After graduating from college, Rigler moved to New York City to go into theater. To support himself, he worked as an interviewer for a marketing research agency and did the initial research for the Waring Blender. He later headed guest relations at RCA's exhibit introducing television at the New York World's Fair in 1940. After the fair, he trained as an RCA Victor Red Seal record promotion specialist – and Rigler came to Los Angeles a year later and became a Los Angeles salesman for Decca Records.