Approximately a year or so ago Doug Zipes, a noted cardiologist from Indianapolis, Indiana—while passing through the spectrum of life from full gainful employment to semi-retirement to near full retirement—sent me a copy of his first novel, a medical/mystery/espionage mixture titled The Black Widows. I guess this is what you get when you put a computer in front of a semi-retired doctor with free time on his hands and the inspiration to be a creative writer on his mind. Just ask Dr. Bruce Forester, a noted New York psychiatrist who has penned five or six engrossing medical mystery novels to date. Back to Doug’s first novel: Because of certain time constraints at the time Doug sent me a copy and then forgetting (sound familiar?) where I had placed the book, I did not get around to reading it until Patti and I took a trip to Israel and Jordan this past November. Not only did I thoroughly enjoy the novel, but I discovered that Doug used a locale in Westchester County, New York, near where I lived for more than 20 years, a section of Manhattan near where I worked for more than 15 years, and locations in Israel and Jordan (especially Petra, Jordan) which Patti and I were exploring while I was reading the book. This made the novel more meaningful to me, as I felt each locale that inserted itself throughout the story. However, even without this connection to locale, the book is fast-paced and enjoyable. As an added incentive, one character in the book has the same name as one of our well-known classmates, but I won’t reveal who and I can’t tell you why that classmate’s name was inserted into the novel. You will just have to read The Black Widows to answer these questions to your own satisfaction (or contact Doug).


Speaking of recently published books written by our classmates, Tony Horan, chief of surgery at Delano (California) Regional Medical Center, was awarded first prize in the annual history essay contest at the western section of the American Urological Association meeting last summer. His essay was adopted from his book, The Big Scare: The Business of Prostate Cancer, which won an honorable mention at the 2011 New York Book Fair. Tony’s book clearly appears not to be quite the same light reading that is to be found in Doug’s book.


Once again the annual holiday season was brightened by the annual presentation in Los Angeles of A Christmas Pudding, created and directed by David Birney and starring, among others, David and his close associate Michele Roberge (who attended and performed with David at our 50th reunion).


Just an early reminder from Maynard Wheeler, class mini-reunion chair, as you set up your calendar schedule for 2012, don’t forget to include our fall mini-reunion at Hanover. The class’ fall mini-reunion in November 2011 drew 20 classmates and an almost equivalent number of spouses, significant others and friends, all of whom appeared to have had a great time.


—Victor S. Rich, 5 Red Ground Road, Old Westbury, NY 11568; victor.rich@rsmi.com