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coat. I gave him a pair of red suspenders the Stork Club gave favored patrons, and Bill loved them. He would sit there with these red suspenders on with a pipe reading 25-cent mystery paperbacks. He loved mystery stories. When a young writer would come in, I'd say, “How would you like to meet William Faulkner?” Well, you can imagine what a thrill this gave them. And I would walk them in, and they'd see this little man--he was quite short, very short, you know--with his feet up and the red suspenders and the corncob pipe reading a mystery story paperback. And I'd say, “This is William Faulkner.” And Bill would take the pipe out of his mouth and affably say, “Howdy,” and return to his mystery.

One morning three people met in our office! William Faulkner, Lin Yutang and Adlai Stevenson. They had never met one another, and I had the pleasure of performing the necessary introductions. Everybody was tickled--particularly me!

Well, to go on with Bill: The first time Phyllis met him was that time Bill decided on the spur of the moment to come to New York. I said, “We'll come out to meet you at the airport--I want you to meet my Phyllis.”

Phyllis was scared to death at meeting William Faulkner. She worried, “What am I going to say to him?”

I said, “Phyllis, you won't have any trouble with Bill.” She waited in the automobile while the plane came in. We had arranged to take him with us to River House, where Quentin Reynolds and his wife were having a big cocktail party. Bill got off the plane in an old army trench coat and a dirty slouch