If I had known enough to get an agent or had the business sense to guide my career, I might have made it to "You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown" or even the lofty heights of "The Fantasticks."

But I had no help, and the only remnants of my stage career are my recollection of 70 percent of Hamlet's "To be or not to be" soliloquy, and my ability to drop the word "soliloquy" into casual conversation.

(I can also, when asked, recite the popular `70s McDonald's slogan, "Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun," backwards, though I am rarely asked.)

Future Barrymore wannabes (Lionel or Drew, pick your model) have the help of Monroe Mann, who is operating Unstoppable Actors, a New York consulting firm that teaches business skills to actors.

"You are not an actor, you are a venture capitalist businessman," says Mann, president and founder of the firm. Mann is a real actor. I know, because he concludes phone messages with "Ciao!"

Mann says, "The reason most actors fail is because they put too much effort into learning to act, and not enough into learning to sell."

Mann, 23, has a degree in international economics. Calling from the New Jersey set of his latest film, "Swimfan85," Mann told me that most aspiring professional actors quit before a year has passed. If these actors looked at acting as a startup venture capital business from the beginning, he says, they would have attacked their acting career from a different angle, and might have made progress.

"I teach actors how to run a business, plain and simple," Mann says. "That encompasses a whole lot, from writing press releases and marketing to deciding when to incorporate and how to manage debt while still staying competitive. Attitude, though, is the most important factor."

Mann calls himself a "drill sergeant and cheerleader" for actors, and encourages clients to read magazines such as Entrepreneur and Fast Company. His press materials say he is "a very successful actor," and list a few dozen stage, TV and film credits.

"As far as Unstoppable Actors is concerned, an MBA is far more relevant to an acting career than an MFA, and for one reason," Mann says. "Acting is a business, not a talent show. If you want to act as a profession, get out there and do it, and be sure you know how to conduct business ... real business, seriously. This is critical to being an actor."
Mann's Web sites, unstoppableartists.com and monroemann.com, say his book on the subject, The Theatrical Juggernaut, will be published this summer.
I won't read it. I've long ago given up my stage dreams. I decided it is ignoble to pursue validation by choosing a career that demands attention and feedback.

E-mail Associate Editor Michael Miller at MMiller@bizjournals.com.