Something strange jumped out to the Inside USC blog in today's Los Angeles Times Opinion section.
In an article over calling USC the, "University of Spoiled Children," author Rob Long begins, "A few weeks ago, John McCain made a little joke at his wife's expense. Referring to her alma mater -- Cindy McCain is a graduate of the University of Southern California, where she was a cheerleader and sorority sister -- he called it "USC, the University of Spoiled Children."
What's wrong with that? Well until two years ago, the only cheerleaders USC has had were exclusively male. The 85 year tradition was discontinued in 2006. For all I can tell, the Song Girls have never led a cheer and have never even been given a microphone.
So, was Cindy McCain a male while in college, you ask? Nope. It's just the editors at the Times don't seem to know the difference between a cheerleader and a Song Girl. And the possible-future-First-Lady was one of them!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-10-2008 @ 4:40PM
Brian said...
Are you sure she was a Song Girl? Wouldn't those types of photos have been all over the news by now?
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7-10-2008 @ 4:43PM
Scott Olin Schmidt said...
Would be hard to tell since most Song Girls look the same, eh?
But she most definitely was not a Yellfish...or was she?!?
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7-10-2008 @ 10:31PM
Sean Hawkins said...
Maybe she's like Al Martin, the former Mariner outfielder who claimed to have played linebacker for USC in the Rose Bowl? He even gave an interview where he described in great detail how woozy he was when he tried to tackle Leroy Hoard I believe? Then again, Martin was married to two women at the same time....hmmm, maybe a bad comparison after all!
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7-11-2008 @ 11:12AM
Anon said...
A Song Girl is a cheerleader. I think if USC was trying to maintain the distinction between the two it's purely marketing, or a very pointless "tradition" that should never fool anyone outside of the PR department. When you see a girl with pom poms on the sideline in a team-oriented outfit and skirt dancing and otherwise supporting the team, that's a cheerleader. Whatever they want to call themselves, the Song Girls dress like, behave like, and are considered by everyone to be cheerleaders. The Times was right to ignore such administrative semantics.
Now, if you want to argue whether NFL and NBA dance teams qualify as cheerleaders, you might have something.
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7-11-2008 @ 8:25PM
wes said...
a trans first lady, now that would be sooo HOTT !!!!
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8-05-2008 @ 6:37PM
bluefin said...
Scott,
I think you may be confusing male "cheerleaders" (or yell kings) with the Song Girls. We definitely had Song Girls back in the '70's & I've seen them on SC football telecasts thru Rose Bowl 2008.
Cindy Hensley (McCain) graduated from SC in '76. Seems I photographed her twice for the USC '76 yearbook.
I personally don't recall her as one of the six "starting" Song Girl in '74-'75, or '75-'76. She may have been an "alternate", or been one in previous years.
Hope this helps.........................Bluefin
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