Last night in the men's room at Shun Lee West (Upper West Side, Manhattan), a grey-haired man in a white wool sweater finishes at a urinal and goes to the sinks. A slightly younger man in a black suit leaves a stall and joins him at the sinks. The grey haired man seems to recognize the slightly younger man.
"Bill, I just want to shake your hand," says the grey haired man.
The slightly younger man - "Bill" - extends his arm and they shake. Bill definitely hasn't washed yet. Not sure about older man. Is he a friend of Bill's? Is this just some unwashed-hands-in-the-bathroom humor between old friends?
"I want to tell you how much I like your work," the grey haired man says.
"Thanks," says Bill, and washes his hands.
"I want to thank you for all your great work over the years," says the grey haired man. "I’ve enjoyed it." He waits for something more from Bill.
"That’s why we do it," says Bill. "We do it for people like you."
Bill's voice is familiar. Very. Light thinning hair combed straight back.
The older guy finally leaves. I clear my throat to let Bill know he's blocking both sinks.
Host of a news program. Bill? Not Beutel. The voice - very familiar.
Back at the table I describe Bill to my wife. Voice definitely from a TV news show. Wait - maybe from porn and coke messages I heard on Howard Stern? She suggests Entertainment Tonight and "Pat O'Reilly". I agree. "Bill" must have been a slip of the older man's tongue - Bill O'Reilly's the guy on Fox.
Later, back at home, a minute or two on Google clears things up. Pat O'Brien.
A few points:
- Pat sounded absolutely sincere. Not a trace of sarcasm in the “we do it for people like you” line.
- Maybe such encounters are just a small price to pay for the benefits of celebrity. Or maybe, little by little, they lead a person (without their realizing it) to porno-ish phone messages and a tour in rehab.
- Can't fault O'Brien for not washing before shaking. It all happened so fast. Not sure I'd have done it differently.
- The hot and sour soup at Shun Lee is OK, but not as good as at Grand Sichuan on 51st and 9th. Menu at Grand Sichuan includes delicious "freshly killed chicken" dishes. In same situation at Grand Sichuan, I might intercede (avian flu concerns).
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