Heinlein began his speech and then went off on a side point. Without making his point he went off on another and another. Some rude fen in the audience began to boo. Some undoubtedly thought he had gone senile and some actually left. They missed the surprise. Heinlein continues speaking and like a medieval storyteller or Sherherazade, he went back and closed all the storylines. For a man who had brain surgery and had been criticized for his his overindulgent work, it was a proper put-down of his critics.

-- Joe Siclari