We fell in love with him when he appeared in Soap. Our hearts went pitter-patter when he starred on Saturday Night Live. And didn’t we just picture the wedding during that touching monologue in When Harry Met Sally? (“I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that after I spend a day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes ….”) We do love Billy Crystal, and it turns out we aren’t alone—The American Museum of the Moving Image held an evening at the Waldorf to praise the star.
The 18th annual Black-Tie Salute celebrated the funnyman with luminary presenters Harold Ramis, Robin Williams, George Steinbrenner, Jimmy Fallon, Molly Shannon, and the quintessential New Yorker himself, Robert DeNiro. “To watch my shirt collar get smaller and my forehead get bigger is not a thrill,” joked Crystal after watching a retrospective reel recalling his brilliant career. Shaking his head in disbelief he offered up a justification for the night of acclamation. “My grandfather said, ‘If you hang around the store long enough, sooner or later they’ll give you something.’” Then Billy paused, and added, “No, wait. That was Winona Ryder.” Looks like Billy’s going to be keeping us in stitches for some maaahvelous years to come.
