This first part is from the remainder of the Chronicle of Nu Beta, which takes the story up to mid-60's:

When the 1960-61 year began and the Nu Betas returned to the Banks, there was a strong contingent of Fijis already there for summer (football) camp. There were sixteen of us that played a part on that year's squad: Sam Mudie, Paul Benke, Lee Curly, Marv Engle, Joe Anstatt, Pierce Frauenheim, Jay Kowalski, Bill Libby, Dick Webb, Sal Sedita, Bob Yaksick, Bob Vecchio, Tom Rankin, John Olishney, Denny Rogers and Ron Egan.

The military department at Rutgers was dominated by Nu Beta's men that year Walt Hersman commanded the flight program, was secretary of the Arnold Air Society and commanded Scabbard and Blade. Steve Hall was squadron commander with captain's rank. John Leeds and Doug Saarel were co-commanders. Marv Engle, Pierce Frauenheim, and Bob Vecchio were junior officers. The Army song group, the Regimental Singers, were led by Doug Saarel, while John Leeds received the Old Queens Ribbon for outstanding cadet. The Queens Guard was commanded by Fiji Ken Tuso.

Once again the Nu Betas had several selected to Who's Who. This year there were six---Paul Benke, Chuck Torpy, Ed Tramont, Ken Iuso, Drew Kowalski and Sam Mudie. Several other honors were bestowed upon brothers that year. Joe Baumgarden was selected to Phi Tau Sigma, the Mechanical Engineering honor society; Joe Kowalski was a member of Alpha Zeta, agricultural honor society, and Skip Smith was a Henry Rutgers Scholar and also a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship winner.

Scholastically we were 11 out of 27 on campus. Much emphasis was placed on scholarship with a $50 cash prize for the best scholarship team. The Fiji faculty provided a seminar room for study at the library.

Scarlet Letter was run by Ed Tramont (editor-in-chief), with Ken Iuso assistant editor and Gary Lauten and Bob Vecchio as junior editors.

Elected to run Nu Beta for the coming year were Sam Mudie, Bob Meeker, Jay Kowalski, Rich Policka and Pierce Frauenheim. This able group provided the leadership to keep Phi Gam on top for the remainder of the 1961-62 year.

1961-62 was quite a year for Rutgers. It was the year of the undefeated football season. 19 of us were on that squad: Sam Mudie, Bill Bennett, Lee Curly, Marv Engle, Joe Anstatt, Pierce Frauenheim, Jay Kowalski, Bill Libby, Dick Webb, Sal Sedita, Bob Yaksick, Bob Vecchio, Frank Hausner, Dwain Painter, Drew Corolla, William Herring, Jon Paulson, Jimmy D'Antonio, Frank Kuch, Paul Strelick and Ron Egan.

On other athletic fronts: Jud Ferguson and Sal DiFranco were on the 150 lb. football team, and Rich Congdon was goalie for the soccer team. Tom Wirth, Bob Meeker, Ron Egan and Hans Geisecke were four of the starting eight oarsmen on the crew team. W.C. Russell and Lee Curley were on the R.U. diamond while Jimmy D'Antonio, Bob Vecchio, Jay Kowalski and co-captain Sam Mudie wore the scarlet and black for the lacrosse team. Track could boast Dick Webb, Denny Rogers, Chuck Hennings, Bobby Bell and Carl Woodward on the cinders.

Cap and Skull, Crown and Scroll honor societies, ROTC, politics and many others were some of the activities that the men of the diamond participated in that year. Sam Mudie and Don Lehman were Cap and Skull members. Tom Wirth was on Crown and Scroll as well as Ledge Council. The vice president of the junior class, the president of Scarlet Key and the vice president of Crown and Scroll were all one man, one outstanding Fiji, in Jeff Reinhardt. Roger Woodworth was president of the sophomore class while Rich Policka was president of the ceramics club. Richard Waugh served as president of the Ledge Council.

Exemplifying Fiji diversity, high academic achievement combined with all this extra-curricular achievement. A good number of brothers were in honor societies. Joe Baumgarden was a member of Tau Beta Phi ( engineering honor society ) as well as Pi Mu Epsilon (math) and Phi Tau Sigma (mechanical engineering). Don Lehmin presided over Pi Mu Epsilon while Rick Policka was in Karamos and Sam Mudie in Phi Tau Sigma. Jay Kowalski and Pete Kusulas were in the Ag honor society, Alpha Zeta.

The new cabinet selected in Spring of '62 were Rich Sieredzki as "E", James Petrozello as "T", W. Jeff Heinig as "G", Reed Tupper as "Ep" and Tom Wirth as "I".

Three men made Who's Who: Sam Mudie, Don Lehman and Jeff Reinhardt.

Don Slowinski ('57) replaced Wilson Andrews as Purple Legionnaire that Spring. Don was on the Rutgers staff in the admissions office.

1962-63 was again a very successful year here at Nu Beta. Represented in all forms of campus life, the Fijis continued to be number one on the Rutgers campus.

The varsity football squad had 16 of our men on the roster with five more on the 150 lb. team. Cross country saw Fijis Bobby Bell and Carl Woodward running. Don Peterson was MVP on the basketball squad and honorable mention All-East.

The scholarship of Phi Gamma Delta on campus also had prominence as we finished tenth of twenty-eight. Any houses which did better in that realm couldn't match up in the other areas of our long list of activities.

The five Fiji GIs included Major W. Jeff Heinig, third in command of Army ROTC. Jeff Reinhardt was student council treasurer and member of Cap and Skull. Roger Woodworth was member of Scarlet key and Crown and Scroll. Carl Woodward and William Lawton were in Glee Club.

Once again the honor societies had several Fijis, but due to incomplete records the only two we could find for the '62-63 year were Pete Kusulas in engineering societies Tau Beta Phi and Eta Kappa Mu (where he was also vice-president.) Jimmy D'Antonio was a member of Tau Beta Phi as well.

As is done each March, five men were elected to lead Nu Beta. This outstanding group included were Jon Paulson as "E", Roger Woodworth as "T", Larry Ciancia as "G", William 'Bo' Bennett as "Ep" and Paul Strelick as "I".

More glories were added in the 1963-64 year. We finished eighth scholastically which was outstanding considering the large number of outside activities the brothers were involved in. Our varsity gridders did an excellent job and four of five awards went to Fijis that Fall. Dave Stout received the MVP award, Frank Kuch was picked as the most improved player, Bob Norton was elected captain for the coming year and Jimmy D'Antonio was named to the football scholar All-America team. On the 150 lb. front, Bill Bennett was All-American. In other varsity athletics, Don Pike was selected as outstanding varsity wrestler. Larry Jones captained the swim team, on which Marty Flickinger and Dave Feigley turned in record-breaking performances. Throughout the year Jimmy D'Antonio, Mike Bach and Bob Mudie made up the first midfield for the lacrosse team. Four Fijis saw action for the varsity nine: Bob Norton, Travis Hutchinson, Dave Thorn and John Mink. Chuck Hennings, Carl Woodward and Frank Hausner were stalwarts on the track squad. The crew team had Hans Geisecke.

The Who's Who selection committee selected five Fijis: Jimmy D'Antonio, Jon Paulson, Dick Waugh, Bob Mudie and Roger Woodworth. Bob Mudie was president of Crown and Scroll. Jon Paulson, Dick Waugh and Roger Woodworth were on Cap and Skull. John Corcoran and Dave Schuller were members of Scarlet Key, while Carl Woodward added Scabbard and Blade to his accomplishments.

MORE TO COME FROM The Chronicle...

My (Bill's) contribution:
The tumultuous '60s brought a caesura to the earlier, more genteel character of our country. Most institutions were shaken. One of the most significantly influenced was the university, and the fraternity system was no exception.  The old system of 'in loco parentis' was giving way, as policies toward visitors in the dorms and other personal areas changed. We still wore our freshman beanies on the first day---remember?

This was the decade when rock music exercised its most powerful influence in our culture, and Hugh Hefner's sexual revolution stances were well known to the collegian dormitory.  Several of the brothers went to see The Who's ground-breaking rock opera "Tommy" on a Manhattan 'road trip', among them Angelo Iantosca and John Furcolow, possibly our only Nu Beta from Kentucky. Several forays were also made into the City to visit the Playboy Club, whose walls were festooned with centerfolds. On TV, the nighttime king, Nebraska Fiji Johnny Carson would occasionally flash the sign and intone 'for those who know'.

In August 1969, a number of the brothers were able to attend Woodstock. This author recalls Eddie Zito and Murray Bakst were there, (but of course, if you were actually there, you could be forgiven for not remembering much of anything).  Others would venture into NY to attend concerts at Fillmore East, such as Procol Harum. Janis Joplin played the Asbury Park Convention Center---believe it or not!

Rutgers was still all-male, and the football schedule included Columbia, Princeton, Bucknell, Colgate, Delaware and similar schools.  (The Columbia marching band was a sarcastic blast in those days!) The Douglass campus was a bus ride, and a world, away.  Going to the 'libes' at Douglass was for many of us an exercise in frustration. (As if we needed to exercise feeling frustrated!) The FIJI house was dominated by jocks, but also among us were Henry Rutgers Scholars like Gus Mavroudis and a future minister, Imre Bertalan.

Here is a recently-discovered photo of the den at 78 Easton; man, that was a nice fireplace; sigh. Remember what the chain symbolized?



Some things that were carried forward from the early decades of the century were in retrospect quaint, almost dear, in the way they reflected on human nature, and the way the generations got along (or didn't). For example, the House Mother; we had Mrs Lumpkin (for you would not presume to say 'Ms' to someone her age).

Pledging, and that certain ineffable concoction
How many of us remember that special ingredient of 'gradoo' which helped to make the whole pledging experience unforgettable?  All I can tell you is that one unsought but profound learning experience has enabled a lifelong ability to recognize the taste of cloves. Say no more. Please.

Here are two letters from Ed 'D' Zito from the Summer of 1969:

July 8, 1969 Dear Fellow Brothers:     I hope this finds you in good health and enjoying your summer. From all indications our house cum looks even better than last semester's 2.538. We have a chance to move into the top 10. We must be doing something right. Some other points of information: June 26 - Stinko passed Calc 136 July 4 - A few brothers went to the Jazz Festival in Newport, R.I. July 5 - Joe Urbanick's Wedding July 11 - 'Blind Faith' concert in Newport July 12 - Buzzy's wedding in Clairton July 19 - Wubby Foreman's wedding July 26-27 Rutgers Jazz Festival at the Stadium with about the same group that performed at Newport Aug 9 - Don "Lettus" Pray's wedding Aug 15-17 Great week-end at Woodstock, N.Y. Quite a few brothers are going up. The lineup includes: Janis Joplin, Blood Sweat & Tears, Moody Blues, Iron Butterfly, Richie Havens, Joan Baez, Sweetwater, Tim Hardin, Crosby Stills and Nash, Jefferson Airplane, Creedence Clearwater Revival and many more. I hope some of us can get together at these events.   Since Dave Bugen has gotten out of the hospital he's been working on the books and paying recent bills with incoming money. I've been working in close contact with him about the upcoming assessment. Our plan of action is as follows:    Many brothers have told me that they plan to return the week-end after Labor Day or September 6 or 7 since Labor Day is so early. (The house can be opened anytime from Sept 2 on). So, I am VOLUNTARILY asking any brothers who desire, to come back by Monday, Sept 8. I'm not announcing any clean-ups or anything like that (no fines, ha, ha) but if you have nothing better to do, you can come back and go to the shore, or fix your apartments, or we can all just sit around and talk over a couple of beers, about our summer. If enough brothers return, we can ask Rose to come over Tuesday or Wednesday to cook.    Well, that's about it. I'm really looking forward to seeing all of you in a couple of weeks. Please enjoy the rest of your summer...say hello to your parents and girlfriends for me...and we certainly hope to see all our newly graduated brothers back in early fall.                               Peacefully and Fraternally yours,                                          Ed (D) Zito P.S. Think about it!!!        PERGE!

August 23, 1969 Dear Fellow Brothers:     I once again hope this finds you and your family in good health and enjoying the summer. I also hope you enoyed the last letter; and I'd like to thank those brothers who wrote return letters to let me know how things were going with them.   Well August has been sprinkled with many beautiful events: Aug 5-6  We all received our assessment notices from Dave who had worked very hard with Mr. Cunningham all summer. As indicated in Dave's letter everything was done in accordance with the motion passed at the last meeting. It would certainly alleviate some of our financial burdens and aid Dave in efficiently planning this year's budget if we can all send the requested amount of $25.13 to Dave by September 1 as passed. Aug 9 Was certainly a wonderful day for 2 of our graduated brothers. Don Pray was married to Liz Wiese and Matt Couzens was married to Donna Decker. I know all the brothers who weren't able to attend wish Donny, Buzzy and Matt all the best in the world. Aug 15,16,17 Seems to have been Nu Beta's Summer Exposition at Woodstock. To all those brothers that (believe it or not) found each other up there, I hope you all returned home safe and sound. Except for Murray's insurmountable "Dirty Dance" performance during Janis Joplin's set, they were truly 3 beautiful, uncomplicated and unhurried days. Aug 25,26,27 Just about wraps up the month with 3 more "uncomplicated unhurried days of peace and tranquility" at the Fiji Aquarian Academy at Bloomington, Ind. Dave, Bob Stewart, Carl and myself are getting ready to attend. Full reports will be given to you at our first meeting.    With all the enjoyable events that went on this summer, enabling many brothers to keep in contact with one another, many have expressed a real intangible optimism about the coming year in every aspect of our fraternity's affairs. Now don't get scared - I've done a lot of thinking this summer, with some brothers down in N.B. and alone at home, and I really firmly believe that this intangible optimism can be turned into reality, hopefully in every aspect of fraternity life that it touches. There's a big challenge ahead for all 50 of us. It can't be met by the same few brothers all the time. It MUST be met by all! Because if you're not part of the solution then you're part of the problem. I'm asking for your own individual commitment over the next 3 weeks. A commitment not to me or even the name Phi Gam but to yourself and the people, the men you chose to be the closest to you throughout your college experience.    Dave is going to an accountant to audit the books and find our net loss incurred this year. He will then make up a complete income statement for the past year and send one to every brother with the assessment figure. It might be a good idea to start putting $3-$5 away each wee until we find out the figure. I'm very optimistic about things running smoothly this year, if we can alleviate this financial burden. Of course, this depends on us working as a unit.    Some good news on the Intramural front. Frank Brunetti, cross-country coach, wil be getting in touch with those who signed up for the team. There's word going around that Richie Green and Bill Nigh have already started training and plan to finish 1,2. Also intramural wrestling has been moved up early in 2nd semester, giving us the advantage, since Stoney will be able to wrestle for the house and then go out for the varsity. Paul Brankovich, our veteran star quarterback has reconsidered his announced retirement when he was promised part ownership in Joe Namath's night club 'Bachelors III'. Branko also 1969 R.U. Open Intramural Golf Champ has been working on some new turf devices to insure one of us the title again next year. Russ Adsit has been playing handball 3 nights a week in Colo. Mike "Earl the Pearl" Monroe is leading a summer basketball league in scoring with a 23.8 per game average.    Well, that's it for now. I'll try to get another letter out to you in mid-August. Have a great vacation.                               Peacefully and Fraternally yours,                                          Ed (D) Zito        PERGE!

Sing along:
   Yo ya, yo ya, Hermon men are we.
   Yo ya, yo ya, ____________ is a yo-yo.
Remember that one?

Remarkable Decade, Remarkable Men
Even though living in remarkable times, the brothers in the house lived lives also characterized by joking, service and friendship, and in this way the FIJIs of the sixties  were no different than any other decade.

Photos:

Soph Hop, 1968 (click on picture to see full-size version, 4 times larger)


Christmas Formal, 1968 (click on picture to see full-size version, 4 times larger)

Fiji Island, 1969 (click on picture to see full-size version, 4 times larger)