Voices
by Brother Mel Anderson, FSC, Class of '51 and President of Saint Mary's College of California 1969 to 1997

"To this second semester freshman, the optimism, booming voice and thespian-like delivery of history was an inspiring experience. Fascinated, I watched graduate student Ben Frankel fulfill his first teaching assignment at Saint Mary's College. I was one of more than 100 students who had signed up for the Survey of Western Civilization course in February of 1949. After the first few weeks, there was little doubt among us that Ben Frankel engaged his professorial role with the deftness and excitement of a man who truly believed that teaching was his calling."

One day as Ben was expressing his thoughts on the Islamic incursions into the Christian West, a well-known journalist by the name of Herb Caen happened to be visiting the College. He couldn't help but hear Ben as he walked along the road beneath Ben's classroom. The next day, Caen's column in the San Francisco Chronicle carried several lines on his visit to Saint Mary's, one of which read: "As I passed one of the classroom buildings, I could hear the booming voice of one of the Reverend Fathers, lecturing on the glories of Islam." Ben, the novice teacher and graduate student, a former New Yorker, Army Intelligence Officer, and a practicing Jew, was obviously amused by Caen's report, which he read to his classes the next day with great delight.

Whether in the academic classroom discussing Homer's Iliad, on stage as The Mikado in Gilbert and Sullivan's light opera, Tartuffe in Moliere's classical farce, a nostrum seller in Carnival, or teaching music to football players, historian Dr. Benjamin Frankel is the manifestation of the Saint Mary's College Renaissance Man.

Alumni will readily state that, in addition to his dynamism, occasional histrionics, and ability as a raconteur, Dr. Frankel was one of those professors who was always well-prepared. His personal interest in students, particularly minority students, is a hallmark of his fifty-year tenure at Saint Mary's, a trait evoking deep appreciation from the entire College community. At age eighty, he is still going strong.

Immersion in the total life of the College became Ben Frankel's way of life, supported by Kate, his wife of nearly fifty years. He fulfilled a number of significant assignments and volunteered his booming voice as narrator, announcer, actor, singer, and master of ceremonies. Because he rescued and then stabilized the financial health of the basketball box office as its one-time manager, Ben was presented with a block Saint Mary's jacket and sports blanket, making him an honorary Gael, a moniker he truly enjoys. He was also one of the three founding fathers of CLAM, the Committee on Lectures, Art, and Music, which brought notable lecturers, exhibits, and musicians to the campus to enlarge students' appreciation of the fine arts and contemporary understanding of current affairs. For nine years, Ben Frankel managed the Executive Symposium, an annual meeting which brought together high-level business, labor, and industry leaders to hear distinguished speakers and share insights on economic matters. He has served on every major faculty committee and numerous other committees as well. One of the highlights of his several January Term courses was the year a group of football players signed up for Music for Non-Musicians. Ben had so inspired them that they practiced for hours and announced a performance at the end of the term. Scores of students filled the room to enjoy the wonders of classical and contemporary music performed by a group of football players turned musicians within a month. "It was fantastic!" exclaimed Ben. As leader of the debate team, he crowded his eight-member team into a well-worn Mercury station wagon to traverse California on holidays and weekends to engage in forensic competition with teams from other California colleges and universities. "It was an extraordinary experience for all of us," Frankel reminisces. One member of his team went on to earn his doctorate and is now a colleague on the Saint Mary's faculty.

His interest in the history of Mexico and South America prompted Ben to master Spanish, and he was particularly honored when his definitive book, Venezuela and the United States in the 19th Century, in Spanish, was selected by the Venezuelan government as its gift to the United States in celebration of the United States' Bicentennial.

Over the years, students have been touched with Dr. Frankel's congeniality, his spontaneous laugh, dedication, historical acumen, numerous anecdotes, impartiality, and personal concern. While he endured a few college pranks, such as the time students carried his Volkswagen to the landing at the top of the stairs, there were also times when students expressed their endearment by anonymously washing and polishing his car while he was in class.

Included among his many awards are the honorary doctoral degree presented by the Board of Trustees in 1994, the St. John Baptist de La Salle Award as the Professor of the Year, and the Distinguished Service Award. He was designated as an Honorary Alumnus by the Alumni Association and subsequently presented with both the Signum Fidei (Sign of Faith) and Alumnus of the Year Awards by that association.

It is no wonder that Christian Brothers Superior General John Johnston conferred upon Ben Frankel the appellation Affiliated Member, designating him an honorary Christian Brother, one of the few members of the Jewish faith to be so honored.