I Would Like to Thank SMJH for This Sammy: Step 67

One of my least favorite sayings is a job well done is its own reward. While it may be true and something any well adjusted self-actualized person prints on his business card or mounts on her wall, to me it simply misses the point. Rewards are not for acknowledging oneself they are for acknowledging others. Certainly, when a person achieves a goal that has taken a lot of work and a long time to achieve, such as competently defending a dissertation to receive a doctorate degree, the personal satisfaction is paramount. This, however does not preclude the person from receiving his diploma, going through the hooding ceremony, or swelling with pride when his mother introduces him as my son the doctor…no, no, not medical, the other one. Even though the accomplishment was enough reward, it would be selfish to deprive the institution, the friends, and the family the opportunity to bestow their own reward. Now, I know semantically there is a difference between rewards and awards, but in reality they both are given for accomplishment. A side benefit as producers and directors dating back to before the time of Shakespeare have realized is soothing the fragile egos of their employees. Though they have quite a few when taking into account all the ticket sellers, theater operators and stage crew, the actors are usually the ones of greatest concern. Actually, I have always considered my ego to be quite durable but given the nature of adolescence with its raging hormones and incessant peer pressure the reader might understand how I felt when I learned my school, Samuel Morse Junior High, was going to present an acting award on recognition day. As far as I can recall there were no nominations given, no campaigning in the halls or in the school newspaper. In fact, whether the student body, members of the drama club, or teachers were involved in the selection process or Mrs. Haggerty, by virtue of her status as producer and director made the selection on her own is no longer clear. What I do know is that after Mr. Hatton gave out academic awards, and Mr. Krueger gave out music awards, and Mrs. Jordac gave out journalism awards, my heart was pounding as Mrs. Haggerty took the stage. After she got done thanking everyone for being such a wonderful audience and thanking everyone who took part in the productions, the blood was pounding so loudly in my ears I could hardly hear her say my name. Somehow I managed not to trip up the stairs to the stage as I heard Jeff, and some of his friends cheering, “Go Woody!” Winning the first Sammy did not propel me onto a path to become an actor, nor did it provide me with any more satisfaction than either of the performances I had done to that point, and as far as I know it did not change any of the relationships between my friends and me. What it did provide was tangible evidence that Samuel Morse Junior High recognized my achievement, a small token of their appreciation that even though the heads are no longer screwed to the plastic base and the lacquer on drama and comedy is cracking I still treasure dearly decades later.

I Have to Wonder Where This Will Lead: Step 65

At Grantosa Drive Elementary the Jewish population was probably reflective of the national average, which for my lifetime has been right around two percent. While the percentage rose significantly at Samuel Morse Junior High to lets say ten percent, and became higher when limited to those interested in acting, taking into account the propensity of young Jewish students to gravitate to the arts, odds still favored those of a different faith being selected for the lead in the school’s first Christmas play. Such was not the case. Actually, one who recalls the play better than me, who can’t even remember its title, might contend Melinda shared the lead. Far be it from me to dispute such a contention since it’s difficult to recall even a single line of dialogue. What I do recall is though it certainly didn’t carry the weight of O’Henry’s Gift of the Magi it had something to do with gift giving. Needless to say, Mrs. Haggerty, aware of the law governing separation of church and state and highly sensitive to the feelings of students, selected a story with a secular theme. Although there were some humorous moments in the play and I did my best to punch up my lines that got a laugh, the role of Woody was not nearly as much fun as Oakley Cheever. Melinda played my sister and Mike W. who lived up on the corner of Lancaster Avenue played our butler. Woody and his sister’s parents made short appearances at the beginning and the end of the play, but most of the drama in the one act unfolded between the two children and their butler. Let me just point out that while Mrs. Haggerty was sensitive to the kids in the audience, to the best of my knowledge none of them had a butler. Every evening after rehearsal the three of us would walk home together since we all lived in the same direction. Mike W. whose size and demeanor made him an easy selection for the prototypical butler was six months older and a semester ahead of me. He revealed he just wanted to do something with his extra time but his main extracurricular interest was becoming an offensive lineman on the football team next fall at Custer High. I’m sure I shared my interest in becoming a doctor an idea that persisted from the time I broke my leg until I took my first chemistry class. Even though the bug had bitten me, the idea of pursuing acting, as a career seemed to be the kind of crazy illusive fantasy my dream of being a medical doctor turned out to be. On the other hand, Melinda, six months my junior and a semester behind me, held no illusions about acting. She said she knew it would not be easy and her desire was not to become the next Shelley Fabares or Patty Duke, but to attend a university where acting was taken seriously. She said she knew Mrs. Haggerty took acting seriously helping us build our character, find our marks, use props effectively, and project from our diaphragms. Being so much older and wiser I listened intently, but dismissed her vision as naïve. How well we actually performed the day we presented the play to the school is unclear, but I do recall two things that came as a result. Right after the play, when my parents came backstage, Mrs. Haggerty said she was proud of me and I possessed poise and maturity beyond my years. All right, she was probably being kind. The other thing was Jeff, one of the most popular kids at Morse who would later become the quarterback of the Marshall High football team, started calling me Woody. Mike W. did become an offensive lineman on the Custer High football team the next fall in his sophomore year. As for Melinda, I lost track of her and do not have a clue if she ever became an actress, but if she happens to be reading this now I would love to hear from her.