What's in a Name?

I've told people: I was a Dick when I was a kid. I was a Dick all through high school and college. I was a Dick when I was a magazine editor in Chicago. I was a Dick when I taught a course in Nautical Science for the Jefferson Parish (LA) school system. Then I got a job as captain of a large motor yacht in New Orleans. They didn't like the name Dick, so I became Captain Richard and have been known as Richard ever since. But some people. . .some people will be dicks until the day they die.

Mother Knows Best

In the eighth grade I won two tickets to a Red Sox double header. My mother drove me and my friend, Harry Bennett, to Hyannis to catch the train to Boston. She had written out directions on how to get from South Station to Fenway Park on the street car system. We were ready for our big adventure. As we were getting on the train she slipped a twenty dollar bill into my hand “for something to eat” in Boston. “But don’t get the Salisbury Steak,” she said. It’s just a hamburger with gravy.”