Join us every Monday for a wrap-up of the week’s hottest stories! For this week’s “Mondays With Melanie” podcast, we begin with Lauren Doherty (CAS ’26) and Jack Willis’ (SFS ’26) article about saying goodbye to our beloved mascot, Jack the Bulldog. Next, Oliver Ni (SFS ’26) talks us through the Georgetown football team’s major win against Fordham University. Finally, William McCall (CAS ’25) talks about his profile on horror movie director James DeMonaco, most famously known for his film “The Purge.”
Transcript
Melanie Elliott (ME): Hello Hoyas! And welcome back to this new podcast series, titled “Mondays with Melanie.” Through this series, I will be bringing on the authors of each week’s top stories to discuss their articles and provide a brief synopsis of their topics. This week, that of Sept. 25 to Oct. 1, has been filled with sorrowful goodbyes and major sports wins. Join me on another packed episode of Georgetown news, including a profile on a horror movie director, as we head into spooky season.
ME: Firstly, we begin with Features Editors Lauren Doherty and Jack Willis as they provide a sorrowful goodbye to our beloved mascot, Jack the Bulldog.
LD: This week, in the feature section, we look into the death of Jack the Bulldog who passed away in June.
JW: According to new information revealed with The Hoya, Jack the Bulldog passed away from an intestinal disorder known as canine intestinal lymphangiectasia.
LD: Jack’s intestinal disease is characterized by the dilation of lymphatic vessels, which leads to the leakage of lymphatic fluid into the intestine, according to Dr. Wendy Deal, a staff veterinarian for VCA Animal Hospitals.
JW: Jack was the eighth bulldog to don the blue and gray Georgetown pride, but he was only four years old when he died. The average lifespan of English bulldogs, however, is between eight and 10 years.
LD: The disease can vary in severity and some dogs respond well to treatment and diet modifications, while others do not, Deal said.
JW: However, the university declined to interview on the severity of Jack’s disease or his course of treatment.
LD: The wellness of Jack the Bulldog was overseen by Cory Peterson, the director of the Office of Neighborhood Life. Peterson also declined to interview with The Hoya.
JW: Just three days after Jack’s death, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals — also known as PETA — published an article criticizing Georgetown for their use of live mascots, more specifically English bulldogs, which they consider BIBs, or a breathing-impaired breed.
LD: However, Georgetown students and former members of Jack Crew, the group of students who take care of Jack on campus, continue to emphasize that he was well cared for and deeply loved by all members of the community.
ME: Thank you for that, Jack and Lauren! Jack the Bulldog will certainly be missed. And now, Sports Editor Oliver Ni brings us a rundown of this Homecoming weekend’s big football win.
Oliver Ni (ON): Hi, my name is Oliver Ni and I’m one of the Senior Sports Editors for The Hoya. The talk of town lately was Georgetown’s statement win against Fordham on Homecoming Day. And for good reason. The Hoyas were lined up against a very tough team in the Rams. However, they were able to pull through and hold their own, and by the end of the match, it was a 28-24 victory — which must have surprised many of the fans in attendance. Georgetown was able to execute their plays relatively well. And even though there were some mistakes along the way, they were able to recuperate and hold up strong during clutch moments. Highlight moments included a 70-yard rushing touchdown by junior running back Naieem Kearney as well as a receiving touchdown by junior wide receiver Brock Biestek in order to seal the game. I talked to Kearney, fifth-year quarterback Tyler Knoop and Head Coach Rob Sgarlata (COL ’94, GRD ’12) after the game and all three echoed a very similar message. That one, the entire team was able to pull through during the most crucial times, and two, that the student support in the fan section was extremely important to maintaining the high energy throughout the game and giving the Hoyas the jolt that they needed to finish it off. Georgetown will hope to carry this winning momentum away from home as they match up against the University of Pennsylvania next week.
ME: Thanks Oliver! And go Hoyas!
ME: Finally, Guide Editor William McCall talks to us about his profile on horror movie director James DeMonaco.
William McCall (WM): Hi, my name is William McCall. I’m one of the Guide Senior Co-Editors, and this week I wrote an interview with James DeMonaco, the writer-director of “The Purge” franchise, as well as an upcoming horror film starring Pete Davidson called “The Home.” We talked a lot about a lot of different subjects. You know, it was a great interview. We talked a lot about “The Purge”, of course. That’s one of his most famous creations for those of you aware, it imagines an America in the not too distant future where all crime is legal for 12 hours. including murder, and, you know, hijinks ensue. We obviously talked about “The Home,” which should be out in the next year or so. Look forward to that. And last, but not least we spoke at length about the writer’s strike — what, what it meant at the time, what it might mean for the future of Hollywood and for movies in general. Obviously that’s just broken very recently. So I guess well, if you read the article, you can see if Mr. DeMonaco’s ideas about the future came to fruition. But otherwise, yeah, take a look. It’s a good piece I hope. And take care now.
ME: Thanks, William, for that great start to the Halloween season.
ME: And that concludes another hectic week here at the Hilltop. Thanks so much for tuning in! I’m Melanie Elliott, and this has been “Mondays with Melanie.” Be sure to check back in next week for another round of top stories. And until then, have a great week!
ME: This podcast was edited by me and produced by Amna Shamim and Emily Han.
