ON CAMPUS AT OCC:

Larry Berman, author of the new bestseller “Perfect Spy,” will speak Tuesday, Oct. 16, at Orange Coast College.

The presentation begins at 7 p.m. in Robert B. Moore Theatre. Admission is free. Berman will also participate in a panel presentation from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. in the Student Center lounge. He’ll discuss the topic, “Can a Spy Have Real Friendships?”

“Perfect Spy” is the true story of Pham Xuan An, a Vietnamese Communist agent. A nationalist, An became the most heralded Communist spy of the Vietnam War. His ultimate intentions were undisclosed, however, when he was sent to the U.S. in 1957 to study journalism at Orange Coast College. He is believed to have been the first Vietnamese resident of Orange County.

An was a popular OCC student who wrote for the school newspaper and yearbook. He graduated in 1959.

An worked for Reuters and Time magazine. Several years after the war, the new Vietnamese Communist government revealed that he had been one of its most effective spies.

His disaffecting with the new government grew after the war, however, and his close friendships with Americans made him suspicious in the eyes of the Communist regime.

Before his death last year, he was placed under house arrest.

“Larry Berman deftly humanizes the contradictions of An’s life as a spy for Hanoi while at the same time working for U.S. news organizations to mask his grand deception,” wrote veteran journalist Bernard Kalb.

“His admiration for the U.S. was overwhelmed by his love of country — free of foreign presence.”

Shortly before his death, An confided to Berman that the best period of his life had been his days at Orange Coast College.

Berman, a professor of political science at UC Davis, visited Vietnam 15 times while writing the book. He also did research at OCC.

 COMEDIAN PAUL RODRIGUEZ MAKES GUEST APPEARANCE

Comedian Paul Rodriguez will make a guest appearance on Sunday, Oct. 14, at OCC’s second annual festival that celebrates Latin music, dance, crafts and food.

Titled “Dia de la Raza,” it runs from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in OCC’s quad and is free to the public. Rodriguez will make his appearance at 5 p.m.

Rodriguez has done three television series for CBS and hosted a popular entertainment show on the Spanish-language Univision Network. He starred in six HBO comedy specials.

Also appearing on the program, at 4 p.m., will be the Susie Hansen Latin Band. The band serves up red-hot Afro-Cuban, Latin jazz and salsa music. Members of the famed Ballet Hispanico of New York will perform at 2:30 p.m. The popular Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles, America’s first all-female mariachi ensemble, will perform at 1 p.m.

 STUDENTS INTRODUCED TO ‘GREEN TECHNOLOGY’

OCC’s Architectural Technology program has been placing an emphasis on “green technology” for years.

Five hundred students enroll in OCC’s architecture classes each semester, and many capture awards at annual architecture competitions.

“Three classes in our curriculum place particular emphasis on green technology,” said associate professor of architecture, Rose Anne Kings.

In OCC’s “Introduction to Architecture” class (Architecture 110), students receive their initial exposure to green technology, Kings says. Students are introduced to the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System.

Kings says green technology is “strongly taught” in OCC’s “Design Context and Systems” class (Architecture 185). The course introduces students to site design, solar design, energy, water, waste and sustainable materials.

“Architectural Drawing and Design Theory III” (Architecture 230) provides students with advanced design training.

JIM CARNETT is senior director of community relations at Orange Coast College. He writes the biweekly On Campus at OCC Column. Reach him at jcarnettocc.cccd.edu or by calling (714) 432-5725.