Remembering Bill Buckner’s legendary appearance on Curb Your Enthusiasm

In honor of Bill Buckner who passed away at the age of 69, let’s remember when he made us all laugh in his cameo appearance on Curb Your Enthusiasm.

The first thing I thought of after hearing of Bill Buckner’s death was his appearance in the season 8 episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, “Mister Softee.”

In the episode, Larry David runs into Buckner at a card show where he was trying to get Mookie Wilson’s autograph. Coincidentally enough, Larry tells him about the error that cost his softball team a win and how humiliating it was and how people were insulting him. He wants to get advice from Buckner on handling this gaffe, but not before he gets Larry an autographed ball from Mookie.

Larry plays keep away with the ball when Jeff tries to get a closer look. In a rush, Larry tosses it to Buckner near an open window.

He didn’t make the catch.

“What’d Mookie do? All he did was hit a sh***y groundball, Buckner says when Susie begins tearing him to shreds.

“I thought you were a baseball player, you can’t catch a God***n toss?!”

But in his defense, it was a horses**t throw by Larry.

Buckner got his redemption though as the episode ends. Jeff and Larry run into Buckner outside an apartment fire. A woman holds her baby outside the window as the flames and smoke intensify. She throws the baby out the window.

Buckner makes the catch.

Buckner owned his greatest failure with an unimaginable amount of strength, grace and dignity anyone can hope to have a fraction of after their worst moment. Buckner owned his story on Curb.

The crowd cheers, firefighters lift him up on their shoulders in jubilation, he gives out high fives.

That’s how I’ll remember Bill Buckner.