In last week’s column, I addressed my role as an interviewer over my 50-year career. Here are some of the notable people I’ve had the privilege of interviewing.

Maine’s own Joan Benoit Samuelson won the gold medal for the marathon in the 1984 Summer Olympics. I wrote an article about Joan for Yankee magazine. Joan is a gem, as everyone who has ever met her already knows. I also interviewed Dave Wottle, gold medalist for the 800 meter run in the 1972 Olympics. Dave, who was dean of Admissions at Rhodes College when I met him, was the guy who wore the floppy painter’s hat when he ran.

Barry Rosen was working as a press attache for the U.S. Embassy in Tehran when he was one of 52 Americans captured by revolutionaries and held for 444 days. Barry was the assistant to the president at Brooklyn College when I met him.

Sissy Farenthold had her name placed in nomination for the office of Vice President of the United States at the 1972 Democratic Convention. I met Sissy while she was serving as president of Wells College. Sissy gave me the case for attending a women’s college, while her cat wandered around her office.

Dr. Edward Osborne (“E.O.”) Wilson, who won the Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction, is known as the “father of social biology,” the “father of biodiversity” and the world’s leading expert on myrmecology (the study of ants). I was working on fundraising materials for Harvard when I interviewed. Dr. Wilson by phone.

Tony Campolo, a highly regarded progressive speaker and writer within the evangelical community, served as the spiritual advisor to President Bill Clinton. Tony was on the faculty at Eastern College in Pennsylvania when I met him. I’m sure that Tony is horrified today about the strong support for President Trump within the white evangelical community.

Remember when Captain Kangaroo would have a woman on the show who brought with her various animals? That woman was Ruth Manecke, his animal agent. While interviewing Ruth to write a profile for the Connecticut College magazine, I learned that she’s the go-to person for coming up with all kinds of animals for any purpose. Want a cheetah for your perfume ad? Contact Ruth. A small artificial forest stocked with animals for your son’s over-the-top bar mitzvah celebration? Ruth’s your gal.

John Silber catapulted Boston University into the ranks of the nation’s top universities while serving as president and, later, chancellor. Many faculty members chafed at Silber’s dictatorial style, although I found him charming if a bit gruff.

I met two famous men when their sons were applying to Ohio Wesleyan University. Art Buchwald was as funny in person as he was in his writings. Bowie Kuhn, then commissioner of Major League Baseball, was a big friendly regular guy.

Dr. James Hildreth, a Harvard graduate and renowned researcher in the field of HIV and AIDS, was the first African-American Rhodes Scholar from Arkansas and the first African-American granted full-tenure in basic sciences at Johns Hopkins University. I met Dr. Hildreth when he was teaching and conducting research at Meharry Medical College in Memphis. Today, he serves as Meharry’s president.

I’ve been inspired by interviewing people with physical challenges: a young woman with autism; a young man with Marfan syndrome; a man with intellectual disability; and several blind people at the Maryland School for the Blind.

I traveled to Ghana to meet with Patrick Awuah, visionary founder of Ashes University in Accra. and the recipient of many honorary degrees while still in his 30s. I got connected to Patrick through my son David, as they worked at Microsoft together in the 1990s.

I profiled my friend Bobby Ives, founder of the nationally renowned Carpenter’s Boat Shop in Pemaquid, for the Deerfield Academy alumni magazine.

I profiled Lonnie Hackett who started the Healthy Learners program in Zambia. The ultimate goal is to provide a model whereby schools can support the overall health of children throughout the developing world.

Here’s a final frivolous note. Ever watch the St. Joseph University Hawks play a basketball game? If you have, you may recall seeing the hawk mascot flapping its wings throughout the entire game. Well, I got to interview the student who received a scholarship to be the hawk.

In retrospect, it’s been a good long ride behind the interviewer’s desk. I’m a lucky man.

David Treadwell, a Brunswick writer, welcomes commentary and suggestions for future “Just a Little Old” questions. dtreadw575@aol.com.

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