:
: Chuck

That's very nice of
: you to say Allen.

My pleasure, but if it wasn't true, I would have complimented you on your shirt.

: I didn't really want to spend too much time on
: any one specific field and leave something
: important unasked, because I figured that'd
: haunt me if I didn't ask something really
: obvious.

The thing about this is eventually, you'll write a story where you think you screwed up royally (by not asking a question, asking it the wrong way, whatever). And after you're done beating yourself up, you'll notice that you're the only one who cares, or even notices. It' just flies right by the readers and even most editors.

(I once took a copy of a book and burned in in my barbeque because the morons in production put dummy copy (placeholder stuff written by an intern) on the back cover.)

And the solace is there's always a next time.

: You asked smart open-ended questions and were
: patient enough to sit back and let Wally
: answer them. That's the thing... In an
: interview the star is the interviewee not
: the interviewer.

Tell that to Barbara Walters, or Oprah, or Jay Leno or Letterman or....

: It was a really good read (as well as a
: valuable document) and you should be proud
: of yourself. Well, it was a bit of a
: roller-coaster ride. In a way I guess it's
: better that it was a bit of a roller-coaster
: ride. In any case, I was releived when it
: went so well, especially with all the behind
: the scenes stuff.

I don't like roller coasters. They make me hurl. So does writing. So maybe it is an apt analogy.

: But now that you're a big time watch
: journalist it would be entirely unethical
: for me to sell you my Siffert at a discount.
: What discount? All I'm asking for is the
: same deal you were soliciting from me for my
: Siffert?

: All I'm asking is recipocity... Where's the
: love man?

Sorry, compadre. As a watch journalist, you are Caesar's wife (so to speak) and all your actions must be beyond question, much less reproach. (Even my new boss, Rupert Murdoch agrees on this issue.)

However, if having a mismatched set of Sifferts bothers you so much, I'll buy the other two. The $18 (plus shipping and handling) is in the mail, and your journalistic ethics will be intact.

But seriously, thanks for the help on the Siffert issue, and it's likely to be partly responsible for my own entry into the glamorous world of watch journalism.

Ooops, that's Uma on the other line, wanting some advice on that vintage Carrera, she's been eyeing. ("Sorry, babe, but if you look at the tachymetre ring, you'll easily see that it's as fake as Pamela Anderson.")

Gotta go.

best,

Allen St. John
Columnist, The Wall Street Journal
New York Times Best-selling Author
Winner of the Truth is Stranger than Fiction Award at the 1989 North Jersey Press Club Awards for You Eat It, We Treat It, a profile of Hoboken's sewage workers.