Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 13, 1995)
LIFE M—MWHII'HWiyiEWm^ W—M The Battalion' Thursday • Julyl 1 N Live Oak Nudist Ranch offers relaxation and recreation without all the clothes By Sterling Hayman The Battalion L ast weekend, a group of people at Live Oak Ranch took advan tage of the gorgeous weather. The adults played volleyball, sun bathed and swam while the children ran around and frolicked under the cool stream of a squirting water hose. ... and they all were naked. Live Oak Ranch, located 35 min utes south of College Station on Hwy. 105 between Navasota and Brenham, is a family nudist resort that allows members and guests to relax and recreate on its 25 lush acres without the restraints of clothing. Although nudism is frowned upon by many people, Kay, who has been a member of Live Oak for more than three years, insists that there’s noth ing wrong with it. “It’s a growing trend,” Kay said. “More and more people are finding out that it is a very wholesome envi ronment for families and couples.” The Fourth of July Weekend kicked off the 20th annual National Nude Week, and dozens of people kicked off their clothes at Live Oak Ranch. "Many people just have a total lack of understand ing. ... people tend to con fuse nudity and sex." Debra Peterson -Director of public affairs for the American Association for Nude Recreation Kathy Fredericksen, an A&M civil engineering graduate student, and Pete Cooper, a junior A&M philoso phy student, decided to scout out Live Oak Ranch last weekend for the first time. Both Fredericksen and Cooper had been to other nudist camps before but said Live Oak was different. “Most of the places we have been have been beach oriented,” Cooper said. “This place is more like a recre ational park.” In fact, the recreational image of fun and games is one that Live Oak Ranch and other nudist resorts proudly tout. Debra Peterson, director of public affairs for the American Association for Nude Recreation, said people have many misconceptions about nudist resorts. “Many people just have a total lack of understanding,” she said. “A lot of times people tend to confuse nudity and sex. Once they visit a nude resort or beach, they realize that that’s not the case.” Fredericksen said many people are apprehensive about visiting nudist resorts because they are worried about how others will react. “It’s not like they’re going to come out and everyone is going to be staring at them,” she said. “Once they get here and they see how everyone acts, then their fears are going to be relaxed.” Cooper said people feel more com fortable visiting the resort once they set their mind to it. “Half the battle is making the deci sion to come,” Cooper said. More and more people are making that decision to expose it all. Peterson said the AANR has more than doubled its membership in the past 10 years. The national organiza tion now boasts a membership of 46,000 people. “People discover that nudism is re laxing,” she said. “Some equate drop ping their clothes with dropping all of their stress.” The resort offers many forms of fun and frolicking for resort members and visitors. They can sport their skills on two volleyball courts, give basketball a shot on a half-court, make a few waves in the swimming pool, or try their chances at a game of pool or ping pong in the clubhouse. But the entertainment doesn’t stop when the sun goes down. For night owls. Live Oak Ranch also holds dances, cookouts and campfires in a covered pavilion. One group that is noticeably ab sent from the population is that of A&M students. But Kay said that Live Oak Ranch provides the perfect environment for college students. “It’s a great place to just relax in the shade and study,” she said. “Sev eral students that we have grown to know that have come out in the sum- See Nudity, Page 5 Stew Milne, The Battalion Maggie Lesnik and Ken Veseleny, both from Houston, frequent Live Oak Nud ist Ranch on weekends. Retro craze won’t let mus memories A s if it wasn’t bad enough the first time around, the music of the ’80s is making a come back before any one even had a chance to forget it. This ’80s nos- Amy Uptmor Columnist talgia trip is known as “retro,” and itisc taking over radio stations, clubs andev try dance halls. The retro craze was described as “anu ble memory trip” by Brett Vance, operate manager of 103.9 KCRM-FM, the station sponsors “trash disco” and “retro” nights;, im and Diamonds. “People hear these songs and think,li her, I was doing this when I first heardt song,’” he said. “It brings back memories'S Vance said that although the station j alogs of '80s music to find its “retro cuts,’! ers provide the majority of ideas. ‘“Come on Eileen’ by Dexy’s MidnightE gets requested at least as much as curretJ songs,” he said. “It’s more popular nowtti when it first came out.” Music fans have to wonder why a decal ended only five years ago is already beicjl ad nauseam by a generation that shouldf remember the good ol’ days. It could be that the music patrol isde: to keep us from forgeting all the fine rad heard when growing up. Or maybe wed keep the music of our youth around inacfc tempt to convince ourselves that we aren| ting older. The ’80s weren’t that long ago or that! so there must be some other explanation] fascination with the music. For our trips cent-memory lane we most likely owethai retro-crazed disc jockeys who have mana|l cut most of the garbage and stick to sonpfc spark fond memories — or at least songs:i|| so cheesy that they’re still good foralaup And so we flock to the flashback night; ' cal clubs. Places like Denim and Diamor ^gie tailback L coming to expect our nostalgia. is season and “We weren’t sure what the response w;. to retro night,” Vance said, “but peoplepa;^ place.” Revisiting the ’80s makes us realiaewb few years can do to the mind. People thoc s pi esc as ’80s were the crappiest decade ever while' were living in them — except for the 70s, Magazine has also come back with a vengeance in th of trash disco. And when disco came back, brought the clothes with it. That’s onethi'k exa s Footbal the retro craze has yet to embrace, and lei our luck doesn’t run out. fhe Sporting The good news is that time apparently ’ all wounds. Growing pains and thelrant . , , F , affair alike have been thrown to the ways^ on 00 )c the name of “the good times” and “retrod So someday — in about 10 years - weu 'qotball Actic back on the ’90s with utter fondness that the bad memories. Thank goodness, becat there’s a lot of music (the Offspring) we r like to forget. • Holography exhibit adds new dimension to traditional art By Amy Collier The Battalion A rt is not defined by just paintings and sculptures. And it doesn’t have to be one-dimensional. The Office of University Art Collections and Exhibitions is presenting “New Directions in Holography: The Landscape Reinvented” in the J. Wayne Stark University Center Gal leries until August 20. The ex hibit features 15 works by seven international artists that com bine holography, the utilization of special films that appear to be three-dimensional, with the tra ditional art subjects of nature and landscapes. Catherine Hastedt, registrar and curator of the Stark gallery, said the unusual com bination is attracting a large, varied audience. “I knew it would have tremen dous popular appeal,” Hastedt said. “The traditional audiences are coming simply because they love art. We’re trying to get non- traditional audiences in here. We want to show them that vis iting an art museum is fun.” Hastedt said the technology of holography has attracted an non-traditional audience to the gallery — men. “Men think it’s cool,” she said. “This is more like science. Men who won’t come to see bluebon net paintings will come to see this. Their response is over whelmingly positive.” Holography was invented in 1949 but was not considered an art form until the late ’60s. Holo grams are produced with lasers, and unlike photographs, they are three-dimensional. Because holography is not widely prac ticed by artists, the only place it is permanently displayed is the Museum of Holography in New York City. Rene Paul Barilleaux, chief curator of the Mississippi Muse- um of Art and coordinator of the traveling exhibit, said hologra phy has technically changed art. “This medium allows artists to record three-dimensional re ality on a two-dimensional sur face rather than merely create its illusion through pictorial techniques such as perspec tive,” Barilleaux said. “Holo grams question the nature of what we see and how we per ceive it. They have the ability to simultaneously create move ment in space and time.” Hastedt said people find a different kind of entertainment in looking at three-dimensional images. “It’s like going to Disneyland and riding on the haunted house ride when the ghosts sit next to you,” she said. “People want to reach out and grab the pictures. Everybody’s just fascinated be cause it’s still a very new thing.” People of varying heights see different pictures in the same See Holography, Page 5 Nick Rodnicki, The Battalion A holographic work by Dan Schitzer titled "Window Installation" is part of an exhibit at the Stark gallery in the MSC. Predictable comedy nothing worth toasting Nine Months fails to deliwp or By Libe Goad The Battalion Movie Review With Robin Williams’ comic ge nius and Hugh Grant’s good looks, Nine Months had half a chance of being entertaining. But unfortunately, director Chris Columbus turns a potential ly charming love story into a pre dictable slapstick comedy. Samuel Faulkner (Grant) and Rebecca Taylor (Julianne Moore) live a perfectly happy five-year relationship complete with bloom ing careers and the freedom to jet off on romantic weekends without leaving too much behind. Chaos disrupts their perfect world with Rebec ca’s unexpected pregnancy and desire to start a family. Suddenly, Samuel faces his worst fear — com mitment. The film launches into a forced romantic come dy where Samuel, a successful psychiatrist, deals with his fear, and the couple meets a few surprises along the way. However, the surprises often fail to be humor ous and the obvious attempts at humor found in Columbus’ silly Home Alone films surface at the most predictable moments. The film carries a few redeeming scenes, espe cially when Samuel and his friend Marty (Tom Arnold) beat up a foul-mouthed man in a dinosaur suit named Arnie. But the comedy steps backward with Samuel’s dreams that Rebecca is a praying mantis, ready Nine Months Starring Hugh Grant and Julianne Moore Directed by Chris Columbus Rated PG-13 Playing at Hollywood 16 ★ ★ 1/2 (out of five) to devour him after sex. Act ' weak moment comes with a ■ "Vo you ridiculously frantic trip toil I llieve i livery room. Magic However, out of one of the Los Angeles weakest scenes comes a solid ers sure do. formance. Robin Williams’wf Despite t seasoned improvisational-styNBA work s comedy is one of the few higtpage, rumor lights. He plays a nervousRcflying fast a obstetrician with faulty Engi-riously that and no experience delivering Earvin “Ma| man babies, just other animals. Fortunatelj greatest poi Columbus, Williams is able to run with this history, will and break the pattern of forced comedy four.Tn the fall aj the rest of the film. od of not ph Grant is also fascinating to watch withhb In Noven British charm. However, this role seems tob s hocked the more than he can handle. He stammers his "he announc through the film and tries too hard to be fun'HlV-positiv Moore outshines Grant’s mediocre perforrfo the court and provides a strong dramatic role amidst flp start for 1 slapstick humor. ence in the Samuel and Rebecca are joined by an over Johnson the friendly couple, Marty (Arnold) and Gail (Jo: h ar clly rust; sack). They compliment each other well, the lnc l u< Iing th they both struggle through the slapstick huff d fhe gan Without any depth in the humor cataegor; Most Y alua most of the film’s intrigue comes from watch- Johnson Grant’s character cope with commitment inSumrr cal and realistic relationship. of the Dree With recent developments in Grant’s life- stars °f theme ironically hits close to home. Samuelf . ern Pt e d a c faces temptations with another woman. fall, but Now, that’s comedy.