Hi Bob, bye Bob...
When I was first transferred by CBS out to LA to be part of the Entertainment Division I was totally starstruck. Faces that I had only seen on my 20 inch Zenith TV were now walking by and into my office and it was surreal. Of the many faces that I saw and people that I got to meet I was especially in awe of Bob Newhart. Like many of my generation I first heard him on his LP record album The Button Down Mind of Bob Newhart. Of course in time I would see him on the Tonight Show with his pals Don Rickles and Johnny Carson but most of all on his TV series, first The Bob Newhart Show, where Hi Bob, was such a part of the comedy that it became a drinking game, and then later Newhart which was still running when I arrived in LA.
When I was welcomed as a member @ Bel-Air Country Club where I learned to play the game that still haunts and enchants me I got to see another side of this comedic icon. First, he was a really good player! He had a terrific swing and could move it around the course with the best. The second was that if he hit a bad shot another ball would drop out of his pocket quicker than you could say “too bad” about the first one. It wasn’t about cheating at all, it was just his impatience, in a friendly round, with his own mistake. He was an impeccable person, who though calm and implacable on the outside was intensely focused on doing his best in whatever he was doing. He had strong opinions about how we were treating his show that didn’t always align with what we thought was best and he never kept them to himself; but was the kind of person that never let that get bitter or personal… lucky for me as I was the one who was making scheduling decisions about his show!
There’s a great line that’s used to get people to trust themselves and express who they really are that goes “Dance like there’s nobody watching you”. In Hollywood where appearance can triumph everything, getting down to the real person can be quite a challenge, especially when you’re in a position where you have power over the careers of others. I guess I always had a sense of humility or maybe cynicism that all the kind words and gestures were really more transactional than sincere. I say this because the Bob Newhart that impressed me most had little to do with any interaction or benefit with me.
My parents had come out to LA to stay with our toddlers while we took a needed rest in Hawaii. While I knew that my mom would be totally absorbed with the girls, I also knew that my Dad would welcome a break from that routine so I set him up to play at Bel-Air in my absence. When we got back I took him up to the Club to play and when we walked into the Grill Room, there at The Smart Table (the longer you sat there and the more you drank the smarter you thought you were !). was Bob along with Dick Martin, Tom Poston and a couple of others. When they saw my Dad come in “Hey Tony, how are you?” came from the group. I was floored and turned to my father and asked, “You know those guys?” His response was “yeah they’re my friends”. Their kindness to my Dad, who was truly a stranger in a strange land really touched and amazed me…they had nothing to gain other than a new friend and that was enough.
Over the years we tried another series with him that sadly didn’t work out but it never soured our relationship and Bob was always, Bob, a kind, funny and sincerely nice person. As I noted in my remembrance of the Say Hey Kid, sometimes meeting your heroes can be a letdown, but Bob was someone whose “authentic self” was even more compelling than the characters that he created and portrayed. Bye Bob and RIP.
A few month ago Judd Apatow did this short about Bob and Don Rickles and I think it's one of the best ways to remember him …just click on the underlined and the link will appear for you click on.
Or just paste this into your browser… https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/judd-apatows-bob-and-don-a-love-story