The Michigan Daily-Friday, July 30, 1982-Page 3
Dial services
deliver more
than just words
By BARB MISLE
In the past, Western Union may have
had a monopoly on the message-
delivery market, but now more than a
dozen Ann Arbor companies offer
anything from insults to strippers to
convey everything from grievances to
affections.
A new wave of dial services has taken
the city by surprise in the past year,
and Ann Arbor seems to like it.
Perhaps the only ones who don't like it
are the dial services themselves - the
competition between the various ser-
vices poses a threat to business.
SOME SERVICES, such as Balloon
Bouquets, are the sole source of income
for the owner. Others, such as the
Exotic Tahitian Rock Dancer, use the
business to supplement their income.
The various services follow the same
basic format. The hired individual
comes to a party, restaurant, or private
home (or wherever else a customer
requests) and delivers an ordered
message plus the particular featured
talent, to an unexpecting, often red-
faced recipient.
Penelope Frey, who owns Insult-a-
gram, Strip-a-gram, and also bellydan-
cers, says embarassing the victim is
the main idea behind Insult-a-grams.
An $18 Insult-a-gram is a lengthy
message of verbal abuse, and is unique
for each recipient. The type of abuse
depends on the particular offense the
person has committed.
The message also includes half-eaten
candy, rotten fruit, and thorns.
THOSE WHO deliver bellydancing
messages see their work as an art form
that requires training, practice, and
commitment.
"It is a sensual form of dance - I do
not consider it sexual. I have invested a
lot of time and money in it," said Jane
(who would not give her last name) of
Bellydancing Telegrams. "I really en-
joy what I'm doing and people who see
me really get that message."
Bellydancing often connotes a
negative sexual image, Jane said, but
added that her telegram service and
the belly dancing troop "Zarifa" to
which she belongs has helped to change
this negative view.
"WE HAVE danced for grandparen-
ts and small children and no one has
been offended by it. It is a good way for
people to learn something about an old
dance form - it is not a strip," she said.
But a Strip-a-gram is a strip. For $45,
a male or female stripper will come to
the customer's home or a public place
and strip from a three-piece suit to
either a leather loin cloth or a tarzan-
style bikini, Frey said.
Strip-a-gram's most frequent
customers are men, Frey said, but
women also employ the service. In
fact, in an unusual incident, one woman
ordered a strip-a-gram for her
teenaged son, Frey said.
SINCE IT began three months ago
Strip-a-grams have proven to be more
popular than belly dancing, Frey said.
"When Strip-a-grams came into
being, bellydancing lost some of its
popularity, but bellydancing is a much
more refined technical dance to me,
taking clothes off isn't as thrilling. But
I guess women's bodies have always
been popular," Frey said.
Competition between services is not a
big problem, but owners largely view it
as a healthy incentive for their
businesses. Jane, of Bellydancing
See DIAL, Page 5
Pinned!
Jeff Dorenkamp of Holly, Colo., wrestles his steer off its feet in 12.6 seconds
yesterday in the 86th Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo. He opened the second
go-round in steer wrestling Wednesday with the best time of 7.5 seconds.
Wayne State defense
contracts threatened
By GREG BRUSSTAR my will not accept homosexuals or the
. .. physically disabled.
Detroit's Wayne State University is
among several schools in the country ARMY MAJ. GEN. Hugh Clausen
that could lose Army research contrac- sent a letter to the seven universities in
ts for their law schools' policies of not saytg tthe euniversie
allowingoncmu rerirst May saying that he would "consider
discriminate against homosexuals and recommending" trinatio of all Ar-
the andiappe. mycontracts with the institutions and
the handicapped. stop sending Army officers to the
The law schools at Harvard, Colum- schools for legal education, according
bia, New York University, Yale, UCLA, to Maj.George Stinnett of the agency's
and Ohio State University all ban the public affairs office.
Army from recruiting because the Ar-
Stinnett said that the Army currently
has "no plans in the near term to ter-
minate any contracts (with the schools)"
Clausen is holding discussions with the
law schools to find a solution to the
recruiting problem, Stinnett added.
JOHN ROBERTS, dean of the Wayne
State law school, said the faculty adop-
ted the non-discriminatory recruitment
policy in 1980 because of student
requests.
"Discrimination against
(homosexuals and the physically han-
dicapped) is not dissimilar from
discrimination by race, sex, or national
origin. It's a matter of principle,"
Roberts said.
The Army is permitted to recruit at
Wayne State's other schools.
Officials at Wayne State are
assessing whether the law school over-
stepped its policy making authority in
establishing its non-discrimination
policy, said Patricia Eames, a Wayne
State attorney.
The Army is permitted to recruit at
Daily Photo by DOUG McMAHON the University of Michigan Law School
because it follows the University's
general equal opportunity policy, which
t in a psychology experiment yester- does not include sexual preference, said
Nancy Krieger, the Law School's
career planning and placement officer.
Psyched out
Yvette Asher attempts to convince a wavering recruit, Jim VanLare, to take par
day as he contemplates whether a piece of mind is worth $4.00.