A tiny moment in a NYC diner wasthemark ofagoodman
He loved his football, but Walter Smith had another passion, for music, with his favourite acts including Crosby, Stills and Nash, Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen.
I’d frequently meet him at gigs and, during his first period as manager of Rangers, I interviewed him about his vast record collection.
I sat in his office at Ibrox as he spread 30 of his favourite albums on the carpet and talked passionately about each and every one.
In 2006, I took my mother-inlaw, Maisie Hamilton, to New York to celebrate her 80th birthday. We bumped into Walter and his wife, Ethel, on the flight from Glasgow.
They were heading to The Big Apple, too, with a couple of friends.
Knowing of my love of NYC, Walter asked if I could recommend any places to visit. I told him to check out Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, underneath the Brooklyn Bridge.
Over the weekend, Maisie and
I met Walter and his mate Paul by chance in Times Square. They were on a pub crawl of Irish bars, while the ladies hit the shops on Fifth Avenue.
Her picture with Walter on bustling Broadway is a prized possession.
The following day, she and I went to Grimaldi’s, and when we walked in there was Walter, Ethel and their friends, tucking into a pizza the size of a giant manhole cover.
They loved the first pizza so much, they ordered another!
At the end of our meal, I nipped off to the bathroom, but had to wait in a long queue for the rest room.
Walter spotted Maisie sitting on her own, so he joined her at the table to keep her company.
When I got back, the pair of them were comparing notes about what they’d got up to since setting foot on US soil.
Maisie had a smile as wide as the Hudson River, and that moment alone summed the man up – full of decency and thoughtfulness.
And when I went to pay, I was told Walter had already picked up the tab as a birthday treat for Maisie.
All six of us then walked over the Brooklyn Bridge back into Manhattan, which was absolutely spectacular.
Maisie, who’ll be 95 years old next month, still talks about the day she had a pizza with Walter Smith.