A Favorite Story/Lesson

When I was in Urbanna, Virginia, in 1987, the owner of the restaurant urged me to use margarine, salad oil, and frozen seafood, instead of the good stuff, to dramatically reduce our costs.

“These customers will never know the difference,” he declared.

I declined to follow his suggestion but am reminded of an interview I saw on TV some time back.

Olivia de Havilland was talking about the making of ‘Gone with the Wind’. She recalled saying to the producer, David O. Selznick, “We’re over budget, behind schedule, and on our third director. Yet you are bringing seamstresses over from Italy to sew the silk undergarments for the ballroom scene. Why bother? They can’t be seen. Nobody will even know that we’re wearing hand sewn silk.”

At that, Mr. Selznick looked at her and said, “You’ll know.”

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