Character Analysis
Steinbeck meets an actor while he and Charley are parked by the Maple River. He and the actor end up having a pretty extended conversation in which Steinbeck quizzes the dude about his background and profession.
If you've ever known any unknown career stage actors, this guy is pretty much what you would expect. That is, there's more than a little flair and grandiosity even in his basic dialogue. Steinbeck picks up on this fact when, after the actor responds with the invitation to coffee with "Delighted." He observes: "He never let down. That's one nice thing about those of the profession—they rarely do" (3.3.51). This seems like a gentler way of offering the old wisdom about actors: they're always "on."
Oh, and despite kind of passing himself off as a serious actor, we learn toward the end of their encounter that he travels around with a dog who does tricks, presumably as part of his performances. So, that kind of goes against the whole "Shakespearean orator" thing the actor had had going up to that point.
But don't get us wrong; the actor is very nice, and Steinbeck seems to find him fascinating. He actually decides to leave Steinbeck before the author is done quizzing him, acting out an old adage among actors: always leave them wanting more.