Page 9 - Dad's St Jude Projecy

Periodically, the founder of SJCRH, Danny Thomas, would come by
and “inspect” the labs. Dr. Pinkel, who was interested in the health

of the staff and patients, had relegated the only soft drink machine
in the building to the basement. Of course smoking was not allowed
in the cafeteria or laboratories, but it was permitted in the offices.
And Danny Thomas was always allowed to smoke his cigar! Danny
also had a mausoleum built in front of the hospital to house his

effects, including (I think) copies of his hit TV show, “Make Room
for Daddy.”

After about two years, Dr. Slotnick informed me that he and his
family didn’t really like living in Memphis and that he had been

offered a better job in Los Angeles, CA. As I recall this was more of
a clinical position to head up a diagnostic lab than a research
position, although he did continue to carry out clinical microbiology
research.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Microbiology Dept at UTHCS had

died suddenly while shoveling snow out of his driveway (in
Memphis!) Although Dr. Ennis’s expertise was in microbiology, he
had not wanted a faculty appointment in Microbiology but in
Biochemistry, so I wasn’t sure if he could serve as my major

professor for a PhD. However, the problems were solved, and he
agreed to do so as long as I went back to Memphis State U to take
undergraduate Physical Chemistry. I also would have to take
Advanced Biochemistry at UTHSC. Somehow or other I did all of
those things and completed my dissertation on “Potassium

Requirement for Protein Synthesis Normal and Bacteriophage
Bacillus subtilis.”

Those were good years for me professionally, and I am so glad that
St. Jude was there to introduce me to world class scientists and

physicians working to cure childhood cancer. I went on to a
postdoctoral fellowship in the Dept of Medicine at UTCHS and then
return to St. Jude to work with Allan Granoff for 16 years in the
Dept of Virology and Molecular Biology. F wing was getting more

crowded, and a new research tower behind the original building was
being built. Offices were definitely smaller.