ANNUAL REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT By S^BB^'r J. STRIANSE THE YEAR 1957 has been a most eventful one, not only for the SOCIETY but for the world in general. The history books of the future will record 1957 as the year of man's first successful venture into outer space. Surprisingly enough, this year found the SOCIETY involved far outside of its usual orbit. One might say that S.C.C., 1957 wore an international cloak almost from birth. For example: Our special award of $1000 which is given for outstanding, recent liter- ary contributions of greatest value to our industry, was awarded for the first time since its conception to two British scientists, namely Drs. Archer John Porter Martin and Anthony Trafford James, for their pioneering and development in the field of gas liquid partition chroma- tography. This timely and outstanding selection was made possible by the efforts of Herman J. Amsterdam, Chairman, and the members of his Special Award Committee and also Dr. Lester Apperson, Chairman, and the members of the Literature Review Sub-Committee. Shortly after this event, 51 members of our SoCiETY found themselves abroad attending and taking part in seminars held in Paris, Geneva and London. This was our first en masse attendance of Seminars held in Europe in the history of the SOCIETY. I am and we all should be indebted to our Secretary, Robert Kramer, for the magnificent job he did in organizing this entire trip. This you realize was all in addition to the many other functions he performs as Secretary of the SOCIETY. The smoothness with which the seminar in Geneva was con- ducted was due to a large degree to the efforts of Dr. Donald Powers and Edward Morrish, Co-Chairman of the European Seminar Committee. While in Europe, we became aware of what I consider the most important event of the year. An International Congress of Cosmetic Societies was held in Paris. The countries represented were: England, France, Ger- many, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Czechoslovakia and the United States. It was here that the French proposed the formation of the first Inter- national Federation of Societies of Cosmetic Chemists. In view of the far reaching implications of this proposal, I took advantage 75

76 JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF COSMETIC CHEMISTS of the annual occasion of President's Night at both the Chicago and New York Chapters to bring to the membership all the details and pros and cons concerning this international grouping. For those of you who could not attend these meetings may I indicate that my talk entitled "Toward a United Nations of Cosmetic Chemists" will appear in the January issue of our Jot•RNAI• which will be published in England by the Society of Cos- roetic Chemists of Great Britain. This year marks the birthday of two brand new Societies of Cosmetic Chemists, namely the German Society of Cosmetic Chemists and the Swiss Society of Cosmetic Chemists. Maison G. deNavarre and Robert A. Kramer by their personal contacts during their many trips abroad were most instrumental in sparking and stimulating the existence of these societies. The publication committee, headed by Maison G. deNavarre as in for- ruer years, has done an excellent job of keeping our JouRs^I. self-sustain- ing and maintaining a good flow of the current issues. This year deNavarre called to our attention the subject of relative costs of journals in England and the United States and the fact that the British Society has mailed us journals in excess of those they have received from us. While in London we settled differences. Another first was the presentation of our fourth annual Seminar at the Edgewater Beach Hotel in Chicago. Prior to 1957, the Seminars had always been held in New York. Dr. Joseph Kalish, our Seminar Chairman should be commended for the excellent program and the manner in which it was conducted. May I add that 196 people attended the seminar, giving us a profit instead of an anticipated loss. It is interesting to note that about 50 of the chemists attending the Seminar were from the New York area. Coinciding with the seminar was the celebration of the Tenth Anni- versary of the Chicago Chapter. This was a delightful occasion and Gustav Carsch, his fellow officers and committee chairmen put on a fine show. Incidentally the Chicago Chapter is currently sponsoring a noncredit course in cosmetics at the University of Chicago. The New York Chapter under the guidance of Warren B. Dennis, Chair- man, also worked toward promoting cosmetic education in the Eastern Colleges. In September of this year, Columbia University offered a credit course in cosmetic chemistry. Mr. Dennis and all his officers deserve definite recognition for their persistent efforts to establish and uplift cosmetic education. The interesting, provocative scientific programs presented at both the May and December meetings were organized by William Markland your Program Chairman.