William Alfred's connections with celebrity began early. He corresponded with Gertrude Stein while he was still a child, and he was delighted when, on a brief leave from the army, he met Marlene Dietrich and Jean Gabin in a restaurant. I don't think that shy young man could have dreamed of being close friends with famous people like Lillian Hellman and Robert Lowell or that he would be the mentor to stars like  Christopher Reeve, Faye Dunaway, Stockard Channing,  Bill Murray and Tommy Lee Jones. His own fame  must have been the biggest surprise of all and, I hope, a great source of delight.