Leave 'Em Laughin'

It may still be exam period, but somewhere out there some seniors can dream only of June, and freedom. It's time to pick a Class Day speaker again, and the 1979 Class Committee is already looking for the one person who can perfectly capture the class's emotions on that solemn day.

Judging from a few of the prospective choices, though, the day might not be so solemn.

The committee, composed of the eight class marshals and one representative from each of the Houses, has reduced the field--chosen in a poll of all seniors--down to a list of 19, headed by "Doonesbury" cartoonist Garry B. Trudeau.

But the committee has other choices, and most of them seem to follow the traditional pattern. Last year saloon-keeper and comic Rodney Dangerfield spoke at Class Day, and this year's committee has a slew of comedians and other entertainment figures in mind if first choice Trudeau--a Yalie--declines to show.

Lily Tomlin, George Carlin, Steve Martin and four of the original Saturday Night Live "Not for Prime Time Players" are on the list, along with such luminaries as actress Jane Fonda, Sens. Bill Bradley (D-N.J.) and Edward M. Kennedy '54, and broadcaster Walter Cronkite.

However, when June 6 rolls around, don't count on hearing anybody whose name is cited now. Both Trudeau and Tomlin have turned down the honor in the past; last year, Dangerfield was a speaker of last resort. This year's committee may well exhaust its 19-person list before it manages to lure some notable, or near-notable, to a Cambridge spring. The post carries no pay or honorarium, and the selection committee may eventually have to call on some personal connections to draw its candidate in.

But whoever does come, if the recent record is any guide, seniors shouldn't worry about hearing some dull sermon laid down just as they prepare to enter "the company of educated men and women." The seniors have spoken, and they will most likely get the laughs they asked for.