Michele Earley

"I believe it was 1969 or 1970. The student body and staff realized that we had never had a Rose Festival Princess at MLC! Oh, no! Were we really a part of Portland? There were many nominations—two, I think. It was decided that MLC would offer "Granny," one of my Ladybug Theater characters, as our Rose Festival Princess. I donned my gray wig, glasses without lenses, and my lovely Granny dress, for the Oregonian was coming to take pictures. I wasn't alone in this bit of history. My Prime Minister was Will Spray. Our picture did appear in the paper but, alas, we were not chosen as that year's royal couple. Can't imagine why. I sadly left MLC in 1972 because I was to be the mother of my first-born, Matt Pipes. Along came my second-born, Erin Pipes. I spent the rest of my working years acting, teaching, and managing Ladybug Theater for children. Some of you took classes at the "Bug" at the Zoo. Ladybug moved to Oaks Amusement Park where she sat happily under the hornbeam trees for several years. We even got to "enjoy" the flood of ‘96 there. I think that many of our props ended up in the ocean just outside of Astoria. I now like to garden, read, walk, and eat." – Michele Earley, 2018

MICHELE EARLEY may be most famous at MLC for her brilliantly satiric 1971 turn as our school's one and only ever Rose Festival Princess (note: Queen nominee), in the guise of her Ladybug Theater character Granny. But it is not that for which she is most beloved. Every school has its drama kids and MLC was no exception: it was around Michele that they first coalesced as a force. As alumna Anny Celsi put it in remembering a classmate, "We were drama geeks together in Michele Earley's class!"

The famous "Granny" article, from The Oregonian, April 9, 1971. Michele at home (from Facebook).

Drama had already been a big deal at MLC in its first year, 1968-69. Betty Mayther took the reins with her popular Creative Drama class (remembered, for one, by John Lynch in his story for the 50th Anniversary publication in 2018). In Spring 1969, aides Jim Galuzzo and Lydia Reynolds masterminded an absolutely surreal school play (featuring, among many others, Bob and Barry Dragoon), which was greeted with glee by parents, who even if countercultural were nevertheless a bit stunned.

Perhaps as a direct result of these first-year successes—and possibly so that Betty could focus on her burgeoning Art Room—for the 1969-70 school year MLC hired Michele as its first aide devoted full-time to the dramatic arts. It is not to be forgotten that Michele was, in this very real way, one of MLC's founders. As of 2025 she says she may be working on her own proper biographical summary, but for now we include Michele's short 2018 reminiscence, also written for the anniversary publication.