Students petition to hire James Earl Jones for CRISP

By Lee Palmer
For the Daily

"Luke, I am your father."

"If this is not correct, please press 1 now."

A petition already signed by more than 800 students is currently circulating on campus requesting that University alumnus James Earl Jones become the official voice of the University's CRISP (Computer Registration Involving Student Participation) syWith two Tony Awards, two Emmys and an Oscar nomination for Best Actor, Jones is still probably best known to younger audiences as the powerful and haunting voice of Darth Vader.

BOHDAN DAMIAN CAP/Daily LSA senior Amy Eiferman leads a campaign during Festifall to hire University alumnus James Earl Jones to record the "CRISP lady" voice. The group hopes to collect 5,000 student signatures and then contact Jones and talk with the University administration.

"Everyone who is enrolled at the University has to CRISP, and we thought, since we're such a big school, we shouldn't have an anonymous person's voice as our phone registration person," said LSA junior Jeremy Elman, who is one of 11 founding members of the James Earl Jones (JEJ) For CRISP Lady Task Force.

After collecting the bulk of its signatures at Festifall and receiving approval from the Michigan Student Assembly, the group is optimistic about its mission.

"If students really want it, and as long as JEJ is willing and the University is willing, I believe that it can really happen," said RC senior Shari Strauss, who said she got involved because the current voice of CRISP is "all right, but it's not James Earl Jones."

If Jones were to record his voice for CRISP, it would not be the first time he has gone out of his way for his alma mater. In 1994, he returned to campus to present University ROTC awards and to be the first inductee of the ROTC Wolverine Battalion's newly established Hall of Fame. He has also come to speak and has held a book signing for his autobiography, "Voices and Silences."

Jones also has recorded a Campus Day video for prospective first-year students, taught a one-time, two-hour master class for School of Music students, and worked as co-chair of the William and Clairbel Halstead Scholarship Endowment.

Students said they were hopeful that the multi-talented actor might be able to squeeze a CRISP recording session into his schedule.

"He has such close connections to the University, he'd probably come and do it," said LSA sophomore David Pascoe.

JEJ For CRISP Lady Task Force organizers say they have not discussed the issue of expense, but they do not intend to waste University money.

Some students said they would be willing to dip into their wallets to bankroll the project.

"I would pay a dollar to get his voice," LSA sophomore David Willens said.

Though unable to provide exact figures, Assistant University Registrar Lynn Adelman said making a CRISP recording change would be "quite costly."

The current CRISP voice was bought as a package with the computerized registration system, which was installed by technology company Periphonics in the winter of 1995.

Several University officials refused comment before seeing the petition and hearing the students' reasons for making the change.

To task force member and LSA senior Jenny House, the reason is simple: The current voice sounds very computerized and impersonal.

"Talking to all different students on campus, you hear so many complaints about the CRISP lady," House said. "It seems that support for James Earl Jones as the voice is one thing that unites all students and it promotes good school spirit."

Members said they hope to collect about 5,000 signatures before they take their proposal to Jones's representatives and the University administration.

Michigan Student Assembly Vice President Olga Savic said the assembly is behind the project 100 percent.

"I think it would be a great service to students because it would reduce student stress when registering," said Savic, who is also a task force member.

Students can e-mail the task force at: please.hold.on@umich.edu.

09-16-97