once upon a time when i was the fairest princess in the land…. OK wait start over but don’t stop reading because this is a magical tale.

when i was about 20 some years old which was quite a few years ago i took my BFF pati to what was billed as a Rock ‘N Roll Revival at madison square garden. this was before there even were BFF’s. pati was a rock ‘n roll photographer and all around girl on the scene, so we had front row seats, which was actually the second row.  the show was just jam packed with great performers. ronnie spector and the four tops stand out the most for me though. 

so madison square garden is packed to the rafters (if there are rafters in MSG) with 45 year old, for lack of a better word, greasers. i think everyone there was drunk except me. it felt more like a soccer game. me and pati, we’re smack in front of the stage on the right side aisle. unfortunately, a man and his wife were in the aisle seats. the man had a mustache as was popular among greasers of his age and was extremely cranky yet excited about all the performers. he was yelling a lot, cheering, etc. 

pati, being a photographer, needed better access very often. i do believe she may have been drinking as well. she kept getting up to go to the stage and then coming back to sit down. every movement she made enraged our neighbor to the right. if she sneezed, he sneered at me. every time she got up, a little more of his popcorn spilled. when she returned to her seat, more popcorn flying. the first time this happened he started yelling and cursing at her to which she replied promptly with a giggle and a “piss off.” the second time, he leaned over and said to me “i’m gonna fucking kill your friend” and then went back to hootin’ and hollerin’. 

quite honestly, the only thing entertaining up until this point was the fact that this guy actually had a tub of popcorn. the memory of it is still funny.

i was a little tense after about an hour of the up and down and then being threatened and screamed at by this guy and the army behind him. i was expecting some rockin’ revivalin’ and the was the victim of an hour of threats and non-stop nagging. i really so much wanted to get out of there without either of us needing to be hospitalized.

the next time pati got up, i got up with her and since the front row was not being used, we just sat down. at this point, pati is still snapping away (pre-digital cameras ) and i’m pouting in the middle of the front row seriously wondering why i’m sitting in this here arena filled with people who hate me.

and that’s when it happened. the four tops took the stage. there was lots of gold lame and the only tears running down anyone’s face were mine.

i’m sitting alone in the front row with my arms crossed and the four tops are doing sugar pie honey bunch and doing their thing, which was amazing. suddenly, Levi so gracefully doesn’t miss a step in the dance routine and lunges forward and extends his hand to me. like a deer in the headlights, i don’t want to move. i close my eyes, arms crossed, and shake my head in a no please this can’t be happening sort of way.  Levi just as gracefully steps back and does his thing. i’m wringing my hands at this point and here he comes one more time hand extended. i look around. there’s nobody but me. literally, it’s like me and Levi. we’re the only two people in the world in that moment. he’s at the edge of the stage, looking right in my eyes. nowhere to hide. so…. i stand up, lean forward, put my little hand in Levi’s very large warm hand and the magic happened.

Levi’s smile got so big it made me smile. and all of a sudden, the popcorn stopped spilling, the crowd was ecstatic, pati sat down, and there was peace throughout the land known as the city of new york.

the end.dd