Meet my new friend Barbara

So I’ve gotten pretty good at waiting in lines. Mel and I waited over four and a half hours for Nats season opening tickets and I waited an hour and a half for standing room tickets for the season closer of Macbeth. On May 8th, I stood in line again.

Barbara Walters just wrote her memoirs and I read in one of the Hill rags that she was going to be at the local bookstore that’s a block away from my office singing copies of her book. I didn’t think much of it the first time I saw the ad, but when I saw the ad a second time on Wednesday, I thought it’d be cool to saunter on over and get a book signed. It’s Barbara Walters for crying out loud!! The lady has interviewed some of the coolest people ever. She’s like a living legend of broadcast television. Plus, let’s be honest, she’s not getting much younger.

The book signing was scheduled for 12:00. I headed over at 11:30. The line was out the door, but someone said book signings generally move pretty quickly. I figured I’d be back to work by 12:30 at the latest. I purchased two books, one for me and one for Mel and took my place in line – outside and in the rain.

You make friends in line, and I talked to a lady who had been to a Hillary Clinton book signing. We just chitchatted for a while to pass the time. And in true star fashion, Barbara Walters showed up at 12:30 – a half hour late. But I suppose she’s Barbara Walters and can do what she wants.

I thought of what I would say to Barbara. I’m sure she always gets asked the following: Who’s your favorite person to interview? Who do you wish you could interview past or present? What was Castro like? etc, etc… But I wanted to be different.

My turn finally came up to meet Barbara. At first, she seemed distant and like she was just going through the motions of signing the book. So I tried to connect to Barbara and make a lasting impression. Here’s how the conversation went:

Me: Hi Miss Walters. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m a huge fan of opera and Beverly Sills. I was really touched by your friendship with her and the poignant words you said about her upon her passing.

(Barbara looked me tenderly in the eyes and grabbed my hand and squeezed it obviously touched by my concern)

Barbara: Thank you. She was a dear, dear friend of mine. I miss her dearly. Such a terrible loss in my life and to opera. Thank you so much for your kind words.

Me: Yes, she seemed like a truly nice person. Thank you so much.

Barbara: Thank you.

Someone took our picture and I headed back to work, two signed books in my hand, a smile across my face and a great story to tell.

PS The book is off to a great start. Ms. Walters has paved the way for women in broadcast journalism and it’s just great to hear all the stories from her life and how she got to where she is today. If you ever want to read it, you can borrow my personal signed copy.