THE GUESTS WE MEET…
My 5 year old son Everett, grandson of Saratoga Arms owners Noel and Kathleen Smith, is an avid Little Rascals fan…the original series from the 1920s. He checks out the old VHS tapes from the Saratoga Springs Public Library on a weekly basis.
About three weeks ago, Kathleen called me from home to say that Dick Moore was staying at the hotel and was in the dining room having breakfast. Dick Moore played the character “Little Dickie” in the original Our Gang series. Kathleen told Mr. Moore that her grandson was a huge fan and asked if he would be willing to talk with him. He graciously obliged and Everett and I headed down to the hotel.
While in the car, I was concerned that Everett was expecting to see “Little Dickie” as a 5 year old boy (See Below). I told him that he is now a grown up and no longer a kid, now an 85 year old man. He declared with such confidence, “I know he is older Mom, the shows were in Black and White!!”
We arrive at the hotel and Everett bounds up to the table and introduces himself. It was his first “celebrity” experience and he was awestruck. Yet as he became more comfortable he began discussing the various episodes that “Little Dickie” was in. Mr. Moore remembered those episodes and they both talked about their experiences with such glee. As I stood there watching them both, I was struck that even though there was 80 years difference between the two, this wonderful common experience washed that 80 years away.
Mr. Moore was a gracious celebrity and took a picture with Everett (See Below) and signed an autograph as well. Everett was a gracious hotelier’s son and helped Mr. Moore load luggage into his car, earning a dollar for his troubles.