Interview with Thom Steinbeck

His Father's Character

He was a very funny, gentle man. And shy. Which made him very adorable, you know. He was just a terribly shy man, which is funny when you see a guy 6'4", you know? Broad-shouldered. Children had a complete fascination for my father, which was really ridiculous because he was so tall and—but he treated children like adults and talked to them that way. So every morning in the summertime all the little neighborhood kids, you know, with the t-shirts that never quite matched the shorts, little bellies hanging out, they'd come over and they'd knock on the door and they'd say, 'Can John come out and play?' And my father would come out and he'd play with them and take them on walks and give them lectures on Latin humor.