I got my Equity card because I got a job in a Broadway play a few weeks after I finished college. I was cast as an air cadet who gets handcuffed to Sal Mineo on his way home for a furlough because of an inebriated MP. It was a fairly serious minded play about a conscientious objector. I was proud to be in it and couldn't believe my good fortune. I recall going to the Equity building and saying, “Look, I have a job? See? (Showing someone my actual contract) So can I join?” And, of course, they said, “Welcome!”
Something About a Soldier was a flop. It ran for about two weeks. But I was legit. I had an Equity card, and it seemed like I was “certified.” It remains the most treasured card in my wallet.
