Michael P. Lunden

The Perennial Best Man

Michael P. Lunden's friends always said he was worth waiting for, an assertion he tested frequently. "They called him the Human Rain Delay," said Michelle Lunden, who married him even though he was 20 minutes late to their first date.

People would wait for Mr. Lunden, 37, because, basically, no event could start without him. He was the constant center of an ever-widening social circle, a member of 26 wedding parties, a hyperfriendly guy in a loud Brooks Brothers shirt who introduced himself to each and every waiter, bartender and vineyard keeper he came into contact with.

When Mr. Lunden was not cocooning (loudly) with Michelle and their 10-month- old son at their Manhattan home or their weekend place on the North Fork of Long Island, or playing Friend's Best Man for the umpteenth time, or touting a new merlot, he was an energy trader at Cantor Fitzgerald.

The night before Mr. Lunden's memorial service, a few of his pals — about 85 of them, actually — got together at his favorite steakhouse, Smith & Wollensky. "Somebody said that only Michael would have a rehearsal dinner for his funeral," Ms. Lunden said. Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani happened to be eating there. He went over to see what all the noise was about and ended up donning a baseball cap that said "Lundo!!" and giving a speech about the indomitable spirit of the city.