I'll Miss Them Both

Two events have happened this week that caused me some small bits of sadness. The one had nothing to do with the other but they both reminded me that time is moving on and yet another part of my youth is gone.

One was the passing of Calvin Deforest A.K.A. Larry “Bud” Melman. As a kid growing up in the 80’s, Late Night with Davis Letterman was one of those shows that defined us. It was ours. We got the comedy. Carson was for my parents, Letterman was the young persons show. With the brilliant writing of Chris Elliot and his staff, Letterman was doing edgy and groundbreaking things in the form of a stagnant medium late night television.

There were so many memorable skits and characters on that show. Chris Elliot’s The Guy under the seats and the Fugitive Guy. Or Letterman jumping in a vat of water with an alka seltzer suit on. Or when he used to drop things from a 5 story building, all of it was funny. And then there was Larry “Bud” Melman. As I was youtube’ing him yesterday I was reminded of just how great that character was.

Letterman would put him in a bear suit and have him try to go around and get change for a ten. Or he would send him out to interview ordinary people out in the street. It was funny because Melman, was just being himself. There was no act to it. He was just a sweet older guy who was so innocent and honest that you couldn’t help but love him.

In an age were everyone is vain, Deforest, accepted his role as the butt of the joke. Sure, he profited from it but it takes a certain personality and certain amount of self-realization to be able to play that role. He was not talented in any comedic way, but there was something about that character (along with the others he played on the show like the long forgotten “Kenny the Gardner.”) that with Letterman’s nudging the audience just loved.

I know it gets lost nowadays with the current Letterman show a shell of its former Late Night edgy self, but his original NBC show is one of the main sculptors of my sarcastic personality today. Larry Bud Melman played a role in that. Even, though I did not know him and he lived a full life, I was still sad to hear about his passing.

The other thing that caused me some sadness was that I noticed as I drove by 87^th and Roberts Road that the White Hen there had closed. My Uncle owned that store form 1980 until late 1986. It was a fun six years and it was my first job. I started out there as a minor stocking the candy aisle and the cooler. I would mop the floor and make the papers. (I believe now the papers are already filled but back in the day the Sunday papers would come in two sections and you would have to fill them.) I was paid under the table until I got a work permit when I was fifteen.

I still have my first paycheck from the Hen. For a first job it was kind of cool. I was a sophomore and all of the money I made there I used to buy tapes (this was before the CD boom) or junk food. It afforded me personal freedom. If you were 15 in 1985 and you had 50 bucks in your pocket you were king. It was a great time in my life. My Aunt and Uncle still have friends to this day that they met while they owned that store.

My primary job was that of a cashier. I also was running the lotto machine, slicing meat, and making a ton of turkey sandwiches. As well as still filling that cooler and taking the bottle returns to the cage in the back. Filling the cooler was a favorite job of mine particularly in the summer. I would ride my bike in the hot sun to the Hen and be drenched with sweat. The first thing I would do when I got in was fill that cooler which was set at a beautiful 38 degrees. It basically consisted of making sure all the milk and soda was filled. Making sure the milk with the closer date was in the front. Nothing to earth shattering. I liked it because it was a nice break from dealing with customers.

The one hazard besides the deli slicer at the Hen was the bottle cage. It was only a danger in the summer months. Back in the day Pepsi and Coke would come in returnable bottles. So, people would come in and get their deposits back when they returned their finished soda. They would put it in this cart. When the cart got full it was my job to bring it out to the locked bottle cage in the back of the store. Well in the summer months all those bottles there that were once filled with the sugary delights, made it a perfect place for bees to converge. I had to put on a bee keepers outfit just to go in there. I mean I can’t tell you how many times I was fighting them off. I had never been stung by a bee before I worked there. After I was stung so many times, that I stopped worrying about it.

I rarely if ever went in to the old White Hen anymore. As a matter of fact even though I really don’t live that far from it, I can’t remember the last time I stepped foot in the place. Still, it was nice knowing it was there. I would drive past and tell my wife every time some story about when I worked there. I am sure she got sick of hearing them but she indulged me. I can’t do that anymore and that makes me sad.

So, these two un-related events happened and for that my life is a little less bright. I mean, in the overall scheme of things neither of them are a big deal. Neither of them had any effect on my day to day life. But, just knowing that Larry “Bud” Mellman is no longer with us reminds me just how long ago those memories were from. And, just knowing that the Hen is gone cements in my head just how much time has gone on since I was a fresh faced young lad who had his whole life ahead of him. Well, maybe next week will be better.