Visitors to Campus

There is a legend in the Admissions Office about Frs. John and Con Hooyboer, C.S.C., The Dutch Masters, on-the-road and sleeping in the car for two weeks each spring on the West Coast High School recruiting circuit.  Taking a break on one such tour, they attended a Lawrence Welk concert and ran into the Governor of Hawaii.  Brochures were exchanged; the advantages of UP promoted.   A LEGENDARY incident, since happily ever after UP has had an active presence of students from the fiftieth state, with this year marking the Hawaii Club’s 41st annual Lu’au.

Mr. Welk received an honorary degree in 1956, and the University of Portland Medal in 1983.  In 1982, Milton Berle was the headliner at the University Homecoming celebrations.  The UP Hollywood connection going way-back, with Jack Benny as the headliner for the dedication of Mehling Hall in 1964, and the Shipstad Ice Follies funding the 1967 residence hall.

But perhaps all of these names, even in their time, are reflective of the taste of the University administration more so than of the students themselves.  For example, Bob Newhart appeared at the Presidential Endowed Scholarship Fund dinner in 1994; and most fundraisers skew toward an older crowd.

The eerie intersection is between Bob Newhart and UP alumnus Kunal Nayyar, ’03, who together hit the sweet-spot of popular culture old-school and new.  Mr. Newhart received his one and only Emmy Award for a guest appearance on The Big Bang Theory television show.  Mr. Nayyar is a co-star principal on that show.  Newhart was on-campus 9 years before Kunal graduated, and Kunal graduated 10 years before they worked together (the episode was broadcast in May 2013 – UP commencement ceremonies are held on the first weekend of May!  Spooky?).   Six degrees of separation?  Random coincidence?  Or perhaps Brushes-with-Greatness are just playful accidents of graciousness adding color to our world.

In August 2000, the Chiles Center at University of Portland was once again host to a presidential candidate.  Texas Governor George W. Bush, (R) visited the campus for a campaign rally sponsored by the Republican Party.   Running as a compassionate conservative, Bush received the Republican party nomination for president at their national convention earlier in the month.  On winning the 2000 presidential election, George W. Bush completed the second father-son duo (41 & 43; John Adams and John Quincy Adams were 2 & 6; the Harrisons 9 &23, grandfather and grandson; the Roosevelts were fifth cousins, 26 & 32) to hold the nation’s highest office.

(Click on gallery images to enlarge)

Texas Governor George W. Bush and University of Portland President Rev. David T. Tyson, C.S.C., August 11, 2000 (University Archives)

Laura and George Bush greet children in the Chiles Center Hall of Fame Room, August 11, 2000 (University Archives)

Texas Governor, George W. Bush, University of Portland Chiles Center, August 11, 2000 (University Archives)

Laura and George Bush, Chiles Center, August 11, 2000 (University Archives)

The University of Portland’s newly dedicated Chiles Center athletic arena still smelt of fresh varnish and the stadium seating was still cushioned and clean when President Ronald Reagan’s re-election campaign visited the Chiles Center in October of 1984.  Appearing before a crowd of students and Reagan supporters, President Reagan (R), focused his remarks on national security while speaking out against his opponent, former Vice President Walter Mondale (D-MN).  Reagan deviated from his prepared speech with occasional quips meant to quiet and deflect hecklers in the audience.  President Reagan visited UP two weeks before the national election, carrying away the roars of an enthusiastic crowd and a Pilots jacket presented by UP Student Body president, Kelly Krautscheid, ’85 and Wally Pilot.

Text of Reagan speech at the Chiles Center, October 23, 1984
https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/speech/remarks-reagan-bush-rally-portland-oregon

University of Portland faculty, staff, and students were treated to an unexpected visit by Senator Robert F. Kennedy, (D-NY) on March 26, 1968, just ten days after he declared his candidacy for U.S. President.  Senator Kennedy’s surprise visit (?) found a crowd of over 1,000 gathered in the University Commons to hear him during his Oregon tour before the local Presidential primary.   Among his supporters nationally were the poor, minorities, Catholic voters, and naturally, Democrats.   Emerging as one of the leaders for the Democratic nomination for president, Senator Kennedy was assassinated a couple months later in California on June 5, 1968.

(Photo Gallery from the University Archives, click on images to enlarge)

Rev. Paul Waldschmidt, C.S.C.; Senator Robert F. Kennedy, D-NY, Rev. Joseph Powers, C.S.C. (back to camera), Representative Edith Green, D-OR, March 26, 1968

Camelot Again, Robert F. Kennedy Speaks to UP Crowd in the Commons, March 26, 1968

Senator Robert F. Kennedy, D-NY, Campaign Speech in the Commons, March 26, 1968

Students listening to Senator Robert F. Kennedy in the Commons, March 26, 1968

Senator Robert F. Kennedy Campaigns at UP, The Beacon, March 28, 1968

Capacity Crowd Fills the Commons to Hear Senator Robert F. Kennedy, March 26, 1968

Media Cameras Record Senator Robert F. Kennedy’s Campaign Speech in the Commons, March 26, 1968

Student with Senator Robert F. Kennedy, March 26, 1968

Two days before the May 15, 1964 Oregon primary, New York Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller, (R) campaigned at University of Portland in Howard Hall in his bid for the presidency.   That appearance obviously sealing the deal: because Rockefeller, representing the moderate-liberal faction of his party, won the Oregon Republican primary.  But then his opponent, Senator Barry Goldwater, (R-AZ) won the California primary election and subsequently became the Republican presidential nominee.  Rockefeller mounted three unsuccessful runs for the presidency; 1960, 1964, and 1968; he achieved national office only when President Gerald Ford appointed him as Vice President (1974-1977) after a period of constitutional unpleasantness in the early 1970s.

The University of Portland was a stop on the campaign trail for Senator John F. Kennedy, (D-Mass) when he appeared before a capacity crowd in Howard Hall just four days ahead of the May 20 Oregon primary election in 1960.   Kennedy, who downplayed his Catholicism during his candidacy, was hoarse from days on the campaign trail and so did not speak at the event: U.S. Representative Edith Green, (D-Ore.) and chairperson for the Kennedy in Oregon, delivered Kennedy’s speech for him.  The future president did manage to use some of his voice to answer questions following the speech.   A campus group, Students for Kennedy, sponsored the event including a reception in the Pilot House.

(From the University Archives, click on gallery image to enlarge)

Rev. Paul E. Waldschmidt, C.S.C., Academic Vice President; Rev. Howard Kenna, C.S.C., UP President; Representative Edith Green, D-Ore.; Senator John F. Kennedy, D-Mass, May 16, 1960

Senator John F. Kennedy Campaign Visit at UP, The Beacon, May 20, 1960

Senator John F. Kennedy, D-Mass, Presidential Campaign Visit at University of Portland, May 16, 1960

In 1952 University of Portland’s Education Hall was host to former Minnesota governor Harold Stassen (R) on a campaign stop two days before the presidential primary in Oregon.   Today a footnote known as a perennial presidential candidate, the 1952 election was his second campaign for the nation’s highest office.  Stassen entered the 1952 race after a strong showing in the 1948 campaign where he debated New York Governor Thomas Dewey (R) in the first audio recorded United States presidential debate.   That debate was held in Portland’s KEX radio station the night before the Oregon primary.  1948 and 1952 were the first in a string of unsuccessful presidential campaigns for Stassen, ultimately mounting nine (!) attempts at the presidency between 1948-1992.