Bush was seated at the head table, when Ozzy, at Table 168, saw his chance. He made his way forward until he was separated from Bush by only the 10-foot security no man's land: men commanding two kinds of power, face to face, silently taking each other's measure.

Ozzy put his hands together in an almost prayerful acknowledgment, paying respects. The president nodded.

Then Ozzy grabbed a fistful of his stringy brown-and-pink hair and shouted:

"You should wear your hair like mine!"

Bush did not reply immediately. He turned a little red, then got that wiseguy grin of his. He leaned forward and shouted back:

"Second term, Ozzy!"