News Releases
News from
Lane Community College, Eugene, Oregon
Contacts: Judith Roberts, director, 541-686-9781 or robertsj@lanecc.edu
Laura Olson, information, 541-896-3298
Steve Candee, LCC project advisor, 541-463-5188 or candees@lanecc.edu
Caroline Forell, UO project advisor, 541-346-3699 or cforell@law.uoregon.edu
for release February 5, 2004
American Gadfly: The Story of Wayne Morse - a one-man play followed by audience discussion
EUGENE - “American Gadfly: The Story of Wayne Morse,” a play by Charles Deemer starring Claude Offenbacher and directed by Judith "Sparky" Roberts, will be presented Sunday, February 22, at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at the Lane Community College Performance Hall, Building 6, main campus in Eugene. Performances will be followed by a panel discussion moderated by Caroline Forell of the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics, University of Oregon Law School.
Requested donation at the door of $5-$10 will go towards a Wayne Morse Free Speech Scholarship. LCC students will be admitted free with an advance ticket from Associated Students of Lane Community College. The first 75 UO students will be admitted free.
This premier production is appropriately presented in Morse’s home town of Eugene. Eugene's federal building soonwill be named for Wayne Morse, with a free speech plaza and statue.
After each 40-minute show, a panel of speakers, both pro and con, will reflect upon the controversial senator, his career and his ideas. Support is provided by Lane Community College, the Wayne Morse Center at the University of Oregon, Concerned Faculty for Peace and Justice, and the Wayne Morse Historical Park Society.
Morse strongly wished for people to be educated. He believed that an educated citizenry was critical to the defense of liberty.
The producers hope to take the play to campuses and civic groups statewide. Contributions to further the tour or the scholarship may be made through the Lane Community College Foundation.
The début performance will be dedicated to the memory of George Alvergue, recently deceased political science instructor at Lane and former board member for Lane Community College and the Wayne Morse Historical Society.
Statement from Playwright Charles Deemer:
What attracted me to Wayne Morse is that he did not enter politics as a career politician. He was drafted to run for office by Oregon Republicans when he was Dean of the Law School at the University of Oregon, the youngest such dean in the country. Thereafter, Oregonians continued to elect him for a long time, even after he left the Republicans and became an Independent and later a Democrat.
Morse never compromised his background as a constitutional lawyer, which made him an important voice in international affairs - more articulate in behalf of principles of international law than any in Congress since - a voice especially missed in days like these when so many crises in foreign affairs challenge us. Morse also spoke strongly for labor and for education, other areas in trouble today.
But what is missed most is his political courage - he was a man who stood on principles before party loyalty. He was a rare political bird, a true maverick. He was just as Socrates described it, a man sent by the gods to keep the State honest. We desperately need that kind of gadfly today. Without someone playing this role with clarity and skill, the government gets away with too much (as now). -- cdeemer@yahoo.com http://www.ibiblio.org/cdeemer
Statement from Director Judith “Sparky” Roberts:
We live in an age of cynicism about Government. Senator Wayne Morse was not a cynic - he felt his calling was to serve his country with courage and integrity. There are still many Oregonians around who can tell you a lot about Wayne Morse! Even outside of Oregon, all over the country, Morse was “Everyone’s Senator” - a third senator for independent-minded people.
Morse wanted to shake up the status quo, even if it meant being unpopular. "The Tiger of the Senate" could be brassy, and he was often mocked for his righteous anger. Though some in Congress called him "unstable," he was actually well-grounded. Morse's home was a small Oregon farm. As a lawyer, he did labor arbitration, and then campaigned as a man of the people. He was a wise realist, whose views were based in his knowledge of Constitutional law.
In Charles Deemer’s play, Morse speaks about big issues that haven’t gone away, such as: preserving the country’s natural resources; protecting civil rights; educating everybody in the country; controlling the power to make war; and finding paths to peace.
Morse’s honest rhetoric is still enlightening, thought-provoking, and relevant.
These are scary times. Frankly, I just wish everybody had even a smidgen of Morse’s courageous clarity and his prescient overview, which he articulated with passion. He was a thoughtful and fair man. He urged Congress to get off its high horse and start thinking about the next generation.
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