I Fleetwood: The diner time forgot The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, December 7, 1988 - Page 3 Duderstadt, Bush iscuss BY MARK MOSHER The battle going on at the other end of the Fleetwood Diner's lunch counter has reached epic proportions. It seems that each time the deter- mined patron lunges at it with knife and fork, the leathery looking object sitting next to his cole slaw begins to dodge and parry, knocking his french fries onto the greasy counter- top. A couple of aging hippies sit- ting at a nearby table stop singing along with "Alice's Restaurant" to giggle. "Bring me something sharper, Gloria," he says, with a fierce glint in his eye. Armed with a steak knife, he tears into the gristly piece of meat. "Delicious." Through nearly 40 years, three incarnations and countless owners, the little diner on the corner of Ash- ley and Liberty has provided a home for the eccentric of mind and strong of stomach. The diner itself is not much to look at. A small custard-colored rectangle on cinder-blocks with a crooked awning, it looks like a halfway house for wayward alu- minum siding. But artifacts like the huge Coca-Cola sign on the roof add an unmistakable ambiance and recall a simpler time - how many of us can remember when Coke was "the pause that refreshes?" Inside, a half-dozen of the rotating candy-apple red stools of yester-year adorn a short counter. Patrons should beware of the counter-top, though, as it is ancient yellow formica that will never fail to camouflage the last customer's spilled mustard. Not sur- prisingly, the better dressed clientele seem to sit at the four remaining worn wooden tables. "Waitperson" Gloria Vitagliano, whose faded black concert T-shirt and gruff sense of humor recall a time when people still rode big American motorcycles, serves the evening customers. "The Fleetwood was in- stitutionalized in 1947, but most of the employees have yet to be," she cackles, leading one to believe it might not be such a bad idea. With a sinister wisper, she points over her shoulder to the burly cook with a dragon tattoo on one large upper arm and a grim reaper on the. other. "That's George, killer cook from hell." George, as if to confirm this, n> dribbles some hamburger grease onto' the grill, causing the flames to dance and filling the diner with greasy brimstone. Laughing to herself, she points one customer to the menu on the far wall. "What can I do you out of?" she asks. Cheeseburger seems to be the most common answer. Legend has it that the New York Times once listed the Fleetwood's burgers among the 10 best in the nation.4 The Fleetwood caters to the chil- dren of the 60s who never developed a taste for the macrobiotic fare that- many of their cohorts still embrace. "We don't serve anything healthy, she tells a customer who asks for a diet soda, "only things that are bad for you." X'. But Gloria says the Fleetwood's clientele is the menu's biggest at- traction. Customers run the gamut from workers in the mornings, to professors and students in the after- ROBIN LOZNAK/Doily noons, to the prostitutes and street Ann Arbor resident and Community High School student Ona Y1.f..I..a an~ ra LA A- a ..-. ra_-- -" r r higher BY STEVE KNOPPER University President James Dud- erstadt said U.S. President-elect George Bush was "very committed" to higher education after Bush met with 10 university presidents from around the country Mondayrin Washington. In an interview yesterday, Duder- stadt said Bush sought recommenda- tions for appointing his key educa- tion officials, advice for improving the national science adviser position, and feedback on federal financial aid programs. Ten past and present college offi- cials - including the heads of Yale, California, and Cornell Universities and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology - met with Bush, Vice President-elect Dan Quayle, and cur- rent Secretary of Education Lauro Cazazos in an informal forum to discuss general issues in higher edu- cation. "We didn't go in reciting a litany of all the issues, or prescriptions or solutions," University of Nebraska President Ronald Roskens, who at- tended the meeting, said yesterday. "Rather, we asked the question, 'How can we help one another ad- dress these real issues?"' Duderstadt said the group ad- dressed five topics: providing better access to colleges for all citizens, the national scientific agenda, the rela- tionship between K-12 and higher education, attracting more minorities to work and study at colleges, and expanding the university's interna- tional role. "There was an expression of con- ed. 'There was an expression of concern on both sides.. about the rising costs of higher education. The sense was that we both had areas to work on.' University President James Duderstadt cern on both sides about the rising costs of higher education," Duder- stadt said. "The sense was that weF both had areas to work on." The government must improve its regu- latory and tax policies and the col- leges need to solve internal bud- getary problems, he said. Duderstadt, who had never met Bush before Monday, said he was impressed by the future president's "sincerity and very clear understand- ing of the issues of higher education. He was very at ease in chatting with academics." Bush has pledged to be the "education president," and Monday's meeting was an attempt to reach out to national higher education experts for input. Kristin Taylor, a spokesperson for the vice president, said Bush will continue to hold similar meetings during his tenure as president. Duderstadt said the meeting, initiated by Yale President Benno Schmidt, was a "first step in a longer dialogue." people wno used to come in when there was an all-night shift. Terry Richards, a 10-year veteran of Fleetwood fare and one of the diner's many self-styled historians, will pass by other restaurants and come out of his way for the Fleet- wood. He once drove all night from Syracuse when he was homesick for Ann Arbor. "When I walked in the door ev- eryone said, 'Hi Terry,' as if I had walked in from across the street." he says. "The people bring me back - I can always get into a good conver- Taurienen relaxes in the Fleetwood Diner during her lunchI break. sation." "I used to spend a lot of time travelling on business and I realized how you can tell a lot about a town from diner conversations. In diners out East, it's usually blue-collar types talking about how bad work is going and who is sleeping with who's wife; in Ann Arbor we talk about every possible socio-political issue..." Gloria mentions that the Fleet- wood was often host to celebrities. "Martha Reeves and the Vandellas came in here after a show once," she says. What did they have? "Cheese- burgers, of course," says Gloria. "Speaking of cheeseburgers, I see you were able to keep yours down," she commends a patron sitting at the counter. "We usually provide air sick bags 'cause we're such a classy place." PLO Continued from Page 1 Israeli officials alleging the recent PLO proclamation to be unclear and ambiguous, Abu-Lughod said the PLO's resolution is instead "very clear and explicit." "The Palestine Liberation Orga- nization, on the basis of UN security resolutions 242 and 338,calls for an international peace conference where all parties involved come to the peace table on an equal footing," the resolution reads. The PNC resolution passed in Algiers, he explained, asserts three points. One, the Palestinians' his- toric right to the land of Palestine; two, the PLO's international legiti- macy as sole representative of the Palestinian people; and three, the immediacy and necessity of an inter- national peace conference. "The question for us now is whether the United States and Israel are committed to the implementation of 242," he said. "Whether the United States and Israel are commit- ted to peace or committed to con- flict." Abu-Lughod said it should be clear to Israel and the United States, as it has been to the world, that the Palestinian struggle for national self- determination is not going to go away. Palestinians are committed to liberating themselves from an occu- pying force, he said. WHAT'S (s HAPPENING RECREATIONAL SPORTS 'HO I/DA Y BUILDING HOURS I THE LIST. What's happening in Ann Arbor today Speakers "Sharing International Strategies for the Future of the Peace Movement" - Luc Deliens, Belgian peace movement, First Congregational Church of Ypsilanti, 218 N. Adams, 7:30 pm. Open to the public and free of charge. Roundtable: "Poland 1988" - Slavic Languages and Literatures Prof. Bogdana Carpenter, History Prof. Roman Szporluk, Lane Hall Commons, 12 noon. Brown Bag Series. "Basic Books of Rudolf Steiner" - Prof. E. Katz, 1923 Geddes Ave., 7:30 pm. "Advances in Micellar Mobile Phased HPLC" - Mark Klemp, Chem. Dept., 1200 Chem. Bldg., 4 pm. "Non-Kekule Molecules and the Limits of Hund's Rule" - Prof. Jerome Berson, Yale University, 1300 Chem. Bldg., 4 pm. Coffee, 3:30 pm. "Ujima/Collective Work & Responsibility" - Mukasa Dada, Couzens Cafeteria, 8 pm. "Ford Thunderbird and Mercury Cougar: Racing into the Future" - Video Disk Presentation on the total re-design of the Thunderbird/Cougar for 1989, Chrysler Aud., 6 pm. "What are the Residual Stresses Doing in Our Bodies, How Do They Respond to External Loads, How Fast Do They Change" - Y.C. Fung, 1010 Dow, 4 pm. Coffee, 2269 GG Brown, 3:30 pm. "Visual Adaption" - D. Green, 1017 Dow, 4-5 pm. Meetings BSU Meeting - Trotter House, 6:30-7:30 pm. Native American Student Association - Michigan Union, 6 PM. International Affairs Committee - International Center, 7:30 pm. SAFEWALK Mass Meeting for New Walkers - Anderson Rm. Michigan Union, 8 pm. Safewalk resumes on January 15, 1989. Students Objectivism - New Officer Elections, 812 Monroe St., 7:30 pm. Furthermore Psychology Night - Exploring Careers - Pendelton Rm., Michigan Union, 8 pm. Women's Crisis Center Volunteer Information Session - Women's Crisis Center, 306 N. Division, 5:30 pm. English Peer Counseling - 4000A Michigan Union, 7-9 pm. Help with papers and other English related questions. University Lutheran Chapel - "Holden Village Vespers", 9 pm. 1511 Washtenaw Ave. Study Abroad Workshop - International Center, 4-5 pm. Order of Omega Holiday Party - Kuenzal Rm., Michigan Union, 9 pm. Dissertation Support Group - 3100 Michigan Union, 8:30 am. Social for Gay and Bisexual Male Students - E. Law Quad Cook Rm., 9-11 pm. Performances Michigan Chamber Players - Recital Hall, School of Music, 8 pm. University Band and Campus Band - Eric Becker and James Nissen, conductors, Hill Aud., 8 pm. "What is a Racist Comment?" - Talk To Us Theatre, with discussion afterwards. Oxford Residence Hall, Geddes House, 9 pm. Gilbert and Sullivan Society Play - "Utopia", Mendelssohn Theatre, 8 pm. Laughtrack-Comedy Show - Marty Micoli, U-Club, 10 pm. Psychology Night Exploring Careers Rep. from CP&P and professors available for discussion 8pm Wed. Dec. 7 Pendleton Room Sponsored by Undergraduate Psych Society and Psi Chi Cornerstone DEC. 19 DEC. 20 DEC. 21 DEC. 22 DEC. 23 DEC. 24-26 DEC. 27 DEC. 28 DEC. 29 DEC.-30 DEC. 31- JAN. 2 JAN. 3 JAN. 4 JAN. 5 CCRB 7AM-10PM 7AM-10PM 7AM-10PM 7AM-1OPM 7AM-10PM CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED 7AM-7PM 7AM-7PM 7AM-7PM NCRB 7AM-9PM 7AM-9PM "7AM-9PM 7AM-9PM 7AM-9PM CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED 7AM-7PM 7AM-7PM 7AM-7PM IMSB CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED 9AM-7PM 9AM-7PM 9AM-7PM 9AM-7PM CLOSED 11AM-7PM 11AM-7PM 11AM-7PM CISTIAN~ FELLOWSHIP (an interdenominational campus fellowship) Students Dedicated to Knowing and Communicating Jesus Christ Weekly Meetings: Thursdays: 7:00 pm 219 Angell Hall John Neff - 971-9150(0), 747-8831(H) HOW TO MAKE YOUR HOLIDA YS HAPPIER? Tickets Av i ab Sou er if r a Ticket rvi (818) 57 7 (213)681.. 134 Pasadena's Old t and Most Reliable Ticke gency Open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific S dard Time EARN MONEY Sf AT r0 * * APPLY & TRAIN NOW