Whose has-beens?

I was startled when I came across “Stardust Memories,” by Paul Brownfield (July 12) about “formerly big names” Phyllis Diller, Don Rickles and Tim Conway. Startled because, silly me, I thought they were still big names. How does this work? You struggle for 20- 30 years to build a career and become a “big name,” then one morning you wake up to a “formerly” in front of the title, put there by a smug reporter.

Also, when Paul Brownfield asked these comics to accompany them on their Vegas gig, did he tell them he intended to slant his article along the lines of “a day in the sad lives of has-beens”?

Just wondering.

Susie Atkinson

Long Beach