Several other fellows and I were auditioning as singers. One by one – in front of a man supervising the auditions – we had to stand up and sing a love song titled "All Over the World Tonight." A black fellow first stood up and sang; but he didn't do well because he didn't know all the lyrics. I also didn't know the lyrics, but I had written part of them on the inside of my sports jacket, and the rest of the lyrics were written in a song book which I was carrying. I quickly began trying to memorize them. At the same time I was listening to the music which was being played while the black fellow sang. It was difficult to determine exactly how the lyrics went with the music because none of us had ever heard the music before. I tried to focus on the tempo of the music.

Suddenly I realized my turn had already begun. I began singing in an extremely high-pitched voice. Nevertheless, I was doing well. I was singing in a low voice, and I was only singing about half the words. But I liked what I heard; possibly I would be a success.