Step back in time features news items from The Daily Star 25 and 50 years ago.*
25 years ago
July 9, 1987
COOPERSTOWN _ The 1989 summer festival promotion by the state commerce department will focus on Cooperstown to recognize the 50th birthday of the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
In addition to an intense statewide promotion, a publicity and news campaign will reach across the country and around the world to bring people to Cooperstown.
The effort will include public service television and radio spots, special mention in all of the commerce department's publications and a tour of the region for journalists a year in advance, according to Bern Rotman, communications director for the commerce department.
"I'm sure it's going to be a tremendous boon to Cooperstown and the whole area," said William Guilfoile, associate director at the Hall of Fame.
Richard McCaffery, president of the Otsego County Tourism Bureau, said there will be benefits for the tourist industry beyond Cooperstown.
The state chose Cooperstown for the festival because the season's major event, the Hall of Fame's 50th anniversary, will provide focus and marketability, Rotman said.
Last year's summer festival featured the city of Albany's 300th birthday.
50 years ago
July 9, 1962
The tall, thin Japanese boy talked to the small, slight Argentine lad.
A tall, blonde Finn was placidly listening to the short, dark, vivacious French girl. A Turk chimed in with a couple of quips. The German quietly listened. She frowned because the Turk's English wasn't the best.
Where was this cosmopolitan group?
At Gilbert Lake, Sunday, 35 foreign exchange students, sponsored by the American Field Service had an old-fashioned American picnic.
"We're just one big family" _ that's what they said.
The foreign students all had one language in common _ English _ and they had one aim in common _ to bring each other closer together so they could understand each other's problems.
They talked of the America they would probably never forget.
Some of their memories are: The way students are taught in American schools; that the streets of large cities are not really as clean as they are depicted in motion pictures; that every American has a car and that the American teenager is much freer than his counterpart in foreign lands.
The Swedish girl sad that many Americans asked her about her country's socialistic government and that many Americans thought her government was communistic.
"Some Americans do not know the meaning of communism," she declared.
The American hosts had as much fun as their guests.
*Editor's note: This story was edited at 9:10 a.m. July 9 to correct the dates in the headline and story.
