printable versionCardinal Chronicle
BY MICHAEL PEÑA
When the Tony Awards are given out on June 15 to recognize the best of Broadway, the nomination of DAVID PITTU for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play will also be a pat on the back for Professor SHELLEY FISHER FISHKIN. Director of the American Studies Program and noted MARK TWAIN scholar, Fishkin re-discovered the legendary writer's play that Pittu performed in, Is He Dead? The story of a struggling artist who stages his own death to drive up the cost of his paintings, the farce found its way into Fishkin's hands in 2002 as she looked through a file cabinet at UC-Berkeley's Bancroft Library. Having shepherded the play to Broadway—where it opened at the Lyceum Theatre on Dec. 9, 2007, and ran for three months—Fishkin is listed among the play's producers.
Also rescued from the fate of obscurity is the Arizona Cactus Garden, originally planted by JANE and LELAND STANFORD in the 1880s when they intended to build a grand summer home at the Palo Alto Stock Farm. They abandoned those plans when their son died, and over the years, the cactus collection was ignored and many specimens were lost. But thanks to CHRISTY SMITH in Grounds Services and the volunteers she has worked with over the years, the garden is thriving once again in the Arboretum. She has only given guided tours of the historic garden by direct request or on Community Day. Next Thursday, however, she's going out on a limb with her first open-invitation tour for the campus community, from noon to 1 p.m. The May 29 tour will start at the Mausoleum and proceed to the garden.
Then, hot on the heels of that trek, the 2nd annual Cardinal Walk will take place the next day. The 1.5-mile route will loop around the core campus. The walk starts at noon but participants can begin showing up at 11:30 a.m. at Roble Field to enjoy light refreshments, music and a warmup. The first 1,500 attendees will receive a free pedometer from the BeWell@Stanford folks, and Provost JOHN ETCHEMENDY will give a short welcome. In addition to the Office of the Provost, the May 30 event is sponsored by the Stanford Health Improvement Program and Stanford Athletics, Physical Education, Recreation and Wellness. For more information, visit http://bewell.stanford.edu.
Write to Michael Peña at michael.pena@stanford.edu or mail code 2245.
