BOB HOPE 1903-2003 (by Mark Steyn)

steyn on line ^ | from The Sunday Telegraph, May 4th 2003 | Mark Steyn

[Victoria Delsoul]

Thanks for the memories, Bob. God bless!

[knighthawk]

Ping

[GOPrincess]

I just visited Arlington for the first time earlier this month. It was a moving experience. It would be quite fitting were he to be buried there.

Fox News mentioned Forest Lawn as a likely choice.

[jocon307]

"...but I never quit loving and admiring Bob Hope."

Me neither, and I'm just feeling so sentimental and sad tonight that he is gone. The thing of it is, I am sad again, again, that my brother is gone, and I can't share Hope's death with him.

Well do I remember watching those old Road pictures, and the others with my brother on TV, we were really children from an older generation than our own.

As I was emphasizing to hubby the other day, the first racehorse's name I ever knew was "Seabiscuit", from a Bugs Bunny cartoon. In real life we lived in the 1960's, but in our cultural and mental life, we were in a free floating 1930s-1940s world.

And Bob Hope was a big part of that. I'm glad he made the C mark. Determination, that's what I'd chalk that up to.

[JohnHuang2]

Thanks for the ping, my friend.
Bob Hope, Thanks for the Memory. RIP.

[JohnHuang2]

Mark Steyn Mega ping...

[EternalVigilance]

Bob Hope: An American Touchstone

Bob Hope was an American touchstone
A friend, familiar to us all
American as apple pie
We loved to watch him have a ball!

Through the miracle of the medium
Vaudeville, radio, movies and TV
His unique talents, his superior wit
Were loaned for a lifetime
To you and me

Like the grandfather everyone loves
Guaranteed to make you smile
We all feel like we knew him
When we found him on the dial

Bless his memory
Bless his family and Delores his wife
Bob Hope lived an ideal
American life

EV

[JohnHuang2]

Beautifully stated, my friend.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

You just feel good when you think about Bob Hope.

[JohnHuang2]

Dittos, Cincy. God bless that man.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

He did.

[JohnHuang2]

No doubt about it :-)

[Susannah]

The local channels here in California did a lot of coverage on Bob Hope. They even ran film of him campaign-raising for Reagan and commenting on Bush Sr.'s debate "Bush performed so well in the debate that they are considering testing him for steroids." Another film clip: "Did you watch the Democratic Convention? - - - I did. Well I had to, comedy's my business."

Bob Hope donated land for the Eisenhower Hospital. He is well known in this area for mingling with people at all levels. His family was on tv and they are considering which charities, including the Catholic Church, to donate Bob Hope lands to.

[dennisw]

His family was on tv and they are considering which charities, including the Catholic Church, to donate Bob Hope lands to..............


On TV last night they said Bob had 3 requirements when on tour or charity fundraising. One was that a good Catholic church be lined up for Delores 'cause she went every morning.

[Susannah]

The local channels here in California did a lot of coverage on Bob Hope. They even ran film of him campaign-raising for Reagan and commenting on Bush Sr.'s debate "Bush performed so well in the debate that they are considering testing him for steroids." Another film clip: "Did you watch the Democratic Convention? - - - I did. Well I had to, comedy's my business."

Bob Hope donated land for the Eisenhower Hospital. He is well known in this area for mingling with people at all levels. His family was on tv and they are considering which charities, including the Catholic Church, to donate Bob Hope lands to.

[ReleaseTheHounds]

Thanks for posting this timely replay by M.S.

I was thinking about Bob Hope yesterday, and it occurred to me this was the most completely positive and universally liked person of the 20th Century. If someone didn't like Bob Hope, that person has to be a crank -- or just totally uninformed or uninvolved in American life.

Let's celebrate his life and all the good he did...

[veronica]

Thanks for posting this. A great read. As always, Steyn sums it up so capably and accurately. I watched several tributes to and bios on Hope last night. All wonderful, and it reminded me that I was so amazed when the NBC special on him in May got huge ratings. He was so fantastic - talk about living large. Two things stand out to me - how incredibly funny and charming he was, and how dedicated he was to our soldiers all over the world, for so many years. For that alone, for being there for our armed forces, he earns a kind of sainthood in my mind.

[veronica]

Oh, and on Larry King, Art Linkletter said what we all figured, that Hope was always a Republican, in spite of the fact that he palled around with both Republican and Demo Presidents. Larry's roundtable show pretty much stunk, but Linkletter was informative. A&E had the best show on Hope I thought last night.

[GretchenEE]

His name symbolized his deeds.

[cpprfld]

That was a good tribute.