The Boo (27 page)

B. K. Metzger ’68

G. Miller III ’68

J. J. O‘Donnell ’68

C. B. Pitts ’68

J. R. Powers ’68

W. W. Russ ’68

S. S. Ryburn ’68

W. M. Shields ’68

E. Smith ’68

L. G. Southard III ’68

J. L. Speicher ’68

R. M. Vipperman ’68

W. M. Wieters ’68

B. H. Windham ’68

R. M. Bowery ’69

N. A. Davis ’69

T. S. Derrick ’69

E. E. Egg ’69

R. S. Hamilton ’69

C. C. Heyward ’69

H. G. Hiers ’69

T. W. Land ’69

R. S. McKenzie III ’69

J. O. Miller ’69

F. M. Moise III ’69

J. W. Ory ’69

M. W. Pitts ’69

R. E. Riel ’69

W. C. Twitty ’69

D. D. Wheale ’69

C. R. Whealey ’69

By unanimous acclamation of 7 cadet classes, Rhett Perry ’64 was the biggest hero during the period Sep. 60 — Jun. 67.

By acclamation of their peers the following two cadets were considered to be the most outstanding in character, determination and moral stamina.

“CITADELESE” — TRANSLATION OF CITADEL TERMS

“A” Company — tall company of undisciplined animals who played football and basketball. “A” Company was generally a military disaster area.

amnesty — when the President of the College removes all cadet punishment. Murderers, cutthroats, thieves, rapists and cadets are the only people in the world who receive amnesty.

Barracks — place where cadets pretended to live. Four stories of dwellings facing an open quadrangle.

Bluebook
— written by Jehovah. The rules and regulations of The Citadel. It appeared to Courvoisie in a grotto near Charleston in the form of a burning bush. The supreme law unto the Corps.

Bond Hall — building where physics professors flunked half the sophomore class. It once housed the Commandant’s Department before the move to Jenkins Hall.

brace — an exaggerated position of standing at attention. Plebes brace. Their chins are tucked in, their shoulders thrown back, and their backs are rigidly straight. When the plebe quits bracing, he is an accepted member of the Corps of Cadets.

Capers Hall — Liberal Arts building.

Clemson — a cow pasture in the upper part of the state.

Confinement — a punishment which required the cadet to sit at his desk studying for two solid hours.

Coward Hall — building where edible food was rumored to be prepared. The mess hall.

DI — Division Inspection. A DI accounted for the occupants of a room at a specific time.

ERW — Explanation Required, Written. Strange, military procedure whereby cadets write incriminating documents about themselves.

ESP — extra sensory perception to most Americans. Evening study period to Citadel cadets.

Five Year Man—individual who leisurely strolled through the groves of academe. A true scholar. One who remained in college an extra year to reap the benefits of a Citadel education a little longer.

food fight — odd occurrence which took place in the mess hall, usually during times of frustration or duress. Any type of food could be hurled. Chicken bones very popular. Gobs of spaghetti very popular. Pudding and whipped cream very popular. Everything popular that could become airborne in a moment’s notice.

Guidon — split-tail flag to identify a company during a parade or drill; also, the manual of knowledge for a freshman; the plebe bible.

Honor System — At The Citadel, the cadet does not lie, cheat, or steal — nor does he tolerate anyone who does these things. The Honor Court tries cadets accused of honor violations.

Jenkins Hall — building where Tactical Officers proved conclusively that the military is not a science.

jock — a cadet who liked sports better than spit-shined shoes.

Johnson Hagood Stadium — where The Citadel football team performs.

knob, plebe, dumbhead, screw, wad, waste, nut, abortion, fourth-classmen — all euphemisms for freshmen.

Lesesne Gate — if you pronounce this Le-sess-knee, you are not from Charleston. It is pronounced Le-sane and is the main entrance to The Citadel campus.

LeTellier Hall — civil engineering building.

mess carver — the senior who sat at the head of a table in the mess hall. He was responsible for making sure the meat served to his table was really dead.

Moon Shot — exposure of rear end to the general public. Frowned upon by Citadel authorities.

O.C. — Officer in Charge.

O.G. — Officer of the Guard.

Padgett-Thomas Barracks — Second Battalion where cadets walked punishment tours.

PMS — Professor of Military Science.

pom-pom — a thing sticking out of a shako; a private’s plume.

pop-off — term used by upperclassmen when they wanted a

freshman to speak to them.

press — a locker where the cadet kept his clothes and personal articles. Civilian equivalent of a closet.

Pulled or burned — term used by cadets to describe the act of giving or receiving demerits. (Seldom used W.P. term; ‘slug a cadet’).

rack — a cadet’s bed.

rack monster — evil, siren-like creature which dwelt under Citadel blankets and caused cadets to answer the call of sleep in lieu of his other duties.

Reconsideration of Award — a punishment has been awarded for an offense. The cadet is able to request that the punishment be reconsidered or removed due to extenuating circumstance. These are written when
The Boo
considers your ERW’s bullcrap.

sallyport — a port or door through which cadets “sallied” out to class or drill. The four main gates to each barracks were called sallyports.

senior private — a human being resembling a pig. Senior cadets not selected to be officers. Cadets without power who rule the barracks.

shako — tall, uncomfortable hat worn by cadets during parade and inspection.

SMI — Saturday Morning Inspection. Cruel ceremony in which Tactical Officers scrutinize the physical appearance of the slobs in their companies.

Summerall Guards — crack drill team that did not walk on water as believed by some of its members.

Sweat Party — ceremony where upperclassmen tortured freshmen until sweat poured freely from their bodies. The sweat party is a direct descendant of ancient rituals where virgins were cast into the fire to appease angry gods.

“Tac” — short for Tactical Officer. Army and Air Force officers who came to The Citadel as ROTC teachers and military advisers to cadet companies.

“T” Company — the company of jocks and monsters that made “A” Company look like the Summerall Guards.

The Cid or El Cid — cadet nickname for The Citadel.

tour — a form of punishment where a cadet had to walk back and forth across the second battalion quadrangle with a rifle on his shoulder. A monumental waste of time.

VMI — a school burned by the Yankees during the Civil War and unfortunately rebuilt soon afterwards.

waist plate — piece of brass to be worn around the waist during parades and inspection. Waist plates were non-functional and difficult to keep shined.

Week End Leave — (WEL) authorized leave time for a cadet on weekends. Period when cadets become human for brief snatches of time.

West Point — a college north of Slippery Rock.

whiteslip — a piece of paper used to report a cadet for a, disciplinary offense. At the top of the whiteslip is written this immortal epigram, “Discipline is training which makes punishment unnecessary.”

BOO’S IMMORTALS

The Boo’s
Immortals who conceived and established the Courvoisie Scholarship Fund through contributions from the Friends of
The Boo:

Chuck Eiserhardt ’68

Mike Runey ’68

Tom Linton ’68

Randy Heffron ’69

Larry Linder ’68

P. Gaillard ’68

Capers Barr ’63

Al Jones ’67

Bill Warner ’65

Mark Ackerman ’67

Jay Keenan ’67

Harold Jones ’66

Danny Maguire ’66

Billy Wieters ’68

Pat McGregor ’68

Bob Haskins ’68

Buzz Glenn ’68

Tom Dodd ’66

Lloyd Fitzgerald, Jr. ’67

Pat Johnson ’66

George Munroe ’67

Bill Milner ’67

Frank Mood ’60

Bobby Crouch ’62

Stan Hurteau ’64

Bill Gunn ’66

Wes Jones ’68

Gene Morehead ’68

Phillips McDowell ’70

Herb Roger ’61

Ross Cowan ’63

Ed Pendarvis ’65

Steve Grubb ’67

Ephraim Ulmer ’69

Frank Gibson ’69

Jack West ’70

Bill Munday ‘70

E. F. Hesse, Jr. ’69

H. Y. McSween ’67

F. G. West, Jr. ’64

T. Lane ’68

Johnny Hart ’68

Bill Christenbury ’67

Witt Smith ’66

John McGee ’68

And the Class of ’38 led by Dr. Henry Rittenberg

A BIOGRAPHY OF PAT CONROY

Pat Conroy (b. 1945) is one of America’s most acclaimed and widely read authors and the
New York Times
bestselling writer of ten novels and memoirs, including
The Water Is Wide
,
The Lords of Discipline
,
The Great Santini
,
The Prince of Tides
, and
South of Broad
.

Conroy was born in Atlanta, Georgia. Growing up as the first of seven children in a military family, Conroy moved twenty-three times before he turned eighteen, constantly switching schools as a result. His father, a Chicago-born pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps, was physically and emotionally abusive to his children, an experience that colored much of Conroy’s writing.
The Great Santini
(1976) in particular drew from many painful elements of Conroy’s childhood, a fact that caused friction within his family and played a role in his parents’ divorce as well as in Conroy’s own divorce from his first wife, Barbara.

In 1963, after graduating high school, Conroy enrolled in the Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. His experience at the Citadel provided the basis for his first book,
The Boo
(1970), as well as his novel
The Lords of Discipline
(1980) and his memoir
My Losing Season
(2002).
The Lords of Discipline
stirred up controversy for exposing incidents of racism and sexism at the Citadel, though the resulting rift between Conroy and the school would later heal. The Citadel awarded Conroy an honorary degree and he delivered its commencement address in 2001.

After graduating from the Citadel, Conroy took a job as a school teacher in an impoverished community on Daufuskie Island off the coast of South Carolina. He was fired after one year for personal differences with the school’s administration, including his refusal to abide by the school’s practice of corporal punishment. His book
The Water Is Wide
(1972), which was honored by the National Education Association, was largely based on his experiences.