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The first and only female in the chain. She was chosen to
recognize the admission of women to Yale College in 1969. "She's
aggressive, boisterous and stubborn", so the reporters say. Bingo
was the 2-year old pet of Professor of History and Oratory, Rollin
G. Osterweis, '30, '46 Ph.D. and his family. At age two and a half,
Bingo was already "a typical Old Blue", says Professor Osterweis,
"pugnacious and stubborn, but lovable." Following Professor
Osterweis' death, Eustace Theodore, Executive Director of the Yale
Alumni Association took care of her.
Unfortunately, the Director of Athletics, "despite her breed -
very strong, purebred and from a line of champions" - feels that
the new pretender is not qualified. Bingo's undoing, alas, is her
sex. "We're still looking for a male dog, because it's very hard to
call a female 'Handsome Dan.' She's a mascot, but she's also a
female and she should have her own name." The Athletic Director
would prefer to have two bulldogs - one of each sex. Professor
Osterweis, who called Bingo's selection as a mascot "my proudest
moment as a Yale man, is not sure about the need for what the
Athletic Director calls 'a coed pair' of bulldogs". "He's just
afraid," Professor Osterweis says, "that there are likely to be
some alumni who will crab if Handsome Dan isn't a male." The
Athletic Director admits that Professor Osterweis is "a little
sensitive about that," but claims that Bingo's separate status
would not make her unequal. "It's true she won't be in the line of
succession," he says, "but that shouldn't depreciate her eminence."
She descended from champions, white with brown spots and wore
the Blue on a powerful 48-pound frame. Under AKC regulations, she
is the only registered bulldog in the country bearing the name
"Bingo". Three of her 8 great-grandparents were champions. She took
an early retirement having reigned since 1975. See attached letter
of Bingo's retirement that was sent to President A. Bartlett
Giamatti.
Professor Osterweis' daughter, Nancy Osterweis Alderman, has a
wonderful scrapbook on Bingo.
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