Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Aha

I recently attended a show business party in New York City. One of the other guests was "Saturday Night Live" creator Lorne Michaels, whose imposing, earpiece-wearing bodyguard raised a few eyebrows. It wasn't clear what danger a bunch of starlets and Broadway financiers at a private function might pose, and the heavy struck a few cynics as a powerful man's affectation.

The truth is that Michaels has recently been harassed by a stalker, a troubled comedian convinced that "SNL" has been stealing his material. A Manhattan judge freed the man yesterday, ordering him to stay away from the producer.

I had a brief exchange with the industry legend during the party. A few weeks prior, while accepting a Golden Globe Award on behalf of "30 Rock," Tracy Morgan had intoned, "I want to thank my girl Tina Fey... I want to thank Lornie Mikes..."

I asked Lorne whether that was the first time he'd ever been called "Lornie Mikes." He laughed and replied, "No, Tracy calls me that all the time."

Stay strong, Lornie Mikes.

1 comment:

Martin said...

This was a great post. It's awesome you met him, and even better that you had something pertinent and amusing to say!