I always wanted to be a playwright like my Uncle Mel Goldberg, who wrote for many of the popular television series in the 60’s and 70’s. But I wanted to get on the fast track to stardom, so left Allegheny (much to the consternation of my parents) and enrolled in the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre in New York City. There, I completed the two year certificate program, and of course the real work began... getting roles, finding parts, going on casting calls, and so forth.

It was so cold in the winter of ’61 that I, like many others, would hang around the Fifi Oscard Agency. There, my fellow thespians and I kept warm, and never wanted for coffee. It was during one of those "hang out " days that the agency got a call looking for a young man to play the friend of the lead in an upcoming Broadway show. The play was called "There Must be a Pony," and it starred Myrna Loy. It was scheduled to open at the Cort Theatre following a summer pre-Broadway run in the northeast.

So, I was off to my first (and Broadway to boot!) audition. Just like they say, you go out on a brightly lit stage facing an audience that you can hear, but not see. You’re handed a script and told what to read. It was while standing on that stage that I realized I was chewing gum. You can’t read with a gum-filled mouth, and you certainly can’t hold it in your hand while turning pages. So, behind my left ear it went. When the reading was done, I handed the script back to the stage manager and out the stage door I went. I was not even one whole step out the door when the director caught up to me, handed the script back to me, and gave me a rehearsal schedule. No call backs... no "don’t call us, we’ll call you." Just a simple "be there for the rehearsal." I figured it had to be the lucky gum behind my ear that clinched it.

Every story has some good news, and some bad. The good news was getting married to my wife of 47 years, Ann, during the summer tour of "There Must be a Pony." The bad was that the show closed shortly thereafter, never actually making it to Broadway.

Shortly afterward, my wife and I moved to LA, figuring there would be more opportunity out there. During my three years out west, I appeared in several feature films and did some commercial work. I also snagged a recurring role on the NBC series entitled "Mr. Novak," which starred Burgess Meredith. I appeared in several episodes prior to that show closing at the end of the season. I was also a resident member of the repertory company at the now defunct Desilu Studios.

Being homesick for family, and with a new baby, it was back east that I went... abandoning my quest for stardom to earn a living and support my family. During the ensuing years, to keep my acting skills alive, I became involved in community, dinner, and regional theater as an actor and director. I played many roles in comedies, dramas, and musicals. My more memorable roles included Tevye in "Fiddler on the Roof," Nat in "I’m Not Rappaport," Norman in "On Golden Pond," and Fagin (and Bumble) in "Oliver," to name but a few.

In the late 90’s, I auditioned for a role in "Find Me a Voice," a work in progress by Suzanne and Gabor Barabas dealing with the Holocaust. I was cast, and subsequently the play was staged off-Broadway in New York City for a limited run. In the New York Times review by Lawrence Van Gelder, I was singled out for a "...superior performance in a variety of roles." I reprised the role at the New Jersey Repertory Company during the theater’s opening season. I am an original resident member of this professional Equity company in Long Branch, New Jersey. And so began my second career as a professional actor.

I have since appeared in a variety of industrial films, photo shoots, and voice-overs, many for some of the major pharmaceutical companies. I also appeared in a Time-Life infomercial, "The Classic 60’s" and a Honda commercial for distribution in Japan.

My most recent venture has been touring in an original two-person comedy entitled "Friends." This wonderful and poignant play was performed in a variety of venues from New Jersey to Florida that included active adult communities, JCCs, and regional theaters. "Uncle Phillip’s Coat" is my first go-it-alone production.