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ben stein’s DIARY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN In the Time We Have Left Tuesday This cannot be happening. Just can’t be. I am in my condo at the Shoreham Towers getting my toenails cut by my manicurist,...

Ben Stein's Diary (July 2014)

hen steins DI A RY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN More Than We Bargained For Monday Here i am in New York City. The weather is perfect. Last night I had a fine flight up on a tiny little U.S. Air regional...

Making Friends and Enemies (June 2014)

BEN STEINS DIARY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN Making Friends and Enemies Thursday Almost every day I run into some kindly soul who asks me if I am still doing Win Ben Stein's Money. The answer is no. I...

The Heart of the Matter (May 2014)

BEN STEINS DIARY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN The Heart of the Matter Thursday I have always loved West Texas. I came here for the first time about ten years ago for a speech. The benefactors of the...

Southern Sanity (March 2014)

Ben Steins Diary by BENJAMIN J. STEIN Southern Sanity Sunday OUR LAST MORNING of a one-week stay in Greenville, South Carolina. Tommy is not feeling well, so Alex, our beautiful daughter in law...

Ben Stein's Diary: Defense Is the Ultimate Good (January 2014)

Ben Stein's Diary By Benjamin J. Stein Defense Is the Ultimate Good Wednesday I drove over to my apartment to get my mail. It is a funny thing about the apartments I have for offices at the...

My Jewish Questions (December 2013)

ben stein's DIARY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN My Jewish Saturday WELL, HERE I am in Beverly Hills on a spectacularly beautiful day. Temp in the 70s. Light breeze. No humidity. Cloudless skies. I pulled...

Intensive Care (November 2013)

Bensteins Diary By Benjamin J. Stein Intensive Care Tuesday Here I am in sioux city, Iowa, to address the Chamber of Commerce. The day started well, with a late lunch of prime rib at a place...

Return to Ruby Ridge (October 2013)

Bensteins Diary By Benjamin J. Stein Return to Ruby Ridge Saturday A Fabulously Interesting day here in Sandpoint. Tim Farmin and I got into my rented silver-gray Chrysler and drove to Priest...

Ben Stein's Diary: Bees on Vacation (September 2013)

Bees on Vacation By Benjamin J. Stein Wednesday SANDPOINT. Something is definitely wrong with the weather. It is killingly hot, and has been day after day after day. Just murderous. It has been...

Washington Long Ago (July 2013)

Ben Stein’S Diary By Benjamin J. Stein Washington Long Ago My makeup artist, the charming Renae, told me a few weeks ago that I had not lived until I watched House of Cards, a TV series on...

Ben Stein's Diary (June 2013)

Ben Stein's Diary By Benjamin J. Stein Gerry Ford at 100 Saturday Here I am at my desk at the Garage Mahal of our house in Beverly Hills. I'm writing a speech, or rather brief remarks, about our...

Inside the Gates of Eden (May 2013)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN Inside the Gates of Eden Another beautiful day in Beverly Hills: blue skies, light breeze, temperature in the low 70s, no humidity. This is why we love...

Ben Stein's Diary (April 2013)

ben steins DIARY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN South Carolina On My Mind Sunday So here I am in my beloved Greenville, most charming and friendly of small cities. All of South Carolina is wonderfully...

The Economics of Love (March 2013)

BEN STEINS DIARY BENJAMIN J. STEIN The Economics of Love Super Bowl Sunday Long ago, my old economics professor, the superteacher C. Lowell Harriss, started our first class on Money and Banking...

Agony and Ecstasy (February 2013)

BEN sTEIN'S DIARY by BENJAMIN J. STEIN Agony and Ecstasy Saturday Hmmm. I slept in my office above the garage this morning. I have gotten into the evil habit of getting up in the middle...

Once There Were Greenvilles (December 2012)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Once There Were Greenvilles by Benjamin J. Stein THURSDAYâ€”GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA What a great town this is. It is very roughly two-thirds of the way between Charleston...

Points Of Interest (November 2012)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Points of Interest by Benjamin J. Stein THURSDAY Where the heck am I? I awakened from a night of terrifying dreams of being kidnapped and having someone take over the steering...

So Much Sadness (October 2012)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY So Much Sadness by Benjamin J. Stein MONDAY This is August 27, 2012, just for the record. It is my father's birthday. He was born on this date in 1916. My father was born in...

Obama's America-and Mine (September 2012)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Obama's America—and Mine By Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY Tatyana terasova sedlar, rest in peace. Alex and I are up in a blazing hot Portola Valley, California, a rural, tony...

Nothing but Fear Itself (July 2012)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Nothing but Fear Itself by Benjamin J. Stein MEMORIAL DAY MONDAY Alex and I are at our house in malibu. You simply cannot imagine how beautiful the weather is here today....

A Case of Intracoastal Blues (June 2012)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY A Case of Intracoastal Blues by Benjamin J. Stein SUNDAYâ€”FORT LAUDERDALE This has been a good day. Yesterday was terrible. Alex and I awakened yesterday in the Capital Hotel...

Getaways (May 2012)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Getaways by Benjamin J. Stein MONDAY Here I am out in Malibu. I came out last night to check on things at our house. Right after I got here, a monsoon-like rain began to pour...

Ben Stein's Diary: At War and at Peace (April 2012)

Ben Stein’s Diary At War and at Peace by Benjamin J. Stein Tuesday Vegas, baby. My wife and I are here to speak to the Western Petroleum Marketers Association. These are people who own chains...

POETS OF CONSTRUCTION (March 2012)

Poets of Construction by Benjamin J. Stein Friday Here i am, downtown, at the new Ritz Carlton Hotel near the Staples Center. I am at the annual meeting of the Beavers. Now, you may never...

Ben Stein's Diary (February 2012)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Down in the Desert by Benjamin J. Stein Friday We are still down in the desert. It’s still raining and cold, but we love it anyway. We (wifey and I) got up, had breakfast, I...

SEARCHING FOR A WAY OUT (December 2011)

Searching for a Way Out by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY It was a dreary, drizzly day in Los Angeles. My wife and I and all of our dogs decided to go down to Rancho Mirage. Before we left, I had...

House Broken (November 2011)

Ben Stein's Diary House Broken by Benjamin J. Stein Wednesday Wow. A lot has happened since we last spoke, dear diary. I have been on the road. Last week I was in Boston speaking to some really...

Before Sunset (October 2011)

Ben Stein's Diary Before Sunset by Benjamin J. Stein Friday I awakened about noon at the fabulous Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Last night I gave a short talk and then a longer...

Ben Stein's Diary: Late July (September 2011)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Late July by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY My wife, my pal Phil DeMuth, and I flew up to Spokane from LAX today. Our travel agent couldn't get us on our usual Alaska Airlines...

Ben Stein's Diary: Shore Patrol (July 2011)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Shore Patrol by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY Wow. big day. I got up, carried ancient Brigid down the stairs to her preferred spot, then carried her back upstairs to bed. This...

Ben Stein's Diary (June 2011)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Deaths in the Family by Benjamin J. Stein THURSDAY IT IS THE FOURTEENTH ANNIVERSARY of my mother's death and I am here in Beverly Hills, lying on a long blue couch in my...

Life Outside The Meeting Room (May 2011)

ben stein's diary Life Outside the Meeting Room by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY A STUNNING, DISASTROUS DAY. I was sitting at my computer in my office in Beverly Hills looking out at the palm...

Houston, We've Got A Problem (April 2011)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Houston, We've Got a Problem by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY Here I am in Houston. I flew here on a Continental flight last night. It was an absolutely perfect flight. There...

A Smile On My Face (March 2011)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY A Smile on My Face by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY HERE I AM AT THE ATLANTA AIRPORT. I flew in from LAX this morning. I was so groggy when I awakened in L.A. I literally could not...

Fleeting Beauty (February 2011)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Fleeting Beauty by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY Here i am at the Peninsula Hotel in Chicago. Did I tell you I was on the same floor as the Lakers and also, on a separate mission,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Connecting in Chicago (December 2010)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Connecting in Chicago by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY This is a compelling tableau. I am at the Great America Hotel in Salt Lake City. Truly, this is a great American hotel....

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: One of Eight Billion (November 2010)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY One of Eight Billion by Benjamin J. Stein SUNDAY Feelings come and feelings go. And feelings are ' not facts." These were words I heard in one of the first 12-step meetings...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Late Summer Weekend (October 2010)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Late Summer Weekend by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY I am so angry. Phil DeMuth and I just had lunch at one of my favorite restaurants, La Scala. We had a good table outside and...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY SUMMER AND SANDPOINT (September 2010)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Summer and Sandpoint by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY Here I AM UP IN SANDPOINT. It is late July and it is hot, hot, hot. Really hot. I slept late, occasionally getting up to...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY (July 2010)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Have Gun, Will Travel by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY Wow. Something is definitely wrong. I awakened feeling desperately tired. Just wiped out. Like I was at the bottom of a well...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Orange Juice Unlimited (May 2010)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Orange Juice Unlimited by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY Well. Here I am at the Mission Bay Hilton in San Diego. I don't feel well. Maybe I have a touch of food poisoning. Or...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: In and Out of the Snow (April 2010)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY In and Out of the Snow by Benjamin J. Stein WEDNESDAY Now, this is what i call work. I am in Las Vegas. I am not feeling at all well. Food poisoning, I think. My suitcase...

Two Days in Washington (March 2010)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Two Days in Washington by Benjamin J. stein WEDNESDAY Here i am in my apartment at the Watergate. I flew in this evening after giving a speech this morning to an...

Getting (Up) There (February 2010)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Getting (Up) There by Benjamin J. Stein Friday Nightmare of travel. I started out this afternoon in Little Rock, Arkansas. I spoke last night in Conway, very near Little...

I'm Being Tested (December 2009)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY I’m Being Tested by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY D-day. after many weeks and even months of resisting my doctor’s urgings to get an angiogram, off I go with said...

Breaking Fast With Bill Safire (November 2009)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Breaking Fast With Bill Safire by Benjamin J. Stein SUNDAY Atruly terrible day. It is the day before Yom Kippur, a big Jewish holiday, the Day of Atonement. For...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Breathless (October 2009)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Breathless by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY Iam getting pretty worried. For about six months now, I have had maddening shortness of breath. It comes and goes....

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Plugging Away (September 2009)

BENSTEIN’S DIARY Plugging Away by Benjamin J. Stein MONDAY It’s summer. Wifey and I are up at Lake Pend Oreille in Sandpoint, Idaho, Bonner County. We are in our condo and we’re both...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Liberty Weekend (July 2009)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Liberty Weekend by Benjamin J. Stein Friday Here i am riding through the lovely Virginia countryside in the back seat with my trusty driver, Bob Noah, at the wheel. You...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Not Cambridge (June 2009)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Not Cambridge by Benjamin J. Stein Tuesday Here i am at washington, d.c.'s Reagan National Airport. It is a drizzly, cool day. I am heading off to fly to Knoxville,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY (May 2009)

THURSDAY Here i am up in the air high above California. I am in a tiny little Embraer regional aircraft flown by American Eagle. In the row ahead of me is a woman with a small child who is...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: From Coolidge to Harding (April 2009)

TUESDAY IAM SITTING IN THE STUDY OF MY HOME in Rancho Mirage. My glorious dogs, Brigid and Cleo, are sitting on the couch staring at me. Words cannot describe the love I feel for them. No....

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: A Day in the Life (March 2009)

TUESDAY I nauguration day. Big, big day. I awakened at about 8:45 to listen to Mr. Barack Obama’s speech. My cable TV at my home here in Malibu has not worked for about five years. But I have my...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: The Age of Fraud (February 2009)

SUNDAY SO HERE I AM IN RANCHO MIRAGE reading about Bernie Madoff and Marc Dreier and Governor Blagojevich and I am thinking: Now is the age of fraud. On one day there is the governor of...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY : Amid the Collapse (January 2009)

ben STeIn’S DIary Amid the Collapse by Benjamin J. stein monDay H ere i am in atlanta. As usual, I am staying at the Ritz-Carlton in Buckhead, one of my favorite hotels. When I...

Ben Stein's Diary (November 2008)

beN sTeIN’s dIary Heroes and Traitors by Benjamin J. Stein frIday T his is what it’s all about. I am here at the national convention of the Congressional Medal of Honor...

Ben Stein's Diary: Gut Checks (September 2008)

ben sTeIn’s dIaRy Gut Checks by Benjamin J. stein Monday H H ere i am at the taj hotel in boston. It used to be the Ritz-Carlton but the Ritz moved to more elegant...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: I've Been Everywhere (July 2008)

b e n s t e I n ’ s D I a R y I’ve Been Everywhere by Benjamin J. Stein MsatuRDay ay i tell you where i have been since this year started? Well, I think I might have already told you....

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: True to Life (June 2008)

True to Life B e n s T e I n ’ s D I a R Y HwasHInGTon, D.c....saTuRDaY My wife would be a great addition, too. But, alas, I am here all by my little self. I also feel incredibly sick to...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: A Few of My Favorite Things (May 2008)

b e n s T e I n ’ s d I a R y A Few of My Favorite Things by Benjamin J. stein I feel clammy. But I am at my post, at my com- HsaTuRday a! i am at my Desk in our house in Beverly Hills...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY : Outraged Sadness (April 2008)

ben sTeIn’s DIARY Outraged Sadness by Benjamin J. stein TuesDAY T his is probably the saddest column I have ever written for the Spectator. It takes some explaining, but I can...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Slovenly in America (March 2008)

b e n s T e I n ’ s d I a R y Slovenly in America by Benjamin J. stein Hsunday ere i am at a Great GroCery store near my house in Malibu. We’re in mid-January and it’s amazingly cold as...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: It Was a Very Good Year (February 2008)

b e n s T e I n ’ s d I a R Y It Was a Very Good Year by Benjamin J. Stein huge super day. I am on “vacation.” It’s in quotations because I am never really on vacation. Either I am...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Better Than We Deserve (January 2008)

EREIAMINMINNEAPOLIS,MINNESOTA,and a surprise is waiting for me at the door of my hotel room. Why, lookee here. It’s an article on the front page of the New York Times attacking me. Why?...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Requiem (November 2007)

O BEGIN AT WHAT MAY BE theend,Iamlyinginbed. Mylungsareonfire.Iamsweatingevenwiththe air conditioning on. My head is spinning. I feel sharp shooting pains in my skin. I am sick,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: The Making of an Economist (October 2007)

HATAHELLISHDAY.LastnightasIwascomingin from a lovely day in Malibu, I decided I was hungry.Ihadbeencravingacornedbeefsandwich and so I went to a little 24-hour deli in Santa Monica called...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Boston to Berlin (September 2007)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Boston to Berlin by Benjamin J. Stein MONDAY U GH. I AM IN A TINY LITTLE ROOM at the Essex House in New York. They screwed up desperately so now I am stuck in this tiny...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY:I Get Around (July 2007)

B E N S T E I N ’ S D I A R Y I Get Around by Benjamin J. Stein her at all. She did me a huge favor by talking me into getting a Weimaraner dog named Mary back in 1972. That truly changed...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Great People (June 2007)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Great People by Benjamin J. Stein THURSDAY O OPS. NOT A GREAT DAY. I awakened in Scottsdale at the Hyatt Gainey Ranch Hotel. It’s a lovely hotel, but like all Hyatts, a...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Clinton Country (May 2007)

BEN STEIN’S DIARY Clinton Country by Benjamin J. Stein WEDNESDAY NIGHTMARE. WOW. WHAT AN AWFUL DAY. I went to LAX to get a plane to Charlotte. U.S. Air. The boarding area was...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Damage Control (April 2007)

H-OH.THEHOMEOWNER'SBLUES.Iwasallpackedtogo down to our little cottage in Rancho Mirage...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Making Memories (March 2007)

ERE I AM IN LAS VEGAS. I am in a spectacular room attheWynnhotel.I'mgearinguptogiveaspeech totheEquipmentDistributors.Theroomislovely. Great view, high ceilings, gorgeous furniture, but loud...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY:Stories From the Desert (February 2007)

B E N S T E I N ’ S D I A R Y Stories From the Desert by Benjamin J. Stein And while Daniel is parking the car, some drunk woman comes up in her Jaguar and puts a little ding in the door...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: After Munich (November 2006)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY After Munich by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY i OU WOULD NOT BELIEVE what we did today. We T woke up in Munich. Or, I should say, I woke up in Munich at the Four Seasons. My...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: My Trip to Dachau (October 2006)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY My Trip to Dachau by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY H ERE I AM ON A LUFTHANSA FLIGHT from LAX to Frankfurt. I'm in first class and it's quite luxurious. But it creeps me out to...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Clear Eyed (September 2006)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Clear Eyed by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY H UMIDITY. YUCK. When you live in California, you learn to love the absence of humidity. But, alas, the humidity is still there lurking...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: On the Road Again (July 2006)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY On the Road Again by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY H ERE I AM IN BOCA RATON, FLORIDA. Wifey and I flew in to Miami last night. It was hot. It was very hot. Humid, too. Too many...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: America Bipolarized (June 2006)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY America Bipolarized by Benjamin J. Stein THURSDAY ~-AM ON AN AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHT from Miami to LAX. Wow, this is a long, long flight. I read the New York Times, then the...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Staying Alive (March 2006)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Staying Alive by Benjamin J, Stein WEDNESDAY ~'AM IN NEWYORK CITY. IT IS FREEZING. I had dinner with my friend Wendy at the Caf~ Botanica here at the Essex House. It was a...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Night Vision (February 2006)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Night Vision by Benjamin J~ Stein SUNDAY ~"~-ARRIVED AT THE MEMPHIS AIRPORT feeling sick and exhausted from two very tiring days in Monroe, Louisiana, home of the world's...

Ben Stein's Diary: Among the Sane (November 2005)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Among the Sane by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY A BIG, DEPRESSING AND AT THE SAME TIME uplifting day. My father-in-law, the magnificent Colonel Dale Denman, Jr., of...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Unshared Sacrifice (October 2005)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Unshared Sacrifice by Benjamin J. Stein WEDNESDAY T s EARLY AUGUST. Here I am in hot, humid, miserably oppressive Washington, D.C. It is a steam bath. I am on a good mission,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: What's Playing? (September 2005)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY What's Playing? by Benjamin J. Stein WEDNESDAY WHERE I AM. Wait, you'll never guess, so I'll tell you. I am in the Best Western Motel in Corvallis,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Doing God's Work (July 2005)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Doing God's Work by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY WHEN I AM IN Washington, D.C., there is a particular restaurant in Foggy Bottom that I favor. It's called the dining room of the...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Desert Stars (June 2005)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Desert Stars by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY HERE I AM AT MY NEW HOME at Morningside Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California. Rancho Mirage is two towns east of...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Home Sweet America (May 2005)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Home Sweet America by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY ERE I AM IN NEW YORK CITY. I am here doing publicity for my newest book, 99 percent of it co-authored by Phil...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Hollywood Comes to God (April 2005)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Hollywood Comes to God by Benjamin J. Stein BEVERLY HILLS, MONDAY ALMOST EVERY WEEKDAY I AM IN TOWN, I get into my car a few minutes before noon. I head over to a gaudy...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Visiting Hours (March 2005)

BEN STEIN DIARY Visiting Hours by Benjamin J. Stein NEW YEAR'S DAY HAT ARE YOU IN HERE FOR?" I asked the gaunt man with glasses sitting on the far edge of a bed in Building 215, the...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Scared at 60 (February 2005)

Ben Stein's Dairy Scared at 60 by Benjamin J. Stein THURSDAY IT IS MY 60TH BIRTHDAY. It iS also Der Tag. Thanksgiving. It is a beautiful, sunny, clear but cool day. The plan here...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Special Deliverance (December 2004)

BEN STEIN DIARY Special Deliverance by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY ERE I AM IN EASTHAMPTON, MASSACHUSETTS, standing in a drizzle, next to a football field where my son's team,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Col. Dale Denman: My Hero Father-In-Law (November 2004)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Col. Dale Denman: My Hero Father-In-Law by Benjamin J. Stein FRIDAY ATASTROPHE. Just as I was waiting for a bell-man to take my suitcases and me from my room at the Four...

BEN STEM'S DIARY: Off Golden Pond (October 2004)

N STEIN D ARY Off Golden Pond by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY A STUNNING AND UPSETTING AFTERNOON. I am in my native Washington, D.C., and I have just returned from lunch with a friend of some 30...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Swimming to Arkansas (September 2004)

BEN STE N' DIARY Swimming to Arkansas by Benjamin J. Stein WEDNESDAY ERE I AM SWIMMING LAZILY back and forth, east to west, then west to east, in my wonderful swimming pool. The weather is...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Coming Clean (July 2004)

Coming Clean by Benjamin J. Stein WEDNESDAY ERE I AM IN CHICAGO. It is a cloudy, slightly drizzly day, and I am on an endlessly long walk with my old comrade in arms, John R. Coyne, Jr. He,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Hallucinations (June 2004)

BEN STEIN DIARY Hallucinations by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY I ERE I AM IN NAPLES, FLORIDA. I am here to give people. I am at the Ritz Carlton in Naples. I really is not that fabulous a place,...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: American Salute (May 2004)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY American Salute by Benjamin J. Stein TUESDAY HAVE SAID IT BEFORE AND I WILL SAY IT AGAIN. You will simply never guess where I am. Go ahead and try. See, you can't. I am in...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Going Places (April 2004)

MONDAY RAVEL, TRAVEL, TRAVEL. It is the last week in February of 2004. So far, since New Year's Eve, I have been to New York City on two trips, to Australia (which is great but had a lot of angry...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: True Confessions (March 2004)

BEN STEIN DIARY True Confessions by Benjamin J. Stein SATURDAY UESS WHERE I.M. No, you'll never guess. Well, yes, you might guess. No, you can't guess. I am at a huge old Miami Beach hotel...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Franken and Bartley (February 2004)

BEN STEIN'S DIAk' Franken and Bartley by Benjamin J. Stein MONDAY 1 S USUAL, I AM ON AN AIRPLANE, this time leaving Northwest Arkansas, heading back to glorious Los Angeles, after a...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Playing Fields (December 2003)

B E A Tommy, could see Tommy on this field, he would probably be the happiest he ever was in his life. Maybe he can see it. Maybe he can see it. I have to say it to myself and believe...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Preserving the Civil War (October 2003)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Preserving the Civil War by Benjamin J. Stein ERE I AM IN MY PALATIAL office above my garage, outlining a speech for a gathering of Civil War Battlefield Preservation Trust...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: The Last Gentleman (July 2001)

The Last Gentleman BY BENJAMIN J. STEIN MONDAY ooking back on when I was a lit.L tle nappy-headed boy.... When my only worry was for Christmas what would be my toy.... These are words...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Defining Moments (June 2001)

Defining Moments BY BENJAMIN J. STEIN SATURDAY t ~ very so often a moment comes along that clarifies something I had been wondering about. I had one of them today and it was about politics....

BEN STEIN'S DIARY: Stock Shock (May 2001)

Stock Shock BY BENJAMIN J. STEIN TUESDAY This has been a long day. I got up early to feed the dogs and kitties. (Why does cat food smell so horrible, by the way?) I looked in the mirror. My eyes...

BEN STEIN'S DIARY (April 2001)

Hooked On Power BY BENJAMIN J. STEIN SATURDAY I love electricity. I have been thinking about how many of my favorite things in life are powered by electricity and I am amazed. Just for starters,...

Ben Stein's Diary: Our New Plumbing (March 2001)

Our New Plumbing BY BENJAMIN J. STEIN WEDNESDAY To begin at the beginning, this morning my wife told me that her bathroom toilet was running and would not stop. "I jiggle the handle," she said,...

Ben Stein's Diary (February 2001)

| E N STE I N'S D IAR' by Benjamin J. Stein The Gore-Boies Recession Wednesday H ere is the thought that's on my mind night and day: Americans are the greatest people there ever were. The...

Ben Stein's Diary: Only the Lonely (December 2000)

Only the Lonely Monday T he Internet is a puzzling beast. It's amazingly versatile in terms of conveying information. It is a great, even super-great way of selling total- er and slept in...

Ben Stein's Diary: Austin Power (November 2000)

|:1 [:1 III H L=II !:t III " ~] [~ ~'al |:t IJ5 by Berzjamir~ J. Stein Austin Power Time, time, time, See what's become of me, While I looked around for My possibilities .... Tuesday A...

Ben Stein's Diary: Prime Stein (October 2000)

i:]l~m ~,]Jil:{-ll"[4 i , ] 1 . . ~ by Benjamin J. Stein Prime Stein Sunday I 'm on a US Air flight from LAX to Philadelphia. Gosh, I like this airline. It's not well known, but US Air has...

Ben Stein's Diary: Sucking Up Pride (September 2000)

E N ST E/:N " i S :DI:AR-:' by Benjamin J. S t e i n Sucking Up Pride Sunday W r hen I was a small child in Silver Spring, Maryland, I used to give my father pipe tobacco for Father's Day. I...

Ben Stein's Diary: Just Peachie (July 2000)

I E N S T E I N ' S D I A R~ by Benjamin J. Stein lust Peachie Saturday S o the worst has happened and the Clintons have gone in and taken away poor little Elian at the point of an INS storm...

Ben Stein's Diary: Funky Fools (June 2000)

by Benjamin J. Stein Funky Fools Sunday H ere I am, once again, en route to New York on American Airlines. This is an unusually good flight. Quiet, pleasant. The only probIem is a beautiful...

Ben Stein's Diary: CanaryYellow (May 2000)

by Benjamin J. Stein C anary Yellow Saturday ~ t's an overcast, miserable afternoon here in gilded Los Angeles. As usual, I have a flu of some kind. I think I've had this flu for twenty years....

Ben Stein's Diary: I Was Robbed (March 2000)

by Benjamin J. S t e i n I Was Robbed Friday H ere I am in Little Rock, Arkansas. I am here with my wifie and son, the angels Alex and Tommy, and my wife's nephew, Matt, to visit my...

Ben Stein's Diary: Love at First Bite (February 2000)

by Benjamin J. Stein Love at First Bite Wednesday L et me tell you about a truly terrible day. It actually begins about two and a half years ago. I had just finished doing my second season of...

Ben Stein's Diary: Postmortem (December 1999)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY' by Benjamin J. Stein Postmortem 'Wednesday A ccording to Jewish law and custom, the dead must be buried almost immediately. Maybe this derives from the extreme heat and lack...

Ben Stein's Diary: Au Revoir, Pop (November 1999)

This is the background image for an unknown creator of an OCR page with image plus hidden text. When he calmed down—and he always is calmer when my sister or I am around—I asked him about why...

Ben Stein's Diary: My Hero (October 1999)

BEN STEI DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein My Hero Sunday U h-oh. I do not like the sound of this at all. I am out here in Malibu with Alex and the dogs. It's morning. Last night, we had a lovely...

Ben Stein's Diary: A House Divided (September 1999)

BENSTEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein A House Divided Friday T here is something about real estate that does not love a new owner. Property is different from stock or bonds or that best of...

Ben Stein's Diary: West Point Recognition (August 1999)

A R Y by Benjamin J. Stein West Point Recognition Tuesday W e've not much longer here to stay, I For in a month or two, I We'll bid farewell to cay-det grey, I And don the Army Blue. I know...

Ben Stein's Diary: Fear Strikes Out (June 1999)

DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Fear Strikes Out Saturday I am scared. Tomorrow we start shooting "Win Ben Stein's Money" again. Hard to believe how fast this long hiatus has flown by. But starting...

Ben Stein's Diary: Rock 'n' Bowl (May 1999)

STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Rock 'n' Bowl Wednesday ow, this is bliss. I am down at N the Los Angeles Athletic Club. It's about nine at night, and there is no one else but Tommy and me...

Ben Stein's Diary: Ben and Jerry (March 1999)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Ben and Jerry Tuesday „ ar between Sundown's finish and Midnight's broken toll, / We ducked inside the doorway as thunder went crashing....” I cannot...

Ben Stein's Diary: Guys and Dolls and Angels (February 1999)

STEIN kfr: by Benjamin J. Stein Guys and Dolls and Angels Thursday H ere I am in Washington, D.C., hurtling along North Capitol Street in my rented Buick to a conference at the Catholic...

Ben Stein's Diary (January 1999)

UM ilryN: Er by Benjamin J. Stein They Call It Puppy Love Sunday H ere I am out at our little house in Malibu with my PuppyWuppy, who is also called Lucy. As usual, Tommy refused to come out...

Ben Stein's Diary: Buying Into Beverly Hills (December 1998)

a~ca~ ~ ,~~~¢~.X.~'~ | E N STE I N'S D IAR' by Benjamin J. Stein Buying Into BeverlyHills Saturday A n unusual day. I am up early to go down to CBS Television City to be a guest star,...

Ben Stein's Diary: Can We Talk? (November 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Can We Talk? Monday I t's getting near the end of summer. Ever since we got back from Idaho, little Mr. Perfect has been nagging me to take him fishing. He...

Ben Stein's Diary: Sons and Fathers (October 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Sons and Fathers Thursday I spent the night at my house in Malibu for once in a great while for a dismal reason. This morning I had to get up early (for...

Ben Stein's Diary: The Bear and the Garden (September 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein The Bear and the Garden Wednesday L et me tell you about the life and death of Ginger, whom we also called the Bear, who was as integral a part of our...

Ben Stein's Diary: Time After Time (August 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Time After Time Monday M y cable TV service is broken again, right after getting "fixed" and working for all of twelve hours, and it's making me think some...

Ben Stein's Diary: Dining Out (July 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Dining Out Tuesday I 'm on the Washington airport Super-Shuttle bus, actually just a drab green bus heading from the Avis lot to the USAir Terminal. We...

Ben Stein's Diary (June 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein On With the Show Friday D inner in the top floor dining room of the Hyatt Tech Center outside Denver. I am here to do a commercial of sorts for a very...

Ben Stein's Diary: A Golden Age for Thugs (May 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein A Golden Age for Thugs Monday H ere I am cleaning up my son's room watching a talk show and they are talking about our time—to the effect that we are now...

Ben Stein's Diary: taking Stock (April 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Taking Stock Tuesday A visit to my genius shrink, Paul Hyman. I have seen him off and on for decades now about various problems, mostly having to do with...

Ben Stein's Diary: Hello, Larry (March 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Hello, Larry Saturday A breakthrough day in the life of Tommy Stein and his Dad. Off to the soccer semifinals in Rancho Park, a large park near Twentieth...

Ben Stein's Diary: Top This (February 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Top This Monday Ich liebe mein Cadillac. This morning I was up at 6 a.m., yes 6 a.m., to play a part in a movie about a rambunctious dog. At 7 a.m., a...

Ben Stein's Diary (January 1998)

BEN STEIN'S DIf by Benjamin J. Stein Memories Are Made of This Friday 41111110 ome on over, baby, / Whole lot of shakin' goin' on, / Come on over, baby, /We ain't fakin', / Whole lot of...

Ben Stein's Diary (December 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Giving Credit Sunday A „ w, NewYawk City, you tawk a lot. Let's have a look at 'chu," as Mick Jagger said at the beginning of the Gimme Shelter...

Ben Stein's Diary: Driving Near Forest Lawn (November 1997)

by Benjamin J. Stein Driving Near Forest Lawn Thursday U gh. Other people's kids. Tommy and I are up in Idaho, having a five-day last vacation of summer. We've given up the waterfront house on...

Ben Stein's Diary: Watch Yourself (October 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Watch Yourself Sunday I have a list I keep in my head of the ten greatest consumer inventions of the twentieth century. Not stuff like atom bombs or jet...

Ben Stein's Diary: it's Only my Money (September 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein It's Only My Money Sunday T o begin late at night, it's been an incredible struggle making our 9year-old son and his visiting iz-yearold best pal from...

Ben Stein's Diary: Testy Money (August 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Testy Money Thursday our Congress at work. Here I am in the Carl Perkins Room of the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. I am testifying...

Ben Stein's Diary: My Mom (July 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein My Mom Monday The worst day of my life. I awoke early for me, about 8 a.m., to get ready to go to New York City to speak at the annual dinner of the...

Ben Stein's Diary: Right on the Money (June 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Right on the Money Wednesday D inner with my pal Al Burton and Michael Davies, my boss, so to speak, at Disney's Buena Vista division. We ate in a...

Ben Stein's Diary: Candice Laughter (May 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Candice Laughter Tuesday Well, here I am on stage four at Warner Brothers in Burbank. I have been hired to appear on "Murphy Brown" as a nerdy (surprise,...

Ben Stein's Diary: Without Really Trying (April 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Without Really Trying Saturday H ere I am hurtling along the Boardwalk in Santa Monica on my bike. I am here with Tommy. He's rollerblading at blinding...

Ben Stein's Diary: It's Raining in My Heart (March 1997)

by Benjamin J. Stein It's Raining in My Heart New Year's Eve I t's drizzly and cool here in glorious L.A.—that means low 70's—but with a dreary fog. Still, a lot better than beloved Sandpoint....

Ben Stein's Diary: Life on a Merry-Go-Round (February 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Life on a Merry-Go-Round Friday I t's my birthday. I am 5z. I awakened and went to el computador to see who had e-mailed me. E-mailing has become a big...

Ben Stein's Diary: It's My Money (January 1997)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein It's My Money Wednesday 0 ooh, this is good. I'm over here in Burbank in a little conference room. We're having a run-through for a show that Disney is...

Ben Stein's Diary: Death of a Friend (December 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Death of a Friend Friday Aterrifying phone call from Burdette Feierabend, former wife of my pal Peter Feierabend, at about 9:3o p.m.—just as I was pulling...

Ben Stein's Diary: Hot Summer Daze (October 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Hot Summer Daze Saturday Me no like dis. About six months ago, my bride, Li'l Alex, said that she wanted to take off from work for the whole...

Ben Stein's Diary: On Colloidal Course (September 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein On a Colloidal Course Tuesday 0ff to a cartoon recording session in Studio City. This is for an item called Bruno and the Kid. The main voice...

Ben Stein's Diary: Standing Up and Letting Go (August 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Standing Up and Letting Go Saturday Yeah. An Italian wedding. Theme from The Godfather. The tarantella. All that stuff. But wait. This isn't in...

Ben Stein's Diary: Spring Fevers (July 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Spring Fevers Monday Spring has come to Los Angeles. An Eastern spring. John Gregory Dunne once told me he thought L.A. has the worst weather in the...

Ben Stein's Diary: Embarrassments (June 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Embarrassments Monday Here we are in Oxford, Maryland, again. I have taken me old Ma and Pa out to the Eastern Shore to look at houses. This is my...

Ben Stein's Diary: Ping-Pong Diplomacy (May 1996)

"Ben Stein's Diary: Ping-Pong Diplomacy" by Benjamin J. Stein Ping-Pong Diplomacy Monday Rush, rush, rush over to Disney for a meeting to pitch a show. I met a startlingly alert young fellow named Rick and told him my...

Ben Stein's Diary: Death of a Producer (April 1996)

"Ben Stein's Diary: Death of a Producer" by Benjamin J. Stein Death of a Producer Friday Back on the pitching trail. I am in a meeting in a building in Century City, talking to...

Ben Stein's Diary: Marshal Laws (March 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Marshal Laws Saturday It's a typical Saturday here at the Club Tommy in Malibu. My little angel, Tommy, is playing a vile video game with his giant...

Ben Stein's Diary: Deaths in the Family (February 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Deaths in the Family Thursday Here I am in Idaho again. I have flown up here by myself, without Little Perfect. I decided he was missing too much school,...

Ben Stein's Diary: Toughest Nails (January 1996)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein Toughest Nails Friday Ring, ring, goes the bell. Up from a deep sleep. It's a woman from MacNeil/Lehrer (now "The News Hour With Jim Lehrer"). "You've been...

Ben Stein's Diary/Rooked (December 1995)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Rooked by Benjamin I. Stein Wednesday H ere I am, en route to New Orleans on United Airlines. By the grace of God, I am in First Class. It's incredibly cramped and tiny. By pure...

Ben Stein's Diary / Eye Street (November 1995)

Eye Street by Benjamin J. Stein Monday D inner at Morton's with my agent pal and his wife. It's jumping here tonight, just like the old Morton's back in the 1980s before the Los Angeles economy...

Ben Stein's Diary /It's in the Cards (October 1995)

It's in the Cards by Benjamin J. Stein Tuesday I have a new plan. I am sitting outside a store in Hollywood called Meltdown, between two different Thai restaurants. Meltdown sells collectible and...

Ben Stein's Diary/Alaska Goes South (September 1995)

Alaska Goes South by Benjamin I. Stein Father's Day M y pal Stone and I were walking down a hot street in Sandpoint, Idaho. His two children, 14 and 10, ran in front of us and played with my son,...

Ben Stein's Diary / Cather Ye Rosebuds (August 1995)

Gather Ye Rosebuds by Benjamin J. Stein Sunday have journeyed across the country to / be with my mother and father for Mother's Day. Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be...

Ben Stein's Diary //f This Is Tuesday (July 1995)

If This Is Tuesday by Benjamin J. Stein Monday 'm at the old Howard Hughes aircraft I plant in the middle of a vast wasteland between LAX and Marina Del Rey. Tucked into a ravine, it has old...

Ben Stein's Diary/Full Service (June 1995)

Full Service by Benjamin J. Stein Monday A call from my pal, Lenny. He's been my bud for almost twenty years now. I've seen him go up and down on the income ladder, as a big executive at United...

Ben Stein's Diary /Poetry in Motion (May 1995)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Poetry in Motion by Benjamin J. Stein Saturday It's bitterly cold here in Washington. But I have convinced old Maw and Paw to go for a walk with me down to the Sequoia...

Ben Stein's Diary/Risky Business (April 1995)

Risky Business by Benjamin J. Stein Tuesday G uess what? I'm back in Baltimore. It's late at night and I'm here at the Stouffer Hotel, looking out at the harbor and a building that has a huge sign...

Ben Stein's Diary /Bottom Bottom Line (March 1995)

Bottom Line Tuesday (~ o money, no life," says my magician pal Larry Wilson, who heard it from a Chinese man years ago when we were all hippies together in Santa Cruz before I went East to work...

Ben Stein's Diary / Half-Century City (February 1995)

Half-Century City by Benjamin J. Stein Monday H ere I am in Baltimore, Maryland. It's nighttime. I'm staying at the wonderful Stouffer Harborplace. My room looks out on the harbor and a giant...

Ben Stein's Diary / I'm a Soul Gland (January 1995)

I'm a Soul Gland by Benjamin J. Stein Friday A aarghh! This cannot be happening. But it is. A modem nightmare. A modem efficiency-productivitydon't-give-a-damn nightmare. Tommy and I are at the...

Ben Stein's Diary / Tough Love (April 1994)

tiations, he will appear less pro-Palestinian than nearly half the Israeli cabinet—hardly a comfortable position for the aging terrorist. But if Rabin reneges on his pledge to Shas and forcibly...

Ben Stein's Diary / Good-bye Summer (December 1994)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Good-bye Summer by Benjamin J. Stein Monday A very early dinner at Morton's with my old pal Barron. We talked about how to buy a bank in a small town, then how to make it buy...

Ben Stein's Diary/Laughing All the Way (November 1994)

Laughing All the Way by Benjamin J. Stein Saturday A perfect late August day on the north shore of Lake Fend' Oreille in North Idaho. Today, I'm taking a sailing lesson in a fourteen-foot Holder...

Ben Stein's Diary / Unmaskings (October 1994)

imoo. g ,‘V '*4‘r 0 0 Unmasking s by Benjamin J. Stein Wednesday A bout ten days ago, I went in for an audition to play a lawyer in an upcoming movie. In fact, the part was to be Robert De...

Ben Stein's Diary / Foxes (September 1994)

Foxes by Benjamin I. Stein Monday Aplanned lunch at a very good Italian place in Malibu called Tradinoi. It's a stunningly gorgeous sunny clear day here and I'm meeting my friend Hilda to cheer...

Ben Stein's Diary/Howe Rules! (August 1994)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Howe Rules! by Benjamin J. Stein Tuesday D inner with my pal Al "The Duke" Duesenberg. Al is a major casting guy, working out of both New York and Los Angeles. He's a lean,...

Ben Stein's Diary/Au Revoir, Mr. President (July 1994)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Au Revoir, Mr. President by Benjamin J. Stein Tuesday T his is news I've been dreading for about twenty years. I'm out at Morton's, and the captain, Todd, comes over to tell me...

Ben Stein's Diary / Climb Every Mountain (June 1994)

Climb Every Mountain by Benjamin J. Stein Tuesday p aradise. I'm at The American Spectator's Washington Club dinner (see page 72). It's in a big room at The Four Seasons in Georgetown. I'm the...

Ben Stein's Diary / Bobby Pins Flying In (March 1994)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Bobby Pins Flying In by Benjamin J. Stein Wednesday /like this. I'm over here in Burbank at the executive commissary at Disney. This is a lovely round room with a lot of famous...

Ben Stein's Diary / Trixie (February 1994)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY tie/ 4.0\39`rTrixie Saturday A gigantic wrestling match at the gymnasium of the junior high school here in Sandpoint, Idaho. I'm here with little Gorgeous George because his...

Ben Stein's Diary I Requiem for a Madam (January 1994)

Requiem for a Madam by Benjamin J. Stein Saturday 4 4 t doesn't get much better than / this," my sister said as we started up the Bull River Parkway in Western Montana. She was referring to the...

Ben Stein's Diary/ Dreamball (December 1993)

Dreamball by Benjamin J. Stein Monday A listless, quiet day. No calls to do commercials, no calls to be in movies, just lying on my couch and reading about two intensely active, bad-acting...

Ben Stein's Diary / My Private Idaho (November 1993)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY My Private Idaho by Benjamin J. Stein Monday N ow, this is like old times, or the good old days, or something like that. Staci, one of my two original Valley Girls, now a...

Ben Stein's Diary/Supportive Encounters (October 1993)

Thursday 1 'm scared. I've been back in Dublin—my third trip in three months—for three days now, and it looks this time as if I'm really going to testify in the high court, Room 25, Third Floor of...

Ben Stein's Diary/ The Pink Fish (September 1993)

Friday t's much too early in the morning, / maybe 6 a.m., and I'm wandering around downtown near City Hall, looking for the crew parking for North, the new Rob Reiner movie I'm to play a small...

Ben Stein's Diary /Boy in the Hood (August 1993)

A beautiful day in Sunny Southern California. I wrote about bonds in the morning, and then strolled out the door of the mighty Shoreham Towers to lunch. As I walked out, I saw some of my favorite...

Ben Stein's Diary / Roots (July 1993)

Tuesday I don't like this at all. I awoke this morning with a pain in a rear upper tooth. The pain had been coming on for two weeks, but this morning it really hurt as I gargled Scope and drank my...

Ben Stein's Diary / Studious City (June 1993)

Sunday in Braino-Land 1 t's Brunch Time at the Cosmos Club at the Corner of Florida Avenue and Massachusetts Avenue in Washington, D.C. This club is in a huge, ancient mansion that once belonged to...

Ben Stein's Diary /Ring, Ring, Ring (May 1993)

Wednesday W hen the moon is in the seventh house, and Jupiter aligns with Mars, then I'll get lots of commercials, and my voice will be one of the stars ... Guess what? I'm in New York, to do a...

Ben Stein's Diary / Two Steps Forward (April 1993)

I see America dancing, and it's a Texas two-step. Let me tell you some more about The Borderline. Near my house in Trancas, at the North End of Malibu, there was for years a tumbledown restaurant...

Ben Stein's Diary / Crying Games (March 1993)

Thursday ew Year's Eve at Morton's. I'm N there with my new b.f. Maxine, visiting from Portland, Oregon. Tonight, the place is jammed with young rich people and a few middle-aged poor people, or...

Ben Stein's Diary / Help! (February 1993)

A meeting of my self-help group, Journey Into Self-Obsession. A young man across the room from me, Bill G., has a story to tell. "A guy I used to do drugs with, a guy named Warren, wanted to go down...

Ben Stein's Diarylrears and Cheers (January 1993)

"Ben Stein's Diarylrears and Cheers" Wednesday Here I am again in Heber Springs, Arkansas, visiting my hero father-in-law. It's a warm, dry day, and time for little me to visit the local school. I'm interested in education, plus I'm...

Ben Stein's Diary/Set for Life (December 1992)

Set for Life by Benjamin I. Stein Sunday New Orleans. I'm sitting up here on the stage of a huge meeting room at a hotel next to the Saint Dome or the SuperDome or something like that. There's a...

Ben Stein's DiarylRequiem for an Army Wife (November 1992)

Requiem for an Army Wife by Benjamin J. Stein Friday Ring, ring, ring. At about ten to eight, as I was sleeping, listening to the wonderful sound of my boy laughing in my dreams, I was awakened by...

Ben Stein's Diary/On Location (October 1992)

On Location by Benjamin J. Stein Friday A trip to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, all by myself. I was going to meet a friend from Oregon; but she. got mad at me for telling her she was pretty and sweet,...

Ben Stein's Diary / Mind Games (September 1992)

Friday Graduation day. A big day in the life of Tommy Stein, age four years and ten months. He's graduating from pre-school at Temple Israel on Hollywood Boulevard. The school is throwing a bash...

Ben Stein's Diary/Guys and Dollars (August 1992)

shouldn't I fly the farthest and miss a few days of work to do it? The air was warm and damp when I got to New York. I checked into my tiny room at the hotel near Lincoln Center (part of my false...

Ben Stein's Diary/The Road to Surfdom (July 1992)

Tuesday 1 t's a beautiful day. The sun is dazzling. The sky is a perfect light blue. The waves are crashing on the beach below my house in Trancas, so it's time to go out to get some yoghurt. Or...

Ben Stein's DiarylSnippets (June 1992)

Snippets Wednesday meeting with my dentist, Dr. S., A and his lovely assistant, D., to get my teeth cleaned. Their office is in a dismal part of Reseda, a community in the news recently because...

Ben Stein's Diary/Sugar Daddy (May 1992)

There are also cassettes, from which I chose "Elvis: The Christmas Album," even though it's February. I got up, paid my eight dollars to the lovely Robin, the hair stylist who usually takes care of...

Ben Stein's Diary/Rock Bottom (April 1992)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Rock Bottom by Benjamin J. Stein Monday M y beautiful but difficult neighbor T., the stunning blonde from Mississippi who works in the music business, made me promise I would go...

Ben Stein's Diary/L.A. Recession (March 1992)

L.A. Recession by Benjamin J. Stein Friday Acall at 8:00 a.m. from my pal, B., the lovely, sprightly gamine of 25 who used to work for me before going on to greener pastures at a large publishing...

Ben Stein's Diary/Breathless (February 1992)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY Breathless Friday Everyone here has the flu and I thought I might be getting it, too. Hence a trip to Doctor B., who had been recommended by my friend Traci, a former...

Ben Stein's Diary/The Sad Society (January 1992)

Thursday If you have a lemon, make lemonade. I was lying on my bed, "wrestling" with my son, the world's handsomest boy, Tommy. "Wrestling" means that he waits until I'm not looking, then he jumps...

Ben Stein's Diary/Antipathies (December 1991)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY ANTIPATHIES by Benjamin J. Stein Monday Iislike Wild Kingdom here in Malibu this week. First a scary invasion of ants into every portal of my home. Huge phalanxes of the brown,...

Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? (December 1991)

WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME TOMORROW? Benjamin J. Stein/St. Martin's Press/298 pp. $18.95 John R. Coyne, Jr. Ben Stein doesn't fit the mold—any mold. We first met in 1973, when he pulled himself out...

Ben Stein's Diary/Terminate MacGyver (November 1991)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY TERMINATE MAcGYVER Wednesday R ush, rush, rush, over hill and down dale, to audition for a commercial advertising pickles. At the audition, there was a story board describing...

Ben Stein's Diary/Comrades and Patients (October 1991)

art Werthback, head of German countterintelligence, recently told me that he had come to the conclusion that the Stasi were suffocating themselves in vast, unmanageable mounds of information they...

Ben Stein's Diary/Fingered (September 1991)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY FINGERED Thursday Up at 5:00 a.m. to be in Culver City for a commercial by 7:00 a.m. This meant quite a lot to me because, you see, the director is a truly huge name in...

Ben Stein's Diary/Hooked (August 1991)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY HOOKED by Benjamin J. Stein Wednesday About a week ago, my pal B., a suc- cessful small businessman in Dallas, called to ask a favor. "My absolutely best astrologer I've ever...

Ben Stein's Diary/The Wonder Years Recede (July 1991)

BEN STEIN'S DIARY THE WONDER YEARS RECEDE Friday I can't sleep anymore, so I got up at seven and took Trixie for a walk. At this hour, West Hollywood is quiet and even delightful. One of the...

The Nation's Pulse/Viper's Nests (June 1991)

THE NATION'S PULSE VIPER'S NESTS by Benjamin J. Stein Wednesday A trip up to the Port Hueneme Na- val Air Station to Do My Bit. I had read that there was a support group there for the children of...

The Nation's Pulse/Taking Stock (May 1991)

THE NATIONS'S PULSE TAKING STOCK by Benjamin J. Stein Sunday D inner at the Beverly-Wilshire. It's a huge fund-raising thing for The Fund for Animals, a charity run by some Hollywood types who...

The Nation's Pulse/Day Two (April 1991)

THE NATION'S PULSE DAY TWO by Benjamin J. Stein January 17, 1991 M orning. I spent last night at my condo in the Shoreham Towers, the tallest apartment building in West Hollywood, by far. It's on...

The Nation's Pulse/The Malibu Plan (March 1991)

THE NATION'S PULSE THE MALIBU PLAN W ell, it had to happen. In the 1980s, taking a cue from the big boys—the Trumps, the Belzbergs, the Icahns, the Farleys—and everyone else who got a museum wing...

The Nation's Pulse/Be Cool (September 1990)

THE NATION'S PULSE BE COOL by Benjamin J. Stein ou wouldn't want to venture into Also identifies you as so insecure about huahua, but it's Creepsville here. Stay where outside the gym. Very cool...

The Nation's Pulse / Look Back in Anger (June 1990)

THE NATION'S PULSE LOOK BACK IN ANGER A normal Sunday. I was sitting in a chair reading the financial statements of a very large insurance company, trying to see if the management had taken a...

The California Spectator/Super Sunday (April 1990)

THE CALIFORNIA SPECTATOR SUPER SUNDAY by Benjamin J. Stein T is one of those mornings when I I can't stop my criminal brain from working. I'd like to. I'd like to just walk out the door and wander...

The Nation's Pulse/Point Doom (December 1989)

THE NATION'S PULSE POINT DOOM by Benjamin J. Stein Point Dume, Malibu T he morning after Labor Day, and 1 there was absolutely no energy at all in the air. It was foggy out over Santa Monica Bay....

The California Spectator/Let's Rake a Deal (October 1989)

THE CALIFORNIA SPECTATOR LET'S RAKE A by Benjamin J. Stein H ere, verbatim to the extent that I "Reverse bankruptcy?" I asked. get to avoid the adverse emotional and tion recognizing the hurt of...

Spectator's Journal/A Day (September 1989)

SPECTATOR'S JOURNAL A DAY by Benjamin J. Stein D ing, ring, ring. 1\ A telephone call from a woman in Richmond, Virginia. Would I like to be the off-camera voice of a racetrack in Baltimore,...

The Nation's Pulse/Malibu Diary (January 1989)

THE NATION'S PULSE MALIBU DIARY by Benjamin J. Stein November 11, 1988 eterans' Day. I was awakened by V a knocking at the door. It was loud knocking, because the sound of waves is almost...

The Nation's Pulse/Disney's Cinderella Story (December 1988)

THE NATION'S PULSE DISNEY'S CINDERELLA STORY by Benjamin J. Stein M aria Bane of Fort Lee, New Jersey, writes, "Mr. Stein, you always write so negatively about businessmen. Do you hate all...

The Nation's Pulse/Letter from Hollywood (October 1988)

THE NATION'S PULSE LETTER FROM HOLLYWOOD by Benjamin J. Stein y ou probably wonder what I've been up to since you last heard from me. I'll make it easy for you. You won't have to guess. I'll...

Takeovers and Acquisitions: Who's Responsible? (September 1988)

Benjamin J. Stein TAKEOVERS AND ACQUISITIONS: WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? You first must ask: Who stands to profit? Could it be the middlemen? F ederated, Koppers, Cal-Mat, Roper, Firestone, Resorts...

The Southern California Spectator/Anomalies (August 1988)

THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SPECTATOR ANOMALIES by Benjamin J. Stein Anomalies that could be ironed out. Inconsistencies that could be made consistent. Because my own life is a wild jack-in-the-box of...

Love Stinks (June 1988)

.................................................................................................................. Benjamin J. Stein LOVE STINKS Today love -means never having to say you're...

The Real Amerika (May 1987)

Benjamin J. Stein THE REAL AMERIKA The story that ABC bought but didn't sell. Tn the summer of 1980, while I lived .1 in Aspen, Colorado I wrote a treatment for a book. It was to be a novel...

Free to Libel (February 1987)

THE AMERICAN SPECTATOR VOL. 20, NO. 2 / FEBRUARY 1987 Benjamin J. Stein FREE TO LIBEL Reckless Disregard has a long history. O n March 29, 1960, an advertisement entitled "Heed Their Rising...

The Bad Girls of Gamma Nu (October 1986)

good economic sense. Had he followed his original instinct not to give in to the economic pressures from the world outside France, Europe as we have known it for a generation would have come to an...

The New War Between Men and Women (November 1985)

Benjamin J. Stein THE NEW WAR BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN Today's battles would make Keats and Byron blush. My old pal Michael Shamberg, who used to be a hippie and now makes money in the picture...

Spectator's Journal/In Love in Washington (July 1985)

9 . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....

Living on Half a Million a Year (May 1985)

Benjamin J. Stein LIVING ON HALF A MILLION A YEAR But beware of tax-shelter friends, and keep your dog away from Love on a Leash. A his is a story of illusion. When I was a child, my parents...

The Great American Saloon Series/The Lion and Compass (March 1985)

THE GREAT AMERICAN SALOON SERIES THE LION AND COMPASS by Benjamin J. Stein To begin at the beginning, try not to think about the tasteless dill sauce, the cooked-out vegetables, or the nondescript...

Love Between the Ages (January 1985)

THE AMERICAN Cahforma and m America generally T i n s Is a story of adults who act hke g~rl who has Esprit sportswear filling I see this pmrlng phenomenon m ac- ctuldren, and of children who act...

Among the Intellectualoids/Olympic Art (July 1984)

environment where social-economic distinctions actually were felt in practice, if not in theory, a failure in business, an associate of crooked politicians, he developed a touchiness about...

The Derationalized Zone (January 1984)

Times about the Rosenbergs: "I would not take the position that they were completely innocent." At this point a man jumped up in the audience and screamed from the depths, "He never said that!...

The Manhattan Gambit/'Ludes (October 1983)

THE MANHATTAN GAMBIT Benjamin J. Stein / Doubleday / $15.95 'LUDES Benjamin J. Stein/ Bantam Books / $3.50 Aram Bakshian, Jr. It is always difficult to write with taste about distasteful subjects....

The Children of Sunset Boulevard (September 1983)

Benjamin J. Stein THE CHILDREN OF SUNSET BOULEVARD Who's watching the kids? I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Lunch last week at the commissary at MGM with W., a woman television producer who...

Flying Low in First Class (June 1983)

Benjamin J. Stein FLYING LOW IN FIRST CLASS What misery lies behind the Pepsodent smile? Albert Camus said that you could neasure the humanity of a society by Examining its prisons, not its...

Stein, BenjaminJ.

Stein, Herbert

Stein, Kenneth

Stein, Kenneth Martin

Steinbeck, John

Steinberg, Arnie

Steinberg, Arnold

Steinberg, Jonathan

Steinberger, Michael

Steiner, Wendy

Steinfels, Peter

Stelzer, Irwin M.