Sometime around August 3 I begin acting classes with Jerry Bloom. All young people my age, which is 14. I find myself surprised to be sitting next to Monique Vermont, who I've just seen in The Music Man film about eight times. We hit it off and become fast friends, with many nighttime telephone calls, until her mother puts a stop to it. We're still friends, on Facebook. Also in the class is a cute redhead named Steffi. When I start Hamilton Hight school a month later, after a month of classes with Bloom (who is later arrested and jailed for something to do with inappropriate behavior with young boys), I run into her on my first day. She doesn't want to give me the time of day since she's in the class ahead of me and can't be seen talking to a new kid. Disappointing. The following year I'd see her in the crowd scenes of Bye Bye Birdie.
