"He's been around the block a few times but can still relate to 20-year-old kids in a really genuine way," added Green, who attended many a Red Sox game with Sorrento while at Harvard.
Sorrento worked and joked around with now-famous Crimson editors-including Microsoft president Steven C. Balmer '77, commentator Michael E. Kinsley '72 and Clinton defense attorney Nicole Seligman '78-when they were young, scared and comping The Crimson.
"He's a walking history of The Harvard Crimson," said President Matthew W. Granade '99. "He's always threatening to write a book about what everybody did before they were famous."
Editors said PRS is both an honored and feared presence in the production room. He torments slow writers, proofers and assistant night editors, but is always their last resort when problems arise.
Anne C. Krendl '98, former Crimson executive editor, remembers the regular dose of reprimands she received after the paper "closed out" late under her supervision.
One morning at 3 a.m. she realized she was in for the worst. Krendl had accidentally shot the entire newspaper, 20 pages, to negatives.
"I went to admit my mistake to Pat, literally trembling at the thought of telling him that we would be there for another hour or two," Krendl said. "I went in and confessed and stepped back, anticipating a loud stream of curses. But Pat surprised me. He laughed and said, 'Well, I know you didn't mean it, Anne, don't worry, many others have done the same thing. Just don't do it again.'"
When the last page finally rolled through at sunrise, PRS gave Krendl the extra negatives as a souvenir and told her they would keep it a secret.
Such affection won PRS students' trust and loyalty. It is he that alums call for a late-night chat or to check up on the current guard.
Although his job description has changed over time, Sorrento said the ambiance at The Crimson, where students feel more "like family" than classmates, has always stayed the same.
Sorrento said his 30 years at The Crimson have been "a great time." He describes the years as "better than money."
The words Crimson editors use over and over again to describe PRS are "institutional memory."
"You realize, a year or so after you graduate, that all these young kids putting out the paper have no idea who you are, but that Pat is good enough to remember you," Dorman said.