On Sept. 27, LSU’s Hill Memorial Library held an event called “Vintage Voices: About A Century of Shenanigans in the LSU Student Press.” The exhibit shined a light into the past, revealing a long history of projects and ideas from the minds of LSU Student Media.
The Giggler, published between 1913 and 1916, was one of these projects. Created by LSU’s all-female Scribbler’s Club, the magazine was filled with satire and jokes, with stories focused on the experience of women on campus.
The Purple Pel was another humorous magazine filled with cartoons, thoughts and jokes. Created by the Sigma Delta Chi journalism society and Theta Sigma Sigma, the magazine lasted from 1924 to 1926.
One of the jokes in the magazine labeled “A Bogy Doctor’s Certificate” read:
“Robbin: Where were you last Friday?
Carolyn: Mrs. Herget gave me a furlough to go to New Orleans and get my feet treated.
Robbin: Oh. Chiropodist?
Carolyn: No, I went to a dance.”
A slightly more academic publication that came straight at the behest of Student Government was the “LSU Poop Book: Course and Professor Evaluation.” Published in the ’60s, it served as a sort of predecessor to RateMyProfessor, telling students what classes were worth taking and which were not.
The ’70s were a tumultuous time in American history, and it’s easily reflected by the student publications that once circulated LSU. One such publication was the Morning Alternate, a liberal newspaper that focused on issues ranging from civil rights to the oil industry. In May of 1974, they covered Angela Davis’ appearance at Southern University.
But if there’s one thing the Morning Alternate would be remembered for, it would be streaking. In March of 1974, LSU students’ streaking shenanigans made it onto the front page, complete with “YOU HAVE BEEN STREAKED” in large text. Next to the words, photos of streakers were placed with black squares covering their private areas, accompanied by handwriting reading “censored by our printer.”
The Reveille was also featured in the exhibit, each page serving as a time capsule. Pages documented cartoons, and a time when shirts cost a dollar and Fantastic Four advertisements sat bold on the page.
In fact, it was the advertisements that offered a surprising glimpse into what life was like around campus at the time. The Varsity Theatre was a primarily R-rated theater, and the Reveille would run advertisements for showings about “Naughty Co-Eds” and “Campus Pussycats.”
The ’80s saw the introduction of The Wonderland Times, a biweekly magazine that lasted only a year and a half. The magazine had a lot to say, publishing poems, cartoons, letters and more. Although sometimes, their content could take an interesting turn. Two of the sections from October of 1989 were labeled “Cannabis Corner” and “Good Sex.”
Another interesting publication was ‘The Campus Dirt,’ a five week long magazine notable for being among publications covering The Baton Rouge Serial Killer in 2002.
The Gumbo Yearbook also took a big seat in the exhibit, with illustrations, charts recording football game plays and tributes to what it means to be an LSU student all included.
Civil rights protests featured prominently in the older editions, alongside other curiosities from the past. Instances of freshmen men shaving their heads, and records of “Hen Parties,” which female students would attend with actual chickens, also made appearances in one of the old yearbooks.
The Gumbo of the ’70s documented big moments in LSU’s history, like the first Black student organization at LSU, called Harambe, that advocated for Black studies at the university. The university also hosted popstar Elton John and the Jackson 5 all in the same year, on campus.
University Archivist Zach Tompkins and Director of LSU Libraries’ T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History Jen Cramer said that these pieces are just scratching the surface. Kramer said how important it was that the history of LSU is made available to students and the public, allowing others to see what LSU was like long ago.
The Hill Memorial Library sits on Field House Drive on Friday, Nov. 3, 2023, on LSU’s campus in Baton Rouge, La.
