In its first ten years the Order of Mast and Dagger at PJC established the annual Carnival as one of Pasadena's most traditional spring events. Starting with the "Leap Year Frolic" of 1928, adding the Parade of Floats in 1932, and developing into a western "Deadwood Diggins" in 1936, the OMD Carnivals were both colorful and profitable as they used the gyms and tennis courts to please large crowds with various themes like "Circus" and "Mardi Gras."

Quickly assuming their role as official hosts for the junior college, the 1928 OMD members welcomed and entertained the visiting Kamehameha football team from Hawaii with a reception and a trip to Mt. Lowe on the famous incline-railway. Also, in 1928, Mast and Dagger established the precedent of staging special assemblies. By the spring of 1929 the final assembly was designated as the occasion for the exciting tapping ceremony. The first annual OMD banquet was held in the elegant Grill Room of the historic Maryland Hotel (at Colorado and Los Robles) on June 20, 1929.

When first adopted in 1928, the OMD sweater was black with Omicron Mu Delta letters outlined in white, but it was soon afterward changed to the present combination of white sweater with black letters. Throughout the first decade, tappee groups were comparatively small, which made the honor especially distinctive (Leveraging less than ten per semester).

In the fall of 1927 the OMD chapter decided that outstanding members of the "Pioneer Class" of PJC should be honored for their prominence in establishing the traditions and ideals of the college. Therefore, six leaders of the Class of 1926 were extended OMD membership even though they had already graduated to four-year universities. These included two pioneer PJC student body presidents, a vice-president, two presidents of AWS and the president of the graduating class-all of whom had served in many other activities as well.

There were challenging moments and unexpected situations for OMD leaders of the first few years. The "college in tents" after the Long Beach earthquake of 1933 was an example. Fortunately, starting with Nobu Kawai as the first president, the Order of Mast and Dagger during this decade was led by resourceful officers who gained for the organization from its inception the respect of both faculty and students. I

The impact of World War 11 naturally dominated the activities of the Order of Mast and Dagger during its second ten years. Spectacular Carnivals were held in 1937-41 and the Crafty Hall assemblies brought additional attention to OMD in the late "thirties," but everything on campus changed overnight with the Pearl Harbor attack of December 7, 1941,.,

From 1941 to 1945 the OMD Carnival gave way each year to highly successful War Bond drives and other wartime causes. When PJC led alI competing schools by $50,000 in War Bond sales in 1943, the Order of Mast and Dagger played an important role. The World Student Fund received $1500 from a Spring 1945 drive that was substituted for that year's Carnival.

Spencer Tracy was tapped as an honorary member of OMD in 1944 at a special ceremony during his personal PJC appearance to cap a four-day War Bond drive that took the place of the Carnival. The great movie star had arranged a preview of "The White Cliffs of Dover" for the student body as a feature of the bond campaign.

Superior Court Judge Warren Allen was serving as OMD president in the fall semester of 1941 when the U.S. entered the war. At his suggestion, the active chapter voted unanimously to list all the former PJC students who died at Pearl Harbor as honorary members of OMD. On the basis of information available at the time of the semester's final assembly, ten Pearl Harbor heroes had attended PJC and their names were therefore posthumously added to the OMD roster during an impressive special program.

U.S.S. England

Most famous of the Pearl Harbor honorary tappees was Ensign John Charles England, a former PJC cheer leader, who gave his life attempting to save men trapped below on the USS Oklahoma. In 1943 a record-breaking destroyer escort was named in his honor, followed in 1963 by a second USS England, the powerful guided missile frigate DLG-22.

Crafty Hall was presented by OMD at the PJC Community Night in 1945, and profits were used to send The Chronicle to service men overseas. At the 1945 banquet a handbook was distributed to keep alumni up-to-date. Great enthusiasm was evident at the Spring 1946 Carnival, the first since the start of the war.

As the second decade drew to a close, plans were being laid for a twenty-year OMD anniversary celebration in 1947.

Probably the most notable OMD achievement of this ten years was the establishment of the John W. Harbeson Award. This recognition of the outstanding man and woman in the freshman class took the form of a scholarship check financed from the annual carnival profits. It was introduced at the time of the -retirement in 1950 of Dr. John W. Harbeson, Principal of PJC since 1927 and the f first honorary member of Mast and Dagger.

Under the guidance of Adviser Charles Eckles and his successors, OMD in its third decade was exceptionally busy. An attractive twentieth-anniversary booklet was published in 1947, telling the history of the organization and listing all its members and officers to that date. In addition to the Crafty and June shows, the OMD chapter was also sponsoring an orientation assembly and, of course, the annual spring carnival.

Some of the carnivals of this period were Coney Island, Mardi Gras (with its Show Boat), Silverado (with the Silver Dollar Saloon), The Circus (with Elephant Girl), This is Greece and An Arabian Night (with PCC President William Langsdorf wearing an OMD fez).

Actually, the most important historical fact of the third OMD decade was the change of name from the Order of Mast and Dagger to the Order of Distinguished Service in 1954. It was the year that PCC (which had dropped the name PJC in 1947) was consolidated with Muir College. This became the occasion for OMD to welcome the ODS honorary organization of Muir College into its PCC ranks. Because the "Pirate" was no longer the PCC emblem-mascot, it was not difficult to delete the name "Mast and Dagger" in favor of "Order of Distinguished Service" which was more meaningful to the Muir members. However, the original Omicron Mu Delta pin was retained and OMD became the popular name of the organization.

In 1952 an interesting and well-illustrated twenty-fifth anniversary booklet was published. The Gay Nineties Carnival (with, its Can-Can Girls) was set up in 1956 on the basketball courts instead of the usual Mirror Pool area. As the highly successful third decade ended, the President of OMD was John Christie, the 1977 PCC Alumni Association President who is chairman of the 50th Anniversary Reunion.

With the emphasis on "candid camera" in the "fifties," human interest pictures of the elated reactions of new OMD members when unexpectedly tapped became favorite subjects for full pages-sometimes two-page spreads-in the Pageant (yearbook), especially in 1957-60.

OMD carnivals of the "sixties" stood out as among the most successful ever produced. On May 12, 1962, Horrell Field was transformed into a colorful town of L'il Abner, Daisy Mae and Mammy Yokum for the Dogpatch Carnival. The sweepstakes winner was the "Still on the Hill." PCC President Dr. Catherine Robbins spent some time in the Varsity Club's Dogpatch Jail.

Gold Rush Days was the theme of the 1963 carnival, with the "Silver Dollar Saloon" taking the sweepstakes trophy. At the 1964 Global Affair carnival, the "Wipe Out" dunking booth of Circle K won the honors. Dancing girls stole the show at the 1965 Sultan's Bazaar. Harbeson Award winners were now being announced at the carnival and the 1965 freshmen to receive this honor were Mary Blowers -and James Mason, both of whom were later prominent OKID members.

Most profitable carnival of the decade was Polynesian Paradise (1966), with a record number of thirty-three booths. The new PCC President Armen Sarafian crowned the OMD Queen. This extravaganza was remembered for its "soft shimmering blue seas, little grass huts and hula girls."

In the "sixties" the organization was saddened three times. An "In Memoriam" to Grant Bachtold (1958 Harbeson Award winner) appeared on the OMD page in the 1961 Pageant. Beloved Dr. John W. Harbeson, first honorary OMD President, died on March 27, 1962. During the 1966-67 school year, the actives mourned the passing of popular Dean John E. Twomey, an honorary OMD, and established in his memory the Twomey Award for incoming freshmen.

An original little brochure explaining OMD purposes, traditions and awards was published during this period. It pictured Robert Roberts (Fall, 1964) installing tappees and the crowning of the "Sultan's Queen."

That OMD had impressively maintained its high reputation during its fourth decade is indicated by the 1966 Pageant evaluation that "The highest honor bestowed upon any student or teacher at PCC is membership in OMD, the college's most selective honorary organization."

The Fortieth Anniversary Banquet and the Viva La Fiesta Carnival in 1%7 provided promising openers for the fifth decade of OMD. However, the national student apathy and disenchantment of the Viet Nam era inevitably reached the PCC campus and, according to the 1968 Pageant (yearbook), attendance was so poor at the year's OMD assembly that "the active members decided that student interest wasn't enough to warrant holding it again."

In spite of the difficulties facing campus organizations during this period, OMD nobly carried on most of its traditional activities. At the 1968 carnival, Queen Florence Matter was introduced by television journalist Ralph Story.

Although the locale had been changed from the Mirror Pool lawn to the Free Speech-Mall area and staging the production became more frustrating each year, the carnival was attempted annually until 1976 when it was replaced by the OMD Art Fair. During this period two of the most satisfactory carnivals were in 1972 and 1973, the latter nostalgically entitled "Remember When."

A highlight of the OMD banquets in 1973 and 1974 was the outstanding entertainment furnished by Dean Phyllis Jackson and her husband, Harold. At the Pepper Mill, in January, 1973, the Ink Spots captivated the audience that included a large turnout of alumni. More recent banquets have been held at the Altadena Town and Country Club. The student lounge in the Cam-Pus Center, instead of the auditorium, has been the installation site during the "seventies."

In 1976, with the approach of the fiftieth OMD anniversary, PCC President Dr. E. Howard Floyd decided the time had arrived to give the organization a retroactive boost to its old traditional image. Eagerly, the PCC Alumni Association, under the leadership of President John Christie, sponsored the gala OMD 50th Anniversary Reunion.

The first event in this "rebirth" was the special OMD assembly in the auditorium to announce the 1976-77 tappees. Under the direction of the very capable 1976 OMD President, Jean Hector, and Adviser Dorothy J. Kolts, an entertaining and impressive program was presented to a large audience. Ralph Story and Christine Lund introduced the forty-four tappees and were themselves made honorary members. Judge Warren D. Allen was an honored guest.