I don't think you really want to know about my troubles as far as transmitting the above report - so I'll spare you that. We did meet on the date above shown, and the first order of business was the Pledge, led by JACK HARRIS. Since he was already up there, he, plus LENNY FRIEDMAN then offered Jingle Bells, accompanied by GREGG ELLIOTT. Probably fortunately for most of us, JACK'S early effort to lead some harmonizing was drowned out in the general rowdiness that prevailed. However, to be fair it should be noted that the accompanying "Jingles" provided by silverware on table glasses and pitchers was indeed memorable. Some semblance of order was restored when RALPH SMITH gave the Invocation. This was written by Mother Teresa, on the repeated subject of Do It Anyway. A good choice, RALPH.

RALPH BEASOM introduced visitors. Two locals were Shawn O'Connell from Beverly Hills, in Investments, and Charles Kim, from Koreatown, in Non-profit management. PDG ANDY ANDERSON spoke of incoming District Governor Rick Mendoza, from Redondo Beach, and Pat Cashin, Administrative Aide to Guv. Len Wasserstein. ANDY reminded us that Rick has been an aide to him during his governorship, and apparently caught the bug at that time. BOB LUSK brought Special Guest Michael Gintz, Manager of the Westwood City National Bank - and note that we haven't had any bank representation for some time. Almost at this very last moment, BRUCE ROLF leaped to his feet to report that Marie was indeed present with him - WOW, that was Close, BRUCE!

The LA Marathon is coming up on March 3rd, and Rotary is looking for runners and sponsors to raise money for PolioPlus. You will recall that RI started this effort in 1979, with a commitment to eradicate Polio on the entire planet by 2005, and we are well on our way to fulfilling this important goal. MIKE YOUSEM reminded all that his Boys and Girls Club of Venice Shopping Trip will be this next Thursday, the 13th, and parking is available there - do be sure your calendars are clear, since filling in for late cancellors is not easy, and the kids are expecting us. PP HOWIE HENKES is taking signs for the annual Braille Institute Christmas Luncheon next Friday, the 14th. It's a nice way to lead into a Christmas of Giving. And that same day is the PLLUS Luncheon at Luxe Summit Hotel - Madelyn FISCHMANN can take your check for $10.

I was pleased to report on two events that involved Aiden's Place.This is the new children's park for able and disabled kids, located in the existing park just south of the Federal Building at Wilshire and Sepulveda. First was a photo op on Monday the 3rd, where KEN KILPO, DAN PRICE, Janice and GEORGE DEA, and RUDY ALVAREZ were on hand to hold up a banner with WVRC shown. Then on Wednesday, the 5th, several hundred supporters were on hand for the official Opening Ceremony. Among our members present were PP STEVE ADLER - and we've missed you, STEVE - GEORGE, DAN PRICE, YOE, and LENORE MULRYAN. One of the speakers was Marie Schriver, who has a long involvement with disabled children, and of course there were a lot of kids hardly able to wait for everything to be fully open. This is only the second such park in Los Angeles - and in the ENTIRE U.S.! - and while several more are planned locally, it is hoped to expand this badly needed service all over the country. Just one example - an ordinary playground has sand surrounding the equipment - and you cannot get to it if you are in a wheelchair! WVRC contributed monetarily to Aiden's Place, and seeing all the activity makes it all the more worthwhile. It was particularly fitting that the opening was scheduled to coincide with what would have been Aiden's sixth birthday (he passed away at 5 ˝ last June). It was suggested from the audience that we should all support this new playground with a ten-dollar donation - and so it will be!

At this mention of fines, PP MIKE NEWMAN reported that GREGG ELLIOTT was participating in a Charity Event at the Rose Bowl recently, dressed in a most distinctive costume - but WITHOUT his Rotary pin. This obvious transgression will cost him a hundred bucks. Our visitor from Koreatown, Charles Kim, came forward to report that he is in the process of visiting all 45 clubs in the district. We are number 29, and his Club donates $100 to the Rotary Foundation for each visit. His toughest trip was to Malibu, which meets at 0715 - and he drove from La Habra, which is 61 miles! He relayed the perhaps apocryphal story of the President of Korea meeting Bill Clinton. Since the Korean President spoke no English, he was coached to respond "How are you" when they were introduced. His next line was "Me, too" since it was likely that Clinton would reply that he was glad to meet him. However, in the excitement, our Korean friend forgot his lines, so asked, "Who are you?" Clinton brightly replied, "Oh, I'm Hillary's husband" and of course the Korean President said, " Me, too". On such vagaries the whole Ship of State is steered…

December birthdays were recited, beginning with the duo of ANN SAMSON, from Tacoma, and DICK LIVERMORE, from Crown, PA - they shared the lst of the month. KEN LEVER was next, from Detroit on the 2nd, and PP RALPH WOODWORTH arrived in Milwaukee on the 4th. This led to PP DAVE WHITEHEAD, from Glendale, who had the bad luck to arrive on our meeting day, the 6th, thus doubling his fine. We leap ahead to the 18th, when PP HOMER NEWMAN checked in from Brawley. The next day, it was DORE CHARBONNEAU arriving on the 19th in Pasadena, while PP JIM COLLINS came the following day, in Huntington Park. NORA AQUINO was on the 22nd, all the way from San Luis, Panpanga, the Philippines. Next up was BILL PIERCE, from good ole LA, on the 25th, followed by TEN IHNEN on the 27th from St. Louis, and finally, from Seattle, RALPH BEASOM on the 29th. These lucky BDers were rewarded with what appeared to be red smurf balls, as a reminder of their good fortune. And a suggestion - since you alert these pigeons before they are introduced, it might be well to warn them in advance of whatever the question of the hour will be - some of their answers were pretty lame…

Pres. GEORGE then introduced our Speaker, Bob Rosen, Dean of the School of Film, Theatre and TV at UCLA. GEORGE rightly pointed out that it isn't often that the President of the Club gets to introduce his former boss, and he was enjoying the opportunity. Bob heads what is generally accepted as one of the top three undergraduate programs in the country, the other two being USC and NYU. On the graduate level, UCLA is generally rated #1, out of 95 candidates. They have 700 applications for just 21 space, so entrance is extremely competitive. Some of their better known graduates are Francis Ford Coppolla and Michael Ovitz, to name just two.

A major focus is an emphasis on flexibility, with the industry changing so rapidly. They want to combine knowledge and skills, and storytelling is a basic part of this effort. For this reason, Dr. Rosen still teaches a course in storytelling. They try to maintain a dialogue between past, present and future, since much can be learned from the past. Part of this study occurs at the Hammer Museum, with its excellent film library. And of course one of the problems with film is that they continue to find that older film is rapidly deteriorating. The nitrate film used before 1950 simply turns to dust if not redone, and even film after that time is not as long-lived as once believed. They constantly remind their students that UCLA is involved in Entertainment - and Story, Story, Story is what enables them to bring it all together.

Q&A - ROY BELOSIC - who don't we support Theatre in LA. It is a myth that New York is where the action really is - we have a large number of theatres, with a great diversity of specialization. Also, our live theatre is somewhat in the shadow of TV and movies - but it is vibrant. LENNY FRIEDMAN - will the raunchiness continue or get worse. 9/11 had changed what is acceptable. Films are now smaller and more personal. The 70's were a sort of new beginning, and ideas from then are now getting a rehearing.

GEORGE COX - how do you use archives in teaching. They teach us to break with tradition - you are now empowered, with screenings going on all the time. They are well attended, and quite instructive. JAYNE SPENCER - what about newsreels of the 40s and 50s. They enable us to build bridges, so graduate students from many cultures can work together. This is providing a global film education. Note that UCLA has 27 million feet of film as a resource. The effort to copy these older originals is necessary, and costly. UCLA is good at doing it, but it does take sometimes scarce resources. Dr. Rosen, thank you for a candid look at an important area of current education.

And, my apologies for this late report. Knowing that you don't really want to see a grown man cry, I'll restrict myself to saying, better late than…