Hall of Fame
One thing CTYers are known for is their general weirdness. I personally know CTYers who have spent whole days wearing signs with strange messages on them, and whole classes who have had pillow fights on stage at closing ceremonies. However, these acts weren't well known or significant. There are some acts of weirdness that are much better known or wide spread. These earn a place in the The CTY Hall of Fame.
Contents
- 1
- 1.1 Carmen the Frog
- 1.2 Gary's Hair
- 1.3 Chuck
- 1.4 Swirly Man
- 1.5 Pierre, the Melancholy Squirrel
- 1.6 The Chair Sculpture
- 1.7 The Squirrel Theory
- 1.8 Radio Invitation
- 1.9 The Gummie Bear House of Horrors
- 1.10 Offering to Hecate
- 1.11 No Biting The Signs
- 1.12 Terry Is God
- 1.13 Hope for the Flowers
- 1.14 The Things That Aren't Sexy Song
- 1.15 Ug
- 1.16 "Free Lee-Kai"
- 1.17 The Deaf Mexicans
- 1.18 Milo's Hat
- 1.19 "I Am Not Offended"/Guys in Drag
- 1.20 The Duck
- 1.21 The Digi Clan
- 1.22 Boycott Oxygen Day
- 1.23 Rocky Horror Picture Show, CTY Style
- 1.24 The Protest
Carmen the Frog
One
of the most infamous displays of weirdness was put on by Judy at
CAR-1-96 and LAN-2-96. Through both sessions, Judy wore a stuffed green
frog named Carmen on her head. Carmen managed to hold her perch through
class, activities, hall meetings, meals, social time, and even dances.
During first session, Judy and her friend down the hall, Won, hooked
Carmen up with Won's stuff walrus John, making them "the cutest stuffed
animal couple in Carlisle." Second session, Carmen managed to become a
scapegoat for the Lancaster faculty, who unjustly blamed her for all
their problems. Wearing Carmen earned Judy the nickname "Frog girl" and
earned them both a place in the CTY Hall of Fame.
Gary's Hair
In CAR.2 '95 Gary- long time staff member, former CTYer, one of the founders of Passionfruit, and SRA for several years until his retirement in 97- had VERY long hair, we're talking past shoulder length here. Well, for before the talent show he shaved his head and guess what appeared on the talent show program cover? You guessed it, Gary's hair. Any CTYer who was there that year remember that incident, making it part of the CTY Hall of Fame
Chuck
At CAR-1-96, the RA's were soliciting pictures for the cover of the yearbook. One memo threatened, "if you don't send us pictures, we will be forced to put CHUCK on the cover of the yearbook." and supplied a picture of Chuck. However, a large percentage of the CTY population decided that they wanted Chuck on the cover. Despite much campaigning, Chuck never made it onto the cover of the yearbook. He did, however, appear on the talent show program, get his own (now defunct) web page and earn a spot in the CTY Hall of Fame.
Swirly Man
At
Lancaster in 1993, four guys who took geology together and (like
everyone else at CTY) had lots of in-jokes. They were all 15, and one
running joke involved interesting ways to keep the younger CTYers on
their hall in line. Swirlies became the preferred method. (Although
none was ever actually administered, they were a helluva lot of fun to
joke about). Basically, a swirly meant taking a punk by the collar and
dunking his head in the toilet.
In the second week of the
session, one of them made an impromptu costume for Swirly Man, Defender
of the CTY Faith, and wrote a theme song for this new superhero that
regaled his super powers and CTY traditions. Swirly Man soon had a
sidekick named Toilet Boy; and two other superheros, Horny Man and
Mental Man, were also soon born. Each had his own theme song. The four
of them together made appearances at dances, activity periods, and
other events; but their mortal identities were never known outside of
their hall. The next year, the superheros reunited and made appearances
all over campus. At the final dance, they were in high demand among the
ladies. Their mortal identities might have slipped out that last night,
but regardless, they made it into the CTY Hall of Fame
Pierre, the Melancholy Squirrel
Pierre the Melancholy Squirrel, aka Tim Shumaker, has attended quite a few sessions at Carlisle, from the years '95-'97. He is frequently seen at discussion group, and in fact once led his own unofficial discussion group, entitled "Pierre." One can spot Pierre by his half of a beard, his infamous rants about Hobbes, Marx, and the Simpsons, and his trademark "Buh?!?" Pierre was a frequent potraial in Improv sketches, though Pierre himself rarely attended Improv, and was part of the acts for both the first session and second session MC's in the '97 talent shows. Because of all this, Pierre has become part of the CTY Hall of Fame.
The Chair Sculpture
In the Writing 2A class room at SAR-2-95, there was an interesting artifact. In the back of the room, there was a large, pyramid shaped sculpture made entirely of chairs, the kind with desks attached. It appears the creators, Ben and Bailey, thought that there were too many chairs in the classroom, and got them out of the way by piling them precariously on top of one another. Rumors of the sculpture spread and soon many CTYers were making pilgrimages to see it. Though it was dismantled at the end of the session, it earned a place in the CTY Hall of Fame.
The Squirrel Theory
At Clinton Session One of '97, an interesting theory circulated. Basically, it stated that there is but a single squirrel. He is a mystical five-dimensional beast, which means he can travel in the regular 3, and also time and dimensions. His dimension hopping abilities allow him to go into another dimension and pull back a copy of himself from that dimension, which explains how you could see more than one at once, or in different places, or how they would look different, because in other dimensions, he would have undergone different life's conditions, and that would have altered his appearance. This theory, created by Dwight Bussman, was told throughout the session, and remembered well by CTYers who were there, thus earning it a place in the CTY Hall of Fame.
Radio Invitation
Two students at Loyola Marymount had found out, through a teacher, of the existence of Loyola Marymount campus radio. The radio broadcasts throughout the campus (and outside some). On the second Friday of the session, they managed to find where this radio station was, and actually got into the studio. Eventually, the DJ was convinced to give them airtime. After giving their remarks on how much fun the session was and on the CTY administration, they got a brilliant idea and announced the CTY dance that evening, inviting anyone who wished to come. To their surprise that night, several people showed up but were turned back by the puzzled RAs "guarding" the dance. The sheer intuitiveness of the stunt earned it a place in the CTY Hall of Fame.
The Gummie Bear House of Horrors
The second floor Kimball hall at Saratoga 1996-1 saw an excellent example of the weirdness that CTY can induce this session. Following a sunday trip into Saratoga Springs, construction was begun by students Daniel Terry (astronomy), Michael Tolan (Math), et al. on "The Gummi bear House of Horrors." This frightening exhibit took the remainder of the first session to complete, including around 40 examples of mutilated sugar. Among these bears were "Ritualistic Satanic Sacrifice Bear" and "Jeffery Dahmer Bear" as well as a bear mashed into the carpet, and one nailed to the door (hammers are good things to have at CTY). Also adorning the room was a sign proudly proclaiming "Don't Feed the Rinas"
Offering to Hecate
At CAR Session 1&2 '00, The Latin class started the 'Offerings to Hecate'. Hecate was the Roman goddess of the crossroads, and traditionally when Romans crossed major intersections, they left food on the road for her, so she wouldn't come and take their souls. They started to drop food in the crosswalks between the HUB and the academic quad... little things at first, like crackers, but then it evolved into things like whole toasted bagels with cream cheese, ice cream bars, whole sandwiches (with lettuce and tomato, of course), and peeled bananas. It spread through the campus, and soon many people who didn't know of Hecate were making offerings to keep her from stealing their souls. It continued into second session, until RAs, siting the mess and the waste of food, put a stop to it.
No Biting The Signs
At Skidmore in 1997 the administration was making new rules left and right. People were having new rules created for them such as "No dancing in the rain," "Don't Make an Idiot of Yourself" and "No stuffing bras" so Jeremiah and Tim decided they wanted a rule of their own. The solution was to bite all those handy rule sheets and signs the RAs posted around our dorm. Soon it caught on and several other degenerates were chomping on the signs. Eventually the powers that be got sick of it and decided that was enough. They called a meeting before one of the dances and asked for the vandals to fess up, rather than ruin a perfectly good dance for all the guys, they confessed and claimed temporary insanity. Luckily, no one got in trouble. But out of this event came a new rule, "No Biting the Signs," and a new entry in the CTY Hall of Fame.
Terry Is God
In 94 at Saratoga, an RA named Terry Olson became the God figure of a small cult. This came about when Terry broke his leg while demonstrating a dance for his RA group that he wanted them to perform during the mandatory Lip Synch that year. Several members of his RA group hailed him as a martyr and soon elevated him to a deity. To spread their "religion," Terryism, they performed a skit at the Talent Show, with an insert in the program about Terryism Also, later, they altered their CTY t-shirts to read "The Center for Terryistic Youth." Easily one of the strangest things to happen at CTY, it deserves a place in the CTY Hall of Fame.
Hope for the Flowers
Hope for the Flowers
is a book about caterpillars, with lots of nice pictures. But it is
more than that. It's a sort of inspirational warm-fuzzy type thing too.
saraht started the tradition of reading Hope For the Flowers aloud. The
second Saturday of each session, CTYers gather under a tree at the
upper quad in Carlisle and enjoy the peace and togetherness. Though
many CTYers don't know about Hope for the Flowers, it is a wonderful
tradition that deserve to grow into a passionfruit-like event. Thus,
I'm adding it to the CTY Hall of Fame.
The Things That Aren't Sexy Song
After receiving much peer pressure, I decided to include the Things That Aren't Sexy Song
in this hall, even though it also appears in the Sounds of CTY. After being sung by the MCs at the 97-2 CAR talent show, it took the campus by storm. Many CTYers had the tune stuck in their heads, and Jeffrey Morrow, the songs author, was kept busy filling the demand for copies of the lyrics. Things that weren't cool began being referred to as "not sexy." Its impact on the culture of CTY led it to be included in the CTY Hall of Fame.
Ug
Ug. First presented in a magnificent commercial preformed by Josh, Kevin, Ben, Bailey, Nathanael, and Chip at SAR-2-95, Ug was carried over to CAR-1-96 by Josh and Yours Truly. Ug is wonderful work of art, made from a old bed spring. Yes, Ug truly deserves a place in the CTY hall of fame.
"Free Lee-Kai"
In 2000 at Saratoga, this kid Lee-Kai was caught in the girls' dorm. When he was caught, he apparently pulled a condom out of his pocket and said, "At least I was being safe!" The next day he was locked in an administrative office and wasn't allowed to see or talk to anyone. Everyone hung around the window of the office to see him, and he was passed food through the window. When his supporters were seen, the authorities moved him somewhere he couldn't be found. Almost immediately, people started chanting "FREE LEE-KAI!" Then, the sidewalk chalk came out. All over the walkways and even the side of the building under the office windows, everyone wrote "Free Lee-Kai." When the RAs dutifully washed it off, his supporters skipped dailys and stood outside the windows chanting and writing even more. The administration got pissed, but some people got to say goodbye to Lee-Kai. The movement earned itself a spot in the CTY Hall of Fame.
The Deaf Mexicans
On the first day of second session, a article appeared on the front page of the New York Times, detailing the discovery of a evil scheme, in which Deaf Mexicans were forced into slavery in the US. This in itself wouldn't have gained the attention of CTYers, if the New York Times hadn't displayed such a strange obsession with the story. For the rest of the week, front page headlines blared things like, "DEAF MEXICANS WRITE POSTCARDS!!" while on page 8, small countries were being over thrown. When they caught Versatci's killer on page two, the Deaf Mexicans were eating waffles on page 1. This bizarre media event captured the minds of CTYers and inspired several wonderful discussion about the Deaf Mexicans, a song that was almost sung at the Talent Show, and an entry into the CTY hall of Fame.
Milo's Hat
CAR-1-96 CTYers may remember a mysterious figure roaming the campus in a cool black hat. Well, the figure was probably Milo, and the hat was probably Milo's infamous hat. Though Milo's Hat was worn sunrise to lights out almost every day of the session, after CTY, Milo lost the hat in a bet, giving the hat an opportunity to return in the care of Yours Truly at CAR-97-1&2. Once again, it was a common sight on the Dickinson Campus, and thus it became a member of the CTY Hall of Fame.
"I Am Not Offended"/Guys in Drag
On the second Tuesday of CAR-97-2, well over 100 CTYers supported the cause of Guys-In-Drag buy wearing signs saying things such as "I Am Not Offended," "Censorship makes me VERY Uncomfortable," and "Guys in Drag are Sexy." Nearly 30 guys risked being heckled by Soccer Players and HUB workers to wear drag at one point or another on that day. No lipstick was worn, however. Though drag seen often at CTY dances and what not (and notably, by the second session Quiz Bowl team from Quad 3, dubbed "Ugly Men in Drag"), sheer numbers earn this event a place in the CTY Hall of Fame.
The Duck
Starting in 1993 and continuing since then, a small fuzzy duck has been passed from one CTYer to another at Lancaster. Originally purchased for 13 dollars for a talent show act, the original owner felt silly for spending 13 dollars for a duck he was only going to use once. So, one day, in Thomas 1, he passed the duck to someone else. The next year, they passed it to a new person. And so on, through the years, to the present day. The bizarreness and long-life of this ritual surely earns it a place in the CTY Hall of fame.
The Digi Clan
The DigiClan started in 1994 at Lancaster, with a group of students taking digi. Through the years, the DigiClan has grown and expanded. It runs a mailing list, a webpage, and holds many reunions. Soon after its creation, it merged with the Land of the Large Round Tables, and since then, it has been adding members, some CTYers, some not. A perfect example of CTY friendships overcoming distance and time, the DigiClan deserves a place in the CTY hall of fame.
Boycott Oxygen Day
At Lancaster 90-2, Crash Matuzek realized that oxygen played a key role in many destructive processes, such as rust and burning. Furthermore, she discovered that the element was a waist product of the first inhabitants of earth. To make a statement, Crash and her friend Robyn declared August 1st Boycott Oxygen Day. Propaganda was created, chiefly in the form of signs, saying things like "Every day, billions of people breathe oxygen. Every day, hundreds of thousand of people die. Think about it." and signed "AP Chem Students for an Anaerobic Tomorrow. There was no big celebration, but picketing and signs were there. Since then, the day has lived on with the O2 (subscript 2 - the molecule of oxygen) in a circle with a line through it painted on the backs of CTY shirts. The holiday was still confirmed to be around for at least five years after Crash was gone, making it a part of the CTY Hall of Fame
Rocky Horror Picture Show, CTY Style
The last dance of CAR97-1 and the second dance of CAR97-2 were attended by some well-known characters. Through the efforts of saraht, Guinevere, and Yours Truly, CTYers were assembled and costumed to look like the cast from the Rocky Horror Picture Show. The entire cast was present, as well as many TimeWarpers, and the costumes were remarkably well done. At both dances, the majority of CTYers gathered around the group to watch them preform the TimeWarp in true Rocky Horror Stage Show fashion. The group also stopped traffic on High Street prior to the first session dance, and were warned not to walk on High Street "for their own safety" before the second session dance. The overwhelming final product of this venture cause the cast of the Rocky Horror Picture Show, CTY Style, to be added to the CTY Hall of Fame.
The Protest
During the second dance at Siena 2004 Session 1, Stairway to Heaven was cut short as time was running out at the end of the dance. As American Pie quickly replaced Stairway to Heaven on the speakers, CTYers all over the dance floor began sitting down in protest, following the example of Tim Mullens. After American Pie ended, the entire crowd of sitting CTYers began chanting "STARIWAY, STAIRWAY." Soon, the site director came in and instead of taking everyone's social time away, she told the RA in charge of the music to put Stairway to Heaven back on, resulting in everyone returning to their feet to dance and lights out being pushed back about 10 minutes due to the lengthened dance. And so, the most successful peaceful protest in CTY history has made its way into the CTY hall of fame.
So that's the CTY Hall of Fame. Respect it! It's part of our CTY heritage.
