Mine was Dec. 24, 1971. My soon-to-be fiance had made reservations at a famous restaurant in Pittsburgh to celebrate Christmas. The LeMont is situated on a bluff overlooking Pittsburgh's Golden Triangle and reservations by the window are hard to obtain. He had planned on surprising me with my engagement ring that evening but was so excited that he couldn't wait until we arrived at the restaurant. While in the car he gave me a present to open. Inside was an old German Christmas ornament that had been in his family. It consisted of three balls that nestled inside each other. When I opened the smallest ball I discovered my ring. He really did surprise me, the first of many. I was so excited that I barely recall the actual meal. But it truly was my most memorable. Here's a link to the view - http://www.lemontpittsburgh.com/LeMont/images_04/images_04/homepage_r5_c1.jpg

This past year it would have to be a dinner at a local place. Six wks ago my 21 yr old GD Stephanie decided to move to NC when she found out she could transfer her position with all her seniority & benefits-- Stephanie has always been extremely close to DH & I and to her Aunts, my 2 girls. So Debbie , Judy & I took her for a farewell dinner , just " us girls"-- we had the best time-- sat at the bar gabbing & drinking wine for probably an hr-- then laughed- reminisced thu appetizers ( a hot spinach artichoke dip with toasted pita chips , roasted vegetables bruschetta ) -- then sampled each other's entrees-- drank more wine-- ended with poached pears & homemade honey ice cream & turtle cheesecake-- spent 3 hrs in that place having a great time. DSIL picked us up & delivered us home-- all of us just a bit tipsy ( & blue that Steph's moving but glad in a way to see her spreading her wings).

Here are a few more characters I think apply to the main question: Billy Kwan in The Year of Living Dangerously by Christopher J. Koch and in the subsequent film starring Mel Gibson, Sigourney Weaver, and Linda Hunt. I read the book first and in it there is no doubt that Billy is male. Actually, there's none in the film, either, except the role of Billy is played by a woman. When I first saw the film, I didn't know that the actor is female, so I wasn't wowed by the fact that she played Billy so convincingly. Some watchers, however, can't seem to get past that fact. At any rate, without Billy Kwan, a heterosexual male dwarf, the story wouldn't be much beyond the typical love affair during difficult times. (That descriptive of a particular type of a small-sized person is not PC, I know, but good grief, things do have to be taken in context of the times depicted.) Flora in The Piano by Jane Campion and Kate Pullinger and in the film starring Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Anna Paquin. The book actually came after the film, in one of the rare instances when a novelization of a screenplay is quite well written, probably because Jane Campion, the screenwriter and director, had her hand in the novel as well. As memorable as Flora is in the film as the daughter of the main character, Ada, I was pleasantly surprised that her actions were translated to the book in depth. Sally Bowles in Christopher Isherwood's Berlin Stories and in a couple of films: "I Am a Camera" (Julie Harris in the role of Sally) and in "Cabaret" (with Liza Minnelli as Sally) Sally Bowles was English in Isherwood's stories and in "I Am a Camera" (although Julie Harris, the actress, was from the U.S.), but she's American in "Cabaret." I read somewhere that Minnelli was so perfect for the part, but she couldn't sustain an English accent so it was logical to change Sally's nationality. I agree in this instance. What about Harry Lime in The Third Man, a novelization by Graham Greene of his own screenplay for the film of the same title starring Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, and Alida Valli? Apparently, Greene wanted the character of Holly Martins to be English instead of American. But he always wanted the villain to be American. Greene did not have a very high opinion of Americans. Instead, Martins as played by Joseph Cotten is a Yank. But which is the main character, Harry Lime or Holly Martins, in spite of the billing order of the starring actors? The English characters, all of whom could be said to be secondary, are some of the best ever, I think: Major Calloway (Trevor Howard), Sergeant Paine (Bernard Lee), and Crabbin (Wilfrid Hyde-White). What do you all think of those characters? Good choices or not? I'm trying to think of very well known books and films that many people have probably read or seen, although it is likely more have seen the films.

Ooh just reminded me in the mid seventies ( my best guess- 74-76) I saw Patti Smith in some very very small venue which might have been a basement of someplace. She spoke quite a bit and I can recall she said that Baudelaire was the first Rastafarian. It was all over my head, but I knew I was witnessing someone very special. I also remember seeing Bette Midler at the Copacabana maybe a year after I saw Patti Smith. I was absolutely astounded at her energy. She really put on an amazing show and the venue was really small enough to have real banter going on with the audience. She was so sharp and quick- kind of how she comes across but it was so authentic.