The film certainly touches the thousand or so first-years who attend the screening each fall and the Crimson Key members who carry on the tradition.

According to Eryn E. Ament '95, a former Crimson Key member, the film was first shown in the early 1980s once it had "become a classic in the country's eyes and far enough outside the 1970s to be a source of great laughs."

Each fall, members of Crimson Key watch the film four or five times to come up with new lines and allow new members to learn the snide stand-bys.

As the script is memorized rather than codified, lines continue to evolve and only the funniest carry over from year to year, says Colbert H. Cannon '97, president of the Crimson Key.

At the beginning of every screening, the Crimson Key makes a disclaimer stating that this well-respected film is shown in the spirit of fun, adding that the humor is in no way meant to be offensive. But three years ago, as a result of student and administrative complaints, the Crimson Key had to curb their jokes about McGraw's struggle with cancer and ultimate death.

"Some of the death jokes were not in good taste," admits Ryan C. Kubacki '95, the Crimson Key's 1993 president. "I have had close relatives die of cancer, but I never felt uncomfortable by it because I knew that wasn't the point behind it."

Despite the minor controversy, the tradition remains strong.

"I think it sounds fabulous," McGraw says of the antics surrounding the film. "I think it sounds like an absolute trip."

But McGraw says she does not have to apologize for the bad clothes and the sappy lines. After all, loving the movie means never having to say you're sorry.