A Million Little Pieces...of Al Lewis

I was always more of a fan of The Addams Family than The Munsters, but I was still sad when I heard earlier this week that "Grandpa" Al Lewis had passed away. I never got a chance to meet him, but as a little stuffed bull who's out and about with his ear to the ground in Manhattan, you couldn't ignore the fact that "Grandpa" was a colorful and eccentric character in New York City long after his heyday on teevee. I'd rather run into him on the street than Kenny Kramer, f'rinstance. Or Donald Trump.

As Mark Evanier reports today in his always-excellent blog, seems Al Lewis may have, ah, embellished elements of his past to give himself a more interesting, adventurous, and colorful history. To which I say, "You go, Mister Lewis!" America needs more eccentric figures with colorful, if fictional, pasts. That's what makes America great! And therefore, here's a sight I would dearly love to have seen:

Oprah Winfrey: I'm disappointed and embarrassed. So very, very embarrassed. And so very, very, very disappointed.
Al Lewis: What, about Stedman?
Oprah: About your lies on your past, Al. You've claimed in your interviews that you...
Al: I'm freakin' Al Lewis, Oprah. Bite me.