There are several dishes for which Noah's is famous: fried chicken, pizza. And while cottage cheese and fruit probably isn't one of them, this is what Steve Plym munches on, despite the fact that he'd probably rather have fried chicken or pizza. Plym, a Des Moines resident - for now, anyway - is probably best known as the personal manager and friend of highly eccentric performer Tiny Tim, who is best known for trilling a ukulele and singing "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" in his signature falsetto.

Plym recently co-wrote a book about the two's 25-year relationship. "Tiny Tim and Mr. Plym" is the odd and compassionate story of one of the most misunderstood entertainers in history. And perhaps one of the strangest. Tiny wore adult diapers, had an obsession with underage women, was frightened of germs and would seduce women with scripture. He was also a frequent guest on "Rowan & Martin's Laugh In."

Plym was born in Moline, Ill., but his family moved to Iowa when he was 10 years old. He went to high school in southern Iowa, attended Drake University for a while, and was in a rock band called The Fabulous Kingpins, singing and playing tambourine.

"I'd just beat the hell of out of the tambourines," he says. "My thighs would be bruised from the banging. Finally I went out and got a bowling glove to put on my other hand so I could beat the tambourine against it instead. So I had a black glove way before Michael Jackson."

Plym met Tiny in 1971, two years after his big "Tonight Show" appearance with 45 million viewers. At the time, Plym was a 21-year-old booking agent in Des Moines. Tiny became the first star Plym had ever booked, playing a club in Waterloo. That sparked a friendship that would last until Tiny's death in 1996. In 1992, Plym brought Tiny to Des Moines as a publicity stunt. It worked. Not long after he was booked on "Larry King Live" and "The Tonight Show."

In fact, Plym would bring Tiny Tim to eat at Noah's. As Plym eats his salt-and-pepper seasoned cottage cheese, he breaks into a story so unbelievable that it's hard to believe it's true. But then again, almost everything about Tiny was unbelievable.
Plym's wife, Dawn, used to make Tiny special birthday dinners. One year, he requested she make him four steaks, 13 ears of corn, salad for 12 and an Italian loaf of bread. He ate the whole thing and then proceeded to drink a case to a case and a half of beer while he opened his presents.

It's stories like these that have made "Tiny Tim and Mr. Plym" a critical success. CBS Radio in Los Angeles gave the book its highest rating, and ranked it No. 4 for the year on books on entertainment. And now, an L.A. screenwriter is turning the book into a Broadway musical, a process about 90 percent completed. The movie rights have also been purchased. However, the film version will not be a musical; it will follow the book more closely than the play.

"I'm still pinching myself," Plym says. "It's just been a wonderful ride and I'm not ready to get off the train."

So he's not. Instead, he's readying another project, a television show called "Retro Rap," a talk show in which guests from television, music, sports, politics and more from the '50s, '60s, '70s and '80s will have a chance to reminisce about their careers and dish out gossip that has long remained under wraps.
"This is the reality show of all reality shows," Plym says. "People can come out and speak their minds. They don't have to hide behind a publicist or a manager. They can say whatever they want."

"Retro Rap" is the reason for the cottage cheese and fruit. Plym is on a diet, a mission to lose weight before his television debut (he's already lost 25 pounds). Joining him in "Retro Rap" is Gary Owens, of "Rowan and Martin's Laugh In" and other national radio and television ventures, and Lydia Cornell, best known for playing the role of Sara in "Too Close for Comfort." Plym, still sporting the red-tinted glasses and a dated round haircut one can find in his aging photographs alongside Tiny Tim, is himself retro. His kids tell him all the time that he's still stuck in the '60s.

The pilot will be shot in a few months, and if all goes as planned and the show is picked up by a network, Plym and his wife Dawn will relocate to California. In fact, it's Dawn that Plym credits with all of the successes he's had thus far. She was the one who encouraged him to actually write the book, which then led to the theater and movie opportunities. And it was the success of the book that made him bold enough to pursue his concept for "Retro Rap." And, all of that is thanks to Tiny Tim, a strange and misunderstood man that Plym remembers fondly - not just as a client, but also as a friend. - Erin Randolph

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