"The publications students at the university were very close. It was kind of a fraternity. Michael and I became good friends. I admired his talent and his intelligence and his wonderfully wry sense of irony. He was quietly funny, and I thought very brave. I was almost twice as tall as Gary and I was fascinated by how he adapted." -recollections from John Softness

Page two: Images of Michael Dunn during his days at the University of Miami.
All images © 1953-1954 University of Miami Tempo

Photo of Gary Miller singing during his college years at the University of Miami  
Above: Gary Miller gets a tongue-in-cheek caption in Tempo's coverage of UM's 16th annual Songfest competition in the May 1954 issue (vol. 5, no. 6, May 1954, p. 2) - ©1954 U. Miami. Above: The Tempo staff list, as seen in the November 1954 (vol. 6, no. 1) issue.

Photo of Gary Miller published in Tempo at the University of Miami

Above: Managing editor Gary Miller busy behind the typewriter as pictured in the March 1954 issue of Tempo (vol. 5, no. 4, March 1954, p. 7) - ©1954 U. Miami.

Below: Gary's comrade and fellow alum John Softness. The Softness Group, Inc. was a public relations company that represented manufacturers of consumer products. They also did publicity and marketing counsel for a few theatrical personalities, including Barbara Streisand (at the start of her career) and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. Though celebrity agent work was outside the company's scope, John made the exception with Michael, and served as manager throughout Michael's acting & singing career.
Photo appeared in the December 1954 issue of Tempo (vol. 6, no. 2, December 1954, p. 12) - ©1954 U. Miami. 

John Softness - University of Miami photo

"I, of course, called him Gary, that being his name and all. He didn't become Michael Dunn until years later, when he discovered there was another Gary Miller in Actors' Equity ― and apparently you couldn't have two actors with the same name. Think how confusing that would be, even if one of them was three-foot-ten." -John Softness
 

 
Below: A personal message by Gary Miller published in the May 1954 issue of Tempo  (vol. 5, no. 6, May 1954, p. 2) - ©1954 U. Miami.
Article written by Gary Miller in the University of Miami's magazine Tempo
 

Our appreciation to the Otto Richter 8th floor library staff for their generous assistance in helping us locate the material seen here.

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