I was visiting my friend Susan who lived in Alexandria and we ventured into the capitol one fine day. It was very surreal, seeing senators such as Ted Kennedy, whom I had frequently seen on television.

It was in the wake of the Watergate scandal. Susan was ready to move on to other things, but I wanted to stay in the Gallery of the Senate. Partly to find out what was going on down there on that beehive of a Senate floor. And partly because — well, you see, there was this guy. Blond. Very good looking in an Ivy-League, WASP kind of way. Said he was an aide to the Senator from Illinois and proceeded to explain what was going on down there in that beehive. Not sure how much was attributed to the handsomeness of the speaker, but somehow I found the whole discussion captivating.

And later, I couldn’t help pondering exactly how much he had looked like Robert Redford. Perhaps he was. And perhaps he was simply a senatorial aide from Illinois and my eyes were dazzled and my senses over-stimulated from all the other famous faces I saw.