You know you’re good friends when somebody’s been going through their old stuff and finds your gold.
Greg messaged me with the news that his boxes contained some of my old college newspaper clips.
Holy cow.
We attended junior college and then transferred to finish up our bachelor’s together way, way back.
We worked on the same two campus newspapers, side by side.
He most very likely edited these stories of mine. Hence, in his collection they went.
Hover over a photo for a description. Click on the image for an enlarged slide show.
When I clicked on the images he sent, I was surprised to see my story about George Plimpton’s speech. Greg was equally astonished that I did not recall the noted author talking at Morrisville College.
I know, though, that it surely made an impression. During my career here in Syracuse, I gladly volunteered for Plimpton-like participation features. I dressed in the costume of Syracuse University mascot Otto the Orange. I put on a kilt and walked around downtown. I wrote about my ballroom dancing classes. You get the drift.
The coverage of the University of Maryland women’s basketball team, though, that’s ingrained. They lost in the national championship game to UCLA, and among the many road trips I took in two years on that beat was a plane ride to Los Angeles. I was a kid learning a lot about journalism and life.
After, he sent some more.
Among the best of the campus station.
It’s fantastic to think back to the days of hauling milk crates of my vinyl records albums from my dorm room to the campus station three dorms away. I recall that one of my show slots was in prime time, too, at least in my mind. I led into the Sunday night movie hour, when it seemed all the students crammed into the old gym for the feature. Some school official played the station over the PA.
Hey, didn’t I become a music writer years down the road?
Thanks, Greg, for thinking of me. Priceless the memories unleashed are.
Mark Bialczak 
I love that your friend kept these. That shows some love and respect for what you do.
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He worked on the newspaper right next to me and kept whole editions, MBC. I was quite fortunate. Great friend to single them out and send them to me!
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I know, I’m very impressed with your friend.
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That is a true friend, Mark! What treasures you found. I love that you shared these here with us too.
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It was a good thing for me to sit back and read, Sandra. Thank you!
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these are absolute treasures, mark. so cool he found them. i love your ‘plimton’ experiences, so much wonderful history here
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Yes, now I can relish them all over again, Beth. Greg and I met our freshman year and have been tight through the decades.
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I remember you even sat in as “guest radio dj” … you did well, and I should have realized you were at one time one of The Best on air! You sure were the George Plimpton of Syracuse newspapers (btw, nice review of his talk) and should write a fun book of your experiences (people have probably told you this before). You know, that would be the Plimpton thing to do!
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Mike, yes, the Sunday morning that I did the job trade with Mimi for Blue Moon Cafe was a true treat for me. Thanks for remembering! I recall she had great fun and did very well writing my column that week, too. A fun book … Thanks for your support on the idea!
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From the ol’ college days …. so cool! I’ve got a large rubbermaid with many articles about Syracuse music and radio that have your byline. In particular I always enjoyed reading your concert reviews because you seemed to write them from a fan’s perspective. On occasion you’d be critical, but most of the time you appeared to enjoy the show, often complimentary and appreciative. Always well-written!
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Thanks, Mike! I wasn’t a musician, so, yes, I wrote from the perspective of a music fan. That was an amazing two decades of my life.
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