Hilton Head Island loses local star

Hilton Head Island has lost one of its stars.

Local theater legend Dick von Glahn died Sunday at Hilton Head Hospital. He was 81. Funeral arrangements have not yet been made.

A retired New York advertising executive, von Glahn, better known as "Vee Gee," became involved with local productions shortly after moving to the island in 1974.

Many of his friends said the theater was his life. After all, his name has been on the program of about 80 local productions.

His son, Rick, said his dad often preferred supporting roles so he could hang out behind the curtain to drink coffee and smoke cigarettes. He learned about his dad's love for acting in the 1980s when he watched him play the lead evil mobster in "Born Yesterday."

"Honest to God, I've seen him in a lot of different plays, but as a supporting character," Rick von Glahn said. "In 'Born Yesterday' there wasn't a page of dialogue that didn't have him in it. That's the first time I realized he wasn't just playing, he was a real actor."

Bill and Peggy Dunnagan remember Vee Gee's first performances at the Hilton Head Playhouse, also known as Dunnagan's Alley Theatre. In 1996, productions moved from that theater to the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina.

"Every play Dick was in was a favorite," said director Bill Dunnagan. "I never got tired of watching him perform. He was priceless."

Julie Hahn, who performed with Vee Gee often, said he put as much effort into minor roles as he did into the leading ones.

"He was just a fabulous man and loved by so many people," she said. "He was enormously generous and giving and he just made you feel good to be around."

She performed with him in the musical "Chicago" and said the cast would always go to Remy's afterward -- one of Vee Gee's favorite spots.

"If it was dinnertime, Dick was at his table reading his book and having his iced coffee and dinner, waiting for rehearsals to start," she said.

He was a man who kept to his routine, which each day consisted of eating at the same restaurants, wearing red socks and waking at 4 a.m. to sneak a few Oreo cookies.

He also kept track of every actor he had performed with -- all869 of them, according to a 2001 letter he wrote encouraging residents to audition for local productions.

"The only way the theater can sensibly choose future shows is to know who might be available and right for the parts," he wrote. "I am positive that there are many who might consider a theatrical hobby. ... I'm just an enthusiastic supporter. It sure has been a super hobby for me."