November 3, 2008: David Zack Retrospective at Calgary, Alberta. Istvan Kantor (contact at: amen@interlog.com ) has submitted many photos from the David Zack exhibit he assembled for an October - November 2008 show about Zack's mail art that recently took place at the New Gallery, Calgary, Alberta. Two reviews of the show from the Calgary Herald and other local publications, including further background about the life of David Zack and the origins and international influence of his "mail art" or "correspondence art," also are now hosted here at Monte Capanno 1970: Calgary Herald review, Swerve review. Additionally, here is a link to a profile of Zack that Kantor provided: http://www.ccca.ca/artists/artist_info.html?link_id=13323
August 21, 2008: New pictures from 1970. Joel Agee has sent in three new pictures he has found of his family's time on the farm at Monte Capanno with us. Two are small group shots with students Terre Eakins, Terry MacDonald, Mary Zuccaro, and Jan Hammond included. The wild Australian, Denny Kelly, appears in all three. But, unfortunately, Joel himself was behind the camera shooting these, and isn't among the subjects photographed. The pictures now are placed among a re-arranged set of photos of guests who visited Monte Capanno in 1970, and can be viewed by following this link to our Photos of guests page. (The new pictures are near the bottom of that page).
Additionally, our Photos page of the students living at Monte Capanno in 1970 has been re-organized to make it easier to view all the pictures at one time, providing a method to also view larger versions of the individual pictures.
August 10, 2008: New word from Tutorials people from 1967-69. Webmasters have in recent months received word of new interest in thinking about the Tutorials Program at San Jose State. This summer our inbox brought us this:
Linda - I don't think you and I ever met, but I was a student in the Tutorials in Letters and Science Program in 1967-1969. One of my friends forwarded your web address to me. I was at the gathering in Santa Cruz in July 2002 that Merv Cadwallader mentioned in the note posted on your web site. I am attaching several photos of that gathering. I also have prints of each of my classmates taken in 1969 that someday I will try to scan and perhaps post. Seeing as next year will be the 40th anniversary of our graduating from Tutorials in Letters and Science, I may work with some of my cohorts to get together and celebrate. I agree with the tone of your web site, that these were grand and (to me) successful experiments in education. Thanks for organizing and maintaining this. I am passing the link on to some friends and perhaps we can generate more content in honor and memory of those days!
Mark Silberstein: Silbermud@aol.com
Read more recent discussion by (non-Monte Capanno) graduates of the Tutorials Program at San Jose State by following this link.
June 4, 2008: David Zack Retrospective Show. Istvan Kantor --aka "Monty Cantsin"--, longtime associate and collaborator with David Zack, has written to announce that a show he has organized to display Zack's works will open at The New Gallery, Calgary, Alberta (Canada) on October 10, 2008. He continues:
"it will be based mostly on the works I collected from David throughout our collaboration from 1976 to the late 80's, but also will include material I received from others as contribution for the show, as the gallery is not very big it won't be a monumental show just a smaller scale commemorative retrospective, but it will be extended through the internet and the publication of a catalog,
I'm still collecting stuff and if any of you of the Monte Capanno project would like to include something please let me know, I'll definitely link the Capanno site to the exhibition and include it also in my intro to the exhibition and catalog."Kantor can be reached at amen@interlog.com , or by mail at:
Istvan Kantor
163 Sterling Road Unit 3B
Toronto, Ontario
M6R 2B2 CanadaKantor also expressed interest in attending the next Monte Capanno 1970 reunion. Unfortunately, webmasters are unaware of a plan for one in the near future. Perhaps in 2009?
May 23, 2008: From Concord, CA, the Monte Capanno 1970 website has received email from Mitch Ward (Tutorials, 1965-67), in which he assesses the Tutorials experiment in general and finds great value was added to his education, especially in the area of critical thinking. Read more by following the link.
Separate from the item above, from Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada) we also have received a large packet of materials written by David Zack from the 1960's to the early 1980's, courtesy of his daughter, Rose. These reflect his "mail art" and other aspects of his life. All are PDF files linked here, and include:
Zack's resume, which along with the usual things includes some humorous entries, e.g. a listing of a referee entitled "General Schmuck."
A series of unpublished poems and other unpublished writings by David, including: "The Game," "Birthday 42," "My Horoscope," "Diabetes," "Would you rather be an under-water diver or a dead man afloat?," "What will be written on Cavellini's tombstone?," "Why do Italians all talk at the same time?," "Railroad Images," "The Shell," and parts of a review of a concert by Nicolas Kynaston.
Calgary Art Trends, a May 1980 grant proposal to the Calgary Regional Arts Foundation.
An essay entitled "Calgary Process," which seems to be from about the same period.
A revealing May 1979 two page letter from 74 year old Elena (presumably Zack's mother) to Ruth (one of Zack's wives, and mother of Rose Zack), in which Mom conveys understanding for the difficulties Ruth had with David, comments on the impact of "the cultural Revolt of the '60s" on David. This new item is especially worth reading, as it includes a frank assessment of the man, including the following: "I feel he allowed himself to think brain-activity was the sole object of living and denied the importance of the heart and what, in old anglo-saxon are called the guts, in building a sane and full life. And perhaps good old commonsense. He and I always had a close relationship but in recent years it is strained for I have tried repeatedly to awaken a sense of reality in him... Now that he is 41 years old I must accept the fact that he is a grown man and not receptive to motherly criticism."
Some other published Zack papers from 1980, complete with marginal comments by David, and a line drawing apparently by him, all focused on the San Francisco art scene, and related topics.
February 23, 2008: From the San Francisco, CA area, the Monte Capanno 1970 website has received a letter and some of Maija's art from that period from Maury Polse, one of David Zack's students at Laney College (Oakland) in 1968. Polse fondly recalls the Zacks, and their "Rainbow House" in San Francisco's Fillmore District. To read more, and to view the piece of Maija's art he owns, go here.
September 22, 2007: Monte Capanno 1970 has received news from Monte Capanno. The Count has been injured in an auto accident, but now is out of the hospital and is recovering at home. We wish him a speedy recovery. Read more about it, and view pictures of the Count today, by following this link.
July 14-15: The Monte Capanno 1970 reunion 2007 took place in Glen Ellen, CA. Hosted by Marti Kramer, martiLK@aol.com, a good time was had by all attending. Pictures of the event are linked here.
April 28, 2007: Joel and Susan Agee have told us of the birth of their grandchildren, Johanna and Beckett, to daughter Gina and her husband, in Los Angeles. Check out the cuties, and our first glimpse of Gina since 1970 here.
Monte Capanno 1970 reunion 2007 is scheduled for July 14th and 15th in Glen Ellen, CA. Contact Marti Kramer for details: martiLK@aol.com .
March 3, 2007: Count Giuseppe Vicarelli has sent some wonderful pictures of Monte Capanno over the years, and a nice set from the 1990s and 2000s now is available here: follow the link. Included is one group shot with Andre, Giuseppe, and La Contessa at a large family reunion a few years back. The pictures were given to Cathee when she and Greig visited in summer 2006.
The 2007 Monte Capanno Reunion will be held July 14-15, 2007, in Glen Ellen.
January 4, 2007: Happy New Year, everyone. Webmasters have had a lovely winter so far, chiefly visiting the Shawnee, Kansas home of our new granddaughter, Maggie (who was born last month), and her family.
We recently have received an inquiry from a researcher, Justin McKeown, who is looking into the life of David Zack. McKeown's email to us has been posted to the message board. If anyone wants to help him out, he left his email address there.
Joel Agee has written to convey that he has a new email address, so update your address books: joel.agee@mac.com
We also are delighted to report that Cathee and her husband Greig visited Monte Capanno in 2006 and were hosted by the current Count, Giuseppe Vicarelli, son of La Contessa. Ample gorgeous pictures from both Cathee and the Count await posting here. She also produced a stunningly moving DVD about her return to Monte Capanno. Write her at: stclair@usamedia.tv
April 30, 2006: Mary Zuccaro has a new email: maryzrn@comcast.net . Change your address books.
March 20, 2006: Out of the blue, yet another of the residents at Monte Capanno in 1970 has found us: Terry Tarrantts, known and remembered as "Tall Terry" at MC-70. He wrote:
"I was telling friends about the interesting memories of interesting people and events during my stay with the community of Monte Capanno and found this website that Gordon put together. Flooded with memories. Being at the farmhouse was one the many experiences of my life that has lingering influence. So Hello! to everyone who remembers "Tall Terry" That's me Terry Tarrantts. Including you Gordon"
Terry didn't leave an address. Webmaster's seek his involvement with the project.
December 7, 2005: Happy traveler Lisa Aiello, a Canadian friend of the current Count of Monte Capanno (i.e., Bepi), has written again to convey that the repairs to the castle of Monte Capanno (about which she reported earlier in 2004 and 2005), now are complete. She can be contacted at: lisa.aiello@rogers.com
During 2005, Aiello visited Northern California and visited Marti Kramer for a little lunch one day.
October 16, 2005: New memories on various topics have been added to the Memories sections lately, including:
Joel Agee's recollections of David Zack, Joel's recollections of a visit to the farm by two of Gordon and Linda's German friends, Christian and Wolfgang.
Martin Rutishauser's thoughts about David Zack, about Joel Agee and the "romp in the poppies" party day, and other topics. Like many members of this community, Martin found us by Googling himself and discovering the references here. An update about Martin is up on our "Where are we now" page.
August 16, 2005: Recently located MC-70 student resident Barb Hemsted and the webmasters have been corresponding, and she sends along "hellos" to the community. She writes, saying:
"You guys are too much. I had no idea we were an 'experiment,' or that I was being looked for... This would make a great movie: let's sell it! .... (My life) In a nutshell:Lived in Santa Cruz after San Jose State:
Worked at The Bodega, a dinner and music club in the valley; Worked at Pacific Trading Company, a boutique in Santa Cruz Received self knowledge from Prem Rawat also known as Majaraji when I was 24 (still practicing the meditation)"...Moved to Miami in '79:
- Worked on private jets (interiors and avionics) till '83 (met my husband at that company);
- We started Community Telephone Inc. (a cabling and fiber optics company) in '84 - still have it;
- Had 3 kids who are now 21, 14, 13. I'll have kids in the house for another 5 years at least. wow!!!
- Still doing art on the side. Did about 35 small beds / sold at a show in NY in '00, most recently sold 4 to a customer in Evanston Ill in '03;
- Did handbags from '03 to '05 - still doing it a little bit;
- Been renovating a large house since '03;
- Losing my eyesight, hearing, hair color, and memory;
- But still having fun, and hearing from you guys is cool."
August 13-14, 2005:
- Cathee (White) St. Clair located Barb Hemsted! She reported Barb now goes by the name of B. J. Smith, and that she lives in Miami, FL. Barb was one of a core of five residents from one San Jose State group house (on 12th St.) who became part of the Monte Capanno experience. We look forward to hearing Barb's recollections of life on that Italian farm in 1970, and/or her reactions to the re-emergence of the group as this web community.
- A new set of photos from 1970 has been submitted by Marti Kramer and is now available for viewing. Included is Kramer's passport photo, a set of Linda and Kramer horsing around in Perugia, and Kramer's copy of the official Italian government document giving permission to be in Perugia. The photos were found in an old shed just before it was demolished, which should give us all new reason to look in our own boxes of old stuff in attics, basements, etc. Thanks for pics, Kramer!
July 8-10, 2005: The 2005 Monte Capanno reunion was held in Sonoma County, CA. Pictures of the event are now available for viewing.
May 17, 2005: From Rose Zack (David's daughter) the webmasters have received further information about David, his writings, and plans for a retrospective about David Zack, in Calgary, Alberta later in 2005 or 2006. Read more here.
March 13, 2005: News arrived today from Maija Peeples-Bright, famous painter, sculptor, and formerly chief chef and all-around fun Monte Capanno resident. Maija's message includes updates on various art shows, some of which are in Northern California, where her beasties will be on display. Stop by and say "hi" for us:
Hi! Gordon! Hope all is well with you and yours.I like seeing the fine way "Monte Capanno" site is evolving.Here is an up-date for 2005-the "Nostalgia" year for me.First memory-lane visit is a show of my art at Ridley Gallery on the Sierra College-Rocklin, Ca campus titled "Maija's ART from Sierra College time to Present"-March 31-April 20, 2005. Hey, I actually taught there in the early 1970's.Next: the Folsom History Museum is having an exhibit of "ART from Adelizas Candy Store"-April 2-May 15. The Candy store Gallery was my dealer from 1965-until she closed in 1992. To get items for the show I and my fellow artists-Roy De Forest, David Gilhooly etc. all chipped in our posters,a nnouncement cards, articles etc.-Adelizas daughter said the Smithsonian gathered up 3 boxes of Candy Store memorobilia for their permanent collection. Cool,HUH!Finally: Ceramics I made while in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada will tour all thru Canada Mar. 5, 2005-June10,2006 in a show titled Regina Clay: Worlds in the Making.This is stuff from early 1970's-so another batch of photos, pamphlets etc. had to be dusted off. When I get the catalog I'll tell more of the research-results.Today I'll finish "Napoleaon Woofaparte meets his EquineOx".Keep in touch,
Maija
February 10, 2005: Lisa Aiello (see Nov. 9, 2004 below) has written again with updates on her latest trip to Monte Capanno, and her dealings with the Count of Monte Capanno. Read her latest letter by following the link. Unfortunately, web space problems at MC-70 have made including her numerous excellent photos beyond our capacity to display.
November 9, 2004: The webmasters have received a very interesting set of letters from a recent visitor to Monte Capanno, Lisa Aiello, of Toronto, Canada. Ms. Aiello has sent information about La Contessa (who died in 2001), greetings from her son "Bepi," news about his family, and pictures of damage to the Castle in a recent earthquake, and much more. Follow this link to the letters and pictures.
August 19, 2004: Wes Shaffer has found Mike White. As first reported here way back in 2001, the rumor has been confirmed: Mike is a psychologist who lives in the New York City metropolitan area and who works with the NYPD. Wes writes to say that Mike is interested in the MC-70 project, and has memories to share. Mike also confirmed to Wes that Mary Miller indeed does live in the Palo Alto, CA area. We hope to hear from Mike, and hope he enjoys the website. He and all MC-70 people, of course, are welcome to join us at our (apparently) annual reunions, the next of which is tentatively planned to occur in July 2005 in Castro Valley, CA.
July 16-18, 2004: The fourth Monte Capanno 1970 reunion took place in Glen Ellen, CA. A fine time was had by all.
June 13, 2004: A reunion of MC70 members and friends will occur in Sonoma County CA during mid-July. Make plans now to attend on July 17; host/contact: Marti Kramer.
September 25, 2003: From Sacramento today came a nice letter from Maija (Zack) Peeples, and three colorful photos: one of Maija at her December 2000 wedding to longtime friend Billy D. Bright, and two of her with a piece of her zany sculpture from a Sacramento area art show recently. She sends her greetings and her new web address. View the letter and pictures here. Maija can be reached at: maija_is_art@sbcglobal.net
August 29, 2003: Extensive pictures from the third Monte Capanno 1970 reunion (Truckee, CA; July 2003) now are up for viewing. Additional updates about people including a current picture of Mark Fissell and one of Darrell Jones also have been added to the "Where are we Now?" section of our website.
July 11-13, 2003: At Truckee, CA the third Monte Capanno 1970 reunion was held, hosted by Cathee and Greig St. Clair. Everyone attending had a grand time, though our webmasters had to leave early in order to be on hand in Los Angeles for the first day of our first grandson's life: Benjamin Wieland.
June 3, 2003: A book on David Zack. Some time back (in 2001), the webmasters were contacted by a researcher in Italy, Vittore Baroni, who was writing a book about David and who was seeking more information about him. We helped him to the extent that we could. A few months ago the completed work arrived, and a copy has been circulating among some of us. It will be on hand at the 2003 Reunion. The book concerns David's "mail art," and primarily addresses his odyssey after the time he was with us in Italy. But insights into his childhood, character, and the puzzling matter of his later years in Mexico all receive substantial attention. An insightful quote about David's educational philosophy, drawn from its chapter 11, now appears in the Memories section which is devoted to David and Maija Zack. Here is a scan of the cover of this new book:
Others in the community may be interested in obtaining their own copies. This is a limited edition work, so time may be of the essence if you want to buy a copy. It costs $8.00 plus $2.00 postage. The author is the distributor, and he requests cash or an international Postal Money Order as the method of payment. Send your request to: Vittore Baroni, via C. Battisti 339, 55049 Viareggio, Italy.
The webmasters also have a new picture of themselves up on this page (above). We were tired of the same old beautiful California sunset (lol), so here we are having some indoor fun.
June 1, 2003: A few updates:
- The webmasters have received from Maija her new email address: maija_is_art@sbcglobal.net
- Planning is well advanced about the 2003 reunion, soon to be held in July in Truckee, CA. Get in on the event by writing the event coordinator at: stclair@usamedia.tv
December 2002: The webmasters have received correspondence from the founder of the Tutorials Program, Mervyn Cadwallader, who is interested in our website and has spoken of trying to attend our next reunion. His thoughts on the origins of the Tutorials Program at San Jose State, its relationship to New College, and to educational reform in general in the U.S. now are to be found here.
September 15, 2002: A new photo of the now aloof but still well loved community member Terry MacDonald has come into the possession of the community, and is displayed on the "Where are we Now?" page.
August 5, 2002: Photos from Kris Kagan have been added throughout the website. Most compelling is a new dinnertime shot of David Zack at the head of the table. Two additional good shots of parties also are now up, as is a new page devoted to shots of Kris and Larry Stanley in 1970. Related shots of them at a Spanish beach, Kris in Rome, and in Greece have been added to the Memories section dealing with these places. Barb Hemsted's birthday in 1970 is the subject of a photo and a question on a new page, joined with a shot of "Tall Terry" with Sandee. Many more of Kris' shots of people are combined in another section: go there for new shots of Cathee, Jan, Terry MacDonald, Christine, Mark, Darrell, and of course, Krissie. Three vintage youth culture shots also now improve our Links page, all of this comes courtesy of Kris Kagan.
August 1, 2002: In Truckee, CA from June 19 to 25, 2002, the second Monte Capanno 1970 reunion took place, arranged and hosted by Cathee and Greig St. Clair, to whom the community owes huge thanks. Photos shot by the webmasters and by David and Kathy Roberts now are posted. Of special interest are updated pictures taken at the reunion of many community members. Go to the "Where are we now?" page for for a quick overview of photos connected to biographical updates. New reunion photos are extensive. In addition to a set of group shots, there is a section on cooking and eating, one focused on trips around the Lake Tahoe area, and an ample people photos section.
May 20-22, 2002: On the Message Board, Mark Fissel posed a question to Darrell Jones, which Darrell subsequently answered by telling a story about an encounter in Monaco. Additionally, a new assessment of David Zack has been posted, in response to an inquiry by his daughter, Rose.
May 13, 2002: The Death Certificate of David Zack and other interesting artifacts were submitted by John Dean.
May 2-4, 2002: Following up on our recent "lost voices, now found" theme, the website has heard several times from Cindy Rippey, formerly a San Francisco Art Institute student of Zack's who travelled to Monte Capanno in May 1970 to join her beau John Dean. Cindy weighs in on several topics, including a class analysis of the experiment, and warm memories of David Zack. We were, as Cindy recalls it, "brats." Cindy also deepens our understanding of domestic violence on the farm, the food situation, the "romp in the poppies" party day, and provides a nostalgic sketch of John Dean. Information on the ultimate fate of Craig's Topolino, and a certain Norton Motorcycle also now is up. More about Cindy can be found in her brief biography located in our Where are we Now? section.John Dean also has added to his initial reports, supplying further biographic information about himself, leads through which the group can try to make contact with missing members Chuck Egof and Katie Hinkle, a commentary on the origins of a fight between Chuck and Terry MacDonald, and a recollection about some odd behavior in an ice cream store in Columbella Bassa.
April 29, 2002: From Ibiza, courtesy of Google, the website was contacted by John Dean. John tenders comments about David Zack, about our approach to education, and some memories about the dynamics of men and women on the farm. Most interesting is Dean's read on the reputed death of our leader, David Zack.
April 25, 2002: A memory of making friends in Florence has been added, penned by Darrell Jones.
April 19, 2002: New memories of Italian politics in the streets have been contributed by Darrell Jones, deepening a discussion begun in Fall 2002 by Mark Fissell. Stroll down memory lane to those thrilling days of yester-year when dodging water canons was a live action game, and in our presence communists duked it out with fascists.
April 5-6, 2002: Georgia Tanagoshi has been recalled by Darrell Jones as a first year Tutorials student who was a part of the Monte Capanno experience. Like several of us, he places her with a guy named Warren. Any sleuths able to come up with leads we can add to the "Where we are Now?" section? And Georgia, if you find us, let us know what you remember.New commentary about David Zack also is now up, thanks to Darrell. Darrell's memories of other issues also are posted in the Memories sections, and concern decision making processes on the farm, problems in the educational process, hunger and freeloaders, the reasons behind eating horsemeat stroganoff, and memories of Florence and beyond.
March 29, 2002: Through the searching efforts of Marti Kramer, former resident Darrell Jones has been found, happily living in the Eugene, Oregon area where he has lived most of the last 30 years. (For more information, go here). Darrell is excited about the Monte Capanno 1970 project, has vivid memories to share, and is intrigued by the impending reunion in June. He especially is interested in the elusive Terry MacDonald.
January 18, 2002: Planning has begun for a second reunion of the Monte Capanno 1970 group, scheduled to be held in the Lake Tahoe area over the weekend of June 21-23, 2002 and the days surrounding. Interested former residents and friends should get in touch soon with the facilitator, Cathee (White) St. Clair, at stclair@usamedia.tv for details. (To see pictures of the 2001 reunion, go here).New pictures were added to the webmasters' biography pages, including a January 2002 shot of them in Isla Vista, CA, and a first appearance on the web of Linda's great niece, Allyson Ferrucci, who was born in Sept. 2001.New commentary about dorm life in the 1960s and 1970s was added to our Message Board by Mark Fissel.
November 19, 2001: For several months David Zack's daughter (zoa_z@hotmail.com) has been in contact with the webmasters. She is in her early 20s and is the daughter of David Zack and his second wife, from the years in Canada after Monte Capanno. Her siblings also are aware of the website, and all are reported to support the idea of looking anew at their father, the enigmatic leader of the experiment at Monte Capanno. She believes that journals and other artifacts from the earlier years of David Zack may still exist and may be in the possession of family members. She also has spoken of having had contact with some other members of this community, who are reported to be working on a novel. (I wonder who THAT is?) We also have heard from one Mark Bloch (markb@echonyc.com) who today sent us a picture of Zack in the 1980s. The webmasters welcome members of the community, new and old.
September 12, 2001: The webmasters, along with the rest of this virtual community, express their deep sorrow over the terroristic killing of Americans and others in Washington DC and New York yesterday. All members of our community known to us to live in those cities have been determined to be safe and untouched by the attack on our country. We, and all Americans, are deeply outraged by the events of Sept. 11, 2001 and express our sincere condolences to all affected by the hurt inflicted that day.Update on the weeks after Sept. 11: Our daughter, Lisa Bowen, was at work at her office on 13th and Pennsylvania Ave., Washington D.C. when the terrorist attack on America occurred, and she viewed the fire at the Pentagon from the roof garden of the law firm where she works. Several co-workers had spouses or other family members in the Pentagon building and tensions were high until all were accounted. She delayed going home until downtown was empty, then ran (not a problem: she is a distance runner) with a co-worker through empty streets to Georgetown (6 miles), where she waited for evening, then got a ride home past the site of the attack. Each morning she rides under that headquarters of U.S. Armed Forces, and she reports that no passengers now are permitted to exit the Metro subway at that station, except those with military identification. Anthrax attacks in the capital have troubled both Lisa and her parents in the weeks since Sept. 11; on one recent day there were five separate anthrax scares in the Metro subway system which caused evacuations. These frightening incidents, which have proved real dangers for U.S. postal workers, now only make the Metro news section of the Washington Post, perhaps to avoid alarming other Americans. Yet the travails of Washingtonians pale next to those of New Yorkers. We extend our most sincere condolences to all the survivors in that great city. Everyone there is coping now with losses, of innocence and of friends, and in some cases family. Everyone there is, in one sense, a hero. And we are all now New Yorkers, in spirit at least.
New commentary on the European style of political demonstrations (in 1970), posted Sept. 12 to our Message Board by Mark Fissel, now is posted in our Memories section as well.
September 9, 2001: New contact: Deirdre Rainer (drrus@wyoming.com) found the website and the webmasters enjoyed a wonderful conversation with her about Italy, her career, her family and children. She promises to post her memories onto the site soon. Additionally, commentary posted to the Message Board by Jan Hammond Gentes has been added to our discussions about David Zack, comments that include discussion about good and evil in the governing process of the community. We also hear from Jan about the cold living conditions, and about life as a footloose young American woman in Morocco.
September 5, 2001: A new batch of pictures from 1970 arrived courtesy of Marti Kramer and were posted throughout the Photos section. Additions include: a set of five from a trip to Rome made by Jan Hammond, Marti Kramer, Barb Hemsted, and Kris Kagen; two new angles on the farmhouse where addressing most daily necessities usually took place; an image of the sign on the road directing travellers to the villa (castle) of Monte Capanno; an image of the fields in early Spring; another of a hay stack; a shot of Italian political demonstrators on the streets; and a new closeup of none other than Marti Kramer.
August 26, 2001: Jan Hammond, now Jan Gentes, called the webmasters after being contacted by Marti and by Linda. Jan reports that, while some memories of Monte Capanno are hazy, some photographs she recently found may help to jog her memory; as will the voluminous website here. More on Jan is to be found in the "Where are we Now?" section.
August 13-16, 2001: Pet rabbits and other dietary issues having to do with meat eating on the farm are discussed in a new comment by Marti on the "Daily Life" part of the Memories section. Several new photos were added to the historic Photos section and smaller versions of these were placed where appropriate throughout the Memories sections of the website. All the new items come to us from Wes Shaffer. Among these are shots of the Countess' son, Andrea, relaxing with the students; a second with Andrea leading Gordon, Barb, Terre and others from the group on an outing in his vehicle; a new photo of David Zack with students Marti Kramer and Barb Hemsted; another shot of Barb on an archeological dig with the group; Craig Morem reading; our first two images of Danielle Martel; a group shot around the fireplace; a kitchen shot of burgers being fried by guest John Dean; Marti and Mike White in the kitchen; one of Marti alone, and several of Wes and Marti; one of Kathy Roberts with Linda Green (now Bowen) in the garden; and a shot of Kathy, Barb and Marti in class. Additionally, two new shots give new angles on the farmhouse, and a haystack. Our Reunion Page also was fattened, with another nine pictures of that July 2001 event now on display. One of these also was added to Cathee's biography page., and new summer 2001 pictures were added to Linda's biography page.
August 9, 2001: A visual depiction of the famed "Spaghetti Dance" was put up in the memories section. New photos of many members of this virtual community also were added to the "Where We are Now" section. Included are cute new pictures of Cathee and her famous eggs.
August 1, 2001: On July 6-8, 2001, in Sonoma County CA, Marti Kramer hosted the first Monte Capanno 1970 Reunion. (more than 40 pages of pictures are now available!). Attending were Marti, Terre Eakins, Linda (Green) Bowen and Gordon Bowen, Wes Shaffer and Sue (Rutz) Shaffer, Cathee (White) St. Clair, and Rick Saunders. (Go here to see pictures). The Monte Capanno video was played many times, and collective brainstorming, story telling and general horsing around renewed the community. As a result of detective work at the reunion led by Linda, Mary Zuccaro (now Charvat) was located. Mary then visited our website and message board.
- Her contributions today were added to our Memories pages, and concern the Zacks (where a new picture of David Zack also is to be found), Italians' perceptions of several female MC-70 members when in Florence, three new recollections in our "Remembering Italians" section about Mefalda, a traffic accident, and manipulating a criminal trial; several new recollections in the "Daily Life" section (one about Sandee plucking chickens, one about the pasta, and one about eating horsemeat). Additionally:- A new picture of Cathee was put up on the "Where are we Now?" page, and updated information was posted about several members, including the still elusive Jan Hammond.
May 14, 2001: Insights into the set of educational experiments at San Jose State in the 1960s/1970s were conveyed to us by 81 year old former New College professor Bill McCormack (BillM29062@AOL.com), who fondly is remembered by the webmasters here. His comments on the value of student centered learning reinforce the views of some of us who have found timeless value in the lessons learned at our peripatetic academy in Umbria. He also informs the website about administrative-faculty issues about which we former students were clueless at the time. We have transfromed some existing pages so to be able to put up a new section where comments about the education gained through the experiments known as the Tutorials in Letters and Sciences (of San Jose State University) and the New College (of San Jose State University) can be drawn together. Visit that page, and post your views.Additionally:
- We received and have posted a notification/invitation to a reunion of people from Allen Hall; to be held on August 4. Contact: Frank Roeth (rlumpy@hotmail.com); and visit the message board to read the entire invitation.- We need to let everyone know that Sandee (White) Stoltz has a new email address: sstoltz48@msn.com
April 11, 2001: Extending on the community-building aspects of Monte Capanno 1970, there is a biography page here about our webmaster, Gordo; when other members of this virtual community want biography pages put up here, or links made to their separate websites, just send in the request and we will respond.
April 1-2, 2001: Vittore Baroni, an Italian author preparing a book on David Zack, contacted the website and his comments are to be found on the message board. Baroni is especially interested in Zack's "Mail Art," so those with information might wish to contact him at: baroniv@ats.it Edits also were made to the Memories page which assesses Zack, and others interested in making known their views on this topic are invited to send them in.Additional diary entries by Cathee were added to the "Diaries, Journals and Letters" section, including new insights into a spaghetti dance and reflections on departing friends, some philosophic ruminations, and a description of a ride through the countryside on a motorbike.
March 26, 2001: The Links page here at Monte Capanno 1970 was updated to include a link to a tourism site in Italy that includes an entry about that fondly remembered place as it is today (2001). As it appears in Italian, our Cathee supplied us with a translation of that site's content. Interestingly, the website in Italy, which appears to be a guide to castles in the region, lists Monte Capanno as "not visitable" by tourists. Additionally, some minor glitches that had caused certain pictures to become inaccessible were fixed on the Photos pages.
March 21, 2001: News to report: Substantial new contact with the project has been made, contact which gives promise of a potential breakthrough in finding additional members of the community. First, the project was contacted by former Tutorials student Leah Kenworthy (email: lkenworthy@abm.com ) who also is seeking to find some of our missing members as an outgrowth of an Allen Hall of San Jose State reunion in October 2000, an event which was facilitated by former SJS student Frank Roeth (email: rlumpy@hotmail.com ; phone: 831-465-1747). That reunion project also attempted to contact some of the Monte Capanno experiment's members, and a mailing list has been received which we are pursuing. Feel free to follow up on your own, too, as others from the Allen Hall / New College / Tutorials years at San Jose State were involved in this reunion, including Tom Jackson, Mike Theriot, and many others.Edits made: Marti Kramer located, and Cathee (White) St. Clair phoned in Las Vegas NV Terre Eakins now Terre Kucala. She is reported to be enthusiastic about the project. Terre can be reached at talk2terre@yahoo.com We hope to hear from our fondly remembered housemate and MC-70 treasurer, soon.
March 14, 2001: Edits made:
-Two new diary entries by Cathee were placed into the chronological archive section ("Diaries, Journal Entries and Letters..."): a free verse observation from March 14, 1970; and a record of the graffiti adorning the walls of the Farmhouse as the experiment neared its end (June 3, 1970).-Excerpts from these diaries also were added to the Memories page concerning Daily Life (Memories3), which now includes observations about making goulash, and about a problem with rats in the sleeping annex to the large farmhouse; to the Memories page concerning Governance (Memories4), which now includes further comments about seminars and encounter groups; and to the Memories page concerning our Guests (Memories6), where Cathee's diary made a new observation about Gina Agee, our youngest guest.
March 5-6, 2001: Edits made:-A new piece of artwork was added to the "Art of Monte Capanno" section, this one features a cartoon by Wes Shaffer.-New Photos also were added, courtesy of Wes Shaffer: including our firsts of students Darrell Jones, Mary Zuccaro, Mary Miller; Maija Zack (now Peeples), and David Zack; and of Andrea, our host. Also are interesting group shots in the Garden, Sandee and Linda cooking in the kitchen (with Rich Gouley and Darrell), two of Rick Saunders, a shot of the Etruscan arch in Perugia, a shot of student Terre Eakins in the garden, one of guest Debbie Linson there, and one of our webmaster, Gordo, shooting a picture. Finally, there is a new shot of John Dean and David Zack playing musical instruments in the Castle.
-A new, alternative narrative on how the experiment at Monte Capanno got started, and how it related to the Tutorials in Letters and Sciences Program, and the New College of San Jose State, is presented. Both a short and a longer version of (non-resident at Monte Capanno) Adrienne DeAngelis' views on these and other topics are now available, as are our webmasters' defenses of the experimental nature of Monte Capanno and New College. Interesting comment by two separate professors from San Jose State also is made about the reasons for the demise of these innovative educational programs.
-Two new contemporary pictures of our Linda (Green) Bowen were added to her biography page.
February 20-21, 2001: Edits made:
- New contact with Monte Capanno 1970 came from Wes Shaffer, a student resident located by Cathee St. Clair. Wes contributed on our message board his memories about Dierdra Rainer, about Rick Saunders, about Entertaining Ourselves, about the flight over, about Perugia, and about a dangerous development during the famed "Spaghetti Dance."- The website also was found via Lycos People Finder by an old friend of Kris Kagen's, Hatte Rubenstein Blejer, who like us has also been searching for Krissy. If Kris ever she finds us, she can contact Hatte from the email address information now found on Hatte's first note to us on our Message Board. Further new information about Kris that was gleaned from subsequent letters to Gordo from Hatte now appears on Kris' biography information on our "Where are we Now?" page, and may aid detectives among us. Hatte also said nice things about our webpage here, noting that our "pictures come up beautifully."
January 22, 2001: Edits made:- A new biography page was put up; this one is about our webmaster, Gordo. This makes four such biographical pages that now appear, as it joins earlier ones devoted to Sandee (White) Stoltz, Cathee (White) St. Clair, and Linda (Green) Bowen.
January 8, 2001: Edits made:- A passport photo of Cathee (White) St. Clair from 1970 was put up on the Photos page devoted to the student members of the Monte Capanno community (Photos3.html).- Continuing the development of pages about the current lives of Monte Capanno 1970 residents, a new page featuring biography and photos of Linda (Green) Bowen and her family was put onto the website.
January 5, 2001: Edits made:- Nearly twenty new photos of the Monte Capanno experience provided by Mark Fissel were put onto various pages on the website. Included now are: a new view of the Castle, the hearth of the main farmhouse (featuring an excellent "beastie" painting by Maija [Zack] Peeples), a shot of Mark next to an immense haystack, a view of the main farmhouse and environs shrouded in snow, a new shot of Mark and Terre Eakins, a picture of Mark enjoying some tea at the Castle, a good, and a still better shot of Mark's face at Monte Capanno, a picture of Mark, Terry MacDonald and Denny Kelly (our Aussie guest) leaning on Terry's car, a shot of the hills near Monte Capanno as dusk nears, one of the country lane that led to our main farmhouse, a picture of Mark on his motorcycle, and two new shots of ancient sites in Rome.- A miniature of the new snow scene picture (above) was added to Memories 3: Daily Life , and was also linked to the larger version of that shot.
- Further sad information about the fate of David Zack was introduced to the Where are we Now page. Monte Capanno 1970 encourages members of our virtual community to make contact with, and participate in, the David Zack retrospective being planned in Toronto. For details, follow the link above.
- Another family picture was added to Sandee (White) Stoltz's page about her life subsequent to Monte Capanno.
- A page of pictures of the contemporary Cathee (White) St. Clair were put up; we would add text, but we simply have TOO MUCH, and await guidance from Lake Tahoe as to what sort of biographical tale the star of our diaries wishes now to tell.
- A vintage pre-Monte Capanno photo of the Tutorials Group camping out at Morro Bay, CA in 1969 was added to the Photos collection; the blonde guy at the center is none other than our webmaster, Gordo.
January 4, 2001: Edits made:- A treasure trove of photos from Mark Fissel were received, and will all soon be added to the Photos pages. Additionally, one photo of beast paintings on the hearth of the kitchen of the large farmhouse, featuring Mark Fissel and Terry MacDonald, was added to Memories 3: Daily Life; and another of a coastal scene of Spain was added to Memories 9: Trips we took around Italy and Europe.
December 18, 2000: Edits made:- Thanks to detective work by Marti Kramer, Monte Capanno 1970 learned new details of the curious circumstances surrounding the disappearance and apparent death of David Zack; go here for more. We thus were informed of a planned retrospective in Canada to look at the life and work of David Zack; interested persons should contact: amen@interlog.com for details.- A new biographical section of Monte Capanno 1970 debuts today, with an opportunity for community members to share information and pictures about their lives since Monte Capanno. The first such page features Sandee (White) Stoltz.
December 11, 2000: Edits made:- A new picture of Sandee (White) Stoltz was added to the "Where Are We Now?" page- A painting of Monte Capanno by Sandee (White) Stoltz became page 9 of our Artworks section.
December 8, 2000: Edits made:- The Memories discussion about student resident Mark Cohen enlarged, with a sweet new comment by Cathee (White) St. Clair being added; go to: Remembering Each Other
- Errors made earlier on the biographical profiles of Wes and Rich which appear on the "Where Are We Now?" page were corrected, thanks to new information provided by Marti Kramer.
December 7, 2000: Edits made:- A lively exchange of comments on the message board (no longer functioning) about student resident Mark Cohen produced new content that was added to the Memories pages dealing with Entertaining Ourselves and with Remembering Each Other. That latter page also now has a recollection about our videographer, Cathee, composed by her sister.- A couple minor typos on the "Where we are Now Page" were fixed.
- Sandee's discussions of her trip to the Island without Men in Greece, and to Yugoslavia were added to the "Trips we Took" Memories Page.
December 6, 2000: Edits made:- The "Where Are We Now?" page was updated. New information was supplied to assist members of the community in their searches to find others with whom we have yet to make contact. Please read over these leads for accuracy, and write in to correct, or to enlarge upon, these leads.
December 5, 2000: Edits made:- Minor changes were made to the first webpage of the site, clarifying that while the primary purpose of the site is to re-construct the original community as a virtual community, a secondary purpose is to facilitate critical analysis of the 1960s in general.- Small thumbnail pictures on the Memories pages dealing with Daily Life, Governance, Our Memories of Each Other were linked to the large versions of these same pictures in the Photos pages. Several new small pictures were added, too.
December 4, 2000: Edits made:- A new Memories page devoted exclusively to the Zacks was put up.- This "What's New" feature debuted.
- Links from small thumbnail pictures on Memories pages to larger versions of the same pictures in the Photos pages were made on Memories page 6 and Memories Page 7.
December 2, 2000: The message board at Monte Capanno 1970, which previously had been used to share emails about the project received by the webmaster, received its first direct and unsolicited posting: a message from Megan Morem, daughter of Craig and Kathy Morem.
November 15, 2000: The Monte Capanno 1970 Video, shot, produced and distributed by Cathee (White) St. Clair became available for circulation to the members of the community. Contact: stclair@usamedia.tv
October-November 2000: The website was initiated and frequently was edited to include new content as it was submitted. No exact record of all the links and modifications was kept during this period.
Read our 1970 Diaries, Journals and Letters
View works of Art about Monte Capanno
and is maintained for the community by Gordon and Linda Bowen;
To contact them, write: lindabowen2@yahoo.com;