February 15, 2005 - Arthur
Miller, one of the University’s
most distinguished alumni and a
leading force in American theater,
died in his Roxbury, Conn., home
Thursday night at age 89. The
Associated Press reported heart
failure as the cause of his death.
The prolific playwright was
born Oct. 17, 1915 to a prominent
Polish-Jewish family in Harlem.
He is best known for writing “All
My Sons,” “Death of a Salesman”
– which earned him a Pulitzer
Prize – and “The Crucible.”
Before he made his Broadway
premiere in 1944, he developed
his writing skills as a University
student from 1934 to 1938.
He
found
the
University
alluring because of its Hopwoods
Awards, creative-writing prizes
given to students with a cash
reward.
The
awards
were
established in 1931 in memory of
dramatist Avery Hopwood.
“This place seemed, because of
the Hopwood Award, to be taking
writing seriously,” Miller said
during a visit to Ann Arbor last
April.
When financial constraints
kept him in Ann Arbor one spring
break, Miller found himself
with enough free time to write
a play, he recalled in his 1987
autobiography, “Timebends”
He
submitted
the
highly
autobiographical
play,
“No Villain,” about a coat
manufacturer
and
shipping
clerks’ strike, to the Hopwood
Awards Committee in 1936
under the pseudonym Beymom.
The play won him $250 and the
minor award for drama.
In his book “Arthur Miller’s
America: Theater and Culture in
the Time for Change,” Theater
and English Prof. Enoch Brater
writes that a judge said the play
possessed “an excellent modern
theme handled with a tender
insight into character.”
His
subsequent
Hopwood
Award came a year later for
“Honors at Dawn,” submitted
under the pseudonym Corona.
The play focused on working
class issues, a theme Miller
returned to in many of his
other works. It draws on both
his experiences working in an
automobile parts warehouse
and his time at the University.
He made a third and final
attempt to secure a Hopwood in
1938 for a prison play titled “The
Great Disobedience” but did not
win.
Miller had arrived at the
University two years after his
high school graduation from
Brooklyns’ Abraham Lincoln
High School, where he was
a sub-par student – he failed
algebra three times. Miller
hadn’t seen any plays to speak
of, “maybe two or three plays in
my life.”
Hoping
to
further
his
development as a writer, Miller
joined The Michigan Daily’s
news staff. The byline “Arthur
A. Miller” first appeared May
21, 1935, in an article titled
“Anti-Red Bill Sent to Senate.”
“When I worked for the Daily
I did just general reporting, and
I was the night editor fo a while.
And I got to write some good
stories abot all sorts of stuff,”
Miller told the Daily in 2000.
In his book, Brater writes,
“Miller’s reporting for The
Michigan Daily falls rather
neatly
into
two
separate
categories: one dealing with
campus events and information
of a nonpolitical nature, the
other reflecting his growing
commitment and attraction to
progressive causes.”
Miller eventually lost interest
in journalism – which was his
major until switching to English
in 1936 – and his last piece to
appear in the Daily ran on May
31, 1937, as a letter to the editor
supporting a labor sit-down
strike in Washtenaw County.
“He said he stopped writing
for the Daily because he didn’t
like sticking to the facts. He
much preferred making things.
The rest, you know, is history,”
Brater said.
Miller’s
reputation
as
a
playwright began to take shape
ir. Prof. Kenneth Rowe’s drama
class.
November
9,
2006
-
University President Mary Sue
Coleman pledged yesterday that
the University would fight the
implementation of Proposal 2 in
the courts.
A defiant Coleman addressed
thousands who gathered on the
Diag about the potential impact
of the constitutional amendment
that will ban affirmative action
programs in Michigan.
The
administration’s
immediate concern is trying to
delay the implementation of the
amendment so all of this year’s
applicants will be evaluated under
the same admissions guidelines.
The constitutional amendment
will likely take effect in late
December; depending on the date
the Secretary of State certifies
the election results. If this
happens, the University would be
forced to change its admissions
policies halfway through the
admissions cycle – a scenario the
administration desperately wants
to avoid.
“Today, I have directed our
General Counsel to consider
every legal option available to us,”
Coleman told the crowd.
Because the potential impact
of Proposal 2 has been known
for
months,
many
observers
expected swift legal action by the
University yesterday to maintain
the continuity of this year’s
admissions process.
But it was the radical pro-
affirmative
action
group
By
Any
Means
Necessary,
not
University lawyers that went to
the U.S. District Court in Detroit
yesterday afternoon to try to
block the implementation.
A spokesperson for BAMN
did
not
return
phone
calls
for comment on the lawsuit
yesterday.
In an interview after her
address, Coleman said she was
unsure
when
the
University
would file its first legal challenges
to Proposal 2, but she expected
she would know within a few
days.
“The lawyers are working hard
on this,” Coleman said.
Officials at the University of
California and the University
of Texas systems successfully
delayed
the
bans
on
their
affirmative action programs in
the courts until after completing
their admissions cycles.
Coleman said she is optimistic
the courts would side with the
University and allow this year’s
admissions cycle to continue
unaffected by Proposal 2.
But such an outcome is not
necessarily certain.
Any legal action brought by
the University against Proposal 2
would name the state of Michigan,
represented by Attorney General
Mike Cox, as the defendant.
Cox,
a
Republican
who
was elected to a second term
Tuesday, has actively opposed the
University’s affirmative action
policies in the past.
In a rare act of defiance by an
Attorney General, Cox refused
a 2003 request by Jennifer
Granholm to author an amicus
brief on behalf of the state
supporting the University in
Gratz v. Bollinger.
This year Cox was the only
statewide candidate from a major
party that openly supported
Proposal 2.
Cox could not be reached for
comment yesterday.
Doug
Tietz,
a
spokesman
for the Michigan Civil Rights
Initiative,
criticized
Coleman
yesterday for trying to “trump
the opinion of 58 percent of the
electorate.”
Looking to the long term,
Coleman
reiterated
the
University’s
commitment
to
diversity.
BAMN beats administration to filing lawsuit to block proposal’s implementation
The day after: ‘U’ to fight
Proposal 2 in court
WALTER NOWINSKI
Daily Staff Reporter
Bicentennial
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Friday, September 15, 2017 — 9
Read more at
MichiganDaily.com
Read more at
MichiganDaily.com
The University’s most famous alum never forgot his roots
Acclaimed alum dies at 89
January 4, 2007 - University
alum
and
former
President
Gerald Ford, who sought to
restore trust in the presidency in
the aftermath of one of the most
scandal-ridden administrations
in American history, died at his
home in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
on Tuesday. He was 93.
When asked in 1995 what his
greatest accomplishment was
as president, Ford said it was
“healing America.”
And
heal
America
he
did.
Ford’s
decent,
honest
Midwestern demeanor calmed
a nation beset by a deep unease
after the traumas of Vietnam
and Watergate.
The cause of Ford’s death has
not been released, but he had
been
hospitalized
repeatedly
over the past year.
Ford was never elected to the
presidency or vice presidency.
In 1973, Nixon appointed then-
Congressman Ford to take the
place of Vice President Spiro
Agnew after bribery charges
forced Agnew to resign.
His
presidency
will
be
remembered most for a single
act – the decision to grant Nixon
an unconditional pardon for
all crimes he committed while
president. The pardon sparked
a national outcry and sent Ford’s
approval ratings plummeting. It
likely cost him the 1976 election
to Jimmy Carter.
Now, the pardon has become
widely viewed as a necessary
step to prevent the nation from
having to see a former president
in court for years.
Ford received a John F.
Kennedy Profile in Courage
award for the decision in 2001.
Massachusetts
Sen.
Edward
Kennedy, who had criticized
Ford when he granted the
pardon, said the decision was
“an extraordinary act of courage
that historians recognize was
truly in the national interest.”
Ford
graduated
from
the
University in 1935 with a double
major in economics and political
science. He played center on
a football team that won two
national championships. Ford
was named the team’s most
valuable player in 1934. The
University retired his jersey,
number 48, in 1994.
He came to Ann Arbor in the
middle of the Great Depression
from his boyhood home in Grand
Rapids with just $200 in hand.
Half of that was for tuition. His
football coach helped him find
jobs washing dishes and waiting
tables.
One of the places where
Ford washed dishes was his
fraternity house, Delta Kappa
Epsilon. Ford was also a member
of Michigamua, the elite senior
society.
Ford turned down offers to
play for the Green Bay Packers
and the Detroit Lions after
graduation. Instead, he headed
east to Yale University, where he
was an assistant football coach
and student at the law school.
After serving in the Navy
during World War II, Ford
returned
to
Grand
Rapids
and opened a law firm. He
was elected to Congress from
Michigan’s 5th District in 1948,
a seat he held until assuming the
vice presidency.
Ford remained close to the
University throughout his life.
He spoke at commencement
ceremonies in May 1974 and
kicked
off
his
re-election
campaign in September 1976 in
front of a crowd of more than
15,000 at Crisler Arena. He
returned to Ann Arbor to speak
at
forums
and
conferences
throughout his retirement.
Since 1977, Ford has held the
title of adjunct political science
professor. Ford’s presidential
library is located on North
Campus, and the Gerald R. Ford
School of Public Policy is named
for him. The Ford Presidential
Museum is in Grand Rapids.
Ford School Dean Rebecca
Blank praised Ford “The Ford
School community has been
enriched by our connections
with
President
Ford,”
she
said. “His visits here helped
our students learn about the
complexities of policymaking
and understand the role of
politics in our society. President
Ford’s commitment to public
service was a hallmark of his
entire career.”
University President Mary
Sue Coleman said Ford was
a strong contributor to the
University community.
“I am deeply saddened by
his death but grateful for his
many years of inspiration to his
University,” Coleman said in a
written statement. “I have had
the great privilege of knowing
both President Ford and Mrs.
Ford.
An
ardent
Michigan
football fan, President Ford
was equally passionate about
interacting with students on
issues of public policy and world
affairs.”
Coleman also noted Ford’s
support for the University’s
use of affirmative action in its
admissions decisions.
Ford published an op-ed piece
in the New York Times in 1999
condemning two lawsuits filed
against
the
University
that
challenged its use of affirmative
action. “At its core, affirmative
action should try to offset
past injustices by fashioning a
campus population more truly
reflective of modern America
and our hopes for the future,”
Ford wrote.
Ford’s stance on affirmative
action was indicative of his
moderate Republican leanings.
Both he and his wife, Betty
Ford,
were
supporters
of
abortion rights. In 1976, Ford
faced a primary challenge from
the more conservative Ronald
Reagan, whom he defeated.
Ford did not attend a single
social event at the White House
during Reagan’s eight years in
office.
Ford
survived
two
assassination
attempts
in
September 1975.
It was Ford who presided over
the removal of the last American
troops from Vietnam in April
1975. After the fall of Saigon,
Ford called on Americans to put
the nation’s first real military
defeat behind them.
“I
ask
that
we
stop
refighting the battles and the
recriminations of the past,”
he said in a speech at Tulane
University.
“I
ask
that
we
look now at what is right with
America, at our possibilities and
our potentialities for change and
growth and achievement and
sharing. I ask that we accept the
responsibilities of leadership as
a good neighbor to all peoples
and the enemy of none.”
Ford
echoed
Abraham
Lincoln’s
second
inaugural
address, saying “the time has
come to look forward to an
agenda for the future, to unify,
to bind up the Nation’s wounds,
and to restore its health and its
optimistic self-confidence.”
The Associated Press reported
Wednesday
that
plans
are
underway for Ford’s body to lie
in state in the Capitol Rotunda
on Saturday. A state funeral will
likely be held on Tuesday in the
National Cathedral. After that,
his body will travel to Grand
Rapids, where he will be to be
buried.
Ford is survived by his wife
Betty, his daughter Susan and
his sons Michael, John and
Steven.
Plans for a memorial at the
University have not yet been
announced.
Our president
A Life on the Grand Stage
ANDREW GROSSMAN
Daily Staff Reporter
JENNIFER M. MISTHAL
Daily Staff Reporter
I ask that we stop
refighting the
battles and the
recriminations of
the past. I ask that
we look now at
what is right with
America
RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily
“I was an undergrad here in the
early ’90s, and reflecting back to
my experience at that time, I feel
like the Bicentennial is the time
to celebrate that the University
of Michigan is a place where
people can come and reach their
potential...I’m now in the fortunate
position of helping other students
do that. So when I think about the
Univeristy of Michigan and what
I would celebrate about it, is that
it’s a place for people to come and
if they want to they can embrace
all of the opportunities to learn
about the most pressing social and
political issues of our time, how to
think about them, and to grow both
personally and collectively.”
Evelyn Al-Sultany, American
Culture professor
FE ATURE D PEOPLE
“So the Bicentennial at it’s core
is about the celebration of the
University and it’s history. I
feel that while it is important
to celebrate the wonderful
work the University has done,
it is also important to embrace
the ways we have improved
from faulty and problematic
parts and components of our
past. We still have much to
improve on, and I hope that
the Bicentennial provides an
avenue for student leaders and
activists to engage with the
community and pave a positive
future for our Michigan.”
LSA senior Yong-Joon Kim,
SAPAC co-coordinator
FILE PHOTO/Daily
1972 — Ann Arbor City Council passes
ordinance setting fine for possession of
marijuana at $5
1983 — President Ronald Reagan
presented the National Medal of Science to
Chemical engineering professor Donald Katz
1984 — Engineering alum Thomas
Knoll and brother John created Adobe
Photoshop
1983 — New computing station opens in
the Union
1986 — New U-M
hospital opens
1981 — Computers continue
to become more prevalent with
growing computer centers
1974 — President Gerald Ford takes
office — the only alum to ever do so