Zest for Living

There are many reasons for the extra intensity of attention paid to Tim Russert's death (none of which I feel is excessive, by the way). He is a beloved member of the very corps covering his demise; he has earned the broad affection of the public; he was cut down in his prime, at the top of his game; it is an election year, and he is Mr. Election; it was a couple days shy of Father's Day, and he is Mr. Celebrating Fatherhood; and so on. But one of the less acknowledged reasons is that TR is one of those individuals (like another famous man who shares those initials!) who clearly possesses an unusual zest for living -- who always seems to be enjoying himself. That is a very special quality, that people respond to strongly.

Book critic Michael Dirda published an essay a few days ago about why, if he could be a fictional character, he would be James Bond. For men, that would be a popular answer; but it isn't my answer. I would be Archie Goodwin, the operative and narrator in Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe novels, superbly incarnated by Timothy Hutton in the Nero Wolfe television series. Archie's being a real snappy dresser certainly has something to do with my admiration -- but of course, James Bond is no slouch in that department either.

No, what really gets me about Archie is that Russert-like zest. Archie Goodwin operates with pleasure and confidence in his world, and he projects a real charm because of that. Watch how Timothy Hutton plays him -- that jaunty walk and swing of the arms! The spiffed-out wardobe is simply an extension and expression of Archie's good humor. He enjoys being at the exact point where he has situated himself.

And isn't that Tim Russert all over? He loved politics, the media, the world of Washington, getting to communicate with the public, hobnobbing with the real players and being one of them; and it showed. He situated himself just right -- and that cannot be too common; I've never managed it. William Kristol wrote in an op-ed in the New York Times (my bolding):

Tim was now a big shot, and he rather enjoyed being a big shot. But he was just about the nicest big shot in Washington — decent and unpretentious, remarkably kind and genuinely thoughtful.

In my book there is nothing whatsoever wrong with being a big shot or liking being one, if you can do it in that way.

I can only aspire to projecting Archie Goodwin-like qualities, and to some extent I believe that I do, based on feedback that I get. My inner melancholy is too strong for me to think that I am actually truly zestful -- but that must also be true of some of the apparent Tim Russerts and Archie Goodwins out there; it is not always possible to know this. Managing to be zestful in the world counts for a lot in itself; public selves are as real as private selves.