“I’m a manatee...no difference between my face and fann-atee,” Lithgow sang.
“I knew I shouldn’t have done this,” he added after forgetting the words half-way through the song.
Matthew W. Mahan ’05, former president of the Undergraduate Council, said he’s glad that Lithgow was chosen, despite some disgruntlement among seniors that Lithgow wasn’t as high-profile as some previous Commencement Day speakers. Kofi Annan, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, spoke last year, and former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo addressed graduates in 2003.
“I thought the book dedication was incredible and I’m glad that they finally had an artist speak,” Mahan said. “I think it’s important that we have a well-rounded group of speakers for Commencement.”
Lithgow, who is currently starring in Broadway’s “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,” is best-known for his role as extraterrestrial-in-disguise Dr. Dick Solomon on NBC’s 1990s sitcom “3rd Rock From the Sun.”
“I’ve seen him on ‘3rd Rock From the Sun’ and I knew he was very good, but I didn’t know that he could perform that well—he has a wonderful use of words,” said Dick Diroll ’50, at Harvard for his 55th reunion.
GLOBAL DESIGNS
In his afternoon address, Summers reiterated a hallmark of his agenda: Harvard’s global responsibility.
Summers garnered a standing ovation as soon as he was introduced. Administrators and higher-ups on the platform behind him stood up almost in unison, with many in the audience following soon after.
Summers said that whether or not the 21st century will result in “less brutality and more human freedom” will depend primarily on ideas, and the “wisdom of people who are in positions to use them.”
“At a time when the United States has never been so misunderstood by the rest of the world, and quite likely has never been so misunderstanding of the rest of the world, we have a special need to prepare our students with international understanding and a lifetime commitment to comprehending changing global realities,” he said.
It is Harvard’s role, Summers said, to foster international understanding by expanding its presence abroad and ensuring its students develop a global outlook while at Harvard.
With Dean of the Faculty William C. Kirby’s “leadership and that of his colleagues, I am pleased to report that we are approaching the day when, like the swimming test for a previous generation of Harvard undergraduates, an international experience will be the norm and expectation for Harvard undergraduates,” Summers said.
“Let us build on these steps and look forward to the day when there will be Harvard offices supporting the foreign study of our students, the research of our faculty, the dissemination of our ideas, and the involvement of our alumni in every part of the world,” he said.
Senior Lecturer on Economics Jeffrey Wolcowitz—who served as the primary architects of last year’s curricular review report, which called for undergraduates to have a “significant international experience”—called Summers’ vision “right on.”
Summers did omit two personal anecdotes that appeared in the prepared text of his speech. At one point, this made for a confusing reference back to a point he had not actually made.
“I mentioned a few minutes ago—actually, I didn’t,” he said. “I was going to, but then I cut it.”
—Staff writer May Habib can be reached at habib@fas.harvard.edu.