Warren: Coming to New York the first time, I had a vague expectation that the working-class inhabitants would all be speaking like H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N.

I was a bit disappointed to find this not so.

Once you’ve made Hyman Kaplan’s acquaintance, words never look quite the same. There used to be a cross-Channel ferry firm in England named Sealink, with advertising posters all over London. I could never see that name without thinking of Hyman: “In a room you got der floor, der walls, and der sealink…”