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THE AGGIE BONFIRE -FLAMING SYMBOL OF AGGIE SPIRIT
FLAMIAtG
RFA.T
OL~FAGGIE DESI1
'HELL QT ~~~
By TOMMY DeFRANK
He was given a radio and told
to guard the ravine below the
President's home.
He crawled around the area
making his patrols, and then
camouflaged himself and waited
for trouble that never came.
"I know he was out there," re-
called astacking area boss, "be-
'~'' cause he called in every half-hour.
But he hid himself so well I
couldn't find him when I went out
~' to relieve him."
It takes an element of danger-
. like the carloads of Teasips who
attempted to unload bound fra-
ternity pledges in the Bonfire
area.
Or like the Aggies whose lunch
was interrupted by a three-foot
copperhead. One pinned the rep-
tile to the side of a bank while
The Aggie Bonfire-symbolic
of the love Aggies have for their
school, and the burning desire to
beat the livin` hell outs TU.
The Aggie Bonfire-cross be-
tween acounty fair, Army field
maneuver and a major disaster
area right after the disaster.
The Aggie Bonfire-massive,
flaming testimonial to frayed
nerves, aching muscles, lost sleep,
round-the-clock operations, fan-
tastic coordination and sheer raw
guts.
What does it take to build the
largest Bonfire in the world?
It takes personalities-like the
graduate student, a giant of an
ex-Marine who volunteered for
service Sunday night.
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and a Little Gold-brickin', Too.
I Takes a Heap O' Work
out realizing the unbelievable
work that has gone into it.
Few spectators appreciate the
five days of cutting, loading,
stacking and guarding that pre-
cede the blaze.
But to the Aggies wha have
endured cold meals, blisters, push_
up sessions, 16-hour or longer
days, 1 a.m. guard details and the
like-the pre-fire work is pain-
fully but proudly alive.
The Bonfire of today has come
a long way since the first one,
a 12-foot trashpile built in 1909.
Unlike other college bonfires,
it has grown from its original
proportions to heights usually
averaging 80 feet.
So, too, have the headaches and
preparations necessary to build it.
But the end result has always
remained the same-a huge com-
pilation of logs that eternally re-
mains a source of pride for all
those who have ever worked on
one.
J 11Vl,S
RAMADA INN
9AABE8 SHOP "'
MEN'S HAIR STYLING
CONTOUR RAZOR CUT
~ eMaster
C,ol~~g ~~(~
DESIGNED FOR AND OFFERED
ONLY TO COLLEGE MEN
For fu I I information ca I I
846-8228
FIDELITY UNION LIFE I'NS. CO.
TEASIPS UNSUCCESSFUL
Mischievous Longhorns have
attempted to burn the Bonfire
p~ ematurely several times, but
even the cleverest of schemes
have failed.
The wildest attempt at sabo-
tage came the year TU students
dropped a fire bomb from alow-
flying airplane. Unfortunately
for the students, the b o m b
missed, and alert Ags caught the
plane's serial number as it buzz-
ed overhead. The would-be sabo-
teurs were turned in and prompt-
ly expelled.
Another bomb missed its mark
in 1956 when two Teasips at-
I~
tempted to explode the Bonfire
with a detonator device installed
in their car. The explosives were
buried many feet from the stack,
and the ensuing explosion des-
troyed nothing more than a few
weeds and the not too ingenious
Sips' pride.
A&M students have outsmart-
ed their pals from Austin several
times by prelighting the Teasip
homecoming bonfire. Texas us-
ually wins the football games,
but devoted Aggies manageF to
dominate the pregame hocus-
pocus.
" I'VE SKETCUED AN IDEA FoR A MODIFICATIOAI Otl NEXT
YfARs BONFIRE ~ IT'LL TAKE THREE MORE DAYS To BUILD
BUT IT'LL BE Mcxl~ MORE IMP2[SSIVF..._ '~
An Ax Will Do, But a Power Saw is Even Better
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A Strenuous Trek Through the Woods .. .
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Axes to be Sharpened,
And Trucks to be Loaded.
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SOI~FIFiE HAS
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Dating back to 1909, Aggie
Bonfires have traditionally been
A&M's way of welcoming return-
ing exes and crowning the Spir-
it of Aggieland. The standard
theme of all A&M Bonfires has
been "Beat the hell out of TU."
As Aggieland has grown, so
have its Bonfires. The height of
A&M's flaming symbol has more
than tripled since the 25 foot log
Bonfire of 1942. Prior to that
date Bonfires had been construct-
ed of old boxes and scrap lumber.
Industrious Aggies added a
center pole in 1945, and the fol-
lowing year two poles were
spliced together for a much tall-
er fire The fall of 1949 gave
A&M the claim to the "world's
largest bonfire", as the center-
pole stretched to a then seeming-
ly impossible 85 feet.
A need for a greater area
forced the Bonfire to be moved
from the center of the drill field
in 1955 to its present location
near Navasota parking lot.
Over the years all Bonfires
have guaranteed at least three
things blood, sweat and
blisters.
Hospital officials find tran-
quilizers almost necessary as
great masses of unfortunate Bon-
fire builders come trickling into
their offices each year reporting
severe lacerations from axes,
splinters in the most embarrass-
ing places, plus numerous cases
of poison ivy.
Due to a great many injuries
suffered from the 1955 Bonfire,
the 1956 Bonfire workers wore
signs on the backs of their jack-
ets reading "Safety First."
Tragedy struck the Bonfire in
1955 when James E. Sarran, an
A&M sophomore, died by push-
ing two buddies to safety as he
was crushed between a car and
truck. The car went out of con-
trol and crashed into the stu-
dent's guard past.
In 1963 the Bonfire was cancel-
ed in honor of the slain President
John F. Kennedy.
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UNIVERSITY BOOK STORE
OPPOSITE THE
NORTH GATE
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R~,M,~D~
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COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS
Banquet Fac i I ities for 8 ho 800
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ENJOY QUALITY FOOD AND THE TRADITIONAL
FRIENDLY AGGIE ATMOSPHERE AT COACH NORTON'S.
COMPLETE VIEW OF THE BONFIRE ACTIVITIES. JUST
ACROSS THE HIGHWAY NEAR THE MAIN ENTRANCE TO
TEXAS A8~M. JOIN US BEFORE, DURING, OR AFTER THE
BONFIRE. OR ANYTIME.
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T98 LEST CORPS TAtF
It was Judgement Day in Aggieland
And tenseness f i I I ed the air;
All knew there was a trip at hand,
But not a soul knew where.
"Why, sir, that's the Cadet Corps
That's known both far and wide
For backing up their fighting team
Whether they won or lost or tied. "
Assembled on the drill field "Well, then," said St. Peter,
Was the world-renowned Twelfth Man, "It's very plain to me
The entire fighting Aggie team That within the realms of Heaven
And the famous Aggie band. They should spend eternity.
And out in front with Royal Guard
The reviewing party stood;
St. Peter and his angel staff
Were choosing bad from good.
"And have the Texas Aggie band
At once begin to play
For their fates too we must decide
Upon this crucial day."
First he surveyed the Aggie team
And in terms of an angel swore,
"By Jove, I do believe I've seen
This gallant group before.
And the drum major so hearing
Slowly raised. his hand
And said, "Boys, let's play the Spirit
For the last time in Aggieland."
"I've seen them play since way back when, And the band poured forth the anthem
And they've always had the grit; In notes both bright and clear
I've seen 'em lose and I've seen 'em win, And ten thousand Aggie voices
But I've never seen 'em quit. Sang the song they hold so dear.
"No need for us to tarry here And when the band had finished,
Deciding upon their fates; St. Peter wiped his eyes
'Tis as plain as the halo on my head And said, "It's not so hard to see
That they've opened Heaven's gates." They're meant for Paradise."
And when the Twelfth Man heard this,
They let out a mighty yell
That echoed clear to Heaven
And shook the gates of Hell.
"And what group is this upon the side,"
St. Peter asked his aide,
"That swelled as if to burst with pride
When we our judgement made?"
And the colonel of the Cadet Corps said
As he stiffly took his stand,
"It's just another Corps Trip, boys,
We'll march in behind the band."
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~~~ TOWNSHIRE SHOPPING CENTER
BRYAN, TEXAS
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THE THINKING MAN
S STORE
The Exchange Store
Serving Texas Aggies Since 1907
Our High/y Ski//ed and /nte//igent Personne/are Eager/y Woiting to Serve You.
A WORD FROM ALPHA DELTA SIGMA
Gosh, folks. V~Te had a bushel of
fun puttin' this here Bonfire Bonanza
together for you.
We're plumb proud of all our high-
falutin' advertisers who knew a good
thing when they saw it and placed ads
in these pages.
And we're really pleased that you
good Aggies , T'sips and home-folk
saw fit to turn loose of fifty cents
for our little publication.
If there's anything left after payin'
off our country cousins at A& M Press ,,
the money will be spent to further
the role of advertising instruction at
Aggieland, and for worthwhile
activities for members of A.D.S. ,
national advertising fraternity for
men.
- Kelly Parker
President
Bonfire Bonanza was compiled in
the southwest corner of the advertis-
ing lab, Journalism Department,
Basement of Nagle Hall.
Hieroglyphics -Jim Raatz
Photography - Herky Killingsworth
and a slew of others.
Stories -Plagiarized from The
Battalion.
Be tuckin' a few coins away to buy
next year's Bonfire Bonanza .
University
NATIONAL
BANK
A HOME OWNED, .E1,LI.-AGGIE BANH,
SERVING
THE COLLEGE STATION AREA
"On the Side of Texas A&M"
at the North Gate
~~~1 P 9 R K ~~~
CLEANERS
CLEANING
PRESSING
ALTERATIO~lS
SOUTH SIDE 846-5021
~~~~~
HIGHLANDER CENTER
WASHATERIA
Self Service Dry Cleaning
Redmond Terrace
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<<~r. ~0~000
good Aggies To Shop At
LOUPOT'S
TRADING POST
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YOU'LL GET A LOU-LOU OF A DEAL EVERY TIME AT LOUPOT'S ~ , ~`_
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