Tue 5 May 2009
Royals at Williams
Posted by jeffz under Admissions, Princess Eugenie, Williamstown at 7:00 am
Definitely check out this wild story on Fergie’s (the Dutchess, not the singer — although I am not sure which would be more surprising) visit to Williamstown. If anyone has any updates on the results of this visit, the readership of this blog would certainly love to hear them.
*(I am glad I beat DK to this one, because God knows what non-sequitor finances-related rant this would prove an inspiration for).
UPDATE from DK: Material formerly here has been moved to this post.
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22 Responses to “Royals at Williams”
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frank uible says:
Williamstown tends to be very discreet in protecting the privacy of the rich and famous and near rich and famous, who reside in or visit the town and its environs.
Guy Creese '75 says:
I find it incredible that the Williams Inn is pitching how hospitable it is. That certainly wasn’t my experience, when a number of years ago my wife and I were staying there and part of its aluminum roof came off in a freak windstorm and crashed down on several cars out front (including ours). Our car was damaged and the upper floor room we were staying in started having water coming in. Other than moving us to another room, the owner refused to do anything about it: he didn’t give us a discount, he didn’t comp us a room, he pointedly said his insurance wouldn’t cover it, and he was not especially apologetic about the incident either.
We’ve never stayed there again, and I’ve recommended to friends that they avoid it. At this point, the readers of Ephblog are warned as well.
hwc says:
I wonder if Fergie stopped by the financial aid office to inquire about free tuition, too?
Sheesh.
Oh, and, I thought that the student was supposed to apply to a college, not the parent. This whole story sounds like quite a bit may have been lost in translation.
David says:
HWC,
Be nice. If you have a famous child, it makes sense to talk to folks at the College (any college) about how such things are handled. If my daughters were (literal as opposed to figurative) princesses, I would do the same.
hwc says:
Obviously “things” were not handled very discretely in Williamstown, since the Princess’ efforts to mooch a free room at every stop along the Mohawk Trail has now been broadcast in the national media!
frank uible says:
What rooms along the Mohawk Trail might be reasonably deigned to be acceptable for mooching by a princess of Fergie’s stature? I who admittedly have abysmally low standards would find precious few acceptable for my own mooching – not that any innkeeper whosoever might acquiesce in it.
hwc says:
BTW, this would not be the first royalty at Williams. The son of the Shah of Iran, the would-be Iranian Crown Prince, attended Williams in the late 1970s before eventually graduating from USC.
hwc says:
Beats me. The story claims that the Princess had already stopped at two motels prior to the Williams Inn attempted to beg a free room. She was summarily declined at the first and offered a rate of $100 at the second.
I just can’t get the image of the Princess in her chauffeured limosine begging at every fleabag tourist trap between Hartford and Williamstown.
“No, really….you don’t understand, Sir. I am the Dutchess of York.
“Yeah, right, lady…and I’m the Dali Lama, now get outta here before I call the cops….”
(d)avid says:
Hussein Aga Khan graduated from Williams in 1997. He added a fun dash of color to campus.
Ronit says:
Reza Pahlavi was scheduled to speak at Williams a few years ago, but he canceled at the last moment because he had a cold.
Ronit says:
I believe the place to stay now if you’re a wealthy visitor or parent is the Porches Inn by Mass MoCA – unless you’re special enough to bunk with Morty.
JG says:
Just a quick question re: the update (and the general policy on such things). DK – did you actually post it, and if so did jeffz agree to you posting a gratuitous pic (the Tatler? *sigh*)? Usually his sense of taste is higher.
Ronit says:
JG – are you suggesting that pre-frosh cheesecake might be below the usual standards of EphBlog?
JeffZ says:
After he posted the update, DK did ask if it was OK and I said yes. I guess I didn’t give any thought to the nature of the photo.
Ronit says:
What disturbs me most about the photo is that that’s not Princess Eugenie at all
frank uible says:
About 7 years ago Reza Pahlavi made at least 2 public appearances on campus during a visit.
InvisibleMom'10 says:
If Fergie was under the impression that this idyllic, yet remote academic institution, would provide Eugenie with privacy, one look at EphBlog and she’d know the truth. I hear Fergie went to NYC to lunch with Erin…anyone have links to photos?
JeffZ says:
I don’t think that ANY Royal (or, say, the daughter of a President here) could ever expect complete privacy; that would be unrealistic. But being at a small college away from the British press (and far from any major media outlets, period) would undoubtedly be a RELATIVELY private experience for someone like Eugenie, at least compared to what she is used to dealing with in terms of notoriously intrusive (and far more interested) British tabloids. And I’d like to think that at Ephblog, we’d comment on this kind of major news for Williams (if something like her matriculation was announced), but then (along with the rest of the college community) leave the student in peace and refrain from further remarks, unless she does something independently newsworthy that is reported in other media. And as always, there is a policy in place that if someone requests a blog post here be taken down, Ephblog will comply.
JeffZ says:
PS DK, since this was originally my post, I have no problem with a photo, but in light of the comments from a few other folks, I think it makes sense, for multiple reasons, to replace the photoshopped glam shot with a more accurate depiction like the one Ronit linked to. Thanks.
sophmom says:
Why is there a photo of the daughter posted? Because DK thinks she might be the one considering Williams?
The story is fun and amusing, but posting the photo is going too far.
And, I’m with InvisibleMom…if Eugenie was in fact considering Williams, this ‘EphBlog-style-welcome’, may have changed her mind.
eyetolduso says:
I am not sure posting a cover photo from a magazine with a 300 year history and a current circulation of around 90,000 constitutes an invasion of privacy. I think, but would not know, that you pose for covers because you want people to look at you.
frank uible says:
That’s always my motivation.