In High School the world belongs to the jocks. And I grew up in LA at a time when surfing was the rage. So every guy had a decent physique (except us nerds... but we now have better skin).
Life was hopeless. I’d be alone at 60. Losing my occasional dates to over-the-hill athletes now playing in beer leagues.
But then I saw THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW. It was a revelation to me. You could get a girl like Laurie Petrie by being skinny, dorky, and a COMEDY WRITER? All is not lost. I’m funny. Where do I sign up?
My sense of humor in High School was the only skill I had to wow the opposite sex. Okay, so none of the cheerleaders would actually go out with me, but they would sign my yearbook and say I amused them. So at least they knew who I was. (It also helped that there weren't a lot of other funny people in my High School class.)
I thought about that recently when I read an excerpt from Mel Brooks’ upcoming autobiography. He talks about being smitten by Anne Bancroft and eventually marrying her. Here is another case of a beautiful woman who could probably have anyone she wanted and she chose this short gnome. Being able to make people laugh is a real gift — even as valuable as the ability to throw a spiral. And resulting in far fewer concussions…unless you wrote for Roseanne.
I look forward to reading the rest of Mel’s book. The small portion I read sure made me happy.
from By Ken Levine
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