He looked like a street person. But William Wallace "Wally" Carr was entirely something else.
Scholar. Friend of royalty. World traveler. Champion swimmer. Philosopher. Hero against the Nazis.
These are accurate words that describe Wally, who wandered the sidewalks in and around the University of Kentucky campus for more than 30 years -- a walking Lexington landmark. Wally was sort of a disheveled Jedi Master, who, even in his seventies and eighties, constantly enrolled and re-enrolled in the University's Shakespeare and Latin courses (two subjects he could have taught, if he had wanted). Though he had most of Shakespeare's works memorized, Wally mostly kept to himself. Few people ever made the effort to speak to him or ask what he was about.
Most who saw Wally ignored him and assumed he was just a homeless old man -- which he was for a while. Almost by accident, the author decided to be Wally's friend, and visited him on a weekly basis for more than a decade. As the friendship grew, the truth about Wally's past started to come out. He lived in New York and New Orleans during the jazz age, was the son of respected Classics scholar, helped Jews escape Nazi Germany while a student at the University of Berlin, and was an incredibly accurate handicapper.
Wally also seemingly had the ability to appear at the right places, at the right times.
Some would say that, in the years since his passing, he might still have that ability.
Scholar. Friend of royalty. World traveler. Champion swimmer. Philosopher. Hero against the Nazis.
These are accurate words that describe Wally, who wandered the sidewalks in and around the University of Kentucky campus for more than 30 years -- a walking Lexington landmark. Wally was sort of a disheveled Jedi Master, who, even in his seventies and eighties, constantly enrolled and re-enrolled in the University's Shakespeare and Latin courses (two subjects he could have taught, if he had wanted). Though he had most of Shakespeare's works memorized, Wally mostly kept to himself. Few people ever made the effort to speak to him or ask what he was about.
Most who saw Wally ignored him and assumed he was just a homeless old man -- which he was for a while. Almost by accident, the author decided to be Wally's friend, and visited him on a weekly basis for more than a decade. As the friendship grew, the truth about Wally's past started to come out. He lived in New York and New Orleans during the jazz age, was the son of respected Classics scholar, helped Jews escape Nazi Germany while a student at the University of Berlin, and was an incredibly accurate handicapper.
Wally also seemingly had the ability to appear at the right places, at the right times.
Some would say that, in the years since his passing, he might still have that ability.
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