Actor Rich Hoag Remembers

In 1958, I was 11 years old and wanted to be a bugler. Winning the coveted silver bugle at the annual Boy Scout Court of Honor was my dream, and I thought learning to play would be a piece of cake. There weren’t any valves to depress, so how hard could it be? You just put the horn to your lips and blow.

Well, not exactly. At the time, bugle teachers were in short supply, so I switched my musical focus to the trumpet, taking lessons at Bennett Music Company on State Street. For three years, I marched in Company C of Bennett’s Crusaders Military Band, arrayed in a spiffy uniform, but playing an instrument I loathed — those valves drove me nuts. When I was reassigned to another company, the bandleader, Bonnie Langley, had an idea. She suggested I carry the American flag instead. And she was right — whenever I carried Old Glory instead of the trumpet, the brass sounded great.

Around that time, I saw a Children’s Theatre production of Little Black Sambo at Santa Barbara Junior High (now home to The Marjorie Luke Theatre). I sat stunned and amazed as six actors dressed as Bengal tigers melted into butter on stage. How’d they do that? I wondered. There and then I got hooked on the magic of theater. Theater, unlike sports or academics, was immediate and could be anything I wanted it to be. I was hooked.