Luke+Linemann+and+Neil+Fudge+Interview

Transcript #2 Interviewers: Kinzi Anderson and Samantha Driemeier Interviewees: Neil Fudge and Luke Linnemann Kinzi Anderson: In your opinion, on the old West campus, where was the worst place for a classroom to be located? Luke Linnemann: In the end building. KA: And why is that? LL: It’s where a lot of the gangsters hung out. Neil Fudge: If I had to guess, I’m guessing the main room, the main office thing, like where he Civics teacher was going and I don’t know it’s so crowded to get in and out of there KA: Where was the best place to have a class? LL: Miss Hewitt’s class, home economics, you got to cook while you were in class. NF: I think Mr. Qualski, which I used to learn the automotive shop. It was way in the back by the football field way in the back there. KA: What was the best excuse you remember for being tardy? LL: I left my books at home. NF: Let’s see, I guess a flat tire, I don’t know. (Laughter) NF: I was never tardy. KA: For being absent? LL: Sick. Somebody died. (Laughter) NF: Had a lot of uncles. LL: Yup. (More laughter) KA: What is your happiest memory at West? NF: Got any? I said, I mean, I think it was just, I mean I enjoyed the shop class. That’s the one thing I liked there, really. LL: I enjoyed all the people, friends. KA: Did you ever have a most embarrassing moment? NF: Guess when you were freshmen, you know seniors pick on you. Besides that.. LL: I can’t think of nothing. NF: A lot of kids you know pull their shorts down in PE, I remember that happening. I don’t know if they still do that or not. KA: Was Freshmen Friday pretty bad? NF: You mean every Friday? KA: No, Freshman Friday. NF: Did they have that back then? KA: I don’t know, I was asking you. NF: I don’t know if they even had it as far as I remember. I don’t know, it probably was you know? LL: It depends on who you were. NF: Depends on how big you were too. If you were a little dude... Samantha Driemeier: What was the best thing about West? NF: The best thing about West? Just to get an education, you know what I mean? Most of all the teachers were all cool and everything else, they were there for you, and besides, you know, there was a lot of fights every day. And it was more of a racial thing. Whites black, stuff like that. Which it probably still goes on, but I remember a fight every day. They had those robo people, undercover cops or whatever you want to call it there. But I guess it’s the teachers most of all I guess, I don’t know. Got anything Luke? LL: Nah. The teachers. And PE. I guess the variety of classes they had like mechanics, machine shop. NF: Machine shop, wood shop. LL: Bout the best thing I can think of. SD: What was the worst thing about West? LL: All the racial stuff. NF: I would probably say reading, I hate reading. I’m more hands on. Mrs. Morrison, she’s a cool reading teacher, she’s probably retired by now. But I hate reading. SD: Could you go into more In detail about the racial issues? NF: Well, uh I kinda let it go on. I mean I’m the type of guy that if you see something, let it ride cause I don’t want to get into the middle of it. If you get in the middle you’re gonna get suspended or whatever. But most of all, I think that you owe them something or something like that. If you go to school and if you don’t got the right clothes, well cause it ain’t just whites and blacks, it could be you know you’re a stoner and you’re a preppy or whatever. You know, you’re wearing all these nice clothes, you know dockers or whatever, and then you have these head banger shirts on, Ozzy Osborne or whatever. And they kinda down you. There’s a whole crowd that may laugh at you. But there was a lot of racial stuff too. Yeah I think most of it was just like, you know, if you thought you were better than them then they’ll pick on you or whatever. But I was kinda glad I got out of Belleville, which I got out six months early because I had enough credits. I was kinda glad to get out of there because there was just too much junk going on. I wasn’t scared or nothing but heck, there would be a fight every day in the cafeteria or whatever and it was just a mess. KA: When you went, what was Hobo Week like? NF: Hobo Week was when you dressed up like a hobo right? LL: Yeah. NF: I guess it was kinda, people dressed up, I mean I didn’t do it, you know, but I guess if that was your thing, you know, you dress up. KA: Was it a good memory? NF: A good memory for me? Nah. Cause I didn’t really get into it. LL: I liked it, there was a lot of parties that went on. KA: Was the East and West rivalry as prominent as it is today? LL: I’d say yeah. NF: Yeah. I’d say yeah too. KA: What was your senior prom theme? NF: What was the theme? KA: Yeah. NF: Well, first of all, I didn’t get to go cause I broke my leg and they wouldn’t let me go. I broke it right around that time cause I graduated in January and I think it was, what was it, May? I broke my leg in April. And I couldn’t go to graduation or nothing. So, how was your prom deal, Luke? (Laughter) LL: I don’t remember what the theme was. Cause everybody dressed up in suits. The girls dressed in dresses. I don’t think there was really a theme. KA: Do you have any interesting stories from West? LL: None that I should probably say on that recorder. (Chuckling) KA: We’ve been getting a lot of that. SD: Yeah. (More chucking) NF: Well, I mean, I kinda stuck to myself, and I didn’t really get involved or do much but I don’t know. What’s the next one going to be? KA: It’s not bad. Were there any specific sporting events that you remember? NF: Well I was never in sports, just PE, that was about it. LL: Arm wrestling was a big deal. Football. KA: Were there any field trips that you remember that really stood out to you? NF: I don’t think we took any field trips, did we? LL: I don’t remember any field trips. KA: What music was popular at West when you went there? NF: It was heavy music when I was there. Heavy metal. Ozzy. That’s probably the same as you, right? LL: Yeah, Pantera was just coming out around then, that was one of the bigger groups people were listening to. KA: Um were there any specific movies that you remember coming out around the time you went to school? NF: The only movie I’m thinking, which I don’t know if it’s the right time, is that Forrest Gump movie. That’s the only thing I can think of. Ninety-six, is that about right? SD: I guess. KA: We don’t know. LL: Forrest Gump, Batman. NF: Yeah, Batman. (Mumbling) SD: Oh, what were the popular hangouts at West during that time? NF: Hangouts? Well it depends on who you were and what you do, but back by the auto shop people smoked all the time. Hey Glen we are doing an official interview over here. (Door closing) Glen: I don’t care, do what you wanna do. (Snickering) NF: But uh, I think most of the hang, well like I said it depends on what you do and who you were. Like back by the auto shop people smoked all the time and the hangout was a parking lot, too, by that church. Remember that old church there? LL: Yeah, the stoner lot. NF: Yeah, and in the back by the railroad tracks by Leecy Lumber? LL: Yeah. NF: Depends on who you were, but mostly it was just smoke, cause you can’t smoke on campus. (Soda machine) NF: They did have smoking, years ago, but not anymore. LL: People would hang out there and Citizens Park. They used to have a place called Teen Spot. NF: Well, used to be Mr. D’s, too, remember the video game place next door? LL: Yup. NF: By the tennis courts. Mr. D’s video games. Or arcade thing. Glen: We got any more paper towels? (Laughter) NF: Glen, this is official business. Glen: Yeah, but we got any more paper towels? NF: They’re over there, there’s a whole box of them. If they’re not there, they’re in the basement. They’re probably in the basement, Glen. We’re going to have to rewind that thing and then go ahead. SD: It’s fine. (Laughter, Door closing) KA: That’s my favorite part. SD: Okay, what was the best thing at the old campus that isn’t there at the new campus? LL: Wasn’t so much like a jail, had a little more freedom. NF: Yeah, kinda looks like a prison there, you know. Plus, you got security. I mean, you got to show ID. My niece used to go there, I think she graduated this year at Belleville West, but you got to show ID, it’s just everything’s monitored, which you gotta have that now for security purposes but I guess it’s just too far into it. But I think now it’s all one building, right? There’s not separate buildings? You kinda get a little breathe the air, you’re free, you can go building to building. Nobody’s, to mean, it’s nobody’s watching, you know, cause I don’t know I guess cause you’re a kid, I don’t know. Next. You have anything left? SD: Okay, well I guess that’s it. NF: That’s it, huh? SD: Yup.