Vol. 7 No. 4 Summer 2015 A Publication of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UC San Diego Osher Observer PRESIDENT’S COLUMN The Executive Committee and the Council have reviewed the last two years. Let me share with you some of what was done over these years: improved audio system increased efficiency of the air-conditioning system and replaced the blower created the video system and library and refined it; publicized the video library to individual affiliate members and retirement communities revised the Policy and Procedures manual including clear honorarium guidelines and official approval developed new financial management with reports, organization, and ways to pay for services kept the membership informed about the actions of the Council and transportation and parking information through updates, the Osher Observer, and a revised email system computerized and revised the election process updated the web site with important information developed community building through increased activities, crafts fair, poetry cafe, and brown bag lunches marketed to increase membership expanded the curriculum committee and restructured the catalog process; celebrated 40 years and updated banners, etc. created a fundraising program and met goals Another community building activity that has emerged is celebrating the lives of people who have significantly contributed to the life of Osher. Theater World began this with a tribute to Ralph Vissel, and then to Myron Joseph, Barbara Greer was celebrated by her Short Stories class, and Aurora King will be honored by the Discover Your Next Chapter/Memoirs class. As groups of Osher members have wished to celebrate a person we have lost, we have found a fitting way. The Poetry Café is dedicated to Phyllis Rosenbaum. Another group decided to affirm a member off campus at a restaurant. Sometimes families choose to invite Osher members to attend a religious services. These are different ways to acknowledge members who have made a contribution to Osher and to our lives. We are looking ahead. We want to redesign the website; further upgrade the audio system; expand the affiliate membership and find a national role for our videos; and develop a new outside speaker program. At the Spring Luncheon on June 12th, we are going to honor several people: members who have served on the Council this past three years—Kay Bodinger and Grace Lee; Marilyn Brown and Val Davidson who have organized the potluck lunches for 10 years, and Al Korobkin who has been the coordinator of Theater World for the past 5 years. We will honor Stanley Faer for three years as president and two years as treasurer. We will also recognize the members who have coordinated seminar classes or lectured this past year. These people have contributed a great amount to our Osher community and we owe them our gratitude. Page 2 STEVE’S LOOK AHEAD Your hard-working volunteer Curriculum Committee has assembled another rich and varied schedule of classes for our eight-week summer quarter, with classes Monday to Thursday only, beginning 7 July. Our two Master Classes again highlight our program. We are privileged to welcome back to Osher for his 13th season, the renowned, Julliard-trained pianist, Gustavo Romero, who will lecture on and play excerpts from the works of the prolific Austrian composer Franz Schubert, who died at the age of 31. We encourage you to attend Gustavo’s July concert series on Sunday afternoons at The Scripps Research Institute, sponsored by the Athenaeum Library (www.ljathenaeum.org). In our second Master Class, the documentary filmmaker Dale Schierholt will present a five-week series of lectures and films on artists and art. Descriptions of each film and the artist portrayed can be found in our summer catalog. Registration for our two summer Master Classes is required and begins the morning of June 24. The summer quarter also features a multi-lecture Premier Class by psychologist Myles Cooley, Ph.D., entitled “Not the Psychology You Thought You Knew,” a discussion about common thought patterns and behavioral patterns impacting our daily lives. Dr. Cooley has previously delivered this lecture series to our Osher colleagues at Florida Atlantic University. As a precursor to our Osher tour of the Richard Nixon Presidential Library on Saturday, 25 July, the Reverend John Taylor will discuss President Nixon’s legacy, pro and con. Rev. Taylor is the former chief of staff to former President Nixon and served as the first executive director of the Nixon Library. Our regular series in Social Sciences, Science and Engineering, Medicine and Life Sciences, International Relations, Humanities, and Law and Society will feature a wide range of preeminent speakers, and our small-classroom seminars will again entertain and stimulate their loyal participants. We will also hear from a number of our accomplished colleagues as Osher Presenters. Recent member surveys and discussions at our Open Houses repeatedly confirm that most members join Osher upon the personal recommendation of a family member or friend. We encourage you all to invite your friends and visiting family to enroll and join us for our exciting Osher summer program, and attend our Summer Open House on Saturday, 20 June at 9:30 AM. Steve Clarey, Chair Curriculum Committee OSHER CALENDAR June 12 Spring Quarter Ends/Luncheon June 20 Open House June 24 Master Class Registration* July 6 Summer Quarter Begins July 16 Council meeting** Aug. 13 Council meeting** Aug. 27 Summer Quarter Ends Sept. 12 Open House Sept. 16 Master Class Registration* Sept. 28 Fall Quarter Begins Dec. 4 Fall Quarter Ends Dec. 16 Master Class Registration* * Opens at 10:00 a.m. ** everyone invited Vol. 7 No. 3 Spring 2015 The Osher Observer is published quarterly by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UC San Diego. Editor: Martha Kaplan Copy Editor: Kim Davies, Steve Clarey, Linda Shirer Layout: Jim Wyrtzen Program Manager: Amy Patterson olli.ucsd.edu Page 3 THE OSHER INSTITUTE RETIREMENT PARTNERS AND AFFILIATE MEMBERS By Steve Clarey and Carol Roberts In 2013, your newly elected Executive Committee embarked on an initiative to share our lifelong learning experience at Osher with members of the community physically unable to travel to the campus. We installed a high definition recording system, established a vimeo.com restricted-access video library, and hired undergraduates part-time to record and edit the lectures. We activated the Osher Affiliate Member program, which provides access to our members-only video library for a nominal annual fee. . The San Diego retirement communities were our immediate targets for affiliate members since these communities strive to provide educational programs to their many residents. An outreach team led by ExCom members Steve Clarey and Carol Roberts began briefing the concept to program directors throughout the region. From those discussions we developed the UC San Diego Osher Retirement Community Partners and Affiliate Members program. For a nominal annual fee (varying depending on the number of residents), a partner receives the following benefits: Unrestricted access to our video library for viewing by their residents in a community setting A block of 25 or 50 affiliate members for individual retirement community residents On-campus attendance at our bi-weekly Friday Live Music performances On-campus attendance at our lectures during Guest Week, the final week of each quarter The affiliate member remains a program for individuals, requiring a personal e-mail address and password to access the video library. In addition to group viewings, retirement community affiliate members can watch the video on their personal electronic devices such as laptop computers, iPads, or Apple TV in the privacy of their own residence at a time of their choosing. In September 2014, the Vi became our first retirement community partner. In May 2015, Casa de Mañana became our second partner. Both communities have established an “Osher Committee” to select the video lectures for community viewing and assist in coordinating on-campus visits. The program has been a great success with video showings weekly or bi-weekly, often moderated by a resident volunteer. As of May 2015, we have over 100 affiliate members at the Vi and Casa de Mañana. The key to our partnerships has been the lifestyles or program directors at each retirement community, who have embraced and organized the program, often at the urging of current or former Osher members. We thank you for bringing this enrichment experience to your residents. If you are a retirement community resident, we encourage you to recommend our partnership and affiliate membership program to your program director and provide their name and contact information to Steve or Carol or Amy. Page 4 AND THE SHOW MUST GO ON... By Ilene Hubbs Props went missing, the lighting person can’t do it anymore, the backdrop was inadvertently taken down, crushed up and stuck in an office…and now the lead has lost his voice. Problems, yes, but to this troupe of Osher members putting on Guys and Dolls these challenges were just what the doctor ordered. As a newcomer to “Theater World,” I wanted to just get my toes wet by acting as the stage manager rather than as a performer. I was in charge of props, scenery and making sure the actors had what they needed. When I say props and scenery, I am being generous. Performing in Room 129, we use whatever we can come up with. One wall is our stage area and background. Chairs facing that wall are for the audience. Screens set up on either side provide a stage right and stage left for actors to enter and exit. The performers come up with costumes made from combining clothes they already have with purchases of other needed items. Some of the “big” purchases for Guys and Dolls were fake carnations for the gamblers, two bridal veils and bouquets for the finale, and a vinyl backdrop of New York City that was fastened to the wall with stick pins. Mink stoles for a musical number were represented by any kind of black wrap the women had at home. But it was all just fine, it gave exactly the impression they wanted. Now as for the leading man losing his voice at the last minute, not to worry. Reed Sullivan needed to rest his voice, and one of the actors in a minor role, Bob Young, volunteered to step in at the last minute. Bob was brave enough to take on a role that required not only acting but singing as well. We postponed the play a few days to give him a little more time to rehearse and to give Reed time to heal so he could come back for the second of the two-day performances. No one in the audience felt cheated: the first performance was as well received as the second. Research shows this is just the sort of thing that keeps a mind sharp as it ages. For me, much of the joy was the fun of being with other people in my age group who were putting as much effort into this as they had in their much-credentialed career lives. Growing older gracefully depends on many factors. Of course, health is paramount, and that is a given. But we also need social interaction, challenges that exercise the brain, and a reason to smile and feel happy. Engaging in classes, lectures and activities at Osher provide all of these. I saw a group of people who may just know each other to say hi in passing become a troupe of actors dedicated to each other and to the performance. Suddenly we were all friends working together to have fun, to solve problems and come up with a finished product we were proud of. We prodded our brain to learn lines, we laughed at our myriad of mistakes and we became a temporary family. In those few months working to put on this play, we challenged ourselves, we socialized and we had a wonderful time. That research on aging is right. FYI: Theater World’s first offering of the Fall Quarter will be a comedic portfolio of short plays by Rich Orloff and a short Chekhov play, directed by Reed Sullivan—to be presented on October 21st. Page 5 THERE’S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS GUYS & DOLLS, OSHER, 2015 a conversation with Josie Burdick & Linda Shirer, co-directors From the start, co-directors Josie (Burdick) and Linda (Shirer) were determined that putting the show together would be a bonding experience, and that everyone would really just have fun. Before the auditions, Linda suggested a pizza & beer party for the men who had signed up to audition, to see a movie of the show and get an idea of the New York street types, gamblers & rough characters. Most of the men had never been on stage before. At the auditions, everyone was supportive of everyone else, and clapped and cheered. Everyone who auditioned got a part. A big challenge for room 129 performance was the scenery, and the problem was beautifully solved when Elliott and Lynn Tarson found the most perfect scenery—a vinyl backdrop of New York City, which could be put up on push pins. Fran Zimmerman was a real gift—the Hot Box Girls had all been on stage before, and did a lot of rehearsing on their own. Esprit de Corps was the prevalent mode; there were no “stars,” no big egos, everyone was offering support. People became comfortable as things went along, and they made the transformations into their characters. The amazingly talented and irreplaceable Jay Berman, an experienced musician, was the backbone of the show. Josie and Linda were determined not to be harsh, so Jay had to become the enforcer, urging all cast members to get their lines memorized! His transposition skills were incredible—he could adapt to the amateur performers. Jay, an ophthalmologist as well as a musician, enlisted a volunteer drummer—Gary Hirsh, an orthodontist, who added so much with his snare drums. However, a musical is a big undertaking, and almost immediately, troubles ensued. Props kept going missing, even from a box marked Theater World. Eight carnations went missing, then the two wedding veils, which had to be ordered two-day delivery, then signs for the Havana Scene, all the “mink” stoles. It felt like the show had a poltergeist! At one point, the vinyl backdrop of New York City disappeared, finally found crumpled up on the floor in Amy’s office. Linda screamed. Herb Roth sustained some very bad falls, but showed up black and blue, assisted by his wife and some UCSD students. Finally he gave his General’s cap to Dick Dahlberg, who would flick the lights, then run onstage to act, then run back to work the lights. A plague of laryngitis swept through the cast, starting with Doug Webb a few weeks before the show, followed by Elliott Tarson and Linda Shirer and Josie Burdick—in effect, taking out most of the major players. And then, finally just before the first performance, the leading man, Reed Sullivan, got laryngitis and couldn’t speak or sing a note. They agreed they had to cancel that Wednesday performance—but, true to the show must go on mentality that had sustained them all throughout, Bob Young, a member of the chorus, was persuaded to fill in for Reed, and the show went on that Saturday. It was totally packed. The audience kept pouring in, Jim Wyrtzen kept bringing more and more chairs, filling up the front part of the stage area. But the show was wonderful, the audience loved it, and by Wednesday Reed had enough of his voice back to sing the lead again. But, five minutes into the performance, the fire alarm went off! Everyone had to leave the building. It turned out to be only a fire in a microwave, so everyone came back, the show started again from the beginning, and all was well. The whole show turned out to be such a bonding experience, they've had two wrap parties, and will surely have more. Plus, lots of people showed up for next year’s Theater World planning meeting, and lots of new people also, so everyone is inspired & motivated! GUYS AND DOLLS Page 7 AURORA KING: A MATTER OF HEART By Marcia Wyrtzen Beginning in 1996, Bob and Aurora King took over facilitating Memoirs (currently Discover Your Next Chapter), after sharing the responsibility with two other couples for the previous 10 years, when OLLI was known as ICL. When I was a newcomer to Osher, Memoirs was the very first class that I attended. Aurora was such an engaging and welcoming presence that I immediately felt at ease. She had an irreverent and insouciant sense of humor, which was showcased at the beginning of each class, when she played the role of joke teller. She nurtured and supported the writing efforts of each Memoirs participant, and was able to reveal much about herself in the sharing of her own life stories. I found out that when the Kings had initially joined ICL, Aurora’s first class was Memoirs, and over time I discovered other ties that created a strong bond between us. We both grew up in upstate New York, and, as young women in our 20’s, spread our wings and changed the course of our lives by moving to NYC , seeking the promise of new and exciting possibilities. Aurora had a long and productive history at ICL/Osher. In the early years, she wrote and edited a newsletter entitled Happenings for four years, and was active in Theater World both as an actor and co-director with husband Bob in such performances as Art and The Bug. Aurora lived her life with passion, compassion, humor, and style. She was fascinated with people, and when something attracted her to an individual, she never held back sharing her genuine and heart-felt curiosity and appreciation. When you were in the circle of Aurora’s focused attention, you would invariably end up feeling good about yourself. That unique gift, shared so freely with others, will be greatly missed in the many lives she touched. NEMBUTAL By Martha Kaplan, Osher Observer editor The Sunday, May 18th New York Times Magazine has an article about a woman suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease who ended her own life, at her choice, at the time she and her loved ones had decided was appropriate. In order to achieve this loving, dignified, and peaceful end, she was able to obtain Nembutal (a brand name for pentobarbital, a barbiturate that is used by veterinarians to euthanize animals, and is also used in state-sanctioned assisted suicides) from Mexico, by mail order. (It’s prescription only here in the United States.) It seems to me that there would be great peace of mind in knowing that, if one reached that pre-determined point in the progression of a disease, a quiet death by choice would be available. Indeed, if one knew that suicide was available, one could live as long as possible, and not desperately end life sooner rather than later in the fear that if the disease progressed further one wouldn’t be able to do it. I looked up Nembutal on the internet. Turns out it’s become so popular that it’s difficult to obtain—in the first place, you can only get it from a veterinary supply store, and not near the border, because authorities are alert to the streams of Americans desiring to purchase it “just in case,” and wish to prevent this. The blogs suggest that buying it online now is very problematic: iffy, lots of scams, expensive—hundreds of dollars per vial, whereas it would normally be around $20-$30 per vial if you could just buy it, and complicated—bitcoins, etc. You need 2 vials unless you’re really small, and you need an anti-nausea pill, and some liquor, to be sure it works. My father died after suffering five horrible years of increasing dementia. I often think about that wise and intelligent man’s terror and distress at always feeling lost, not having control of anything, even his own bodily functions. I would do anything to avoid that—to have a loving, warm and quiet death, instead of those long drawn-out and horrible years of terror and suffering. Page 8 OFF TO THE GETTY MUSEUM Forty-eight art-loving members journeyed to the Getty Museum in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 25, to view the first major exhibition of works by J. M. W. Turner, noted British artist, organized by the Tate Museum, to come to the west coast. The visit began with an architectural and garden tour of the fabulous Getty Museum. Then the visitors were on their own for lunch and gallery viewing all over the museum. Late Turner: Painting Set Free includes 63 works including oils and watercolors covering 1835 to his death in 1851. Known for his vivid maritime scenes and landscapes, Mr. Turner spent his later years exploring light and color that later inspired and seemed to anticipate the Impressionists. He also experimented with format creating square paintings instead of conventional rectangular ones, and nine of them are in this exhibition.
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