The Sound of Music is 50!

The Sound of Music is one of the most beloved movie musicals of all time and after 50 years it still endures as a classic family favorite. The Northwest is home to one of the actors from that film—Duane Chase played the youngest von Trapp brother, mischievous Kurt. Northwest Prime Time is pleased to bring you a conversation with Duane as he walks down memory lane with The Sound of Music.

Duane Chase with Elisabeth von Trapp. Duane's character Kurt was based on Werner von Trapp, Elisabeth's father. In this photo, Duane is wearing Werner's jacket, a gift from Elisabeth

Northwest resident Duane Chase is part of cinematic history for his role as Kurt von Trapp in The Sound of Music.

Duane, now 64, was only 13 when he was cast in the role.

“It was such an adventure and, even though we had to pay attention and act like mini-adults for long hours every day, it was fun,” says Duane. “At the time, it was a job with a lot of repetition. But looking back, it was such an unscripted adventure for all of us. No one knew the movie would become what it has become,” he adds. “It was an incredible experience.”

As you can imagine, when people learn that Duane was in The Sound of Music, they are surprised and very curious. “It’s not something I trumpet about. And so when they find out they say, ‘Wow.’ Then ‘Gee, why didn’t you tell us!’ People usually share their experiences with the movie, often how watching it every year has become a family tradition.

Duane with Christopher Plummer on The Sound of Music set. Duane has fond memories of the moment captured in this photo

And the questions he is asked haven’t changed much over the years. Questions like: What was it like on the movie set? “It was a lot of fun but a lot of work.” What was Julie Andrews like? “She was great.” And, Is it true that Christopher Plummer didn’t like children? “No, that isn’t true. One of my favorite memories is of Chris and me sitting on directors’ chairs, having a laugh. He gave me photos of that time and signed the back, To the laughing boys, your friend Chris.”

One question that many ask is why he feels the movie has remained so popular. “The music, the scenery, the joy, the historical background and themes of family and overcoming adversity all enter into that answer,” says Duane. But he likes to turn the question around and ask, “ ‘Why have you continued to watch it over the years?’ However they reply is the best answer to that question.”

Duane says that everyone on set was kind and supportive of the children—although sometimes they received a fatherly lecture from the director of the film: “Hey kids, this is business. You need to focus.” And Duane disappeared from time-to-time, but only because of his curiosity.

“I was known for taking off unannounced. All of the sudden people would ask, ‘where’s Duane?’ Maybe I was just around the corner talking to the cameraman, or maybe I was gone. Once I took off for lunch break during the bicycle scene, down the road on a bike to one of the castles in the area. No one knew where I was. Then I thought, ‘ooh, I’d better get back!’ I hadn’t realized how long I’d been gone. I held up production for 20 minutes.”

Duane has several favorite scenes from the movie: “Falling out of the rowboat, some of the bicycling during Do Re Mi, the final scene where we ‘hiked’ over the mountains and the picnic scene,” he reports. “The last two are favorites because of the scenery. In the mountains behind the picnic scene are the Werfen Ice Caves which we visited on as a school outing.”

Duane recalls how several of the children lost teeth during the filming. “Me included. So we had plates made with our missing teeth. Made for some interesting singing rehearsals trying to sing clearly. And many of us needed lifts in our shoes to maintain our relative heights over the six month filming.”

The youngsters playing the von Trapp children bonded during rehearsal and filming, and remain in touch to this day. “In Austria we had to go to school together until mid-June. After that the tutor would take us out to see the ice caves and salt mines, or field trips to other parts of the country…gorgeous, gorgeous mountains. For the most part, we got along because we were in our own little groups. The youngest girls were only five and six or seven. Heather and Angela were Beatle-crazy. I hung out with Nick sometimes (who played Friedrich), but I was also interested in the behind-the-scenes stuff, talking to the grips, to the sound guy or the camera operator.

“Everyone always wants to know about Julie Andrews. She was quite funny, with a British sense of humor. And she was really very sweet; I know she kept an eye on us kids, she tended to herd us, nanny us at times. Her daughter Emma was only about two and oftentimes during our breaks Julie would spread out a blanket on the floor for Emma. We would all pile on the blanket, play cards or just spend time together while they were resetting the camera or waiting for the weather to pass.” Julie Andrews also sang Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious from Mary Poppins to the kids between filming, and even taught them how to sing it backwards.

Of the seven kids, the six youngest ranged in age from five to fourteen. “We hadn’t planned to keep in contact, it just happened,” says Duane about their lifelong bond. In part it was because of public demands for cast reunions.

“There have been a lot of reunion points since 1965, including the Oprah Winfrey Show five years ago. It is always fun and we have a good time together,” he says of the reunions. “We sit down for dinner or just hang out. Julie and the kids, and sometimes Chris [Plummer] have been together many times on TV. We’ve scattered around and the reunions give us a chance to reconnect. As it turns out, we [the kids] have been in almost constant touch by phone and through email.”

What is also intriguing is that they are in touch with the real von Trapps.

"Several of us have maintained contact with the folks who lived the real story, or now their children or grandchildren,” says Duane. The first time the real von Trapps met the “non Trapp” children was around 1998 when the Austrian tourist Board honored the group. “That was when I met Werner von Trapp. My character Kurt was based on Werner. We stayed in touch after that first meeting.” After Werner passed away, Duane kept in contact with Werner’s wife, Erica. Duane, his wife Petra and several other kids from the movie visited the von Trapp family lodge in Stowe, Vermont, where they planted an apple tree to honor Werner.

After The Sound of Music, Duane continued acting through high school, including an appearance in the 1966 Disney film, Follow Me, Boys!, an episode of The Big Valley and a handful of commercials. “Toward the end of senior year, I wasn’t getting as many acting jobs and I decided to explore other interests, which I pursued without any regrets” says Duane. “Those seven years in acting were wonderful and the money I made helped with college.”

Duane majored in geology in college. He had grown up in southern California looking out at Mount Baldy and loved reading stories about mountain climbers. “Seeing the mountains in Austria was a kick,” he says. “I didn’t realize where my love of mountains would lead.” After high school his family moved to Santa Barbara where he worked for the U.S. Forest Service. He later earned a graduate degree in geology and worked for the Alabama Geological Survey, which led to working for a geophysical software company in Seattle.

After working in the high tech industry Duane is taking a self-imposed career break to explore new opportunities. His wife Petra is a neo-natal nurse. They live on the border of Cougar Mountain, where they hike the hills regularly. He has also spent an “inordinate” amount of time on Mount Rainier. “Mountains and outdoor activities have been my passion.”

Fun Facts about Duane Chase and The Sound of Music

• Many people remember Duane’s character of Kurt because of the very high note he sang at the end of his solo for So Long, Farewell. And while he did sing the rest of the song, the high note was out of his range. The younger sister of the actress playing Leisl sang that note.

• Duane’s favorite song from the movie is Edelweiss. “It is such a pretty song and, having seen edelweiss in the mountains, it reminds me of the beautiful countryside that my wife and I have hiked.” With Duane’s interest in mountains, the song Climb Ev’ry Mountain is another favorite.

• Werner von Trapp, the inspiration for Duane’s character Kurt, has four grandchildren living in Portland—they are all great singers and have formed a group, “The von Trapps.” Duane has had two ‘walk-on’ appearances with them in Portland and at Benaroya Hall in Seattle.

• Duane has visited Austria twice since filming The Sound of Music: “I remembered how to get around the city. I can still find the locations for Do Re Mi, the picnic scene and the hilltop where we filmed the final scene.”

• Duane watches and enjoys The Sound of Music whenever he happens to ‘bump into it.’ “As I’ve seen it quite a few times, I can watch other areas of the screen to see if I find any ‘gotchas.” Not many, as we had a very good script girl whose responsibility was to keep a record of many little details during a scene, such as whether my collar is open or buttoned or someone’s hat is tilted to the right or the left.” For him, watching The Sound of Music brings back many fond memories and, he concludes, “It feels like the world’s most expensive home movie.”