Jun 28, 2011

The Time I Saw Peter Falk in Person


When the news broke of Peter Falk’s passing, I remembered that I’d seen him in person many years ago.

I was thirteen years old and I was with my family in Hollywood. We were on a big California vacation. I was about a year into my classic Hollywood obsession and was very impressed by the footprints in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theater.

We somehow came upon the premiere of the Dan Akroyd-starring version of Dragnet one night. There was a huge crowd gathered around the red carpet, and the stars were starting to leave the building. I remember very little about who I saw, except for some of the cast of the sitcom Head of the Class. (I couldn’t believe how big their heads were. Now I think that might be a TV star thing.)

The only other star I remember seeing is Peter Falk. Everyone else had glided out of that theater with heads held up straight and big gleaming grins. Falk didn’t glide, he ambled. He had a sort of left-to-right gait that fit nicely with his friendly grin.

My mom said something about how rumpled he looked, and I remember being annoyed by that. He struck me as so likeable that I wanted to defend him. I thought “comfortable” was a better term. Falk looked at ease in his own skin. I didn’t know at the time that he had a glass eye, but I noticed the droop on that side. It made him look like he was constantly winking, which added to his appeal.

Of all the things from that night that I can no longer remember, I haven't forgotten one moment of his walk down the red carpet. His warm, friendly demeanor made me love him instantly, and while I couldn’t put it into words at the time, I began to understand the sort of charisma that made an actor a star.


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3 comments:

  1. Thank you for sharing your Peter Falk, memory with us.. I really loved his acting.. I was so sad to hear of his passing.

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  2. I enjoyed this post. You hit the nail on the head about perception. Your mother saw "rumpled" and you saw "comfortable." Some actors just have that certain something...for some.

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  3. Thanks Dawn!

    And thank you litabuff! I do think it's interesting how our varied impressions of these stars can sometimes make one person seem like many. It says a lot about how different we are from each other.

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