ‘

sindent i~

[sit vs.” V.

. .ifiti\

organix llltli'i

children with big buddies

think,” said Sue Michael, toordina
tor of the \laxweii project “The
students who participate in this pro
gram really feel they're special
to have gotten d buddy ‘

Michael said the program
proved extremely popular among
elementary \‘Itltit‘llts

“ll means so i'llULil to these kids
to know that they have a friend
who‘s going to tome see them eve
ry week."

Nevertheless. the process of be
coming acquainted tan take some
time. “The first day that i came.
(Kenneth) hid under his coat the
whole time," :‘tnderson said.

Kenneth t‘tifit t‘dt‘d he “its not t‘\
actly an ettrotert iii their initial en
counter. "The first time i was shy
shy."

Anderson said sht‘ had to take
drastic steps to foster toriiriitiriicii—
tron.

has

She took his milk.
I \llii ii“
thll t idik tn ' 5’s.
neth gait
agreement.
Getting the fitiit~
it first is utter. Jilin”:
said. iltitillii; that fit):
tactics s‘eeni ti hast -. ed
”it‘s been ma; 1
up to me." she said
great to NT the kids . "
see the same things li‘ “me

hit “‘1" Isms ' ""
\ilc mild ;’\;'l:

.i .retkie Litt‘t’i stint; in

“dishes fi‘ Lark
\nder‘soi‘:

.i tik‘t‘icli‘l‘i

pen
1 s gall)

Once the pair gets . .
other, Michael said. t.‘~t '. J. t
can have a posititc iiif‘a '
thildren

uit.» it‘d“) ii \il‘. .
thing to see [his is .ltlifili
think it makes the kids tce‘ s? l‘. ”

The larger of the
seems to enjoy the i'lt‘ifiisi‘ii‘ is

See BUDDY. Page 4

and l

bod

" .it knight/cs writs‘utlitlif-t itt. f.‘--
tiltt \{HHVI st.” , Itiiiii t- t t.

artar iii , irtf.

t‘ liiiht tit sci triti'i

Alena» s -. it
tlkil‘x‘l \wdld‘v .-' ‘
tlsc‘s iii; lifidf sci. i
ilf ti .ttlitihidit '.‘

'.f«s.if.i ii. .

t'i'i .i .‘iwt.

lift itth .i=\ i.i i ii.

' .' iii-K. .i

me FACULTY rlige .3

 

__.."

l

Seorsone
to address
UK campus

State Rep. Ernesto Scor-
sone will address issues fac-
ing UK. students and higher
education today at S in 245
Student Center. Scorsone
represents the campus area in
the General Assembly.

Some of the issues he may
discuss include:

¢ 3 proposed bill to elimi-
nate mandatory student
health insurance

. funding for higher educa‘
tion, including UK and its
proposed library

c the recent more than $30
million budget cuts taken by
higher education.

 

 

 

 

 

SPORTS

 

UK TODAY

 

 

INDEX

 

 

Cats trounce West Virgina Mountaineers in
season opener, 106-80. Story, Page 2.

 

Representatives of the US. Air Force Stra-
tegic Air Command will give a briefing on
American war capability. The presentation

is at 4 pm. in Old Student Center Theatre.

‘To kill a Mocking-
bird’ opens tonight

at 8 pm. Preview,
Page 3.

 

 

Sports.
[ZiverSions
CiaSSitieOS

 

 

 

 2 - Kentucky Komol, Thursday, November 21,1991

 

Wildcats defeat
Mountaineers
106-80 in opener

By TIM WIESENHAHN
Sports Editor

It didn't take the Wildcats Iong’to
emerge f'rom the shadow of proba-
tion. Forty nllllUlL‘\ of the Preseason
National Invitational Tournament at
Rupp Arena gave L'K all the time it
needed.

Enough time to defeat the West
Virginia Mountaineers lt‘otttl.

Freshman forward Attiinu Titti-
berlake took

guard Travis Ford. who contributed
an around-the-world assist to senior
Deron Feldhaus.

Ford, playing in first game as a
Wildcat since he transferred frotn
Missouri last year, killed the Moun-
taineers' X-t) run and their only
threat at UK's lead.

With UK leading 57-48. Ford
dribbled down the right side of the
coun and cut into the lane, drawrng
the West Virginia defender to hitti.

He then whirled

 

less than tour
minutes to de-
liver the good
news his name
promises.
Timberlake,

whose first
name means
“faithful one

 

 

the ball behind
his back to
Feldhaus, who
scored the lay—
up.

Ford. who
broke his knee—
cap in the Blue-
White scrim-

 

 

 

who brings
good news."
scored ilVC
points and blocked one shot in less
than {MC minutes of first-half play
to give [K a lo—o lead He finished
with five pornts and five rebounds;

Pttino seemed astonished at T im—
berlake's -. and fellow freshman
Andre Riddick's _. quick adaption
to maior collegiate basketball.

“Aminu and Riddtck both do“ a
very good Job," said Wildcat coach
Rick Pitino. "It's very difficult to
play freshmen in this type of sys»

l don't know how they're do»

ing it. I know I couldn't do it."

Senior forward John Pelphrey
took only the first 20 minutes to
score 19 points

Pclphrey. who has played most of
his games as a Wildcat on proba-
tion. scored four three-point baskets
in the first half. including the
game‘s first. to give UK a 5740
lead at halftime. He finished with
26 pomts. four assists and one re—
bound,

The threat of an eight-perm West
Virginia run sparked sophomore

PELPHREY

mage a few
weeks ago. was
not expected to
play for another three weeks. Pitino
said he let him play last night be-
cause “he wanted" to play so bad.
“He did a very good Job tonight
because he‘s not back on that knee.
He'll tell you he is. but he‘s not.
“He's a very gutsy player."
Junior guard Jeff Brassow needed
only 13 minutes and 19 seconds of
the first half to score 13 points, in-
eluding three three-pointers. Bras—
sow played relentless defense, hold-
ing Mountaineer guard Chris
Leonard to three points in the first
half. Leonard, who has averaged
nearly 24 points in WVA‘s two pre-
season exhibition games, did not
score until l2:40 mark of the first
half. Leonard finished with eight
points. Brassow scored 23 points.
“Everything we hoped to do de-
fensively we did tonight and that
made us look good. We cannot play
any better than this for an opening
game," Pitino said.
UK‘s Jamal Mashbum scored 15
pman and eight rebounds.

 

 

GREG BANS/Kama Staf‘

Sean Woods attempted to slam a shot over No. 4 Wilfred Kirkaldy in UK‘s season opener against West
Virginia last night The Wildcats trounced the Mountaineers 106-80

Football season nears end this weekend with rivalry games

By JOHN KELLY
Assnstant Sports EC‘TC‘

In Ohio. if the Buckeyes don't
beat Michigan, John Cooper could
be on the hot seat. While he has
won 60 percent of his games as the
Buckeyes‘ head coach. Cooper has
yet to beat Michigan

lf Cooper doesn't believe that be-
ing a good coach isn't enough for
Buckeye fans. refer him to Earl
Bruce. the former Ohio State coach
who fielded a winning percentage
of more than 70 percent but was
chased from his _lt)b by rabid boost-
ers because he couldn't beat Michi<
gan

in Alabama. a football game at:-
nualiy halts all productivity. The

sanest of individuals tend to lose
themselves in the significance of
the Aubum-Alabama game.

A loss could lead Alabama fans
to downright Violence. For exam-
ple, tossing bricks through the head
coach's office window. Ask Bill
Curry.

Those games traditionally end the
college football season. Both are
Saturday «- along with USC-
UCLA. Harvard-Yale and a host of
other college rivalries

Some are healthy. some are Au-
bum»Alabarna.

What about UK-Tennessee’
Where does Saturday‘s 87th renew .
al of the “Battle for the Beer Bar,
rel" rank on the totem pole of col-
lege football rivalrics‘

 

Little Caesars

 

I PARTY PACK!

nmnzzn
Imcmilm' ”0mm

$2

I. WWI
\IAN fii-rniioUI
can...» ....-.--.'.- min-s
mmu—cfl—Uumng ..

I
lLittlethmaml

-~_- unv-

--. 'MW rm ---

gmtpimleneiowm‘iceAlwavsAlwwx

PARTY!

giant... '0-

. n .1 n
--. “MW our»: ---

I .
I CHEESE PIZZAS:

is
I

Pizza! Pizza!'

DUKE ROAD

269-7354

 

2 SMALL

ssh»

“The TennesseeKentucky rivalry
is a heated rivalry." Curry said.
“and no. it‘s not the same way as
Alabama-Aubum or Tech-Georgia.
But it could be. And what we need
to make it that kind of rivalry is f'or
us to w in.

“Then it gets bigger and bigger
and bigger. Then our students buy
up all their tickets well in advance
and want to be at the game. Then
you can't a ticket for a year in ad
vance. Then all kind of good things
happen."

(furry said it means something to
Kentuckians if the Cats can defeat
the Vols.

“’lhere's an awful lot of feeling a
lot of places I go in the state of
Kentucky. especially down along
the line. People say ‘Well I live on
the Kentucky Side and I sure wrsh
you could whip that big orange for
me. Because I have to hear it all the
year.‘ Those are the fun things
when its done In a healthy sense.
and its a good competitive rivalry
then its a lot of fun for all con«
ccmed "

Tennessee coach Johnny Majors
knows what it means for UK to de-
feat UT and he is telling his players
about it. He has played and coached

in the flVZlil').

“l darned sure knew about it
when I played here, cause I got my
head knocked around and body
knocked around quite a bit from
Kentucky." Majors said “l know
what it means. I know how well
you better play because they're
gonna come at you full speed.

"I've tried my best to ingrain into
our people M from the time when
they’re freshman till they‘re fourth
or fifth year seniors ~— the signifi»
cance of this rivalry and how hard
fought it normally is. If we don't
fight hard and execute well. then
we’re gomg to be in for a shock
time after time."

With the frustration of a 3-7 sea
son on his mind and the label of
never beating Tennessee plastered
to his career. UK senior nose guard
Joey Couch is ready to welcome
Tennessee to Commonwealth Stadr
um.

“I want to go out with a bang,"
Couch said. “Coach Curry has told
us to get a score in our head and go
after it. I can't think of any other
way I would want to go out. It has
been a rough season. and that
would case some of the pain."

The Wildcats lost to the Vols 42~

@METsNe'p’s C LAS SIC

WCHNKLOLOR'

A

Wed-Sat 7:30 and 10 pm
Sunday 4 pm
$2.00 at Worsham Theater w/UK ID.

28 last season at Knoxville. Tennes-
see has won the last six games and
leads the series 5-1—23».

LTK itinior Chuck Bradley wants
to help (‘ouch and the rest of the
senior class beat Tennessee as a go-
ing-away gift.

“I he most important thing is win~
ning it for these old guys that have
worked so hard for four years,"
Bradley Salt]. “It takes a special
kind of person to keep coming out
there week after week and bustin'
your butt.

”I want to give these guys some-
thing to look back on in their niem«
ories '

The UK-l‘ennessee rivalry is
healthy as far as Curry is con«
cemcd, and while he wants it to
grow for obVious reasons, the for-
mer Alabama coach‘s memories of
the Alabama-Auburn still haunt
him.

“When it gets to that sick stuff,
then I‘m not interested in that."
Curry said. "That's crazy and it‘s
too bad that ever gets into it."

 

Wildcats
lose fans,
game to
Cardinals

By BOB NORMAN
Senior Staff Writer

UK’s volleyball team lost
most of its fans before it lost
an intense heart-thumper to
20th-ranked Louisville, 3-2.

While the blue shins on the
right side of Memorial Coli-
seum matched the red shins
on the left at the outset of the
game, only four UK fans —
spread out and isolated — re-
mained at the middle of the
third game.

UK basketball, which be-
gan its season last night about
midway through the third vol-
leyball game, stole the Cats‘
home-court advantage.

But it was another red shirt
that stole the game from the
Cats: Becky Verst.

In the rallying fifth game
— where side outs are ban—
ished and every point counts
- Verst spiked for the first
three U of L points and
served in the next three, giv-
ing U of L a 6-3 lead.

In their scurrying, scrappy
style, the Cats fought back.
After freshman Krista Robin-
son spiked for one point and
then tipped for another, UK
had tied the score at 99.
Then U of L hit the ball out
of bounds: 10-9 UK.

UK sophomore Eunice
Thomas, after the next serve.
blocked for another point and
Robinson slammed another,
to give UK a solid 12-9 lead.

But U of L climbed back
in. as a Verst tip tied the
score at 13. Yvette Morehead
hit the ball out of bounds, and
UK fell behind 14-13. She re—
deemed herself with a spike
to tie the score at 14.

Verst. after a short rally.
crashed the middle and
smacked the ball down to
give U of L the lead, 15-14.
The 6-1 middle blocker then
served for the match and
Morehead slapped the ball
out of bounds and the Cardi-
nals whooped with the win.

“She screams for it when it
comes time to play on the
edge. There‘s nothing careful
about her." said U of L coach
Don Hardin. whose team
raised its record to 267.

“The end of the game is
one of the fun times with
me." said Verst. “There
comes a time when you have
to push and the team that
backs away is going to lose."

The Wildcats, who won the
first and fourth games. may
have backed away at the end.

“We lost our concentra-
tion," said Robinson. who led
UK with 19 kills. “We should
have gotten those last two
shots.“

“We need to play more
steady," associate coach Jona
Braden said.

But UK (16-12) had to con—
tend with more than Verst.
The Cats had to deal with
senior middle blocker Laurie
Maxwell. The 6-1 tower of
domination led U of L with
29 thunderous spikes.

“She is incredible."
said.

Braden

 

 

 

 

V) ( V x .
i UK~UT BATTLE FQK BLOOD!

HELP BEAT TENNESSEE
DONATE BLOOD TODAY!

10AM-4PM

STUDENT CENTER SMALL BALLROOM

*GIVEAWAYS FOR DONORSW

 

 

  

 

Kentucky Kernel, Thursday. November 21. 1991 - 3

 

 

‘Mockingbird’ actor brings strength to role

By JOHN DYER FORT
Assistant Arts Editor

In To Kill A Mockingbird, lawyer
Atticus Finch tells his daughter —
“You never really understand a per-
son until you consider things from
their point of view, until you climb
into his skin and walk around in it."

For most people. a walk inside
Ervy “Whit” Whitaker would be ex-
hausting. Whitaker, who portrays
Tom in UK's production of To Kill
A Mockingbird. is involved in acuv-
ities most people only talk about.

As a sophomore. the le-pound
Whitaker began bodybuilding. To-
day. he bench presses 330 and squat
lifts 525 pounds — enough to quali-
fy for the amateur bodybuilding na-
tionals.

“I compete naturally —- drug free
—— which feels great." said Whitak-
er. a music performance senior.

A scholarship student from De-
troit, Whitaker began singing in op-
eras in high school and has played
the violin since he was 8.

President of the Black Student
Union and a former Student Gov-
ernment Association senator. Whi-
taker also performs in UK operas
and the Safe Six Theater Troupe, a
group sponsored by the Dean of
Students Office.

“We do skits on moral issues," he
said, “such as safe sex. AIDS. date
rape and steroid use."

lately. Whitaker has been prepar-
ing for his role as Tom in the stage
adaptation of Harper Lee’s Pulitzer
Prize-winning novel To Kill A
Mockingbird. which opens tonight
at UK’s Guignol Theatre.

Also made into an American film
classic. To Kill A Mockingbird is a
story of compassion versus intoler-
ance in a l930s-era Southern town.

Tom. a black man accused of as-
saulting a white woman. is defend-
ed by lawyer Atticus Finch. a man
willing to stand up to the white
community for what he believes.

“I saw the movie in high school."
Whitaker said. “It was in Deuoit,
which is majority black. My high
school had one white guy. It was a
lot to think about. Until you get into
a situation like UK. you don’t see
that some of the things TV portrays
or in the books you read are true."
he said. “Not as much has changed
as you‘d like to think.

“One thing I could never under-
stand is that you and l - you‘re
white and I’m black — can talk, but
two other people black and white
can‘t communicate.“ he said.

Whitaker's experience at UK has
“been an eye opener. Sometimes it
gets a little hard to take some of the
situations here. some of the institu-
tionalized prejudices here.“ he said.

“I constantly remind myself that
when I leave here, I‘m going to face
it in the world. If I don‘t start deal-
ing now. I won't be able to deal
then. I try to get others to under-
stand that to.

“You deal and try to make it bet-
ter." Whitaker said. “You do what
you can and you keep moving."

Playing the ill~fatcd Tom in
Mockingbird “hurts." Whitaker
said. “Every time I hear the N
word. I recall situations on campus:
I recall talking to older blacks and
older whites who have been around.
It hurts. but I use that anger to turn
it into a good performance.

“You're angry and you're think-
ing ‘l‘m not taking this from the
white man.‘ Then you find out it’s
not that simple. You get to a place
like UK, you realize. yeah. you're
not going to take it but you really

are taking it."

Whitaker used the misprint in the
UK “Wildcat Datebook 1991-1992"
of a racial slur as an example.

“I don‘t believe it was intention-
al. but it happened." he said.

“When you're put into a minority
situation, it takes a toll on you. You
begin to understand a little more.
That‘s why it doesn‘t bother me
about gays or Chinese or whatever,
because I can't put somebody down
when I know how it feels.

“I think if everyone was put in
that situation. people would think a
lot differently before they opened
their mouth.“

Whitaker's role as Tom in Mock-
ingbird brings his personal experi-
ences and talents to fruit.

Christopher Sergel‘s stage adap-
tation and the direction by UK‘s
Jim Rodgers use narrative passages
and singing during the various tran-
sitions of the “memory" play.

While the scenes are shifting.
various cast members recall their
“memories" and others sing tradi-
tional spirituals. The effect con-
trasts the innocence and purity of
youth to the tragic consequences of
intolerance and racism.

Whitaker sings several tradition—
ally black spirituals. including
“Sometimes I Feel Like a Mother-
less Child" and “Steal Away to Je-
sus."

“The play opens up with me sing«
ing ‘Stcal Away,‘ " Whitaker said.
“And the way it begins is the way it
ends. with the same song. It sym-
bolizes life and death. Where you
start is where you end.

“There are monologues going on
throughout. It keeps the audience
abreast of what's going on w intro‘
duces the characters and the ac-
tion."

Ironically. Whitaker originally
declined to audition for Mocking-
bird.

“Mr. Rodgers told me the audi-
tions were coming up and he want-
ed me to audition.” Whitaker said.
“I thought. well. he needs some
blacks for the role or whatever. I
thought I don‘t want to be a token. 1
want to do it because I can do the
pan. 1 got a copy of the play a week
before. I read it. I still said I'm not
going to do it. Then the day of
(tryouts). I LlCCldCd I‘m going to do
it.

“The people at the audition said
when I opened my mouth and did
the part it was the embodiment of
Tom. That made me feel very
good."

Whitaker‘s faith in people and
hope for the future help make his
role as Tom stronger.

“I believe as a human being, es-
pecially after my friend Darrell
VanMcter died this weekend, that
life is precious." he said. “You
can't live always thinking about
yourself. You have to help others
w someone always has it worse off
than you. There's always something
you can do: a smile. a ‘God loves
you‘ or a ‘Hello. how are you to:
day.‘ "

Meanwhile. Ervy Whitaker JOUI-
neys on.

”There are a lot of things to be
done," he said. “My main focus as
Black Student Union president is to
get minority students into the main»
stream of campus.”

[he UK Department of Theatre' r
production of '10 Kill A Mot/arm
bird is showing tonight through Sar-
urduy. and Thursday Der“ "
through Saturday 0607 For ticket
information (.‘a112574929

‘Funny Girl’ is entertaining despite flaws

By HUNTER HAYES
Arts Editor

Lexington Musical Theatre's pro-
duction of Funny Girl at the Opera
House is an entertaining musical.
despite its various technical prob-
lems.

The plot centers around a young.
up-and-coming stage star. Fanny
Brice (played by Julie Greenwelll.
who pushes her way toward success
even though it seems her brash per-
sonality will alienate many people.
Along her trip to imminent fame.
she falls in love and lands a starring
role in an early 19205 Ziegfeld Fol-
lies production.

Greenwell plays the part of the
spoiled but talented Fanny very
well. The role is associated with
Barbara Streisand in many people‘s
minds because of the popular 1968
film adaption of the musical. Green-
well is able to overcome this con-
nection and bring her own personal-
ity into the role.

In fact. most of the perfonners
turn in admirable perfonnanccs but
seem to leave out something. It
seems kind of strange to hear New
York chorus girls speak with South-
ern accents.

But the biggest problems With the
production are technical ones. For
instance. the musical begins in 1923
in the New Amsterdam Theatre.
This fact is announced over the
public address system at the begin.
ning. Yet as time passes and World
War I ends. the play is set in 1920.

What happened?

And speaking of the war, the cos-
tumes the performcr‘s are wearing
early in the second act tor a Zeig.
feld war production seem to hint at
another era. The costumes are not
bad. but they seem to be about 20
years ahead of their time. They
would fit more aptly in a WW II
USO production.

The first half of Funny (iirl was
marred by a faulty sound system
Some of the characters‘ lines were
lost in loud. static—like cracks. And
some people would knock their mi-
crophones sending reverberating
bursts of white noise into the air.
Still. the performers were profes-
sional enough not to let this visibly
bother them.

At other times. the volume would
alternate between loud and soft.
preventing the performers from be-
ing able to adjust to the differences.
Just as they would begin to protect
their vorces more to make up for
the loss of volume. the sound would
rise and they would catch them-
selves speaking too loudly. But
these problems were alleviated by
the second half of the show. and the
audience was able to enjoy it Wllh
few distractions.

The cast of Funny Girl is a very
talented one. With most of the per-
fomiers being able to bring their
characters to life. Bob Klier as the
dubious Nick Amstein may not
have been Omar Sharil. but he
seemed reasonably convincing.
Like minty people in the play. he is

able to sing and act equally well.

The standouts in the supporting
cast were Jeffrey Reeves tEddie).
Jan Sullivan (Mrs tinge) and Mi-
chelle Haggard Wits Strakoshi. At
times, they were the best pans ot
the musical.

()ne of my ldVOrllC tharacters
was the slurry l‘om Keeney. played
superbly by John Schroenng. The
only problem I had with this charac-
ter was that he didn't have enough
lines. While the other characters
mentioned above brought great
light-hearted tomedy into ll. he.
added real humor. It was nice that
he was able to get the audience to
laugh at jokes which were lairly
stale.

Whenever you see a musrcal. you
expect to get a lot from the music.
Funny Girl does not let you down
here. The orchestra was seemingly
flawless and well-presented. During
“Cornet Man." the trumpeter added
great depth and emouon to the
number.

Naturally. llic more popular
songs from l-‘unny‘ (iiri were the
ones that were the bL‘sl received.
“People.“ “Don‘t Rain On my Pa-
rade" and “The Music That Makes
Me Dance“ were the best numbers
that featured Fanny. and Green-
wcll's perfomiaiicc on these was
excellent. But these were not the
best pieces in this production.

Chip Dorton nearly stole the
show with his performance on “His
Love Makes Me Beautiful." His
voice was so 'iiclodic and rich that

it overshadowed the others. Dorton
was the best singer in the musical. I
do not mean to discredit the others

particularly Greenwell. who had
the responsibility of trying to keep
Funny Girl alive much of the time
, . but his voice mas more aestheti-
cally pleasing. and he seemed to
have greater control of II.

l'unnv Girl would make an enter-
taining night out for anyone willing
to sit through the lengthy mUsical.
even it the kinks are not worked out
of ll. Most of the pertormanccs are
good A some wry good . and
these to tend to make up for the
lesser ones. Sure there are some
flaws. but there are also many line
moments as well. ll you are not ex-
pccttng greatness and are willing to
overlook its problems. l‘annv titri
should make tor an entertaining
evening.

Lexington Musical lheaire .\ pro-
duttiun t’fFunnv Girl wiil toritinue
(ll rite tlperu Home. Jill M Mort
\ireet, tonight through human /.:r
more triiorrriutiori. tail 3* 7-4‘139

 

‘Divorce Southern Style’
has 19603 sitcom charm

By JOHN DYER FORT
ASSistant Arts Editor

The Studio Players‘ produc~
tion of Divorce Southern Style is
a curious thing. The acting is
good. the direction and technical
support work well and the play
itself is amusing enough. There
is nothing unlikable about the
production.

Nonetheless. there isn't much
that is really interesting about
Divorce.

The play is written as an up-
roanous. farcical romp and con
tains many funny lines. the
whole show in general is pleas-
antly funny. But. in the end. it is
not that much funnier than your
typically rany network sitcom

The audience A generally
speaking. a crowd averaging in
age between Jo and no
scented to be enjoying itself ”If
nicrisely. Perhaps this plav