The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, August 31, 1979, Image 1
' A
The South Carolina Library
Campus
Volume LXX,No.3 University of South Carolina, Columbia, S.C. August 31,1979
1977?\ Mishandling funds
Gamec
By Mark Piatt# and Carl Babcock
Asaiatam N*?n Edhor Graduate Aaalatant
? copyright 1979 Oamacoofc
Mid-Amfirinnn Trnval Sapwira
while acting as travel agent for
the Gamecock Club, was found
guilty of mishandling funds by the
U.S. District Court in Arkansas in
July 1977.
rne service had broken the Civil
Aeronautics Board regulations for
tour operators and by failing to
deposit $226,000 collected by people
Soinfl on the* tour in An psfrnw
account as required by the CAB
regulations. Mid-American Travel
deposited approximately $20,000 in
an escrow account and later
withdrew all but several hundred
dollars, according to the complaint
filed. No other money was placed
an niv. cguvn avvvuin.
THE CAB in its complaint said:
"On information and belief, MidAmerican
Travel Service through
its agent the University of South
Carolina, doing business as
'Gamecock Club', (club) has sold
fka Uourolion C4am Tmm1*iaU*a
vuv iianaiinii viicAJlvp IIIVIUOIVC
Tour Charter to the public.
"However, after the club
received approximately $226,000
from tour participants and
deducted commissions there from,
it failed to remit checks or money
orders payable to the escrow acMmmw*MM
Blue
,A>' ' v.
j By Chris Sosnowski
Garrwoock Staff Wrtt*r
"Tunnelvision'; an intriguing
and disillusioning wall mural on
Taylor and Marion streets,
captures the attention of
: passing Columbia motorists.
The true-to-scale painting of a
tunnel through a mountain road
is the work of its creator, artist
Blue Sky.
! Blue Sky, a Columbia native
and graduate of USC has been
painting all his life.
HnurAVAP ttio 4A_i;oorJll/l artiat
XAVVT VT VA ^WIV IV J VUl ViU MUOi
has other vocations - dance
instructor,gas station at-;
tendent.sign painter and writer.
! Art has always been a big part
of his life and is now his fulltime
occupation.
Blue Sky has a name that is a
curiousity to some people. It is
his legal name,not just a
; pseuaonym used oy
professionals or a stage name.
Blue Sky was not his given
name;he had it legally changed
at a point in his life when he"
changed everything." The
name itself "Just came out of
the blue,"he joked.
Blue Sky said that "Tunnel
vision" is probably his most
successful work,In a commercial
sense. Photographs of
the wall have appeared in
People Magazine as well as
international design magazines
nrl nAtiMnnttAM Clni
uw ><viT0Uil|>v< ? osvjf MMWWW
the idea for the mural. He was
not contracted for It. The South
Carolina Arts Commission
supplied him with a $3,000 grant
for the work.Then he negotiated
wiin ine reaerai Land Bank on
Hampton and Marion Streets,
one wall of which became Sky's
canvas. The bank also supplied
the lighting effects involved in
;ock Club
count, whicn had been established
for receipt of such funds at the
First National Bank of Eastern
Arkansas.
'^Mid-American Travel Service
deposited approximately $20,000 in
(hp IMPPAw an/iniin> am<I auk
?v wv.wn hvvvuih aim ouir
sequently withdrew all but several
hundred dollars. The remainder of
the monies were not placed in the
escrow account."
a ??tml a.i 1
iriEi vvmriiAini cununuea:
"Mid-American Travel Service,
Inc., its officers, agents
(Gamecock Club), servants, and
employees and those persons in
active concert or participation
with them who receive actual
notice of this order, are hereby
if pci niaiicuuj eiijuiuvu in connection
with One-stop Inclusive
Tour and Advance Booking
Charters in which Mid-American is
the One-stop Inclusive Tour
Operator or Advance Booking
Charters Operator from violating
the Board's Regulations governing
surety bonds and escrow ac
A. ?
counts.
The U.S. District Court Judge in
Arkansas ruled that there would be
a close examination of all MidAmerican
Travel Service
operations toy CAB until July 1962.
'The service must maintain a
minimum balance in escrow of 20
" V' V' ' jjfj.';! I!, ,
j's unique
-iKS'^^sSScSBffM
' * '?! ' S^HHfHE^SI
Blue i.
Blue Sky got the idea for
"Tunnelvision" from a dream
last year. The National
Highway Commission awarded
Bhie Sky with a citation for
incorporating the environment
of tne highway with the
building.
"I get these ideas and I try to
tell people and somehow it just
doesn't work so I paint/'he
said. With regard to "Tunnelvision"
Sky said: "It is an
attempt to punch a hole through
a wall,to make it like there's
really a hole there all the way
from one end of the building to
the other." His hope is that first
glimpses by individuals wili>
travel age
percent of all the money of future I
tour participants. Under a i
Memorandum of Understanding H
between the CAB and Mid- I
American Travel Service, no fines I
were assessd as long as the tour H
operators follow the board's H
regulations. !
In his final judgement, the U.S. B
judge repeated almost verbatim n
the wording of the CAB's com- |
plaint but didn't mention the |
Gamecock Club. D
USC attorney Timothy G. Quinn,
said: "I don't believe we're con- 0
nected with this case. I hope not. l!
the Gamecock Club wasn't served ||
witn ttiis notice." ||
HOWEVER, the CAB complaint, H
the U.S. District Court's final H
judgement and the Memorandum |j
of Understanding between the CAB Q
and the Arkansas travel service
were in the legal affairs depart
ment of the University.
Ed Pitts, secretary of the
Gamecock Club, said: "We were
hoping this whole thing would be
dropped. I don't think anything has
been done on this case in about a
year."
The Civil Aeronautics Board in
Washington D.C. will not disclose
when checks are made upon
organizations which have violated
CAB regulations.
NO PRESS releases were issued
s 'Vision'
f:
9k - >*
<* > JjPr * . . ? : 5<.:> -.f
JL ' * ;vN
^jfllb'- * s's
f V js& y -111 ||?ll|$'
'y-ZS'^s'
^16^ ?v-' ^ v ^1%
HHiiMl 1 i MB??i
- ? m 9M
nH^JHi,
;''r" ; sj?i W<"1^L
sm
mm
&Nfy
convince them for a moment
what they see is real. Sky said
he feels as soon as the viewer
realizes it is a mural,the
essence of the moment is
gone,but the interest and ;
curiousity remains beyond the
illusion. 1
The Federal Land Bank is
directly behind the wall, and an
unused bank vault lies directly
behind the sun in the mural.
Blue Sky produced a poster
version of "Tunnelvision" for \
commercial sale. In the
process he and a friend took
4 ~ _a a. * - ^ * - * - ii
Mwniy camera snow cogei ine
effect he wanted.
Ss&3ium Sky, -
>nt found
No.
IN THE UNITED QTJ
COURT FOBTHEEA
OF ARKANSAS
I CIVIL AERONAUTI
BOARD, __
Plaint
! v.
MID AMERICAN TB
SERVICE, INC.
Defend
by CAB or the U.S. District ot
Arkansas about the case.
The present breach of contract
suit against the Gamecock Club
was filed in October 1978 by the
International Travel Group, Inc. of
Raleigh after Edward H. Pitts,
executive secretary of the
Gamecock Club, gave International
Travel exclusive rights
i._ i >? - ^ - -
w nanoie a cnarier trip to Hawaii.
The Travel Group was given an
oral agreement by Pitts to arrange
for all travel agencies in South
Dorm imp\
schedule
By EUse
Onrwcock
Improvements on 19 USC dormiti
Bob Stewart, director of auxiliary s<
Funded almost completely by s
Services estimates a full year in
needed for the renovations and pres
who must approve the estimate.
"We try to be conservative with
into debt," Stewart said. "When w?
goes back into the dormitories for
on the Horseshoe receive outside ?
said.
REQUEST FORMS are sent out
ment presidents, residential staff ai
summer's improvements. This past
at $642,000.
ovewcti i aaiu vapowiic auu oait
because, "Bates House has been be
needs some cosmetic work." Auxill
on a bond issue to pay for these reno
may not be a large enough issue, bt
added.
AUXILIARY SERVICES has se
improvements. The highest priority
health and safety reasons. Following
be done but could be postponed and
dormitory a better facility, but co?,
Stewart
While most of the renovations tal
carries over into the school year,
because many of the buildings are o
said. "Look at the Horseshoe; we're
ABOUT 50% of the bousing fees
services, or mortgage. Also drawii
must go towards vandalism. Stew
disturbing" to "make the students
elude McBryde Quad and Bates Hot
dormitories is nil. "It's an operatis
wiiica i rum un; suiucnui uwn pocxe
The breakdown on how much is h
follows:
South Tower, $23,325; South Bu
Sims, $9,800; Wade Hampton Do
$42,000; Capstone, $10,600; Columb
$520; 814 Henderson St., $10,000; I
Hotel, $15,670; Douglas, $26,300; Bu
Snowden, LaBorde, $2,000; McBi
$50,000; University Terrace, $10,81
$3,600. A total of $25,000 has been sp
students.' v
\
I guilty
L 1 IiD JJ1D 1 xvIU l i
STERN DISTRICT ||
CS COMPLAINT |
iff F0B
injunctivbJ
RELIEF j
AVEL I
o -r? f .
%jm JUL u
' ! 1 *' ' 1 Mllgggg.
Carolina to be able to offer the
Gamecock Tour for USC's trip to
Hawaii for the USC-Hawaii football
game in November 1977, the
suit said.
THE GAMECOCK Club broke off
negotiations wiin international
Travel and entered into a contract
with Mid-American Travel Service
which apparently led to an
estimated $85,000 loss for International
Travel; including
promotions, advertising, and
reservations in Hawaii.
rovements
d this fall
La Porta
Staff Writ**
[>ries will cost $282,725, according to
srvices.
tudent housing fees, the Auxiliary
advance how much money will be
ents it to the USC Board of Trustees,
our estimate in case we should fall
. U?? :i -1
; uu nave uiuiiey icu over, n always
improvements." Only the buildings
(rants for historical restoration, he
in November to dormitory governnd
area managers for the following
: year, the total cost was estimated
s House need to be reconditioned
a ten up pretty badly, and Capstone
ary services has requested a study
vations from the administration, "it
ut it's still got to be done/' Stewart
t up three priorities for dormitory
is renovations that must be done for
g this are improvements that should
improvements that could make the
lid get along without, according to
te place over the summer, often it
"It's impossible to get it all done
ccupied over the summer/' Stewart
still cleaning up out there."
i go directly for utilities and debt
ng on the funds is the money that
rart described it as "difficult and
t understand." Problem dorms in
1.11 i-ii ?
isc, wmie vanuausm in uie women's
ig cost," stressed Stewart, "and it
ts."
eing spent on each dormitory is as
ilding, $2,850; McClintock, $8,260;
irmitory, $3,000; Horseshoe area,
>ia Hall, $2,400; Nada Apartments,
k. A A- ? -*w ?. * -
raws area, $i,uuu; waae Hampton
roey, $3,900; Baker, $3,100; Moore,
*yde, $28,500; Woodland Terrace,
DO; South Marion St. Apartments,
tent on renovations for handicapped