Class of '51 Packs Memorial Hall For Revival of Freshman Smoker

Amid a cheerful first act which dulled into a restless and anticlimactic finale, the Class of 1951 pulled off the first Freshman Smoker in seven years last night before a mob of nearly 1000 Freshmen who jammed Memorial Hall for the three-hour affair.

Playing its aces early, the Smoker Committee presented all its stars--Victor Borge, Al Capp, Art Valpey, and Sherman Feller in the opening half of the evening. Lack of any main attractions is Kitty Kallen's last minute failure to appear, caused Freshmen to file out even more calmly than they field in.

Fast Start

But spirit was high at the start, as wit Victor Borge dashed in from shows at the Copley and Statler to regale the Freshmen with some of his stock Danish patter and piano playing. Much amused by flying programs, flashing cameras, and beer-serving waiters, Borge supplied the only hush of the opening act when he performed novelty arrangements of the Blue Danube and Polonaise.

Visually demonstrating how he creates comic-strip characters "Fearless Fosdick" and "Daisy Mac," cartoonist Al Capp added, "I get most of my ideas for characters by just coning to smokers like this."

Valpey Speaks

Lone serious note of the program was injected by new football coach Art Valpey who promised "to build a gridiron squad in keeping with past Harvard tradition if the Freshmen and the rest of the College would think only of the team and not sympathize with any individuals."