Why, oh why, every time I hear a cooking term, do I
think of Martha Stewart? Think of Martha, and think
of those many years ago that we worked together
in New York, she a stock broker, me the the managing
partner's secretary. And when I think of Martha, I think
of Brian. Brian Dennehy, actor and great all-round guy.
It was fun, back then, to sit at the end of the hall. My
office was the passageway to the coffee and the kitchen.
Everyone streamed through at least a few times a day
to renew their vow to the great god of caffeine.
Martha was the golden girl of Wall Street then. There
were few women in the business of finance back in the
early 70's, and Martha was, without a doubt, the reigning
diva of the world of stocks and bonds. And my boss
wanted me to follow in her footsteps. He thought I was
perfect material, and he dreamed of having two
Martha's -- two women that he could proudly point
out as his "creations". So very Henry Higgins.
So Martha took me to lunch to talk about the
business, only because our boss insisted. She was
much too important to spend time with just a
secretary. But she did it. Unwillingly.
I was much more comfortable with Brian. He was
a struggling actor, doing mostly small plays out
on the Island. Small plays with small companies.
He didn't know I was from a theatrical family and
had, before coming to New York, spent five years
on the stage in Los Angeles. I was an actress (we
called ourselves by the sex-approriate title in those
days) and when he talked about his acting, I softly
chortled to myself.
"Sure", I said, as bitchily as Martha acted toward me.
"Sure, he's an actor." But then he invited me out
to Massapequa to see him in a show. The Odd Couple,
it was. He played Oscar, the messy, action-driven sports
writer, and from knowing Brian in the office, that was
type casting. Not the sports writer part, but messy.
He always had his pants down under his large belly,
and his shirt was always flapping out in back as he
returned to his desk from his tenth coffee run of
the day. Perfect for Oscar.
I went to see him, knowing I was going to have to
be polite about his attempt at being good. Well,
eat my words. He was incredible. He was a titan
on the stage, with all those around him diminished
into very typical, not very good week-end actors.
And I couldn't keep my eyes off of him. All those
conversations with him hadn't prepared me for his
excellence, and I knew that he would end up being big in
the business.
Little did I know that Martha would be big, bigger than
the world, but not in the job I knew her in. I wonder
now if she treats her staff as she treated people back
then. Could her success let her soften up a bit, and
could her maturity allow her a small vestige of kindness
toward those whomshe allow to invade her magic
sphere? Could she possibly extend a hand of genuine
graciousness to those around her? Hmmmm, I wonder...
I can only hope so. I can only hope so.
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