If you are a member of a USC alumni club upset that your club is being dissolved, you might ask USC why it is still calling the Alumni House the “Widney Alumni House” after Robert Widney, a university founder. Max Nikias even erected a statue of Widney in 2014. The Los Angeles Times ran an article that included background on Widney and his brother, Joseph, … Continue reading USC Has More Controversial Buildings

Above is a photo from the 1957 Coliseum fireworks that features the big, white clock atop the scoreboard. And below is the 1959 show with Vice President Richard Nixon, his 10-year-old daughter, Julie, and Japanese Consul General Yukio Hasumi. Continue reading More Fourth Of July Photos

Here’s a nice color photo from 1964 when the Coliseum fireworks show on the Fourth of July lit up the sky in Exposition Park. Continue reading USC Saturday Buzz: Happy Fourth Of July!

Just a follow-up to the note in today’s column where I wrote about the USC official who skipped the spring football game for the Fresno Relays. One of the guys that drove up to Fresno with the USC official was former NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle (pictured). Like I said, track was big. “The Fresno Relays are way bigger than the USC football spring game,” the … Continue reading A Friday Notes Column Follow-Up

You probably heard Saturday about an effort to rename John Wayne Airport in Orange County. That prompted an ex-USC player, who is African American, to call me late Saturday and recount a story from 1973 when Wayne toured the campus. “We took a picture together and the photographer told John Wayne to pull his cap back because there was a shadow on his forehead,” said … Continue reading Sunday Buzz: A John Wayne-USC Story

I feel like any time I research USC in the 1950’s or 60’s, there was an incredible amount of formal dinners. This one caught my attention: On Nov. 28, 1958, USC held a “men’s football dinner” at Town and Gown. This was the night before the USC-Notre Dame game at the Coliseum. That fact did not stop USC coach Don Clark from attending. Notre Dame … Continue reading USC Sunday Buzz: A Night To Remember