She hardly looks her 84 years! (and Ro looks marvelous too, dontcha think?) This photo was snapped a few years ago under odd circumstances. She was brought into town to speak after the newly restored Baby Rose Marie shorts were shown at the Heights Theatre in Minneapolis. I have a pal who is pals with the theatre owner and this said pal phoned me and mentioned that he was going to dinner with Rose Marie. I told him that if he wanted to be walking tomorrow, he had better get me a seat at that table(!) and he obliged. It turned out to be a motley group of people (including Rosie's very motley escort, horror actor Randal Malone). This dinner took place in a coffee shop, it was pretty awful. All I could think about is what I would've done if I'd been in charge of this.
So, I was never a big fan of "The Dick Van Dyke Show". Okay, I watched it from time to time, but it wasn't a favorite though I did like Sally, Buddy and Richard Deacon. And Ro on "Hollywood Squares" was always good and I saw her, Margaret Whiting, Helen O'Connell and Rosemary Clooney in "Four Girls Four" at the tent in Hyannis ten million summers ago. What I'm trying to say is I am a fan. So yes, once I knew I was attending this state dinner, I went through everything and found my deluxe program from "Four Girls Four" and brought it with. I hoped it would please her. Once there, I found her to be kind of out of it. There were some weirdos at the table asking her inane questions. Someone said something and a question floated in the air and then the name of Sally Rogers boyfriend popped into my head and I blurted out NORMAN GLIMCHER! As if scripted, she stopped chewing for a moment & raspily blurted HERMAN! IT WAS HERMAN!
Her hair needed attention, her bows were askew and I wanted to say something, but since I was a "guest" myself, I kept my big yap shut. Oh well.
