Vaughn words

I had always wanted to be in a band. Doesn't everybody? I'd given up on the idea until I started doing the Star Trek conventions. The first ones scared me to death. Me on stage actually talking to thousands of people who thought I might have something to say? Spooky. Then I saw Bob Picardo sing a few songs at his panel and the audience loved it. My sister-in-law had given me a ukulele for my birthday and I decided to learn to play it. I wrote a few songs that turned out pretty well... The first was Enterprise Blues, and next was Star Trek Woman Jones. The fans really seemed to enjoy them. I had several friends whom I knew to be musicians. They had also done lots of Star Trek shows. Steve Rankin was the first person I asked. He and I had known each other for 20 years and I knew him to be a master on the mandolin. Casey Biggs and I were doing conventions together and we started fooling around with some of the songs while we signed autographs. I've always enjoyed working with Casey - we've done shows together for about two decades as well - and we were having great fun with the fans. Casey was my next recruit. Bill Jones is a good friend as well. I knew he was a fine drummer and he had engineered my first little solo CD on some equipment in his living room. I asked him to put some of his drums on it and he was great. Then came Ron B. Moore and Richard Herd, both great friends that I had worked with for many years, and both notable Trek personalities. I thought I would have to talk everyone into it but they all jumped at the chance. That urge to live in music never leaves us. The pact was sealed.

Since then the rehearsals have been a retreat from the rest of the world and a new adventure in music. Those of us who were less experienced have had the great fortune of playing with people better than us. That has made us musicians as well. And the response of the fans has been electric. Many have come to be part of an extended family, due to the web site created by Diane and now continued by Bev. The band and the surrounding energy has become one of the most valued elements in my life. I hope to continue to work in it, bringing joy to myself and others for years to come. Let's hope the EBB lives long and prospers.

What instruments do you play now, and are there any others you would like to play?

I mostly play the harmonica... and sometimes they let me play the ukulele. I'm getting better. I'd like to play everything. I think I'll take up the guitar next... maybe the bass... if not the saxophone. For now maybe just the slide whistle.

I've come to realize that the folks who have chosen to be fans of this group are some of the most well balanced, intelligent, kind and generous people that anyone could ever meet.

That is a tough question to answer. I like most of them a lot. Red Shirt Boogie Blues is way up there. I think its lots of fun. Trekkie Deckie was the first song with really cool harmonies that we did. That one is hard not to like. Consume is one that we all get to shine in. That could be my favorite. I think I just like working with these guys enough that my favorite is the one we are working on at the moment...whichever that might be.

Yes. I just finished one entitled "I Hate To See You Go But I Love To Watch You Walk Away". Maybe that's my new favorite.

What was it like playing live to over 1000 people at the Galileo 7 convention?

Now, I gotta tell you... That was a hoot! I was scared to death. I had never really done anything like that before. We've all wanted to be rock stars at one time or another and that was my first opportunity to do anything close. People were actually waving their cigarette lighters and cell phones. For that night we were the Beatles. Once we sang the first couple of songs I felt a bit more at ease and loosened up some. I think we had rehearsed for about a year before hand so that we could make the CD. Once we pulled it off it was such a relief. Nobody really knew how people would respond...and the audience response was thrilling! I've wanted a band to play with in my garage since I was 16. I'm nearly 60 and I finally have one... and we played to over 1000 people who seemed to love us. What could be better?

Well, there are a few things on the line. JumpCon is giving us a little tour - nine cities. Before that we do Tulsa, Oklahoma in June. Columbus, Ohio is having Ron, Casey and I in May at an event called Vulkon. I think a group in Calgary might have Casey and I in April. So far that's all I know about. Oh, yeah...A Quantum leap convention has asked us to perform on the weekend of 27 March 2009, but I'm not sure all the guys can make that one yet. Hope so.

To see details of all confirmed EBB bookings,

visit Current Appearances

The EBB recently played at the "Star Trek Day" of the Writers' Strike at Paramount Studios. How was the day and why did you think it was important to support the Writers?

The day was great in many ways, though the worried faces of the writers out of work just around Christmas was hard to witness. At the time, there were high stakes for all. We were happy to shed a little joy in this tedious marching process that is the plight of a union on strike. We played at three of the four gates at Paramount . Only four of us could be there but we had a pretty good sound anyway...sort of Woody Guthrie-like. We were joined by a striking writer who brought his saxophone. That was an added gem. Most of us in the band have worked quite a bit at Paramount . For a few of us, Paramount has been the one studio that has ever been really good to us. We were delighted to see many of the producers, who are also writers of the shows, marching in the line in support of their peers. There were many of our friends in the picket line so it turned into something even more personal than we thought it would. We needed to support the striking writers because their struggle will be the struggle for the actors very soon. Our contract will end and much of what was on the table for the writers will be on our table. What they were able to gain will influence our negotiations. Solidarity in union matters and it's necessary if unions are to survive in general, let alone when their problems are so closely related to our own. So we felt we had to be there.

The gentleman who asked us to play at Paramount is my friend Tom Cook. He was nominated for an Oscar for writing the classic film China Syndrome. He was on the board of the strike committee and so asked us to participate because of the day's Star Trek theme. He has written a play entitled Ravensridge. We have been working on it in readings off and on for about two years. Other friends of mine, James Reynolds and his wife Lissa Layng, own a theatre and saw one of the readings. We are opening with this new play about political intrigue and murder on this Saturday Feb 23rd. At the moment that's the only acting I'm doing.

Do you have any opening night routines?

I don't think the routines are limited to opening night. If you're talking about acting stuff I have had plenty of routines, though most are just different meditations. Each varying with the different projects. One thing that is exclusive to the opening night is the gift giving and party atmosphere. There is usually some gala event governed only by budget. In successful plays that can be a joy. Everyone is excited and talking about the play, it's philosophies and craftsmanship etc. When it stinks...so does the party.

What are your strongest memories of all the stage plays and shows you have been in?

There are too many to mention. I guess my strongest memories are of the people I have met, and the things that happen to us. I could go on forever with this answer. As I try to find the answer there is a flood of my past dancing in my head. I guess I'm old or something, because I have a lot of stories. I don't think I could narrow it down to something short enough to print here, and some may be more confidential than this forum.

But now one is coming to the forefront. I met my wife in a small theatre in Kansas. We were doing summer stock. The weather was volatile and wonderful. We were in our 20's. Fireflies filled the meadows and stars filled the skies. We did our shows in a converted barn and on a steamboat. There were tornados and harrowing winds. When the steamboat broke loose from the dock we cast members would swim out into the lake and swim back, towing the boat with ropes. A big two story steamboat like in Mark Twain. We were forced into the basement to hide from tornado's a few times, and sometimes we didn't even realize the commotion was the weather...we thought it was us. I can't tell you the rest of that story. But when I see you in a bar I'll tell you another one.

Wait wait...I'll tell you one more. I was in a movie filmed in Mexico - Triumphs Of A Man Called Horse. We were invited to a party thrown by a very rich man who had a Villa near where we were shooting. I'm having a beer in the garden and a small boy - maybe eight years old - takes my hand and says in broken English "Come on...Come on". Then he growled like a tiger. "Come on...come on...Grrrrr". I followed him through this castle-like maze of a building, through the back yard. A garden of density and beauty, and ended up walking through the back gate of a small bull fighting ring, the boy still taking me by the hand. He walked to the other side and showed me the tiger... that's right... the tiger that was being kept for the moment in a cage near the other side of the bullring. Apparently a small circus had placed itself in the gentleman's bullring. The boy was the wealthy gentleman's son so we were treated with great respect by all, except the tiger.

Now a lot of stories are coming to me and I'll never be able to tell them all. There were many more frightening and more dynamic than the ones I've just described...but I guess I'll save those for the bar.

Well, everyone seemed to love it. There was lot's of energy in the room and a full house of critics. We'll see if that was a good thing or not. There was a real buzz about the play and the performances. Certainly, no-one seemed to be avoiding me so I guess it was okay. I'm kind of glad it's over. Now we can just do the show.

Ravensridge has been very well received by the critics, with wonderful praise for Vaughn. Visit the Ravensridge topic on the Forum here to read more about it from him, and see some of the great reviews

What has been your most personally challenging acting role to date, and why?

There have been so many that the most challenging is hard to remember. I once had to learn Brutus in Julius Caesar in ten days. That was a trial... but it worked out.

There was another role where I had to ride a very spirited horse down an isle about three feet wide through the middle of the audience. The horse didn't like it much. At the end of my ride, there were around 15 trumpeters and a nine foot tiger on a chain. The horse was a little spooked by both. He fell off the stage with his hind legs into the orchestra pit, which was about four feet below the stage. No musicians were in the pit. It was just a small space between the audience and the performance area. I kicked at him a little - don't worry, I was wearing sandals, playing a Roman soldier - and told the horse to jump back on stage. To my surprise, he did. He then ran off to the right as I yelled my last lines to the other actor... who was playing Jesus. I guess you could say that was a challenging moment.

Do you have any acting roles or jobs in show business you have always wanted to take on?

You built and ran a theatre whilst stationed in Vietnam, and have been Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Repertory Theater and Ventura Court Theater. What are your memories of those times, and would you want to go back to managing or directing in the future?

Which actors (living or dead) do you most admire, and which have influenced you?

I loved Kirk Douglas' honesty and sense of dedication. Lawrence Olivier's style is to be revered. The truth in Marlon Brandon was astonishing. Paul Newman has both. Sean Connery is bold and sensitive. Meryl Streep will make you cry even when she's being funny. So could Jimmy Stewart. Johnny Depp is facile and beyond cool. Jack Nicholson is nuts and wonderful. Matt Damon is quick and dangerous. There are others, of course, but the firsts on this list were my inspirations.

Listen. Relax. Find the love in a role. Find the physical. Don't give up. Be prompt. Behave with propriety. Don't burn your bridges. Stay in shape mentally and physically. Do something artful on your time off, which is often most of the time. Know that you can do anything. Don't be a jerk. Don't be afraid. Be patient when working with others and they will be patient with you. Do at least three things a day to further your career. Find the right people to help you. Don't let your career be your entire life. Keep learning. Don't be bitter. …Many other things, details of each at the bar next time we meet.

You have had more Star Trek roles than any other actor, and played many different aliens. What was it all like, and what were your worst, and your favorite moments of those times?

The "What was it all like" part of this is difficult to answer. I think it is pretty much like any other acting job but with a lot more time in the make up chair, at least for most of the characters. The best moment was probably when I shot the 'In a Mirror Darkly' episode. No make-up and making out with Linda Park for several hours on my first day. Couldn't get much better for an old actor like me. The worst? I had a moment in a lot of make-up when I felt it necessary to threaten a director. I think those details are also best told in another forum... Perhaps in the now oft mentioned bar.

Why do you think the shows have been so successful, and have such following even after 42 years?

The show's predominant theme is that man can make it's own hopes a reality. That's a great message for all of us. The show also seems to state that all creatures have a right to be who and what they are, and share an equal value in space and time. Unless, of course, they are harmful to other creatures. That gives us all a sense of unity. The show has also been on the cutting edge of Sci-Fi for a very long time. Peace, hope, and unity are themes worthy of fandom. Let them live long and prosper.

This summer, the Enterprise Blues Band goes on tour across America, appearing in nine different cities at Fan run Star Trek and Science Fiction Conventions. I know first hand that you are one of the most popular guests at Sci-Fi conventions. What do you think of Star Trek fans you have met, and conventions in general?

The fans and the conventions have become very important to me. They have allowed me to travel all over the world in a fashion that would otherwise have eluded me. I've met fans in Australia and Ireland and Germany and Belgium and England and Canada and Holland and Hawaii and France, etc., etc. I've come to learn that I never met a Star Trek fan I didn't like. No matter where you meet them, you find they have a recurring theme - kindness. There is a reason they are drawn to this show. Their ideals have a similar humanity about them. They work hard for charity and each other's happiness. In turn, they have allowed me to bring them a small amount of joy, which makes my life better in the process. I hope they go on forever.

You are a talented carpenter. What have you created recently, and what do you enjoy about it?

I recently built a ten foot high deck outside the guest room over my garage. But lately, I've been having fun carving canes. I have found several logs that have fallen in storms, and carved nearly twenty of them. All my friends are turning 60 so I've been giving them away as birthday gifts. I did auction one off at Lightspeed for the American Cancer Society, and I think it went for $165 - I thought that was cool. I have maybe three of them left. I'm working on one right now for my brother-in-law who just turned 60. I've also been learning how to fight with them. There is a wonderful martial art that employs them quite well. It's been my main form of exercise in the last few months.

There is a lot I like about carpentry. Like music, it takes your mind away from the trivial and focuses on detail. You also have to use a logic that is mathematically based and can't help but make your mental facilities stronger. It helps keep me in good physical condition as well. And I don't have to leave the house much to do it.

You are right, I am very proud of them. They have never given me any reason to be anything else.

Right now my oldest, Seth, is living and working as an artist in San Francisco. He's constantly working on paintings of one kind or another, whether he is being paid or not. He's building his show stash. He recently finished two paintings for the Hard Rock Cafe. They paid him quite well. His web site to see his work is www.ssarmstrong.com Click around the galleries. He's also doing Portraits if anyone is interested.

Jace just returned from Prague, where he studied Film for four months. He's now in his final days at the University of California in Santa Barbara, where he will receive his Bachelors degree in Film. He's working on several things right now - one of them stand-up comedy. He's also teaching improvisation classes at his University.

Both of them are kind and noble gentlemen... Far more than I was at their age. They are the great joy in my life.

Very little. I guess insensitivity to others. Flagrant littering and pollution is up there. And sometimes traffic.

I'm not sure I ever really do. Or maybe I never do anything else. I work hard doing things in my life that I enjoy doing, but I'm not sure I ever really relax until I'm exhausted. Then I sleep.

Not only do I think there is hope for humanity, but I think humanity is both the world's only hope and it's greatest danger. We have a choice to make. We can consume in the unlimited way that has been our habit for so long, or we can help the world survive. I think it was the Black Hand Sioux tribe, though I'm not sure of that one, that believed that the purpose of man was to take care of the Earth and do each other no harm. Fortunately, there are many others alive today who believe in that stratagem - some of them without really even knowing that is what they believe. If we all adopt that philosophy we have, not only a chance, but an obligation to do what we can to save what's left of the world and it's resources. Let's face it, snails, elephants or whales, though valuable, won't be able to save their fellow creatures who inhabit the Earth. We have the gift of opposable thumbs and a sense of reason. If we combine those assets with a love for all around us and a desire to see our children and our children's children survive, no, thrive, we have no choice but to have hope for humanity. But if we are to have real hope we have to take real action. I'm thrilled to live in a world in which we are at least beginning to realize our need to help. Though I must say I'm disheartened by some of the ignorance and hatred I see destroying so many millions of lives all around the world. My choice is to remain positive.

Well said. Mr Armstrong, it's been a true pleasure listening to you. Thank you for all your thoughts.