Question: What item belonging to UNC President Bill Friday did President John F. Kennedy accidentally take with him following the University Day event in 1961?
Answer: After the ceremony, Kennedy borrowed Friday’s fountain pen to sign an autograph for a child, then absentmindedly pocketed it. A bystander wrote to the White House about it, and Kennedy mailed the pen back to Friday along with a lighthearted note apologizing for “absconding with this weapon of intellectual freedom.”
