One of my regrets is that I was never able to see the greatest entertainer in the world do his stuff in person. I watched his movies, loved his music, and laughed like crazy at his comedy routines. I heard him play instruments and watched him dance. But it was always on TV and never in person. I did meet him once, however.
I don't remember what time of year it was, but I was about 12 years old at the time and we were going to L.A. to visit my aunt and uncle. The traffic was at a standstill and I was sitting in the back seat of our car (my parents were in the front). I looked at the surrounding vehicles and saw a limo beside us. I'd never seen one up close before. I must have been staring for several minutes, when the rear window slowly lowered and there he was. The person I idolized and would have given anything to meet!
He smiled at me and waved. I smiled and waved back. We made faces at each other in a friendly way, both of us laughing. I tried to get my parent's attention, but they were talking about something and ignored me. I was afraid to break the magic of the moment by yelling or losing eye contact with him.
All too soon, the traffic started to move again. He blew me a kiss and waved goodbye. I returned the gesture. His window was still going back up when I got my parent's attention and told them who I'd been visiting with. I don't think they believed me, but they did see the limo.
Many years later, my husband and I were in San Fransisco, wandering around Fisherman's Wharf when we passed the Wax Museum. In the front window was a statue of the greatest entertainer who ever lived, with a black wreath. He had died that morning and the museum was doing a tribute to him...
I'm still boggled when I hear that someone else is being given the title of the greatest entertainer of all time. Because there was only one Sammy Davis, Jr.
http://townhall.com/columnists/LarryElder/2009/07/16/death_of_the_worlds_greatest_entertainer?page=full&comments=true
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Yes he was great.
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