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Rochdale College, which opened its doors amidst construction delays in 1968, was the boldest experiment in alternate education ever undertaken anywhere, anywhen.
Rochdale began as an 18 floor student high rise created by Campus Co-Op.
Along the way they thought if they could add an education side to it they could get a break on their taxes.
They came up with the idea that each Rochdalian was to be their own teacher. There were no teachers at Rochdale College.
What they did was to invite people who had achieved success in their field to live free at Rochdale (food included) provided they speak with any Rochdalian who wanted to speak with them. These were called RESOURCE PEOPLE.
I was drawn to Rochdale when I heard that Judith Merril, editor of THE YEAR’S BEST SF books was there.
I was pre-punk punk dressed head to foot in black, passionately intense and rail thin.
Thirty years later Judy told me,”You scared the shit out of me when I first met you.”
J. G. Ballard described Judy as the strongest woman in a genre created by weak and ineffectual men. That she was. The men are still, for the most part, weak and ineffectual.
I’m not out to win prizes here.
When Judy found out I had copies of important silent films like THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915), THE LOST WORLD (1925), METROPOLIS (1927) and others she said, “You belong here.”
Not everyone agreed.
Far too many at Rochdale were not as aware of the value of what I could bring to the table as was Judy.
Nonetheless, bring it to the table I did.
THE TORONTO SUN, a bastion of sensationalist yellow journalism, rose out of the ashes of THE TORONTO TELEGRAM. In its pages were regular stories of sex and drugs at Rochdale College. This attracted to Rochdale people interested only in sex and drugs.
Rochdale had been created to house students. They would be in the building from September through May of the year but June, July, August left Rochdale with a huge hole in its revenue stream. This led to financial problems. Rochdale went into receivership.
At the same time I learned a drug dealer in the building had taken out a hit on me so that he could turn the space in which I ran my extremely successful film program into a fine dining restaurant.
I took the hint.
He opened his restaurant, found out that no one inside Rochdale when they wanted to fine dine were going to eat at his place and that no one outside Rochdale would go there to fine dine.There is a reason dope is called dope. It makes dopes of those who use it.
Shortly after he gave up I got a call from a friend in the film business. He said, “Do you know where to get a copy of DEEP THROAT?”
I said, “No, who wants it?”
He named the receivers of Rochdale. He said they wanted it for a convention.
I said, “This is the hand of God.”
To my surprise I was able to get the film.
The receivers got it first, of course.
Then I showed it at Rochdale. I did not want the people to pay for something the oppressor had paid for but I knew if I gave it to them for free they would not have as much fun as if they thought they were beating me for the money. I made the admission $10 (which was a lot more than then it is now) but people got in free if they came naked.
Naturally, everyone came natural.
I came back to Rochdale a king not a corpse.
Then I learned that because no admission had been charged the screenings were legal.
That gave birth to my WET DREAMS FILM FEST.
After Rochdale was shut down media people who did stories on my work said, “We will leave out Rochdale.”
I said, “Don’t. I’m proud of my time there.”
My father’s brother, Douglas Hartt, served as DirectOr General of PublIc Works Canada under Pierre Trudeau.
He wanted me to do my programs at Harbourfront. I said, “No, that is where the boring people go. I prefer Rochdale College. Interesting people come there.”
Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali said, “It is good taste not bad taste which is the enemy.” I’m firmly with them.
After the death of Rochdale my programs moved to the Palmerston Library next door to The Spaced Out Library. This was thanks again to Judith Merril.
After that they moved to a variety of venues.
Currently they are in The CineForum/The Public Enemy which is located in my home.
I am following in a long established tradition in the arts of making my home into a salon where the generation coming in can meet the generation established and that about to pass away (which, a 77, I am now part of). What will happen when I leave this scene is anyone’s guess.
The people at Rochdale who did not like me when I showed up therein 1968 still don’t much care for me.
One of those people is Paul Evitts who can be seen in Ron Mann’s film on Rochdale, DREAMTOWER. Says Paul in the film, “There was no education at Rochdale.”
There was and bountiful. Paul was and remains blinded by Communist ideology. He wanted teachers.
He never understood that we were called to be our own teacher.
I wrote a book titled THE NIGHT THEY RAIDED ROCHDALE.
It describes the process by which I learned to value what Rochdale College had to offer.
THE TORONTO SUN is still a yellow journalist rag. Nonetheless,the paper has more than a few first rate writers.
The paper reported that I faced criminal charges: https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/acclaimed-toronto-film-archivist-faces-child-porn-charges .
What they did not report is that after hiring and firing three lawyers I put to work the Rochdale idea of being my own teacher. I defended myself.
There is a saying that we who defend ourselves have a fool for a lawyer.My experience is that we are fools not to.
A fellow who had gotten into a fight with his wife as a result of which the police would not allow him to return home found a home here.
David Chu, a renowned photo journalist, had been arrested and jail. He found himself homeless.
Both told me I was being defended by shysters and dump truck lawyers.
Whatever.
The Crown informed the court that no evidence had been found on the computers and hard drives seized in my home to back up the charges of making and distributing child pornography.
Those charges were based on false information give to the police by people in this city who have been doing their best to get myself and others murdered for decades.
THE SUN knew about this but chose not to report it.
THE TORONTO STAR reported on the history and the charges.
Neither paper chose to report those charges at been withdrawn.
I credit my years at Rochdale College for having planted in myself the idea of being my own teacher.
I do my best to plant that idea in all who come through my door.
That idea often takes root.
In the sermon on the mount Jesus calls us to call no one rabbi (teacher) not even him and to let no one call us rabbi (teacher).
I seem to be the only Rochdalian and the only person listening to Jesus who does this.
ROCHDALE COLLEGE lives at The CineForum/The Public Enemy.
Why THE PUBLIC ENEMY?
Because my first venue in Toronto was named THE PUBLIC ENEMY.
Henry Miller wrote that when an artist of any value arises they are seen as Public Enemy Number One.
In short they are cover material for THE TORONTO SUN.
“Whatever the world condemns you for, make it your own. It is yourself,” said Jean Cocteau.
It takes balls to do that.
Rebellion is not a sin. It is a sign of intelligence and of having a spine.
As for sin, Jesus said those forgiven much love much while those forgiven little love little. He said, “the LORD loves a good sinner.”
I am a great one.
You don’t need to come to the CineForum/The Public Enemy to become your own teacher.
You don’t need to rebuild Rochdale College to be your own teacher.
You can become your own teacher now where you are.
If, however, you want to learn more about the art, business, culture, history and the industry of the motion picture than any school on earth can give you, come to The CineForum/The Public Enemy.
Laura Lind, writing in EYE weekly, stated, “Reg Hartt is everything Jane Jacobs wrote about in THE DEATH AND LIFE OF GREAT AMERICAN CITIES.”
That is one helluva statement.
Jane Jacobs was a housewife and a mother who kept Robert Moses from destroying New York.
She moved to Toronto in 1968 where she stood up and stopped The Spadina Expressway.
She was my friend and mentor from 1968 until her passing in 2006.
She taught me the importance of standing up.
My lawyers would have railroaded me had I not stood up.
Ed Keenan, of THE TORONTO STAR, coming through my door said, “Reg, you are the only person in Toronto who stands up.”
You can read what he wrote here: https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/cineforum-deserves-a-happy-ending-to-its-saga-keenan/article_a0e91930-2e61-5622-a7d1-866ee85bc658.html .
Be your own teacher. Let no one call you teacher.–Reg Hartt 2023-08-26.
Not many have been told they were loved by Jane Jacobs:(7) My mother loved Reg Hartt Jim Jacobs – YouTube
–Reg Hartt 2023-0826.
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