16—The Daily Collegian . Wednesday, April 15, 1981
On Drugs may get
$ 5,000 from ASA
COLLOQUY STS COLLOQUY
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4:00 p.m. Lecture by Dr. Weinberg
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HUB Assembly Room
8:00 Debate
"Resolved: The Nation's Energy Needs
Call for a Substantial Role
for Nuclear Power"
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4:00 p.m. Lecture by Dr. Commoner
"Toxic Chemicals: Who Benefits? Who Pays?"
HUB Assembly Room
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By LORRAINE ORLANDI
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
The Associated Student Activities budget committee
is considering giving about $5,000 to On Drugs, a non
profit, drug, alcohol and mental health counseling and
information service whose budget was recently cut by
Centre County commissioners.
Representatives of On Drugs met last-week with the
budget committee to determine whether the agency
would continue to receive funding from ASA. Last
month's $12,000 cut by the county to the 1981-82 budget of
On Drugs has threatened the survival of the agency,
Jim Stuart, director of On Drugs, has said.
Bill Snyder, chairman of the budget committee, said
On Drugs was given a ceiling of $5,000 from ASA. On
Drugs can request no more than $5,000 from ASA,
Snyder said. But the agency can make a request for
additional money should it become available.
Timing determines car's success
Continued from Page 1. .
The figures for 1980 record gas at $1.30 a gallon, the prime
rate at 15.3 percent, and the consumer confidence index at 64.4.
The growth in real gross national product has fallen from 5.3
percent in 1977 to .1 percent in 1980.
Uller credits some of the K-car's early success to the
publicity it received in the media and to its introduction during
a time of increased consciousness of Middle Eastern problems
namely the hostage crisis.
The K-car theme "An American Car," and "The American
way to beat the pump," play on growing national sentiment and
an increase in protectionist feeling.
Despite its billing as an all-American car, some of the steel
used in the K-car is imported from Japan.
Ford imports some parts from Spain, the Dodge Colt is built
by Mitsubishi and GM's Opel is built in Germany. Ott points out
that for American car manufacturers to survive, they must be
able'to compete internationally, and the world car will indeed
be a world effort, with different countries producing the
component parts.
Uller said he would favor short-term voluntarY restrictions
by . Japan, which would give domestic manufacturers three to
five years to "get their act together."
But Ott said any restriction, tariff or quota, once in place, is
nearly impossible to remove, because most manufacturers look
at the short run costs of change and not at the long run benefits
to consumers by moving resources out of inefficient industries.
es
1-1
co
Snyder said no decisions about any allocations by Last year, On Drugs had a ceiling of $5,000 from ASA
ASA will be made until the end of the term. but additional funds became available and the agency
One of the arguments made last month by county received $6,000, Snyder said. This year, On Drugs rriqde
officials inifavor of cutting On Drugs' budget was that a request for an additional $2,500, if the funds:are
the agency serves many University students. County available, he said.
officials said they felt the University should shoulder But Snyder said even the $5,000 ceiling is not Oar
more of the burden of financing On Drugs. • anteed.
"The organization has to be fundable," Snyder said,
"it has to meet the criteria, it has to make sense to the
committee. And it has to be cost-efficient."
• The purpose of last week's meeting between On
Drugs' representatives and the committee was to deter
mine whether On Drugs met those criteria, Snyder said.
"We spent quite a bit of time with On Drugs,'!:he
said, "about 15 or 20 minutes, which is what we give
most organizations."
Stuart said the committee "seemed really interested
in hearing about the program (On Drugs) "
Snyder said Stuart mentioned that argument at the
meeting with the ASA committee last week but commit
tee members did not react to it. Snyder did not comment
on the argument.
Stuart has said that he feels the University already,
contributes its share to On Drugs.
On Drugs has filed a grievance against the county's
decision to cut funds, and is in the process of preparing
to meet with the Drug and Alcohol Planning Council
which first recommended the cut to the commissioners.
Japanese car manufacturers have an important cost ady-an
tage, Uller said, in addition to smart marketing strategies;
He also said the high wages of American workers hinder Mg t
reduction of domestic costs, but as Ott said, the wage argumen t
loses much validity when one considers that the American
worker is more productive.
Because U.S. industries are capital-intensive, the marginal
productivity of a worker is much greater than in countries
which use less technology and machinery in their production
processes
In the long run, it would be in each country's best interest to
exploit the natural differences of various nations and . :the
interdependence that arises from free trade, Ott said.
According to a recent article in the New York Tirties,
gasoline prices are expected to remain stable, because consum
ers are buying higher-mileage cars and driving less, resulting
in reduced demand for gasoline and a glut of oil on the maike#
As Ott said, it proves that demand for gasoline is -not
completely inelastic and that the best way to conserve a gorid is
to raise its price.
Despite the mix-up in economic signals caused by -the
government intervention and restrictions on trade, the signals
all point to continued demand for smaller, fuel-efficient cars.
It's up to Detroit now to. meet its consumers' demands
produce an efficient American car, because it is not in - tilt
interest of the consumer to give extra support to any industty --
the consumer just wants to get the most for his or her dollar.
*VVDFM Comedy Show: College humor on the air
By GENE GRYGO
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
"Good evening. The following is a consumer
ib information minute on how to beat the high cost of
living. We suggest that the only way to beat the
high cost of living is to die."
This is a sample of the original humor from
WDFM's Comedy Show which is heard for 15
minutes each Wednesday at 8 p.m. on 91.1 FM.
Michele Rossi, WDFM program diiector and
creative consultant for the show, said that Penn
State lacks a sense of collegiate humor.
"Penn State is boring," she said. "It's a
university of 30,000 students who act like they
have mono. It's really sad."
Comedy Show director Steve Potteiger said
Penn State students should loosen up. He cited
examples from Wisconsin University, in Madison.
Wisc., where the student government candidates
won on a platform that called for pick and shovel
parties, the purchase of toys for the undergrad
uates and the erection of a model of the Statue of
:Liberty.
.'lt's a university of 30,000
fstudents who act like they
have mono.'
Michele Rossi, program
director of WDFM
"They got everything accomplished but only
'got an arm of the statue finished," he said.
"The students are not here at Penn State to
expand their horizons. A high school in Dayton Dan Mushalko, Howard Memel and Michele Rossi (1 to r) of the WDFM Comedy Show prepare a segment for an upcoming broadcast.
daily
collegian
'Excalibur': the Arthurian legend revived
By MINDY •McADAMS
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
Torchlight shines dully on dark armor
as men on horseback gather on a hill,
silhouetted against a dim sky. Charging,
they clash with another small army and
the clang of sword and mace on steel
resounds.
• Merlin the magician calls forth the
Oword Excalibur from a pool. "One land,
one king," Mei PenclitgOn sayb as he
raises the's*ord. • -
A sprawling castle on a hilltop, lit by
torches that glow orange in the dark.
Inside, a woman dances,' her long hair
and netted cape whirling around her.
Although she is another man's wife, she
will bear Uther's son, Arthur.
Smokey castle halls, dust billowing on
narrow roads, forests and meadows lush
with greenery; none of them' look quite
Children learn to live,
I`and students to teach
By WENDY MILLER
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
"They tell me that they love it."
That's the reaction Dr. Helen Manful', associate
* professor in the department of theatre and film and
coordinator of the children's theatre and creative
drama class, receives from both the children in the
class and the University students who assist in
instructing the class.
The class runs from April 6 through May 20 with
a 2:30-3:15 session on Mondays and Wednesdays for
the kindergarteners and a 3:45-4:45 session for the
fifth and sixth graders. The college students enroll
for the course under Theatre 410 and are respdnsi
ble for preparing and instructing the last five weeks
9f the program.
The children's theatre class has a dual purpose,
said Manfull. "It's a laboratory class for college
students to have practical experience working with
children," she said.
And she said it allows the children "to experi
ence things they might not experience otherwise.
They do it they do the adventures as opposed to
watching them on television."
The structure of the classes differs for the two
age groups.
"With the little children there is very little talk
on process. We get right into something where they
can use their creativity and imagination," said
Manfull. •
These activities include being a mirror of anoth-
er child or becoming something besides themselves
like an animal. Later there is an emphasis on the
41 senses, helping the children learn about the real
world. Emphasizing imagination, the children can
take trips to foreign lands on. magic carpets con
structed from a few strips of masking tape on the
floor.
The fifth and sixth graders, Manfull said, "are
given a spread of exercises to whet their interests
ar s
the
Arthur and MOrdred in 'Excalibur'
and the state of Delaware are more fun than Penn
State," he said. "I guess the 'Comedy Show'
requires more of an active listener."
An example of student indifference, Rossi
said, is their weak response to the Comedy Show.
real. John Boorman's "Excalibur," is a
legend within a dream.
Young Arthur at a joust with his
adopted father, Sir Ector, squiring for
Ector's son Kay. Having forgotten Kay's
sword, Arthur runs into the forest and
pulls the sword from the stone. Excalibur
almost' springs into his hand, shining
phosphorescent green.
Humor: Arthur naively apologizes for
taking the SWord. Ector blurts, "Well,
put. ir- back i '-''''Later, a forest `= fulPof
lizards and snakes (allegories for the
evils of the world) frighten Arthur. Mer
lin asks, "Shall . I tell you what's out
there?" With fear-wild eyes, Arthur very
politely says, "Yes, please."
Arthur heroically takes command, de
spite his inexperience, to defeat an army
of those who dispute his claim to the
throne. Without armor or Errol Flynn
and allow them to be free." While the little children
are absorbed in becoming elves, pixies and toys the
older ones become shipwrecked on a desert island
or King Arthur and his magical sword.
"The older ones really love adventures and
acting out what they dream of doing," she said.
Very few material objects or props are used
just some musical instruments and lots of scarves.
And of course, the Pavilion Theatre with its array of
rooms and catacomb corridors lends itself to the
creative spirit.
"Creative drama is a helpful tool in the academ
ic classroom,"said Manfull. "For example, the
children develop vocabulary by spelling words to
music."
The children have also learned about whales
through a class devoted to seeing pictures, studying
and writing about them and finally becoming a
whale.
Manfull said the children will mention that they
had done one of the creative drama activities in
school that day. Manfull's response?
"That's really where it belongs in the class-
room."
The emphasis is not only on children's imagina
tion, but also on student-instructor creativity.
"If a student is interested in movement, art,
music, they should work along those lines. I am
thrilled at how creative I find the college students,"
said Manfull. "I've had students come up with
lesson plans where I say, 'I wish I had thought of
that!' They seem to like it very much for it stops
being a class and becomes college students sharing
with the children giving the children the best
possible experience:"
One of Manfull's favorite eiyings seems to sum
up the program best:
"I hear and I forget; I see and I remember; I do
and I understand." .
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But Excalibur's power is greater than
even . Merlin , had , .sUspmted; , g , the knight
struggles, but cannot bring down the
sword. Anger becomes awe, and gently
he lowers the sword to Arthur's shoulder,
swearing his loyalty to the king of all
Britain.
Arthur and Lancelot in combat at the
foot of a waterfall that almost reaches
the sky . . . .
As Arthur and Guinevere kiss at their
wedding ceremony, cut to Lancelot's
solemn face . . . .
Guinevere and Lancelot bathed in gold
en light as they are alone together for the
first time . . . .
Small figures on bleak landscapes,
Arthur's knights seek the Holy Grail
Apple blossoms drift down on the
knights riding out from Camelot for the
last time . . . .
With the setting sun unusually huge
and red behind him, Arthur sits among
his fallen men and tells Percivale to
throw Excalibur into a pool of calm
water: "One day a king will come and
the sword will rise again."
"It's a shame. It's fully produced by students
and we don't know if the show is just what we like.
We're trying to appeal to the audience with no
feedback," she said.
dramatics he neatly puts at least a dozen
men out of action.
The height of romance: Arthur puts
Excalibur to the throat of an enemy and
demands allegiance. The knight refuses,
partly because Arthur is not himself a
knight. Arthur hands over Excalibur,
bidding the knight to dub him. As Arthur
waits trustingly, the knight raises the
sword to kill him.
Boorman took marvelous care in mak-
"We don't know what to do. It leaves us more
Boorman intended to tell the whole
story of Le Morte d'A rthur, but there are
discrepancies between the film and Sir
Thomas Malory's book. Percivale was
not quite the lone hero he is in the film;
he was assisted by Galahad (who has no
part in the film) and Bors in finding the
Holy Grail. And Bedivere, not Percivale,
returned Excalibur to the Lady of the
Lake.
Mordred, the villain, was the son of
Arthur's aunt, not Arthur's half-sister.
And Merlin was not originally entrapped
by Morgana (Morgan le Fay), but by
another sorceress.
Boorman has also taken liberties with
the structure and sequence of events in
the Arthurian myth. But he preserved
the essence of the legend, with its gran
deur and noble spirit. Bravo for epic
films created with care, and bravo for
the stuff that legends are made of.
'Creative drama is a helpful
tool in the academic
classroom.'
—Helen Manfuk associate
professor, department of
theatre and film.
ing this film, evidenced in one respect by
the armor, 15th-century style, unique for
each man. Three armorers created the
suits, which are gorgeous. They look best
in the pre-Camelot scenes when tar
nished; Boorman's' lighting makes the
armor look tinny when highly polished.
Two of the film's several minor prob
lems relate to the armor. It's hard to
believe that Uther (or anyone) would
have sex with a woman without taking
his armor off. And Percivale, sinking
into a stream, somehow manages to
remove his own armor without drowning.
One of the reasons knights had squires
was to help them with their armor, which
was rather difficult to get on or off alone.
or less in the dark," she said.
The Comedy Show writers usually spend three
to four hours writing the script and sometimes up
to six hours recording special effects and over
dubbing. However, a great part of their humor is
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Rossi is hopeful about the show's future. With
tighter scripts and more feedback the show
should continue, she said.
Nigel Terry as King Arthur
improvised.
Dan Mushalko, a writer for the show, said
improvisation is one of the strong points of the
show.
"No one else around here does original stuff,"
he said. "There are no nationally distributed,
original comedy shows. In fact, we are trying to
sell it to NPR (National Public Radio)."
. Mushalko said most of the attempts at comedy
at other colleges are failures.
"Our worst show has been better than some of
the shows of other colleges," he said.
After the original humor, the group concludes
with the comedy records of such giants as Woody
Allen, Monty Python, National Lampoon and Mel
Brooks.
The original comedy show was started in the
fall of 1978 when Mushalko and another writer,
Howard Mermell, put together an hour program,
"Marsupials on Parade," that aired every other
week, but failed because the demands of such a
show. The hour long format was replaced with a
half-hour show that was again shortened to 15
minutes.
Potteiger and Rossi, major contributors to the
weekly script, have had rather strange senses of
humor since high school.
Potteiger wrote comedy skits for the intercom
system at his high school and attached Christmas
lights to the bass drum he carried in the marching
band.
Rossi wrote humor stories ' for her school
newspaper and publicized her successful cam
paign for student government president in the
school's lavatories. One of her signs read, "Don't,
get caught with your pants down, vote for Mich
ele."
Wednesday, April 15 17
Photos by David Steen