`63 `65 `86 `76 `71 - The Tower – 87th Year

Vanguard
The Tower
11
A look at PHS history
Vanguard presents...
p er
John
Popper ’86 is the
Grammy-winning frontman
of the rock band Blues Traveler. He
sings and plays guitar and harmonica,
in addition to composing the majority
of lyrics and music for the group. At PHS,
Popper formed several garage bands with
friends, one of which evolved into Blues Traveler
in 1987. Popper’s “Run Around” received a
Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by
a Duo or Group in 1996. This PHS alumnus
has performed with renowned musicians and
bands including the Dave Matthews Band,
B.B. King, Jason Mraz, and John
Mayer, among many others.
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Jo
n
p
Po
Vanguard explored the yearbook archives of PHS,
gathering a brief collection of past school happenings, and also researched a few famous alumni and
their accomplishments post-graduation.
’86
L esle y B u s
h
Lesley Bush ’65
is a competitive diver and
an Olympic gold medalist. Bush
received this medal while representing
the USA at the 1964 Summer Olympics in
platform diving. Three years later, she won a
gold medal in platform diving in the 1967 Pan
American Games. In 1986, Bush was inducted
into the International Swimming Hall of Fame;
she also received the Silver Anniversary Award,
which recognizes distinguished former student
athletes, from the NCAA in 1995. Bush was a
science teacher at Grover Middle School in
West Windsor in the late 1970s and early
1980s. Although now retired, she
teaches gardening part-time to
elementary school students
in Princeton.
A two-time Tony
award winner (Best Actress,
Sweet Charity, 1986; Best Actress,
Chicago, 1997), PHS graduate Bebe
Neuwirth pursued a life as a professional
dancer following her years here. Majoring in
dance at the Juilliard School of Music, Neuwirth
broke into the New York arts scene through her
featured role as “Sheila” in the Broadway hit,
A Chorus Line. In addition to playing Dr. Lilith
Sternin in the TV-show, Cheers, she has made
numerous guest appearances on other TV
specials such as Law and Order: Special
Victims Unit; Frasier; and Star Trek:
The Next Generation.
’76
J
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oh
el L
em
on
Michael Lemonick ’71
is a senior staff writer at Climate
Central, a non-profit news organization
based out of New York that researches and
reports changing climate and its impact on the
American public. Formally, Lemonick was a senior
science writer for Time magazine and wrote about a
wide range of topics in science and technology, including
astronomy, ocean exploration, astrophysics, archaeology,
and brain research. Over his 20 years at TIME, Lemonick
has written over 50 cover stories. As a science writer, he has
also written for popular magazines such as Discover magazine
and Scientific American, where he wrote about astronomy,
sustainability, global warming, and more. Lemonick has
also written books on astrophysics, the Big Bang, and the
possibility of extraterrestrial life. The New York Times Book
Review named Lemonick as “[one of] the best of today’s
astronomy popularizers.” Lemonick currently lives
in Princeton and, in addition to reporting, is a
Visiting Lecturer in Astrophysical Sciences
at Princeton University.
Lith g o w
John Lithgow ’63
is an award-winning actor
and musician. He is best known
for his roles as Dr. Dick Solomon
on the sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun,
Reverend Shaw Moore in Footloose, and
the voice of Lord Farquaad in Shrek. He also
won one Golden Globe award and an Emmy
award in 2010 for portraying Arthur Mitchell
on Showtime’s Dexter. He was the lead role
in the musical Sweet Smell of Success,
winning the Tony Award for Best Leading
Actor in a Musical. Still acting, he has
appearances coming up both
onstage and in film.
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Bebe Ne
uw
irt
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Micha
ic
’71
’65
’63
by Karina Lieb