Along with many others, I was saddened by the passing of one of the all-time great comedians, Don Rickles. As with so many of the old-time greats who passed before him, there were two Don Rickles. Beneath all of his onstage or camera bluster, rudeness and insults, the real Don Rickles was a quiet, respectful and, dare I say, humble man. I met Don and his wife Barbara twice over the course of my Air Force career.
The first time is one of my fondest memories of my time as the executive officer for the USAF Thunderbirds. Don was appearing at the Sahara Casino at the time, and had indicated he would like to come out and visit with our team. I met the Sahara Casino's limo at the front gate to Nellis AFB, and escorted Don, Barbara and their two young boys to the Thunderbirds hangar.
It turned out to be a delightful and memorable afternoon with the Rickles family. You could not meet more down-to-earth and all-around nice people. Don was very polite and a very good listener. We soon learned that his on-stage persona and real persona were as different as day and night. But, of course, he had to throw in a zinger every now and then during any conversation. At one point, he flipped me a quarter and said, "Go get an ice cream cone, kid."
At that time, in 1977, Don had just returned from six weeks in Israel, most of which he spent with the Israeli military forces. He was very knowledgeable of the situation in the Mideast. And most importantly he was a true patriot and loved America's military.
My second meeting with Don and Barbara was eight years later during the second Reagan/Bush inaugural festivities. I was assigned as the military coordinator for then Vice President Bush and family. One of the events involved a backstage party with all of the celebrities in Washington for the inauguration. When Don and Barbara walked in to join the party I went to greet them.
Not thinking they would remember me from their Thunderbirds visit eight years earlier, I started to introduce myself. But before I even started, Barbara said, We remember you. You're that young officer from the day we spent with the Thunderbirds a long time ago. I was flattered, to say the least. Reinforced to me that they were genuine people.
Don is the last of the iconic comedians from the good old days when the Rat Pack ruled, and Vegas was still Vegas. RIP Mr. Rickles. I would bet anything when you showed up at the Pearly Gates, your first words were, "Hey Saint Peter, how ya doin' you hockey puck?"
Steve Hyle
Lewes
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to newsroom@capegazette.com. Letters must be signed and include a telephone number and address for verification. Please keep letters to 500 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content and length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days. Letters restating information and opinions already offered by the same author will not be used. Letters must focus on issues of general, local concern, not personalities or specific businesses.
