Shelley Berman and his wife of 65 years in the lobby of the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu on Labor Day, 2012.
As I was working on updating all of you readers (all 2 of you) on the comings and goings of the first Spellbinders Conference in Honolulu, Hawaii, and mourning the fact that I did not see Shelley Berman when he visited the lounge last night (although everyone else apparently did), who should stop, this afternoon, but Mr. and Mrs. Berman.
Shelley Berman was probably my favorite comedian of the 60s. I liked him better than Cosby (although I have to admit to listening to Cosby’s comedy albums and loving the “What’s a cubit?” bit re Noah’s Ark). I liked him better than Bob Newhart, although both of them pioneered the “man on the phone” comedy method. (I think Shelley says Bob took it from him, but, then, Bob probably says the same thing in reverse).
My favorite bit had the hassled comic on the phone from a large department store, where a female clerk was on the ledge outside the building and Shelley was calling for help. When asked how she got out there, his response was: “I don’t know how she got out there! Maybe she tried on something and SNAPPED out!”
Last time I saw Shelley at a small comedy club in Davenport, Iowa, which was within the past 10 years (Linda White could help me out here, if she’d “friend” me on Facebook, as it was after her younger daughter’s wedding reception at the Holiday Inn.) My own son (Scott) had gotten married just months prior and we had a reception at our country club, and I had the Big Bright Idea of purchasing a lot of glow-in-the-dark stuff for fun. I remember that one of my then-friends (Linda Davidson) thought it was a stupid idea at the time, but it went over great, and soon became “de rigeur” for weddings. To this day, I think it is. I had the idea because of the Oriental Trading Company stuff I routinely bought for my Sylvan Learning Center.
Anyway, I was wearing several glow-in-the-dark necklaces and bracelets and chose to gift Mrs. Berman with one, saying, “Thank you for sharing Shelley with us all these years.”
At this morning’s breakfast, James Strauss told a story of touring Honolulu to find an electric shaver for Shelley, as he had forgotten his. I could relate, as I forgot my curling iron and my hair looks like it, as a result. Nice guy Jim and wife Mary scoured the island for all-night pharmacies and found Shelley a $29 electric shaver, which he delivered to his room no doubt to the delight of the elderly couple.
When I saw the Bermans enter the lounge, I went over, expressed my admiration for his comedy talents, and asked Mrs. Berman (among other questions, how long the couple has been married? (A: 65 years). Learning that they have 20 years on me, I then asked her if she ever remembered going to a concert with Shelley where a woman came up after the set and gave her some glow-in-the-dark paraphernalia. She claimed to remember this, and even named the town correctly, unprompted.
I said, “I’d like to thank you, again, for sharing Shelley’s comic genius with us all these years and, also, to congratulate you on such a long and happy marriage.” And I gave her a copy of my newest book (“Hellfire & Damnation II”). I only had that one with me. Too bad I didn’t have a copy of “Laughing through Life” in my purse at the time, but maybe tomorrow?
Mr. Strauss, if you’re reading this, shoot me the room number, and I’ll hand deliver a copy. It’s probably more Mr. Berman’s style.