Frank Gabrenya, film critic published in The Columbus Dispatch, interviewed Mr. Keach, covering his career and some of his insights. I was most taken not by what Mr. Keach said, but how he said it, and what he left unsaid.

When asked about his opinion of Richard Nixon, the man, Mr. Keach said that during the Watergate years his view was in fact very negative. Successfully playing Nixon in “Frost/Nixon,” however, would require far more than a negative impression and some memorized lines. “An actor,” observed Mr. Keach, “must find something to love,” undoubtedly a challenge. Based on the responses from those among us who saw the previous evening’s performance, something was certainly being done well.

A question from the group assembled settled on “favorites and least favorites” to work with. Mr. Keach did not answer the question directly but instead told us of some with whom he would like to work. Acknowledging that some actors are difficult to be around and fail to contribute to the harmony of what is fundamentally a team effort, Mr. Keach went on to explain that some actors are driven by crisis and absent a real problem, they’ll create one so they can perform. For someone who undoubtedly has suffered the tedium, Mr. Keach seemed genuinely and surprisingly sympathetic. Perhaps this business of finding something to love in others goes beyond the characters played by an actor.

The most touching anecdotes involved his father. The first was how the elder actor Stacy Keach became “Stacy Keach, Sr.,” allowing the younger to take the name “Stacy Keach.” The second came from when Messrs. Keach were able to work together in “Mission of the Shark,” and the concerns that the elder expressed regarding his performance—for the sake of the younger.

I found Stacy Keach to be a delight, a gentle and thoughtful man, thoroughly professional, and pleasant. Breakfast was excellent.