Tony winner Gary Beach died last week. My friend Scott Seyforth and I met him outside the stage door of *La Cage aux Folles* in 2005 and he couldn't have been more charming. Here's the story:

He was wearing these sharp funky glasses, has a gorgeous head of reddish brown hair (expertly dyed, to be sure), a killer smile, and had on a natty blazer, button down shirt, and linen trousers. The most sublime element of his ensemble, though, were his shoes, chocolate brown spectators with white uppers.

ME: Great job!

BEACH: Thank you so much.

SCOTT: It was just great.

BEACH: Thank you, I’m glad you liked it. [Moves on to the next person]

ME: [whispering, to Scott] He’s wearing fabulous shoes.

BEACH: [turning back to us, thrilled] Yes, aren’t they! Someone was just commenting on them backstage.

ME: I LOVE them.

BEACH: I had shoes just like this when I was a young man.

ME: But we won’t get into that.

BEACH: [with a chuckle and a sly look over his eyebrows] No, we won’t.

He won his Tony for the role of Roger De Bris in *The Producers.* He recreated the role in the movie - - it was a lousy movie, but it's a treat to have his show-stopping number "Heil Myself" on youtube: