Erma Bombeck

Proceeds for the production will benefit Heart Incorporated and Messiah Lutheran Church of Lewiston.

I'm a huge Erma Bombeck fan, so when director Frank Skelza approached me about the production, I think I said yes while he was in mid-sentence asking me, Silvestri said.

Her first collaboration with Skelza was during last year's production of Nonsense when Silvestri played Mother Superior.

Uh, let's see.

I was looking for dates here of interest to you.

We all grew up, uh, reading Erma Bombeck's newspaper column, and I find her wisdom and humor on everyday subjects still applies today, which is why I'm enjoying this play so much.

Her character still resonates with women, Silvestri mused.

Silvestri is a r- semi-retired language teacher.

He was kind of in...

You know, I talk about Erma Bombeck a lot.

Mm-hmm.

That could be...

What about an Erma Bombeck omnibus? Who is that? I don't remember.

She was also a humorist who I, I...

My guess is she was very, uh, beloved by, uh, sort of a generation older than my mother's, and she would write these books like, uh, If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries, Why Am I Always in the Pits? Oh, right.

And The Grass Is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank.

I'll do it, I'll do it.

I'm starting to regret giving you that Erma Bombeck book.

book.He points at an Erma Bombeck book and the cover says, "I married Prince Charming.

Who's this frog in my bed?"

[laughs]

Mm.

That's great.

That's a great parody of an Erma Bombeck book title.

Sí.

Y esa frase de Erma Bombeck a la que siempre vuelvo, que es: «Cuando esté frente a Dios, al final de mis días, espero poder decir que usé todo lo que me diste.

No me quedó ni una gota».

Y ese es más o menos el lema de mi vida.

Yeah.

I'm talking there are times where, as Erma Bombeck said, "If we can laugh at it, we can live with it," and it is in our best interest to have fun with something and to keep our sense of humor instead of being offended and making an enemy.

Well, it also diffuses too, right? I-

Yeah

Uh, but- but you also point out, and- and good for you, that there's sort of a hall of fame of journalists who spent time in the obituary section.

Ernest Hemingway, H.L. Mencken, Erma Bombeck, the- the- the advice columnist.

Um, why does Hollywood think that this is a bad job? It's- it's actually...

It sounds fascinating.