It's always Sunny in....

A few years back, when I had only been in New York about 8 months, Danny DeVito stayed at our little boutique hotel in Times Square.  I didn't know it at the time but his new show "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" had just concluded it's second season.  The second season was the first season as a cast member for Mr. DeVito.  I didn't know it at the time but the other stars of the show (Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton, Kaitlin Olson and Charlie Day) began showing up in the lobby accompanied by film crews and began doing interviews right there in the lobby.  Had I known who these people were, I'm sure I would have been much more excited than I was.  


During his stay with us, Mr. DeVito was super cool. He would come down to the lobby to hang out with the staff and bullshit with the girls at the front desk about what songs he had just put on his iPod or where he was going for dinner that night before his ride showed up.  I'll say one thing, he has an incredible amount of confidence for someone who is so small and strange in his appearance.  But I guess that's exactly what makes him such an intriguing star.  It's easy for someone like Jessica Alba or Brad Pitt to be a star because half the time, they don't need to say anything in order for people to want to watch them.  Good looking stars need only smile or show some skin for people to ogle and fawn over them.  I think Josh Hartnett is a terrific example of this point. Movie stars that aren't physically flawless must carry something else about them that draws people to them.  Stars such as Mr. DeVito or Paul Giamatti carry an allure that is accompanied by confidence and acting talent that defines them so much more than their physical attributes.


But I digress from my story. The next day that the front desk calls us on the radio.  "Front desk to bellman." 


"Go for the bellmen" I reply


"Room 1504 needs help with luggage." The front desk responded.  Now it was well known throughout the hotel who was staying in that room for the week.  Since I was the new guy on shift I asked the guys with more seniority if they wanted to help Mr. DeVito down. 


"Naw, you go ahead" said Lenny the brutishly handsome Puerto Rican Bellman that had been working there for 5 years already. Lenny is incredibly nice and gentle but dumb as a freaking newel post. Behind his back we often call him the Big Dummy. "I checked him" he said slowly. "You can check him out."


"Gladly" I replied as I grabbed a bell cart and headed towards the elevators. The elevator stopped at the 15th floor and I got out and headed towards his room.  I knocked on the door and said "Good Afternoon, Bellman here!" in a upbeat and chipper voice.


The short and stalky man answered the door and let me in.  He had only two pieces of luggage that he probably could have handled on his own but instead allowed us to do our job of doing the work for him and let our guest take it easy during their stay.  You'd be amazed how many people these days struggle with bags all the way up to their rooms because they are not willing to let someone else take care of them while on vacation. Either that or they are not willing to part with the $5 it would cost them to tip someone to load their bags on a cart and take them to their room.  "No thanks, we can handle it. It has wheels" is the common response to our question when our guests need help. But, once again, I digress.


After I load Mr. DeVito's bags on the cart we make our way to the elevator.  While waiting for the elevator I make chit-chat with the movie star.  I ask him a question that my mom has wanted to know for years.


"So, I need to find this out for my mom. How tall... is Arnold Schwarzenegger?" 


"He's about 6 feet tall." He replies very cordially.  "You know, Sly Stallone is only Five foot eight.


"You know I'd heard from somewhere that he is very short." I shoot right back.


"A lot of these guys in Hollywood are much smaller than they appear." He informs me. "A common trick is to have them stand on a box during certain shots or put lifts in their shoes. However, this has never been a problem I've had to deal with." He says standing at 4'9". 


As the elevator arrives I say "Well, you seem to make the short thing work pretty well for you." As I say this he shoots me a charming smile.


With the elevator making it's decent to the lobby I ask "What are you working on these days?"


"I'm doing a show called "It's always Sunny in Philadelphia." He replies. 


"Yeah?" I say. "I haven't seen it yet. What's it about?" 


"Well" he says. "Think of it as a real life South Park show set in the city of Philly."


"That sounds hilarious." I say "I'll be sure to check it out. I just moved up here from Philly." 


"Well then I'm sure it will carry extra weight with you" he says as he slips me a $20 and heads towards the front desk to go check out. I take his bags outside and load them into the trunk of the limo waiting in the loading zone.  I head back to my post at the front door and open it for him as he heads out to his ride.


Devito. We look forward to your return." I say as he walks by me.


"Thank you Dylan" he shoots right back. "and be sure to watch the show." he says as he climbs into the back seat of his stretch limousine. 


Well, Mr. Devito never stayed at our hotel again but based on his recommendation I started watching "IASIP" and I have become a life long fan.