My first job ever was in 1960, a $16 week (non-union local jobber) in Song of Norway, which was at a small professional theatre in Milwaukee called The Fred Miller Theatre [now the Miramar Theatre]. I had been hired as a last resort by a producer/director/ choreographer named Bob Simpson. I was very green, just out of high school, but Bob saw some potential in me and kept me working for some years. I actually became a viable singer/dancer under his tutelage and since then I have worked as a professional actor. During my time with him, I worked in theatre: stock, nightclub reviews and industrials (business theatre) all over the Midwest. It was for an industrial, for American Standard in Chicago, that I finally received my Equity card. I was very excited to get it. It was probably 1961 or ‘62, so that's almost 52 years as a proud Equity member.
