140) July 20, 1976: Aquaram Robert
“Bobby” Hackett, Class of 1977, takes the
silver medal in the men's 1500 meter
freestyle at the Montreal Olympics. to the creation of the Quest Motif in
Literature, the senior elective he teaches
at the Prep today.
141) December 6, 1976: Appearing on
a New York stage for the first time in 45
years, Bing Crosby hosts a benefit
entitled Bing Crosby Salutes Fordham Prep
at Avery Fisher Hall. The show features
Crosby and his family, as well as the
Fordham Prep Choir under the direction
of Mr. J.K. Johnson, a cornerstone of the
Fine Arts Department from 1970 until his
passing in 1991. 144) April 23,1979: Bob Hope's Salute
to Fordham Prep at Avery Fisher Hall caps
off the Burn the Mortgage Campaign,
helping to bring to a close a decade of
near-disastrous financial instability for
the newly independent Prep. On hand as
ushers for the event are seniors John
Civetta, Peter Ianniello, Thomas
Mangano, John McDermott, Patrick
McNierney, and Christopher Lauber, who
would join the faculty in 1993.
Computer Accent.” By the mid-1980s,
thanks to Frs. Russell Sloun, SJ and
Nicholas Lombardi, SJ, Class of 1961,
the Prep had risen to international
prominence for its revolutionary use of
computers in an educational setting.
Teachers from as far away as Japan are
visiting Fordham Prep to see the future.
148) September 7, 1984: Mass of the
Holy Spirit for the 1984-1985 school year.
149) October 1984: At the Faculty
Convocation, Mrs. Wanda Piñeiro of the
Modern Language Department becomes
one of the first women granted tenure on
the Prep faculty. Still on the faculty in
2017, Mrs. Piñeiro holds a special place in
the hearts of generations of Prep boys.
150) October 6-8, 1985: Fr. Carsten
Martensen, SJ directs the first Prep
Emmaus Retreat in Garrison, New York.
151) 1984-1985 School Year:
145) June 9, 1979: The Senior Prom is
held in the Baroque Suite of the Plaza
Hotel from 8:30 pm to 12:30 am. The $55
per ticket price tag includes dinner, music
provided by a six-piece band and an
evening of dancing on the large parquet
floor. As it has been described over the
142) June 10, 1977: Commencement
Day: Together with his 194 classmates,
Lawrence Curran becomes a Prep alum.
Receiving his diploma directly after
Curran is Lee Curreri, best remembered
for his work on the 1980 film Fame, as
well as the television series of the same
name. As for Larry Curran, eleven years
after becoming a Prep alum, he would
begin his tenure in the Prep's Alumni
Office on February 8, 1988.
143) Summer 1977: With his father,
Louis Sr., future faculty member Louis
DiGiorno, Class of 1988, watches Star
Wars at the Valentine Theater on
Fordham Road. The film would spark in
him a lifelong fascination with
mythopoetics that would eventually lead
years by various attendees, “The evening
was magical.”
146) October 1, 1979: “Mean” Joe
Greene's award-winning “Hey, kid. Catch!”
Coca-Cola ad is debuted. The commercial
would gain national prominence and
become something of a pop culture
phenomenon a few months later during
Super Bowl XIV. Playing “the kid” is future
Prep student Thomas Okon, Class of 1987.
1980s
147) January 8, 1984: The New York
Times runs an article about the Prep
entitled “Language Study Gets a
Mr. Douglas Tobin's Greek 1 students
are using Chase & Phillips' A New
Introduction to Greek, easily identifiable
by its plain, dark gray cover. The first full
Greek sentence in the text is θάνατοσ
ψυχή, the soul is immortal. During the
mid-1980s, Greek 1 is taught in Room
251, reconfigured today as Room 250, the
classroom where Mr. Eric Groepler, Class
of 1987, teaches his Greek and Latin
classes.
152) October 1987: Robert Dunbar,
Class of 1988, publishes a Ramview article
entitled “Father O'Magic” heralding the
arrival on the Faculty of Fr. William
O'Malley, SJ, a prolific author and an actor
who had played the part of Fr. Dyer in The
Exorcist. Father would remain in the
classroom and in the Prep theater
through June 2012.
153) June 18, 1989: The Prep
unexpectedly loses Mr. Alfred Mehmel,
raucously funny and much beloved
teacher of German and religious studies.
Throughout his long tenure, Deacon
Mehmel had always chosen the same
quote from St. Jerome for the yearbook:
Amor ordinem nescit. “Love knows no rules.”
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