Crimson Should Learn History

Your Saturday story "Shopping for House Drag Night," (News, October 29, 1994) referred to the legendary Ginger Rogers as "a female character in a 1930's Fred Astaire movie."

Perhaps, then, it would have made sense to at least consult someone who knew the first thing about the subject--for example, that Ginger Rogers is alive and well and not a fictional character.

She was born July 16, 1991 in Independence, Missouri, and has appeared in dozens of movies, among them Top Hat and The Gay Divorcee. She is, of course, best known for her roles opposite the late Fred Astaire. Their dance sequences, which Astaire insisted always be filmed head to foot throughout, are among the most memorable images from the early days of sound motion pictures.

Our generation is frequently accused of being myopic and too obsessed with our own affairs to take an interest in the world of generations past. It is disheartening to see that these accusation may have some basis in fact. Without history (the history of popular culture included), we have no means of meaningfully analyzing the institutions of the present and future.

As journalists-in-training, perhaps Crimson writers ought to concern themselves a bit more with the historical accuracy of their articles, especially questions so simple as the non-fictional nature of one of Hollywood's most memorable women. Douglas R. Millar '96   Historian,   Gilbert and Sullivan Players