During the era of Richard the Nixon Olympia once had crimefighters running around with capes and cowls, protecting the citizens of your fair city from evildoers.

Really. No joke. And apparently I was the threat to public decency and safety. Yes, little old me, the mild mannered future Oldsmobile driving librarian who prefers vanilla ice cream to all others and liked the motto "Drabness is goodness." Go figure. I did nothing to deserve this focus of attention.

As I was just recently reminded by a loyal out-of-state OlyBlog reader, when I was a student at OHS, it would be not be unusual for me to be innocently sitting in class like the norm that I am, minding my own business and attempting to absorb the valuable education I was being exposed to, when suddenly the door would fly open and a costumed crimefighter would leap in the room and declare in his best Adam West imitation something like, "Citizens, beware of that man!!!" [pointing at me] "He's a menace to society!"

Then as suddenly as he arrived, he vanished. Sometimes this masked man would show up outside the classroom windows and perform the same act. One time, when psychology teacher Don Webster rolled down the screen before showing us a film, a bunch of brochures about how dangerous I was fluttered out from their rolled storage spot. Obviously these misguided do-gooders were serious.

Although other students would occasionally give chase, the mysterious hero was never caught and unmasked.

Actually this was the work of four different costumed people, along with a confederate. At graduation one of them was recognized for his contribution to the Drama Program, and those "in the know" whispered, "They'll never know his greatest role."

The five gentlemen involved in this caper are still around today, I'm guessing. One of them is now a respected employee at OHS (Holy paradox! What an ironic twist of fate!) Another, I think, might be a psychologist in Minnesota. Another one was rumored to have become a military officer, maybe Navy. The 4th member still lives in the Oly area but I have lost touch with his current activities. Their confederate is now a respected member of Olympia's legal community.

This is an unsung chapter in Oly history that has waited several decades to be recorded in public. Now that the truth has been revealed I can die happy.