2/13/2010

Perry's House

I met Perry for the first time when Tony brought me to a Rotary function. Perry sang the Philippine National Anthem and I was dumbstruck. His voice was a powerful tenor that needed no microphone.

At dinner, Perry was seated beside me and I discovered he loves Broadway musicales as much as I do.

I bragged that I had over 200 CDs of original Broadway recordings. I showed him my list which I kept in my wallet. After scanning it, he started writing titles of what I still didn't have (which he had!). The additional list was four times more than my list, and he still had many more to add but we had run out of paper.

His memory was beyond anything I had ever encountered. He could recite all the musicales that had won a Tony Award, the year they won, and who directed them. Incredible?

And oh, he doesn't stop at musicales. He knows music of every genre in any year and could sing them all from memory! Tony and I run to him for certain songs we could no longer find in music stores.

That was years ago. Since then, Perry has also become a close friend. In my book launches, he gives me a bouquet of flowers, and he never fails to invite me to any occasion held in his house.

His house! That is another story. It boggles the mind. He has collections of everything—from A to Z! Pianos, jukeboxes, eagles, mangers, key chains, CDs (my own collection is now smaller than a lilliputian, compared to his), horses, LPs, laser disks, you name it he has it: in all four floors of his impressive, unusual dwelling place!

I took pictures but pictures don't capture the magnitude of those collections (plural many times over).

Oh, by the way, Perry is also a doctor. A famous neurologist. And a gift of grace.

6 comments:

The Redhead Riter said...

Wow! What a collection! I would hate to have to dust the knick knacks LOL But I love them anyway. He sounds like a lovely man and intelligent too. I love intelligent men LOL

Happy Valentine's Day!
A special note for you...
http://theredheadriter.blogspot.com/2010/02/i-spy-valentines-day.html

Grace D. Chong said...

That was my first concern--dusting! But Perry says he hired a person whose only job is to dust his collection every day! LOL

The FREEMAN's Kid Stuff said...

Oh my! that is such a house... spectacular :D

Grace D. Chong said...

Spectacular indeed! Never saw anything quite like it in my life, not even the museum!

Yay Padua-Olmedo said...

Wow, a Broadway music lover. I'd love to hear him sing one of these days. Those collections are just incredible.

Grace D. Chong said...

He says he is a pack rat. But he is more than that. He has great taste.