Meeting Charles Bronson
Approaching Bronson, I pointed to the surgeon, who bowed in our direction, telling the actor that the surgeon’s grandson was a die-hard fan. The movie icon waved his hand in my face, dismissively, while he calmly yet firmly uttered two words: ”No Autographs!!!”
As Bronson walked away, I stood silent and shocked until his female aide came up to me, apologizing for his busy schedule and offering a flimsy excuse for his show of arrogance. The barely 5-foot-9-inch actor, a tough guy, wearing lifts to raise his height, continued his strut in the hotel lobby for another 10-15 minutes.
The power that came with celebrity status fueled the egos of many, and it seemed Bronson had a gargantuan opinion of his own. My father, an amateur boxer, stocky and one inch shorter than Bronson, had a mean left hook. At 17, I’d outgrown him to reach just under 5’11”,
but never challenged his authority. I wondered what he would have done in response to this belittling slight. I vowed never to watch another movie starring Bronson.
Casino Night
There, Jerry and I sat side-by-side at a Grand Lisboa Casino blackjack table, when the surrender rule came up. Each of us bet $100 per hand. The dealer’s hand showed a nine, and we assumed he had a ten as his hole card. I was dealt two Aces, and, of course, split them. Amazingly, I got a third Ace, which moved my bet up to $300.
Jerry had an eight as his upcard and a ten as his hole card. I had two hands, each totaling twenty-one, and one a miserable fifteen. I could’ve surrendered that hand and lost $50, half my bet. The dealer annoyingly said, “You surrender, you surrender,” but feeling lucky, I retorted, “Americans never surrender.”
Well, the dealer busted by going over twenty-one. I won all three hands, and Jerry won his as well, yelling, “I like your style!”
Our mutual respect increased after the time we spent together visiting hospitals in Hong Kong. From that visit forward, I eagerly followed his lead in the acute cardiopulmonary competition with Bentley, Harvey, and Cobe. After three days of spicy Asian foods, Jerry requested something mild and recognizable. On that last night together, to celebrate a highly successful visit, only one place came to mind for a superb Western meal: Gaddi’s at the Peninsula Hotel. He raved, both about my fortitude at the blackjack table and my work results for Shiley. My stock within the company rose.