Night of Decadence

Night of Decadence, commonly referred to as NOD, is a party held every year around Halloween at Wiess College at Rice University.^[1]

The party was first held in 1972 and quickly became a legendary event at Rice and in Houston, drawing young alumni and students from other universities in addition to Rice students. It was also named to the Top 10 College Parties in America by Playboy magazine.^[2]

Overview

Beginning in 1976, the college began adopting a theme for each year's party.^[3] In the 1970s and 1980s, many of the themes were historical and/or apocalyptic in nature (e.g. The Fall of Rome, Caligula, Armageddon, Animal Farm, the Trojan War). By the 1990s the themes were generally sexual puns, often based on movie titles (e.g. James Bondage, Lust in Space).

Instead of traditional costumes, students dress as degenerately (or as minimally) as possible. Pregnant nuns and drag dress are some of the tamer outfits. Although there are always several people creatively attired in Saran Wrap or fishnet stockings and pasties, a typical costume is boxer shorts for men, and bra and panties for women. Because of its overtly sexual context, NOD eventually became a polarizing event on the Rice campus. Alternative events on campus included Night of Innocence (offered since at least the 1980s), Night of Praise, and NODgeball. NOD remains one of the most popular parties on campus, though the decorations have become more conservative in recent years. Each year over one thousand people attend NOD.

Regardless of the stated theme, the decorations for NOD were overtly sexual. For many years NOD's trademark was "Sparky", a giant phallus built of papier-mâché and suspended from the ceiling of the Commons. ("Sparky's" also became the nickname of Wiess's basement game room.) Often Sparky was aligned with a corresponding anatomical prop at the other end of the room; one year a motor was added to move Sparky back and forth during the party. In some years a second Sparky was constructed with internal tubing that delivered Everclear punch from an upstairs mixing area to a suitably shaped serving trough below.^[4]

Significant safety efforts were instituted started in 1999.^[5]

The party now garners over 1,500 people.^[6]

NOD themes

See also

• Land of Nod

References

• Which college comes out tops in Fun 101? DallasNews published Sept 21, 1991
• College collage Alumni share insights with Sam Houston students Fort Worth Star-Telegram published January 10, 1994