Bowdoin has a long list of notable alumni: Hawthorne and Longfellow, Peary and MacMillan, Kinsey, Benoit-Samuelson. Soon, there may be another name to add to the list: McDreamy.
The College is looking to "adopt" Dr. Derek Shepard (often referred to as Dr. McDreamy), a character on the popular television show "Grey's Anatomy," as a Bowdoin graduate. The character is played by actor Patrick Dempsey, a native of Lewiston, Maine.
The idea of adopting Shepard came from alumni Cole Harris '78. Harris contacted the Office of Communications and Public Affairs with the idea, which passed it on to Bowdoin Student Government (BSG).
"The College filtered the request to us," said BSG President DeRay Mckesson '07. "We thought it'd be a great opportunity for the students to get excited about something."
Harris, who works with Jostons, a company that produces school memorabilia, crafted a letter to be sent to the producers of "Grey's Anatomy," the studio, and Dempsey. The letter, which includes a list of Bowdoin's most notable alumni, invites Dempsey's character to "join the more than 1,500 current Bowdoin alumni around the world in the health services and medical professions."
Harris has spoken with Dempsey's publicist about the possibility and noted, "It's gone into the best possible pipeline that it could, and now it's up to luck."
A petition signed by members of the Bowdoin community will accompany the letter. The petition, which BSG presented at the Student Activities Fair on Tuesday night, already has more than 450 signatures, including that of President Barry Mills.
After signing the petition, Mills noted to Mckesson, "I think I have to watch this ["Grey's Anatomy"] now."
Several other characters on the show have been identified as alumni of various undergraduate programs, such as Dartmouth, Stanford, and Tulane.
"I love the idea of Dr. McDreamy becoming a Bowdoin grad," said Jamie Burwood '08, who signed the petition Tuesday night. "You always see actors and actresses on TV shows sporting apparel from all sorts of colleges and universities, so why not Bowdoin?"
If Dempsey and the show's producers agree to allow Bowdoin to adopt Dr. Shepard, the College would provide clothing for the character to wear. The letter notes, "We would love to see Dr. Shepard relaxing in a Bowdoin T-shirt after a long day at Seattle Grace Hospital!"
"If Patrick Dempsey looks that good every week in his hospital scrubs, imagine how good he'd look in a Bowdoin sweatshirt," Burwood added.
This would not be the first time Bowdoin has been featured in the entertainment world. Most recently, Tony Soprano and his daughter Meadow toured Bowdoin on an episode of "The Sopranos." Meadow applies to Bowdoin, but ultimately gets rejected and attends Columbia University. Bowdoin has also been prominent in films such as "Cider House Rules," "Where the Heart Is," "Gettysburg," and "The Man without a Face."
"Aside from the fun associated with these projects for Bowdoin students and alumni, they can clearly have the added benefit of improving name recognition for the College," said Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs Scott Hood. Last season, "Grey's Anatomy" averaged nearly 20 million viewers per episode.
"This sort of opportunity comes up from time to time and we try, as best we can, to do what seems right for Bowdoin," said Hood. "It is a well-respected show and one that garners more than its share of awards. Given Bowdoin's record of turning out physicians and others working in the medical profession, it is certainly credible to have Patrick Dempsey's character as an alumnus."
Harris believes the promotion would help to keep Bowdoin's "brand name" out there, adding that Dempsey "represents a good character with a good wit and smarts."
Both Harris and his wife attended Bowdoin. "I think it's important to throw out the message that for some people, university is great, but for some people, so is college," he said.
Mckesson added, "It'd be a cool message about liberal arts colleges. Doesn't McBowdoin sound cool?"