Singing through the pain

A recent Tuesday, 11:06 a.m.: Jerry McLilly, better known to most as Mr. Smiley, sings to himself in the lobby of the Fox Plaza when he can gather the energy to leave his efficiency unit upstairs.

For 17 years, Mr. Smiley was the guy dressed in suit and hat who busked San Francisco-centric tunes at the corner of Post and Powell streets, in front of Saks Fifth Avenue.

“When You’re Smiling” was his favorite offering, which he finished with a smile and a twirl of his cane every time.

The late Herb Caen gave him his nickname, and it stuck for “obvious reasons,” he said. Mr. Smiley had a bit part in Will Smith’s “The Pursuit of Happyness” in 2006, and didn’t intend to quit his daily concerts on the corner anytime soon.

A year and half ago, though, health problems including cancer, a bout with pneumonia and a bad knee forced him off his street stage. Now he spends most of his time recovering in his apartment.

A nurse comes to check on him weekly and helps him keep track of a shopping bag full of medications he has to take. Meals on Wheels supplies him with daily rations.

“When you get to be 79 years old, your body is just like a car,” Mr. Smiley said. “Little parts start breaking down.”

In the meantime, it’s singing that keeps Mr. Smiley smiling. “My voice is better now than it was 50 years ago,” he said.

On good days, he goes downstairs next to the fountain in the lobby and sings for himself — no tip jar present. On days he can’t manage that, he sings in his apartment.

Mr. Smiley said he can feel himself getting stronger and hopes to get his career going again soon.

“I miss all the people up there,” he said. “I had a lot of people. I had people from all over the world.”