Discussion Topic |
|
This thread has been locked |
Rick A
climber
Boulder, Colorado
|
|
Jan and John,
Thanks for posting these photos. It is touching that we can share some of the views they had on their last day.
The final shots, showing the clouds starting to move in, wrenched my gut as if I were right there with them: committed to a big wall, and the weather beginning to turn.
Rick
|
|
Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
|
|
|
|
DrDeeg
Mountain climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
|
|
As the responsible person, I want to clarify the “Frank & the Brownies” story. Jan posts on 12 Jan 2009:
“One aspect of the 1960’s that Frank did not approve of was the drug taking. While I’m more the experimental type, Frank was dead set against any of it. I think this had to do with personal control issues however, rather than religion. Knowing Frank’s fondness for sweets, some of our friends did take it on themselves to dope some brownies once at a private slide show. I was not told of the scheme and not surprised when Frank ate several. I only caught on as we drove home and he began waxing ecstatically about the beautiful colors of the traffic lights.”
When we made the brownies, we cut the ones that were doped into triangles and the rest into squares (“square” = no drugs, get it?). I thought we had explained the code to everyone, but Frank & Jan may have arrived late. When I heard later that Frank had gotten stoned inadvertently, I felt pretty bad about it. Most of Frank’s younger friends in the 60s were stoners, but none of us would have secretly put drugs into anyone, least of all a good friend.
[You can probably tell I am procrastinating on work by re-reading a SuperTopo thread, but it is the best ST thread of all.]
|
|
Jan
Mountain climber
Okinawa, Japan
|
|
Unbelievable! All these years I've been blaming my sister and John Morton for that. She certainly did smirk a lot during that slide show! And was eager to hear if he'd had any revelations (this was the era when people went around saying that if Lyndon Johnson smoked even one joint, the Vietnam War would come to an immediate end).Ah the naivete of that era. Thanks for a good laugh!
|
|
storer
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
|
|
|
Jun 18, 2009 - 12:07pm PT
|
The last time I talked to Frank was in the stairwell in LeConte Hall (Berkeley physics building), probably '68. I was a physics undergrad and Frank a grad student. He said he didn't like quantum mechanics. His thesis on the stability of particle orbits in accelerators was purely classical electrodynamics. I thought that curious since it's been pretty hard to avoid QM since 1925. Admittedly, Berkeley did have the preeminant accelerator theory group. I wondered whether it was a case of the einsteinian "God doesn't play dice".
|
|
Largo
Sport climber
Venice, Ca
|
|
|
Jun 18, 2009 - 01:42pm PT
|
I'm with Pat in thinking this thread deserves being worked up into a book. Frank's climbs were hugely influential on a lot of us, and werer pivotal in ushering in modern free climbing on a large scale. Without Frank there would be no Astroman, Chouinard Herbert free, Nose in a day, Stoner's Highway, et al.
Someone would have to do a thorough essay that would set the historical stage and provide context for the thread that follows, and someone else would have to dig up what photos there are of Frank in action. But this would be (is) a most interesting read.
I've never heard the past speak up like this - like an echo from the void.
JL
|
|
Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
|
|
|
Topic Author's Reply - Jun 18, 2009 - 02:33pm PT
|
who has Qamar's images?
those are historic, and perhaps there are more than what we've seen...
|
|
jstan
climber
|
|
|
Jun 18, 2009 - 02:46pm PT
|
Very much in agreement, John.
Every one sees things differently but the theme I see is as follows. Each of us has each day to deal with things we don't really like.
Frank was absolutely ferocious in his efforts to gain his freedom from these things.
It is an everyone kind of question transposed to a stage possessing its own intrinsic drama.
For example, Shakespeare took everyone questions and transposed them to life among the royalty.
Frank had a different approach, same idea.
|
|
Jan
Mountain climber
Okinawa, Japan
|
|
|
Jun 19, 2009 - 03:12am PT
|
Storer-
I was surprised by your report that Frank didn't like quantum mechanics. As best I can figure out, that was a casual remark similar to him telling Dick Erb after his oral exams that he hated physics. Probably it meant something like he had just received an A- instead of an A on his latest QM exam. He did take classes in both quantum mechanics and relativity from Richard Feynman and was enthusiastic about both. We both read Feynman's book based on his lectures to non physics majors and saw movies of the same and spent many many hours discussing the implications of quantum mechanics from a philosophical point of view. (My math is nonexistant so we could only discuss it from that perspective).
We both knew the quote from Einstein and chuckled at it in light of QM, agreeing that if there was a God then that God was more complex and less predictable than even Einstein knew. We both agreed that Buddhist, Hindu, or Taoist ideas suited QM much better and we duly noted (as discussed on the quote by Oppenheimer thread of Steve Grossman) that scientists subsequent to Einstein had begun looking to the East for philosophy. I think it is not an exaggeration to say that Frank and I could have written the Tao of Physics ourselves if we hadn't been preoccupied with getting through school.
|
|
Jan
Mountain climber
Okinawa, Japan
|
|
|
Jun 19, 2009 - 06:17am PT
|
Largo-
If this thread were ever to be published in print form then Ed who initiated this wonderful thread should have the first chance to do it. I will be glad to help out however in any way I can.
|
|
BBA
Social climber
West Linn OR
|
|
|
Jun 19, 2009 - 11:35pm PT
|
In the event someone writes a book, here's a letter regarding Frank written in 1962. I don't know who Wayne is - Guido probably does.
|
|
Peter Haan
Trad climber
San Francisco, CA
|
|
|
Jun 20, 2009 - 12:27am PT
|
Bill, I think this is Wayne Merry. Really WAY loose for him but hey, it was 47 years ago. McKeown will know also, but he is at sea on his way to Tahiti (godspeed...)
|
|
BBA
Social climber
West Linn OR
|
|
|
Jun 20, 2009 - 09:25am PT
|
Wayne Merry was at this time working as a ranger and was older than Joe and his friends. Joe will have to chime in from the South Seas (Fiji he says).
|
|
Roger Breedlove
climber
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
|
|
|
Jun 20, 2009 - 12:38pm PT
|
Wayne Merry says it is not his note.
|
|
Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
|
|
|
Jun 20, 2009 - 12:41pm PT
|
Didn't the contents of this letter show up earlier? Different Wayne than Merry was the prior outcome.
|
|
Eric Beck
Sport climber
Bishop, California
|
|
|
Jun 20, 2009 - 12:42pm PT
|
I think this is Wayne Hildebrand who climbed some and entered the Curry Company hierarchy. He speaks of becoming cafeteria manager.
|
|
BBA
Social climber
West Linn OR
|
|
|
Jun 20, 2009 - 09:51pm PT
|
Peter Haan - Yes, some of this letter was mentioned by me earlier, but we never got a full name or sense of who Wayne was. Everytime something more comes up and we get more exposure and names, it becomes possible that a new voice will be heard. Now that Wayne is known, maybe somehow he will join in and give us a story. You never know. Just looking at who has popped up on this thread now and then as it developed is mind boggling. BBA
|
|
Jan
Mountain climber
Okinawa, Japan
|
|
|
Jun 22, 2009 - 03:46am PT
|
Here's an amazing coincidence! In doing the family history of Frank's mother, I just discovered that her g-g-g uncle Jacob C. Darst died at the Alamo as did my g-g-g uncle Galba Fuqua. Now what are the chances that a man's mother and wife would both have ancestors who died there? Karma? Selective Genetics?
Frank's mother was the daughter of an Irish immigrant woman and my mother's family represents ten generations of Quakers. Only in America!
|
|
Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
|
|
|
Jun 22, 2009 - 09:06am PT
|
Just saw the photos that John Rander posted.
Absolutely fascinating!
What a remarkable look into the past.
Thanks for the thread Ed.
|
|
guido
Trad climber
Santa Cruz/New Zealand/South Pacific
|
|
|
Jun 22, 2009 - 11:14pm PT
|
Yep
Tis Wayne Hildebrand and quite often in the winter we would use his pad to crash or get warm. Did a number of routes with him before he faded away. Believe he and Frank did a number of routes together.
We arrived in Northern Fiji about a week ago after a relatively mild 10 day passage up from New Zealand. Normally get the shi# kicked out of us on this route. From double sleeping bags off NZ to 80 degree water and the Tropics! yeh man.
The recent photos posted on this incredible thread brought tears to my eyes and the stark reality of how quick things can change in our little world.
|
|
|
SuperTopo on the Web
|
Let us know!