Students are releasing a documentary about the man who saved Hillsdale

When Hillsdale College nearly went bankrupt in the 1950s, an alumnus and local businessman donated $20,000 a month to keep the college afloat, which is the equivalent of about $200,000 a month in today’s dollars.

On Nov. 19, students in the documentary film class premiered “The Pharmacist Who Saved Hillsdale College: How Spike Hennessy Wrote Liberty’s Life-Saving Prescription.”

The 25-minute film begins with Hennessy’s time at Hillsdale College, where she joined the cheerleading squad, The Collegian, and the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. After graduating in 1928, he took over his father’s local pharmacy, Hennessy’s Drug Store.

Adjunct documentary journalism instructor Buddy Moorehouse said he first heard Hennessy’s story while researching “The Price of Independence,” which the class produced in 2023.

“The documentary was about the battle for financial independence and sandwiched in the middle was a throwaway line by Scott Phillips, whose father was president here in the 1950s, about a local businessman who kept the lights on for Hillsdale in 1953 , when he was in college he just broke,” Moorehouse said. “That was Spike Hennessy, and if it wasn’t for him, who knows what this place would be. We knew we had to tell the story.”

The film will be posted on YouTube in the near future, Moorehouse said.

Junior Hana Connelly and senior Makenna Banbury wrote the script for the film. Connelly said finding interesting stories is half the job of a documentary filmmaker.

“There’s always a deeper story to tell,” Connelly said. “We all learned through this class that when you dive down those rabbit holes, you find some amazing things.”

Each student in the class also projected a short film of their choice from the semester.

Senior Gavin Listro, who co-directed the feature, directed a short film about Orson Welles’ 1938 radio production of “War of the Worlds.” The film landed Listro a full-time job after graduation, according to Moorehouse.

Other students produced short films about Hillsdale College alumni and current students.

Senior and co-director of the film Isaac Green told the story of senior Greg Whalen, a veteran musician who released his first EP in August.

Senior Jillian Parks introduced junior Alex and senior Kayla Cho, a sibling duo who run Choba Boba, a boba business on campus.

Junior Ella Rose Klein researched Dickerson Gymnasium, which appeared on the Hillsdale campus in the early 20th century and was the first collegiate gymnasium in Michigan.

Junior Alexandra Comus told the story of Bion J. Arnold, a graduate who developed the third rail for the New York City subway system.

Banbury and Connelly collaborated on a film that commemorated the 1985 NAIA Division I National Champion Hillsdale College football team.

Banbury and Connelly interviewed Mark Baker, the kicker on the 1985 football team, who now volunteers as a Charger football coach.

“There is so much to learn about storytelling from documentary filmmaking,” Banbury said. “It’s challenging to figure out how the pieces fit together, but rewarding when the project comes to life.”

The feature film followed Hennessy’s journey with Hillsdale as a board member, advisor to the president and ambassador for the college.

“I found out that Muddy Waters brought Spike with him to negotiate the 1955 appearance at the Tangerine Bowl,” Moorehouse said. “The NAIA said the Dales could not play unless they left their four black players at home, so Hennessy and Waters declined the invitation after a unanimous team vote. It’s consistent with the man we know from the rest of the story.”

The premiere attracted Hillsdale College students, alumni, faculty and local residents.

Pat Marcher said she moved to Hillsdale when her husband worked for Hennessy in the 1970s. She said the documentary captured Hennessy’s generous spirit.

“Spike was an exceptional man,” Marcher said. “The students honored him with an exceptional film.”