CNN - Bob Hope plans quiet 95th birthday

"We'll have some family and a few friends at the house," said Dolores Hope, his wife for 64 years. "Our grandson Andrew will probably barbecue some lamb. Bob loves lamb."

He will not have any public celebrations of his birthday, although on Saturday morning, the Hopes will be grand marshals in a parade marking the 75th anniversary of Toluca Lake, a wealthy enclave in the San Fernando Valley.

It's a marked contrast to past birthdays for Hope, who often invited the world to his parties via television extravaganzas.

Remembering Bob Hope, the father

On the eve of his birthday, daughter Linda Hope spoke with CNN's Gloria Hilliard about growing up with Bob Hope, the father.

"He did fun, imaginative things with us," she says. "He was such a presence and such fun -- he made everything fun."

Linda Hope says her actor-singer-comedian father had many talents in his prime, but he lived for the joke.

"Beneath it all, he had a real desire to be a good actor. But I think if it was a choice (between) getting a laugh or dealing in a more emotional way, he'd go for the laugh," she said.

Hope was known for his holiday appearances before U.S. troops stationed abroad

She remembers saying goodbye to her father at the airport, as he departed for the USO tours. Years later she would come to understand what those trips meant to him.

"He has kept all the letters he received from these soldiers from all of those wars," she says. "He's responded to every letter ever written to him."

Hope knighted

Hope has been in the public eye often of late, attending banquets, book signings and other events during the past year.

On a visit to Washington last week, the British-born Hope was given an honorary knighthood, presented by Ambassador Christopher Meyer on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II.

He is showing the signs of his age, however. Observers note that his trademark quips are no longer there, and his hearing and sight are fading.

"He's hanging in there. He looks great. His blood pressure and other things like that are fine," his wife said.

But even his daughter admits that as her father grows older, time seems to be playing tricks on her. Recalling how he used to tell his family jokes around the breakfast table, and "do a dance routine for us, tap steps and things, as he was going off to the studio in the morning," Linda Hope said, "Time is a funny thing." Those cheerful family mornings don't seem that long ago to her.

Correspondent Gloria Hillard contributed to this report.

Related stories:

Bob Hope receives honorary knighthood
Few stars remain from Hollywood's golden era

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