Homecoming is rife with reminders: we are reminded how fun school spirit can be, how ridiculous 35-year-old, balding investment bankers look while trying to relive their glory days and most importantly of our ancient rivalry with Princeton. Sure, we love to hate on our Ivy-counterparts, but let’s face it: our brethren in the Ancient Eight have invented, founded and created so many of the goods and services that make our college experience oh-so-sweet. To show our gratitude, Street brings you the ultimate guide to living Ivy-friendly, by showing you how to incorporate Ivy League innovation into your Homecoming rituals.
1. The Off-Campus Homecoming Tailgate Homecoming weekend parties call for more formal invitations, so when a Facebook event just won’t do, log on to James (Harvard ’08) and Alexa (Harvard ’06) Hirschfeld’s Paperless Post for digitized yet elegant invites. Banker’s Club Vodka and Natty Light may be the go-to drinks at a bevy of Penn’s on campus house parties, but they are neither tasty nor Ivy-friendly. Never fear, you can still pick up a case of Blue Moon or Coors Light, products conceived by Coors Brewing Company heirs William (Princeton ‘39) and Joseph (Cornell ‘39) Coors. Craving the hard stuff? Both Grey Goose and Jagermeister were the brainchildren of Sidney Frank (Brown ‘42). If its 10 a.m., feel free to make your morning screwdriver with Nantucket Nectars, created by Tom First and Tom Scott (both Brown ‘89).
2. The Awkward Weekend With Your Parents You begged them not to come, but Parents’ Weekend conflicted with dear Aunt Mildred’s 90th birthday party and now you’re stuck with mom and dad on homecoming. Rent a car from PhillyCarShare (co-founded by Penn Design grad Tanya Seaman, MCP’00 CRT’00), and take your parents on an architectural tour of Philly and its surrounding suburbs. Infamous and highly controversial urban planner Edmund Bacon (Cornell, ‘32) is responsible for Center City’s LOVE Park, Society Hill, and much of the post-WWII planning of the city. Incidentally, he’s also the father of actor Kevin Bacon. Philadelphia’s built landscape is lush with projects by architectural luminaries Denise Scott Brown (Penn, MCP ‘60) and Robert Venturi (Princeton, MFA ‘50).
3. The Lazy Sunday Odds are you’ll be too hung over to leave your apartment or dorm before noon, so watch T.V. in bed; anything provided by Comcast (chairman and CEO Brian L. Roberts, W’81) is acceptable. While you’re at it, rent Away We Go starring John Krasinski (Brown, ‘01); I Love You Man, directed by John Hamburg (Brown, ‘92); Harry Potter with Emma Watson (Brown, ’13); any movie with Natalie Portman (Harvard, ’03) or some permutation of Jake (Columbia dropout) and Maggie (Columbia, ‘99) Gyllenhaal. If you’re up for it, shop online on Gilt Groupe. Attempt to act like the worldly and savvy Penn student that you are by watching CNN if you’re up for hard-hitting news, or (if that hangover’s worse than you thought) cartoons on TNT (both created by Brown dropout Ted Turner).
