Many interesting things are turning up in the Thresher photo files from the ’90s and ’00s. Today it’s Vladimir Putin, on campus in 2001 (that’s thirteen years ago if you’ve lost count) for a talk at the Baker Institute. The Thresher sent a couple of photographers–Konstantin and Renata according to the cursory labels. Most of the pictures from the actual event are competent but not especially interesting. They basically all look something like this, except sometimes Putin’s eyes are closed and sometimes they’re open:
What was eye-catching was Putin’s arrival at Rice, which was just a tad more spectacular than the usual discreet black town car pulling up to the Institute’s front door. Check out these nice images (and please note that I managed to get a horse in two days in a row):
I was frankly less interested in the remarks than in the spectacle, but I offer this without comment:
Bonus: Nothing tightens my stomach like seeing construction equipment in the parking lot but it was just maintenance. These guys were doing the chalking for new stripes and I was quite taken by the bright colors.
well we all love a gangster , dont we? old Pontiac and old owner in Kerrville
You make a very wise point, James.
Stay out of trouble out there!
More horses can be found in the 1974 Campinile. 🙂
Yes, that is the Marine helicopter, or at least the same class of helicopter, that the President uses. It is called Marine One when he is on board. This was sponsored by the Baker Institute but it took place in Alice Pratt Brown Hall. This was a huge deal at the Shepherd School. We had to work with four different agencies: US Secret Service, their Russian counterparts, HPD, and RUPD. I could go on and on…
Putin was here for about an hour. He spoke for about a half hour and then attended a reception in Hirsch Orchestra Rehearsal Hall for a half hour, then helicoptered to NASA.
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I remember this visit well, I had one of the coveted tickets to see him speak, but overslept (I was a night owl) and missed it. My roommate really gave me a hard time about. In retrospect I wish I had gone.