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2000
One of the things Jed Bartlet looked forward to the most as he entered office was the nation’s yearly celebration of the arts-the Kennedy Center Honors. His first year in office saw him honoring Stevie Wonder, Victor Borge, and Sean Connery, among others. But it was the second year where his excitement really got going.
The week before the awards, what started as a conversation between him and Josh about an upcoming energy bill launched into a late-night trivia session about that year’s honorees.
“Did you know that Chuck Berry started singing to raise money for camera equipment? He wanted to be a photographer.”
“Really?” Josh asked.
“Yes. Can you name any Chuck Berry songs, Josh?”
“Sure I can. ‘Roll Over Beethoven’, ‘Johnny B. Goode’.”
“Abbey could tell you quite a few more. She used to watch him on American Bandstand.”
“ American what?”
“ American Bandstand started on local Philadelphia TV in 1952. It went national in 1957. It’s what Dick Clark is known for.”
“I see.”
“What do you know about Clint Eastwood?”
“I don’t know, but I’d like to find out.”
Leo walked in. “Sir, it’s half past 10. I’m going to head home. You should probably head up.”
“Leo! I was just telling Josh about Clint Eastwood.”
Josh didn’t miss the way Leo’s face lit up. “Dirty Harry himself.”
“Dirty Harry?”
“The cop movies. You ever see them?”
“No.”
“That settles it,” Jed said. “I am arranging a screening of Dirty Harry.”
“Go ahead,” Josh said, “make my day.”
The look Jed and Leo gave him made him blush. “Did I say that out loud?”
“I was gonna let him go home,” Jed said to Leo.
“But instead?”
“We’re going to have a little chat about Angela Lansbury. Josh! Have you ever seen
Murder, She Wrote?”
Josh had a sinking feeling in his stomach. “No, sir.”
“Let’s chat about why it is that Jessica Fletcher always seemed to be around when a murder was occurring. Remind me to tell you about
The Manchurian Candidate
and
Sweeney Todd.
Placido Domingo and Mikhail Baryshnikov too.”
It was official. Josh was trapped.
The next week, Abbey and Jed attended the State Department reception for the honorees. Josh, CJ, Sam, and Toby attended alongside them. Jed and Abbey introduced themselves to the nominees as the Senior Staff watched.
“Is it just me,” Sam said, “or is the First Lady-”
“Tongue-tied over Chuck Berry? You bet,” Toby said.
“Makes sense. Didn’t she use to watch him on TV?”
“ American Bandstand . I watched it too.” Toby suddenly looked across the room.
CJ looked with Toby. “Who is it?”
“Placido Domingo.”
Josh tried and failed to keep from snickering. “You like Placido Domingo?”
“I enjoy opera, on occasion. Just like I enjoy Miss Julia Child. PBS has great attributes.”
“I’m aware.”
“Oh, my God. Angela Lansbury,” CJ said.
“CJ, try to maintain decorum…”
“ When you rush around in hopeless circles, searching everywhere for something true…you're at the age of not believing… ” CJ sang. At the guys’ stares, she laughed. “ Bedknobs and Broomsticks, remember?”
“I never saw it,” Josh said.
“I remember!” Sam smiled. “It was with the dad from Mary Poppins.”
“Yes! It's lovely, bobbing along…Bobbing along on the bottom of the beautiful briny sea…” CJ piped in.
Sam joined in. “What a chance to get a better peep, at the plants and creatures of the deep!”
Meanwhile, Abbey and Jed were chatting with Chuck Berry.
“I used to love it when you were on TV,” Abbey gushed.
“You liked my music, huh?”
“Of course she did,” Jed smiled. “You were her idol.”
“That’s very kind of you to say, Dr. Bartlet.”
As Jed and Abbey walked over to greet Clint Eastwood, she took his hand.
“Thank you for getting me through that.”
“Not a problem at all. It was only your idol since you were a teenager.”
“Yes. Now get me through tomorrow without breaking down and cutting loose during his tribute.”
“Deal.”
She did manage to succeed from breaking loose, though she danced in her seat as Little Richard sang. But there was something else happening that she wasn’t even aware of.
Josh sat in a seat next to CJ as the tribute to Chuck Berry happened. There was something that had been bothering him ever since the tribute to Angela Lansbury, since the Washington National Opera performed. Now, it was stronger than ever. He wasn’t sure what it was, but soon, in a few weeks, it would become abundantly clear.
It was the music.
…
2011
It was no secret amongst the elite of DC that Matt Santos’s favorite event every year was the Kennedy Center Honors. Every year, he and Helen would await the list of honorees and spend a night debating and reminiscing. 2007 had Steve Martin and Diana Ross, 2008 Barbra Streisand, 2009 Bruce Springsteen (Matt’s favorite), 2010 Paul McCartney. But in 2011, the first one of Matt’s second term, he knew it would be one to remember.
Bram brought him the list one morning in September during Senior Staff. “Barbara Cook, Neil Diamond, Yo-Yo Ma, Sonny Rollins-”
“Wait, wait,” Matt said. “Did you say Neil Diamond?”
“Yes, sir.”
He laughed. “Oh, man. Helen is going to lose it. That’s her favorite singer.”
“I didn’t know she was a fan, sir.”
“Are you kidding? She’s got all his albums, all his 8-track tapes. We went to see him in concert once, in ‘02. I’m pretty sure my late father-in-law was a fan, too.”
“I kind of like him myself,” Lou shared.
“Yeah?” Bram replied. “When have you listened to any song of his that isn’t Sweet Caroline?”
“For your information, I have the Hot August Night album on CD. Mrs. Santos heard me listening to it once.”
“Oh.”
“In fact, I’m going to go share the good news.”
Lou headed down to the East Wing after Senior Staff to greet Annabeth.
“I heard the good news,” She said sweetly.
“I just came over to tell the First Lady.”
“Barbara Cook is coming to the White House!”
Lou was taken aback. “Barbara who?”
“Barbara Cook. The original Marian the Librarian.”
“From The Music Man?”
“Yes!”
“Yo-Yo Ma rules!” Donna said as she walked into the East Wing lobby.
“I beg your pardon?”
“Yo-Yo Ma’s getting honored at the Kennedy Center.”
“So you did get the list.”
“Yes. You got a problem with that?”
“No. I just wanted to come over here and tell the First Lady personally-”
“That her favorite singer of all time is coming to the White House? Go ahead and tell her the good news. She hasn’t come down yet.”
“Good morning, everyone!” Helen greeted as she came into the office. “Hi, Lou. What brings you down here?”
“I have some good news.”
“Oh? What’s that?”
“The Kennedy Center honorees just came out.”
“And who shall we expect to be honored this year?”
“Sonny Rollins, a jazz musician; Yo-Yo Ma, the cellist; Barbara Cook from Broadway-”
“Broadway? What’s she been in?”
“ The Music Man .”
“ Marian…Madam Librarian….” Annabeth sang.
Helen laughed. “Who else?”
“Meryl Streep.”
“Ooh, I love her.”
“And….Neil Diamond.”
Helen lost the power of speech. Donna and Annabeth smiled at Lou as they waited for Helen to recover.
“Neil Diamond,” Helen breathed.
“Yeah,” Donna smiled.
“Neil Diamond is coming here? To the White House?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Lou replied.
“What I am going to wear?”
The East Wing excitedly anticipated the first week of December. But Josh Lyman was nervous about the whole thing. Normally, he had survived the Kennedy Center Honors gala by using different coping techniques to get through the classical music performances. But…this was Yo-Yo Ma. This was his worst nightmares come true.
He decided he had to skip the gala this year. But he didn’t want to use some excuse. He knew the time had come to come clean to his boss. Donna offered to come with him, but he knew he had to do this on his own.
Josh and Donna came up to the Residence for one of their regular dinners with the First Family. Three-year-old Anna and Abby watched a video with Peter while one-year-old Matty slept in Donna’s arms. Matt and Josh each took a beer and went into the study.
“What’s up, Josh?” Matt asked.
“Sir, I’m sure you’ve read my Secret Service file.”
“Yeah, I have.”
“So, you know that I have PTSD.”
“Yes.”
“Well, the thing that my file doesn’t mention is how it started.”
Josh leaned forward and told Matt everything. The December when he heard sirens instead of music. How it built to him raising his voice in the Oval Office. Him having a flashback at the Congressional concert with Yo-Yo Ma. Suddenly, Matt understood.
“You don’t want to come to the gala next week because you’re afraid it’ll trigger an episode?”
“Pretty much.”
“Well, normally, I would say it’s best to face your fears, but I know that seldom works in PTSD.”
Josh looked up. “You, sir?”
Matt nodded. “There are things I dealt with in the war, things I never even told Helen. I still struggle with nightmares sometimes. I understand wanting to avoid triggers. Especially at an event like this.”
“So…you’re okay with it?”
“Absolutely. But there’s something I don’t understand.”
“What?”
“Why is this year different?”
“Because I haven’t listened to Yo-Yo Ma’s music since that night.”
Matt nodded again. “Fair enough.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
The next week, it was time for the State Department gala. Helen changed dresses four times before she found one she was satisfied with. Matt chuckled.
“You were less nervous meeting Queen Elizabeth.”
“It’s not funny, Matt. God, I’ve loved this guy since I was 12 years old.”
“Honey, it’s going to be fine.”
“I don’t know, it’s just…thinking about him makes me miss my dad.”
“I know,” Matt said, embracing her. “I know. But this is going to be great.”
That evening, they arrived at the State Department, and Helen held tightly to Matt as they approached the honorees. They started with an easy one-Meryl Streep, laughing about their favorite movie of hers being The Devil Wears Prada. They got through their introductions to the others, then stood in front of Neil Diamond.
“Mr. Diamond,” Matt said, shaking his hand.
“Neil, please.” He turned to Helen. “And this must be the radiant Mrs. Santos.”
Helen swallowed. “It’s nice to meet you. Finally.”
“She’s kind of a big fan,” Matt explained.
“Really? You got a favorite?”
“‘Forever in Blue Jeans’,” She said.
“That’s a great one. Most people say ‘Sweet Caroline’.”
“It’s a popular one. One of my dad’s favorites.”
“Your dad still around?”
“He passed away in 2003.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thank you.”
“What was his favorite album?”
“He liked Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show a lot.”
“Another great one.”
Helen smiled. “It was nice to meet you.”
“You too. Come find me after the medallion ceremony. I’d love to hear more about your father.”
Helen was stunned. “Of course.”
They did chat that night, and Helen even made sure Lou was introduced to Neil the next night before the gala. That night, as was custom, he gifted the Santoses with two CDs. One, the album You Don’t Bring Me Flowers inscribed with the words- For one of my biggest fans-from one of hers; and the second, a copy of Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show: For a man I’ll never meet, who raised a wonderful daughter.”
Helen would treasure those for the rest of her life.
And meanwhile, Josh skipped the gala (Donna went, and got a photo with Yo-Yo Ma for her efforts), but knew that he was getting better. It would just take him a little longer to get better from this.
…
2019
The first Kennedy Center Honors Sam was in office for came with some exciting guests for the Seaborn family.
Ainsley held the Kennedy Center press release in her hand, scarcely believing her eyes. “Linda Ronstadt.” She had grown up listening to the woman. It had broken her heart when it came out that she couldn’t sing anymore.
“What was that, honey?” Sam said as she walked into the Oval Office.
“Linda Ronstadt is getting a Kennedy Center Honor.”
Sam’s eyes lit up. “They came out with the list?”
“Yep. Linda Ronstadt, the producers of
Sesame Street,
Michael Tilson Thomas, Sally Field, and Earth, Wind, and Fire.”
Sam smiled. “Earth, Wind, and Fire. That’ll be fun.”
“Yes, it will. And Connor will love getting to meet the Muppets.”
“Will he?”
“Yes.
Sesame Street
is being honored. They’ll be at the White House again.”
“What do you mean, again?”
“Rumor has it Abbey Bartlet taped a segment with the Muppets at the White House about fifteen years ago.”
“Yes, she did,” Donna said as she walked in. “I met them.”
“Wow,” Sam said.
“And Linda Ronstadt? I’ve loved her since I was ten years old,” Ainsley spoke up.
“I know. You have all her albums.”
“I’m looking forward to meeting her.”
“Me too.”
“What are we talking about?” Donna asked.
“The Kennedy Center Honors.”
“Oh, yeah. Those are coming up.”
“Is Josh coming? You both are invited, of course.”
“Um…I don’t know.”
Sam turned to Ainsley. “Ains, would you excuse us?”
“Of course.”
She slipped out the door.
Donna sat down. “Is everything alright, Mr. President?”
“Is Josh…still okay with his PTSD?”
“I don’t know if he’ll ever fully get over it…but he’s better. He hasn’t had an episode in years.”
“But he’s still afraid to come.”
“A little bit.”
Sam nodded. “Let me talk to him.”
That afternoon, he placed an outside call to DNC headquarters. He got Margaret, who transferred him to Josh.
“Hey Josh, it’s me.”
“Good afternoon, Mr. President. What can I do for you?”
“Okay. This is a social call. So let’s try this again. Hi, Josh.”
“Hi, Sam. What do you need?”
“That’s more like it.”
“Seriously, what do you need?”
“I wanted to ask you about the Kennedy Center Honors.”
“Those are in December.”
“Seriously. I’m inviting Donna, as is custom, but I want to make sure you’re okay coming.”
“Because of the PTSD.”
“I know you skipped one year when President Santos was in office. I want you to know it’s up to you whether you come or not. I’ll support whatever you decide.”
Josh sighed. “I don’t know. Let me talk to Donna about it.”
That evening, Anna and Abby were in their rooms doing homework, and Matty was playing a game with Leo. Josh sat down with Donna as she began to wind down after her long day as Chief of Staff.
“Hey, baby, can I talk to you?” Josh asked.
Donna nodded.
“Sam called today and asked about the Kennedy Center in December.”
“Yeah. I was going to talk to you about that.”
“I didn’t realize he was so worried.”
“Me neither. Look, honey, it’s up to you. But you’ve gotten a lot better since 2000. You haven’t had a PTSD attack in years.”
“That’s true.”
“You’ve even been able to listen to classical music in the past few years without having a major flashback. That’s a huge breakthrough.”
“I got better,” Josh repeated to himself.
“Yeah,” Donna smiled. “You got better.”
“Okay. I’ll give it a try.”
“Good.”
Three months later, the First Family got ready to receive the honorees at the White House. This included the performers, which meant Connor and Ava were doubly excited. They had been looking forward to this day for months, when they would be allowed to meet the honorees before being shepherded upstairs and put to bed during the gala.
“Big Bird!” Ava exclaimed, running toward the tall yellow Muppet.
Josh and Donna walked over as Ava stared up at him.
“That’s a big bird,” She whispered.
“Hey, Ava,” Donna said. “Aunt CJ’s met him too, you know. You should ask her sometime.”
Meanwhile, Connor got to converse with Bert and Ernie. Sam led him over to the people who had started it all.
“Connor, son, this is Ms. Cooney and Mr. Morrissett. They’re the people behind Sesame Street.”
Connor swallowed as he shook their hands. “I love your show.”
“Thank you, young man,” Joan Ganz Cooney said to him. “I got into it for children like you and your sister.”
Ava rushed over. “Connor, I met Big Bird!”
“Really?”
“Come on!”
As the kids rushed off, Ainsley, who had joined Sam, noticed something peculiar. “Mr. Morrissett, if I may, why is everyone in your party wearing yellow feathers?”
Lloyd Morrissett smiled sadly. “I suppose we assumed you’d heard. The original portrayer of Big Bird passed yesterday. The feathers you see are in tribute to him.”
“Oh. That’s a lovely idea. I always loved Big Bird growing up.”
Sam nodded, moving to greet the other honorees.
He walked up to a laughing Josh and Donna and smiled at them. “Glad to see you enjoying yourselves.”
“I just had a stimulating conversation with Earth, Wind, and Fire. Never thought I would say that,” Josh smirked.
“Glad to see you’re better,” Sam said.
“Yeah,” Josh replied. “I am.”