Paul Benedict, 1938-2008

I was saddened to read the obituary for Paul Benedict, the actor who played Mr. Bentley on “The Jeffersons.” Benedict made the strongest impression on me, though, earlier than that — as the Mad Painter on “Sesame Street.” This is my favorite sequence: the one where he uses condiments to paint the number 3 on Stockard Channing’s (who knew?) sandwich bread.