Some of them were grown men going to college on the new G.I. Bill, and some were boys -- eighteen years old, straight out of high school. There were also young women coming to campus, rich in the traditions of their mothers and grandmothers. These women didn't know it, but the seeds of the modern women's movement had been planted during the war and in their generation. There were African-Americans who came to campus and found segregation and racial stereotypes, even after some of them had fought a war for freedom. This mixture of students blended together on the college campuses of America in the late 1940s and exploded into the world in 1950. Journalist John Norberg's illuminating oral history allows members of Purdue University's Class of 1950 to tell their stories in their own words. ""(This is) a narrative that will hold special interest for those with Purdue or West Lafayette ties, but its scope is broad enough to interest a wider population"".
John Norberg is a writer, author, humorist, and a chronicler of the human condition. Retired as director of communications for development at Purdue University, he began his humor column in 1971 while working at Indiana's Brazil Daily Times. The column appeared in the Lafayette Journal and Courier from March 1973 to October 2014. He has received more than 50 state and national reporting awards. A nationally respected, award-winning speechwriter and public speaker, he also is the author of seven books, including Spacewalker: My Journey in Space and Faith as NASA's Record-Setting Frequent Flyer, which details the story of astronaut Jerry Ross. Additionally, Norberg has written articles for various national publications, including the Saturday Evening Post, USA Today, the Christian Science Monitor, and Time magazine. He was most recently honored with the prestigious Purdue University Special Boilermaker Award and was inducted into the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame for a lifetime of work.
Preface Introduction Chapter 1: "I Wish You Could Turn Back the Clock": Remembering How It Was Chapter 2: "The Loneliness Is Disappearing": Some Who Added the Feminine Touch Chapter 3: "Times Were Very Tough": The Great Depressions Lifelong Effects Chapter 4: "We Had a Ton Of Guys Playing": On The Gridiron and The Court Chapter 5: "I Told Her I'd Give Her a Call": Boy Meets Girl Chapter 6: "I Was An Aviation Bug": Some Were Flyboys Chapter 7: "Everybody Was Going": Into The Army, Navy, And Marines Chapter 8: "Look at All Those Free People": The African-American Experience Chapter 9: "It Was a Fantastic Time": From Radar Through Space Chapter 10: "Like riding A Roller Coaster Down The Night the Bleachers Collapsed Chapter 11: "We Had a Great Wrestling Team": Hoosier Hysteria Goes to The Mat Chapter 12: "I Never Did Go Home" Students from Faraway Places Chapter 13: "Now It's Your Turn": From College to Korea Chapter 14: "They Could Do Anything They Wanted to": College, Careers, Children, And Careers Chapter 15: "Back Home Again on Indiana": Memories of More Purdue Athletes APPENDIX INDEX
