Pomona's Kinky Past
By Emily Poster Child
Missionary Positioner

Past traditions of Pomona College have included Snack at Frary five nights a week, the beanie caps worn by underclassmen males and the weighing of freshmen women. Relics of a bygone era, these traditions are seen as reflective of a less politically-correct and more repressive time in the history of our college, and of our nation.

Now however, another facet of Pomona history has come to light. Last week, a student discovered a time capsule in the far corner of his Norton-Clark storage space. Cieran Rockwell ’05 was attempting to fit his collection of erotic sculptures in his overhead storage space (in preparation for a visit from his mother) when he noticed a metal boxed wedged in between the wall and a stack of old High Times magazines.

On the top of the box was an almost illegible inscription warning the finder “not to open until the year 2000.” Figuring that 2000 was three years ago, Rockwell decided that the box was fair game. The box, approximately the size of a shoebox, was rusted so shut that Rockwell was forced to break the lock with a hammer.

“I expected to find the usual time capsule stuff. You know, newspaper clippings, old vinyl records, movie tickets.that sort of thing,” Rockwell reported.

Inside, however, was something completely different. Instead of artifacts of a gentler, more innocent time, Rockwell found evidence of a long defunct, but once lively, underground sex scene.

“There were pictures of guys on girls, girls on girls, guys on guys there was even one that looked like maybe there was a dog involved. Or that might have been a trick of the light.” There were pictures showing swingers parties, S&M participants, men dressed in diapers, dominatrixes, and more. In the words of Rockwell, “It was like Annette Funicello from the Mickey Mouse Club meets Richard Mapplethorpe.”

Also found in the box were what appeared to be early prototypes of now common sex toys. For example, there was a hand-carved and varnished wooden dildo—in the shape of Elvis. Proving that the 50s were far from innocent, there was also a copy of the Kama Sutra, cleverly disguised as an economics textbook. There was also a pair of handcuffs, nude pictures of Lucille Ball, and a guide for turning an ordinary bomb shelter into a “love pad.” Incongruously, there was also a photograph of recipe for “Midge’s Pineapple Upside Cake,” and a dry-cleaning receipt.

The black-and-white photographs depicted a plenitude of sexual acts that can only be described as “kinky.” It appears that at one point in Pomona’s past, there was an active subculture devoted to the pleasures of the flesh. This revelation may be surprising to students today who complain about the absence of practically any sexual activity.

Yet according to one alumnus, this was not always the case in Claremont. This graduate of the class of 1959, who wished to remain anonymous, said, “Oh sure. Back then we used to get up to all kinds of stuff. Drag balls, key parties, you name it, we did it. See, there used to be rules against women spending the night in their boyfriend’s dorm room, that sort of thing. So we had to sneak off to the Wash or break into social rooms to get freaky. And after a while, well, vanilla sex just didn’t cut it anymore.”

When asked to speculate as to the decline of sexual activity, kinky or otherwise, in recent decades, the alum replied, “Well, I think maybe once the sexual revolution hit, and those old rules went out the window, sex stopped being so forbidden and mysterious. I mean, now it’s pretty much okay for young people to be having sex in college, but are you guys doing it? Doesn’t sound like it.”

Unfortunately, recent surveys indicate that most students would consider themselves lucky to even get vanilla, never mind the whipped cream. Which is why Cieran Rockwell, as junior class president, has sworn to change that. Shortly after his discovery, Rockwell stated, “If kinkiness was once part of the Pomona tradition, then by God, we’ll make it part of Pomona life again.” Citing a return to core Pomona values, Rockwell has called for an increase in the visibility of leathermen, swingers, and orgies on campus. “By the time I graduate,” he vows, “I will have put a sex swing in every lounge, and golden showers in every hall.”