When Worlds Collide

Back in the early 1960s my father was on a winter business trip to New York City and did a night on the town with a few business associates that found them sitting in the famous 21 nightclub while a blizzard raged outside. The weather outside was, indeed, so "frightful" that there was only one other table being occupied in the club.

Inside, a man waved at my father and his friends, inviting them to join them at their table. They accepted. When Dad and his colleagues approached the other table they were shocked and intrigued by the man who had waved them over. It was Ed Sullivan. While the winter storm tore up the Big Apple, my father enjoyed cocktails with Ed Sullivan and his friends and watched the show and a good time was had by all.

Many years later (1983) both my parents were at the Dearborn Inn in Dearborn, Michigan where my father was attending a convention of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, as President of the Harrisburg, PA Chapter of SME. A man they believed to be Robert Mitchum sat alone at a booth and my father ventured over to see if it really was the famous movie actor. It was Robert Mitchum, relaxing after a day of shooting Winds of War. This time my father did the inviting and Mr. Mitchum joined my parents for a round of drinks which he insisted on buying. They even had their picture taken with him and said that he was very cordial and quite friendly.

Neither of these stories is earth-shattering but such things do make me wonder. Do these worlds collide for a reason or is it just a small world, after all?