A bit of context before this article by Jerome Weidman.
Jerome Weidman lived from 1913 to 1998 and was an American playwright and novelist. He’d won the Pulitzer Prize in 1960.
The Reader’s Digest article is dated (updated) July 20, 2021 but it was actually published in November of 1955. It’s not clear when the story occurred (Einstein died in April of 1955) but it sounds like he was a fair bit older than Weidman (who would’ve been 42 in 1955).
OK, enjoy! 😀
The Night I Met Einstein [Reader’s Digest] – “After a while, becoming aware that the people around me were applauding, I concluded it was safe to unplug my ears. At once I heard a gentle but surprisingly penetrating voice on my right: “You are fond of Bach?”
I knew as much about Bach as I know about nuclear fission. But I did know one of the most famous faces in the world, with the renowned shock of untidy white hair and the ever-present pipe between the teeth. I was sitting next to Albert Einstein.”
And I love the last line of the piece, I hope you do too.