Sometimes it takes the passing of time to fully realize how special something was.

Fifty years ago I had the opportunity of a lifetime. Today I’m grateful I didn’t turn it down.

I responded to a blind ad in the classifieds of an Allentown newspaper.

“Dynamic organization seeks key individual for its promotional division.”

I sent a letter of interest but had doubts I’d hear back.

It was the 1970s and the job market was tight. Boomers were competing for a limited number of openings.

Still, two weeks later, a man phoned and asked me to report to a center city address for a nighttime interview.

I did. And discovered it was Hess’s. A week later they offered me the job.

So in my early 20s, I became part of the largest in-house ad agency outside of New York City. Fashion models, artists, copywriters, photographers.

I was suddenly immersed in big-time promotion, learning from the inside out.

The slogan was “You’ll find the best of everything at Hess’s.” Of course, it was true. But there’s more to the strategy.

It wasn’t only what you sold that mattered, but how you sold it.

Max Hess had instilled his philosophy: “Be best, be first, be entertaining.”

The store became so entertaining that it grew to be part of the news cycle. Celebrities were flown in to “Hollywood on Hamilton” to attract customers and elevate prestige.

Flamboyance and excitement were a routine part of the show.

One of my favorite memories is welcoming Liberace to Hess’s in 1977. He arrived wearing a full white outfit with diamond-studded cape. Could anyone possibly be more flamboyant? He was the perfect photo-op and Hess’s knew it.

But Hollywood stars were only one facet of a diverse program of visibility.

The store knew how to generate excitement. Masters of promotion.

The Flower Show. The Toy Show. Pip the Mouse. The French Room. The Bargain Basement.

Hess’s knew how to take the lead and keep people talking.

In 1974, when the sale of pure gold bullion was legalized, Hess’s was first to offer it.

Hess’s also was first in the world to introduce shoppers to talking elevators.

And Hess’s massive, 8-ton sign was an Allentown landmark.

It stood 45 feet tall and was said to be the largest of its type outside of New York City. Each porcelain letter stood 7 feet high.

As for me, the main part of my job involved final production and logistics in scheduling 35 full-page newspaper ads each week.

But the secondary part was more exciting — special events.

Hess’s trained me to operate a robot by climbing inside and working its controls. A boy and his toys. Thrill of a lifetime.

For the 1977 premiere of the original “Star Wars” movie, Hess’s dressed me as Luke Skywalker for special print advertising.

By that time, the store had expanded along the East Coast. And so I had a starring role in all of the ads for the Force Beam light saber, a hot Christmas gift.

When mentalist “The Amazing Kreskin” came to visit, Hess’s volunteered me to be “levitated” at a press conference. In a trance, I was suspended between two chairs so that Kreskin could seemingly defy gravity by standing atop my unsupported midsection.

It’s an illusion achieved through a combination of physics and psychological suggestion, not actual levitation.

Afterward, he gave me an autographed copy of his new book which I still have. The memories go on and on.

Hess’s taught me how to dress and what to wear. They taught me that details matter.

They taught me that presentation is a key to success. And that a touch of flamboyance is a very special gift.

Hess’s defined Allentown for 97 years. The small city with a world-class department store.

Half a century later I finally understand what it meant to me. Hess’s was a highlight of my life.

My job there was every young man’s dream.

Time has a way of fading and changing the best of everything.

Today, priorities are different. Brick and mortar commerce is vanishing.

Retail is now online.

The golden age of department stores is gone.

But even if it weren’t, there would never be another Hess’s.