9/11…



September 11th…
When the twin towers fell, Carol-Ann and I were entertaining on a cruise ship in Europe and it was frightening being away from home with such tragedy happening and very little news available to us at sea.  Our contract finished shortly afterward and our flight home was diverted to avoid certain air space.
I was scheduled to entertain in Las Vegas the following week, but all flights were grounded and we had no idea whether or not we would be able to do our contract.
The day before I was to open at the Tropicana, planes were finally allowed to fly and I took my flight, and when I reached Las Vegas I discovered that the casinos had laid off something like 20,000 employees — but ironically, Vegas was packed!  (these are gamblers and they figure the odds of them being “hit” are pretty slim)
I was performing 2 shows a night at “The Comedy Stop”, and after my second show I was heading to the elevator to go back to my room when a lady rushed up to me….
She just wanted to shake my hand and “thank me” for making her husbanded laugh.  She was very serious when she said that her husband had not laughed since September 11th, and this was the first time she saw him open up and laugh in weeks!
It was a powerful moment for me.
I present my shows everywhere, from cruise ships to casinos to company events and sometimes I take what I do for granted.  But that moment made me realize the value in what I do and I know now  that people appreciate it.

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