Evening at the Embers

Dear Diary:

I took my fiancée to the Embers on East 54th Street for an evening of jazz in April 1961.

When the night was over, I had enough cash to pay the bill but had miscalculated and did not have enough to tip the waiter, who refused to take my check. I was dismayed by the prospect of leaving without giving him the $10 I felt he deserved.

A man and woman sitting next to us recognized my dilemma and offered to cover the tip. The man, too, refused my check and also would not give me his address so that I could repay him.

Several weeks later I was at a small tailor shop on Second Avenue near 53rd Street for the final fitting of a suit I was having made for my wedding. My fiancée and I were getting married in August, on my birthday.

After leaving the shop, I started to cross the avenue. There, coming the other way, was the man who had covered the tip at the Embers.

I pulled a $10 bill from my pocket and gave it to him in the middle of the street.