Hal Holbrook did so many plays and TV shows and movies in his long, rich career. So many. In some ways, it's a shame that folks will say, "Oh, yeah…he's the guy who did that Mark Twain thing on stage"…though even if that was the only thing he ever did, we will still be mourning the passing of a great, accomplished actor.
He did that show for 63 years and I'm so happy that after missing many opportunities, I finally got the chance to see him do it back in 2014. I went with my friend Jewel Shepard and we met up with our friend Frank Ferrante for dinner first…and then at the theater, we hooked up with our friend, James Karen, who literally had known Mr. Holbrook since before the days of Mark Twain Tonight.
It was wonderful — one of those theatrical experiences you carry with you for a long, long time. And as a bonus, we all got to go backstage after and meet the star. Jewel was wise enough to haul out her camera and record this little video and capture the reunion of Mr. Karen and Mr. Holbrook. You'll see Frank and me grinning in the background…