What's in a Name?

By Ashley Thomas

One minute he is on television promoting the latest Michael Jordan sneakers or courtside at a New York Knicks game – the next he is sitting across from College of Arts and Science students and faculty at the Marcum Conference Center in preparation for a speech on film and entrepreneurship he will later give at Miami’s Millett Hall.

Not only that, I was among the students directly across from him – famous director Spike Lee.

Only one problem – for the entire dinner, Lee would not know me by my real name, Ashley Thomas, but as Rodney Coates, black world studies director.

My experience with Lee on February 3, 2005, thanks largely in part to Coates, is one I will certainly not forget.

After being assigned the black world studies program to cover in this year’s Compass, I knew right away I did not want to disappoint the program or the readers.

So, when covering Lee’s visit to Miami was mentioned, I eagerly accepted the assignment. I assumed the coverage would be nothing more than attending the two lectures – one at Hall Auditorium, the other at Millett Hall.

Little did I know that Coates would eagerly give up his seat at a formal dinner with Lee for the benefit of the story. After Coates made a quick phone call from his office, I was in for the dinner and Coates was out.

“Now, you’re going to do a good job with black world studies, right?” Coates said jokingly.

“Right?” I said, suddenly unsure of my own writing abilities.

Even though I would be attending the dinner in Coates’ place, that information would never reach the higher authorities of name tent makers. Therefore, when I arrived at the dinner and stared into the abyss of names, mine was nowhere in sight. I had no choice but to pick up professor Coates’ name tag and enter the banquet as inconspicuously as possible.

As luck would have it, my seat was almost directly opposite Lee’s, who was casually slouched in his chair while staring at the 20-some faces that had come to honor him.

I could only think one thing: Spike Lee was probably looking at me, then at my name tag, and wondering why a 22-year-old college female would ever have the name Rodney. But then again, why flatter myself? I doubt a famous name like Spike Lee even cared enough to notice the mishap.

After all, Spike Lee is one of the most influential directors of the past 20 years in American film.

Lee’s visit to Miami was well-attended by students, faculty and visitors. I was fortunate enough to experience his visit at a more intimate level than most.

Attending a formal dinner was not exactly something I had a great deal of experience in doing. Being from Middletown– not exactly the center of fine dining and etiquette – I had to ask a few friends which fork should be used for salads and which for desserts before even thinking of facing not only prestigious faculty, but Lee himself.

Turns out, though, the dinner went well. Lee was not as talkative or intimate as I would have liked. He was not eager to share his thoughts on filmmaking and did not invite questions.

Knowing virtually no one at the dinner and not being well-versed in the proper formal dinner etiquette, I was left with only one option: the pure joy of human observation. And besides, what better subject than Lee himself to observe?

Throughout the dinner, Lee kept mostly to himself, only occasionally conversing with those directly next to him. His slouched posture was not that of a typical A-list star, but resembled someone a bit more down-to-earth. He continually played with something in his lap, but because of the long white tablecloths, I could not see if it was a cell-phone, Sidekick or highly advanced Nintendo hand-held system.

At one point, Lee decided to relinquish his duties as the guest of honor, leaving the banquet room to make phone calls, thus throwing out my Nintendo hypothesis.

Even though Lee was unwillingly to answer questions, I was still able to meet him face-to-face and realize that he is not the person he is often made out to be, but a fascinating individual who can say alot without saying a word.

So, I may never know if Spike Lee noticed my
name was strikingly odd for a college female or if he
even enjoyed his visit to Miami, but I do know that the College of Arts and Science, along with Coates, provided me with an experience of a lifetime.

All Photos by Liz Schilling

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