The Tailgate Entertainer | Performers | Performance Business | Creatives | Artists | Talent Buyers: Recent Episodes
Alan Bruess
Tailgate Entertainer is a podcast for performing artists and talent buyers. The goal of the show is to help those involved in the entertainment industry succeed by sharing years of collected wisdom.
You will not find a more eclectic mix of people in the world than those that wear the label of Performing Artist. Their exciting journeys, lessons, and humorous anecdotes are woven together here to to provide encouragement, education, and support for the industry.
With the zest and sweetness of a pineapple, grace of a dolphin, and jokes as great as your Dad's, Sara will whisk you away to the best vacation / most thrilling circus show you have ever experienced!
25 years as a street performer has given Groovy Guy an individual style and strategy! He will leave you with plenty of wisdom, some great tips and memorable stories.
Bounce on in and listen to a group of trailblazers in the entertainment industry! The ups and downs of creating a show with nothing but raw talent and pogo sticks!
Known for his many faces, voices and props, Bill Robison sets a standard in physical comedy performance. Truly....an industry icon.
Peace, unity, love and having fun is what Street Breakz brings to their audience through hip hop, acrobatics, and comedy!
A fascinating journey through Kimi's life, full of stories and wisdom. Her dedication and valuable contribution to the fair industry stems from years of amazing experiences under vastly different circumstances.
Technically skilled, highly proficient, and amazingly smooth! Jeremiah drops a ton of tips about performing in the fair business, marketing, and life in general. Don't miss the stories about California, the box of juggling props in the attic....and rugs!
Kenny Ahern shares stories about his career as a clown, a little wisdom from his life and even some laundry tips!
Complete creatives, master makers, the whole artistic package! Learn from the best of the best-Mango & Dango!
It's the little things a person does and the little things a person doesn't do that make all the difference when it comes to being successful in the fair industry.
Kicking off season three of Tailgate Entertainer and what the exciting lineup looks like. (NOTE: All recordings were done pre-pandemic)
In this episode, twelve professionals in the fair industry talk about their experience of living through the destruction that Covid 19 has caused. What has happened to our industry and what needs to happen to get things back on track. Great stories, wisdom and insight.
Creating a concrete platform in a saturated market is no easy task. In order to do so, you have to be innovative and original, two characteristics that perfectly describe Robert Smith. Robert Smith is a magician and creative content speaker who struggled to find his way into the fair industry until doing exactly the opposite of everyone else, staying inside the box. Robert Smith is most recognized for his fortune-telling act, which has come to be known as the Conjurer Fortune Machine. Check out this episode of Tailgate Entertainer with Alan Bruess and Eric Haines if you’re interested in learning how to adapt and expand your own creative career.
Show Highlights:
- Starting street magic
- Recognizing the pivot point in a career
- Figuring out how to live with a disease
- The importance of reaching out
- Getting buyers attention
- Becoming the conjurer
- Creating a unique way to perform in a saturated market
- Trusting the audience
- Organically developing an act
- Explaining a nontraditional career to others
- Training people in your profession
- Expanding a personal act and avoiding stealing ideas
- Only working jobs that fit your brand
- Building relationships
- Changing how you perceive no
- The drive behind creating content and marketing
- Using social media to provide value
- Building equity with the community
Resources:
Art To Market
All social media handles: @meetrobertsmith
Podcast: Fair Game
Meet Robert Smith
Robert Smith Presents
Finding your passion can be difficult especially if it isn’t a traditional path but Greg Frisbee always knew he wanted to perform. Overcoming his shyness and fear of failure, Greg took a leap of faith and has become an incredible juggler and comedian. He has performed in all 50 states, over 30 countries, and does over 300 shows a year. His show is fun, goofy, and creates a family-friendly environment for everyone to enjoy. Tune into this episode of Tailgate Entertainer with Alan Bruess and Eric Haines to hear more about how Greg utilized obstacles to establish his career.
Show Highlights:
- Taking the plunge as a full-time performer
- Marketing to fairs
- Breaking news to close family
- The journey of establishing a show
- Struggles with putting a show together
- Trial and error
- The importance of treating others with respect
- How a performance can be a form of meditation
- Being present in the moment
- Struggling with being insecure as a performer
- Alternative pursuits if performing fails
- Creating healthy relationships with fair managers
- Not taking work personally
- Being in tune with the crowd and creating a magical atmosphere
- Finding human connection through travel
- Accepting people for who they are
- Utilizing skills from worldly experiences
- How performing effects those closest to you
Resources:
Bring Your Art To Market
The Rubber Chicken Show
Frisbee Show
The fair industry has some jaw-dropping and mind baffling acts but some acts set the bar higher than others. Marco Landín and Heather Hyde de Landin are creative and talented performers. From costumes to technique, this power couple has raised the bar for all stilt walkers and performers. Their acts are exotic and bring a sense of newness through their full fire performances and stilt creatures. They have perfected the art of embodying whimsical characters and creating a dreamlike atmosphere. Join Alan Bruess and Eric Haines in this episode of Tailgate Entertainer to learn more about creating a magical world.
Show Highlights:
- Being introduced to variety entertainment
- Sharing the miracle of newness
- Bringing something new to the table
- Creating art to be proud of
- Being an influencer through personal art
- Creating opportunities for others
- Finding ways to speak without words
- Design techniques and creating unique shows
- Creating blueprints and refining details
- Finding balance
- How passion pushes you forward
- Building a bubble of wonder
Resources:
Dream City Vegas
Macro Landin
Art To Market
Alex Zerbe has been performing for more than 15 years. He is a master of physical comedy, juggling, and magic. Alex is known as “The Zaniac” which was an idea from his wife. Many love his high energy throughout his performances and his super kind soul, and intelligence. He is a two-time Guinness World Record holder who was voted Seattle's Funniest Prop Comic. He performs in fairs, schools and special events. He is a fantastic entertainer and loves his job as an entertainer.
More in this episode:
- Physical issues that can be challenging in his performances in the future.
- The First Fair that he worked at.
- Lessons that he learned during his first fair job.
- Advice he would give about working in the fair industry.
- How has his marriage dealt with all the traveling associated with performing?
- How much he loves his job and performing.
- He would love to mentor and help other entertainers
- Where he goes for mentoring and guidance?
- When and how he began performing.
- Some of his beats!
Resources Mentioned in the Show:
Art To Market
Tailgate Entertainer Podcast
1,001 Tips on Practicing, Perfecting and Performing Your Act: For Jugglers and other Variety Artists Entertainers by Daniel Holzman
Alex Zerbe
The Zaniac
For many performers, the circus has been a way of life for as long as they can remember. Ivan España is a fifth-generation circus performer and is currently creating and performing in shows with his wife Allison. They both have a heart and passion for the industry and dedicate a surplus of hard work and time to each and every show. Tune into this episode of Tailgate Entertainer to hear more about their journey and their current production, The Great Mr. Swindles Peculiarity.
The Great Mr. Swindle’s Traveling Peculiarium and Drink-Ory Garden is an original production by Salto Entertainment of Englewood, an entertainment group with a decade of live family entertainment production experience. Salto Entertainment’s production and performance credits include the motorcycle madness of Moto Maniacs, the aerial antics and death-defying stunts of the steampunk-themed production FLIPPIN, and co-producers of CIRQUESA – Dream Quest, a journey of self-discovery as told through circus artistry. Salto Entertainment is owned and operated by Allison Blei and Ivan España, whose family was recently inducted to the Circus ‘Ring of Fame’ in Sarasota’s St. Armand’s circle marking their significant contributions to the art and culture of circus amongst many other incredible icons such as P.T. Barnum and The Ringling Bros.
Show Highlights:
- Growing up in a family of entertainers
- Acrobatics and the skywheel
- Giving people memorable performances
- Challenges with bringing an entire circus act to a fairground
- Motivating factors
- Creating shows you create
- Transitioning from conventions to the fair
- Word of mouth marketing
- Individualism and putting in your entire heart
- Fears and difficult circumstances
- Tips for going the circus direction
- Love for entertaining the audience
Resources Mentioned:
bringyourarttomarket.com
saltoent.com
Mr. Swindle's Traveling Peculiarium
Building and creating a unique act is a major accomplishment but it is even more valuable when you get to perform with a close friend. Illusionist Adam The Great and Tyzen The Comedy Hypnotist, also known as the Show Bros™, are two close friends who have established a remarkable show together and continue to create innovative material.
Combining two great talents with amazing shows on their own, they have created an amazing new show, called The Show Bros™, which highlights the best of both shows. In this episode, we go behind the scenes and find out the origins of this synergistic show. The unique thing about this show is that Tyzen and Adam actually perform together - this combination of talents is compelling entertainment! The show is still very new, but is already getting rave reviews and is destined to be one of the greats!
Show Highlights:
- Making connections through the fair
- Being a role model for children
- Maintaining a friendship through working together
- The challenges of marketing for a theatre
- Issues behind the scenes - it’s not all roses!
- Getting advice from close advisors
- Fine tuning productions
- Setting boundaries and legal parameters
- Getting started in magic
- Transitioning into a full-time fair career
- Being innovative and coming up with new acts
- Being patient
- Having fun with your own work
- Plagiarism within the industry
- Learning to write originally
- Performing your best for every crowd
- Charging what you’re worth
- Discovering careers outside of the entertainment industry
Resources Mentioned:
Pacific Animal Productions
Adam the Great
Tyzen
There is a surplus of talent, acts, and shows in the fair industry. Many of the performances have been around for hundreds of years, but some of them recently have sprung and become popular over the last few decades.
Tom Sailor has invented and innovated multiple aspects of the fair industry and currently works with Winter Set Concert Events. He has years of experience and insight on the fair industry that is unique to his creative perspective. Tune into this episode of Tailgate Entertainer with your hosts, Alan Bruess and Eric Haines, if you’re interested in how to break through the industry and taking risks.
- How life led Tom into the fair industry
- Belly Bucking
- The birth of male strippers
- Women’s mud wrestling
- Taking mud wrestling to fairs
- Creating a bungee diving show
- The biggest competition in the fair industry
- What the industry is missing
- Thinking outside of the box
- Areas that lack talent and room for opportunity
- The importance of a personal relationship
- Breaking through into the industry
- Not comparing your act to others
- Always putting on your best show
Links:
Art To Market
Anyone can be a performer, but only hard-working and dedicated individuals become a great performer. It takes many years and lots of practice to establish a name and create a timeless act, which is why not many people make it as a full-time entertainer. Todd Victor has been a full-time entertainer for over 30 years and has created beautiful stages to host various acts, he coaches entertainers, and has established a successful mentoring program to boost other performers. Tune into this episode of Tailgate Entertainer with Alan Bruess and Eric Haines to see how you can bring your art to market and take the next steps to improve your performance.
Show Highlights:
- Moments that led up to being in the fair industry
- Giving advice to yourself in the past
- Taking care of yourself and being innovative
- Adjusting the show to fit where you’re at in life
- Reducing wear on your body
- What needs the fair-grounds can provide for performers
- Pros and cons of working with your spouse
- How unique makeup affects business
- Formula for traveling
- How to adapt shows to stay relevant
- Bringing art to a marketplace and making a living off it
- Taking classes for various skills
- Hiring advisors to direct and critique acts
- Practicing to fine tune skills
- Emphasizing being a great performer
- Finding the balance between work and home life
- Getting the most out of your time and making connections
- Working hard to maintain trust and make others shows successful
Resources:
Arttomarket.info
The entertainment industry is full of unique and incredible people. There are so many innovative and remarkable acts and the people are equally as intricate. Many of these performers are simply doing what they love and also enjoy having the opportunity to bring a smile to others faces, and one of those people is Dennis Lee. Dennis is an overwhelmingly kind individual with a heart for making people happy. He is the founder of The Dennis Lee Show and continues to bring enticing acts to fairs across the country. Tune into this episode of Tailgate Entertainer with Alan Bruess and Eric Haines to hear more about Dennis Lee’s story.
Show Highlights:
- Highlights of Dennis Lee’s life before the fair industry
- Feelings from the first time performing
- Changing the fair from a hobby to a job
- How traveling affects family life
- Making your show unique
- The importance of building a network
- Impacting people’s lives
- Getting kids involved and giving them the opportunity to shine
- Having the ability to make people smile and pull energy from within
- Influencers in the industry
- Making a sincere show
- What is missing in entertainment
While the fair industry is continuously growing and adapting, and continues to evolve since the early days of live entertainment. Michelangelo Nock, owner of The Nerveless Nocks Inc., and his family have been innovating the industry since before 1850.
Michelangelo Nock has a plethora of insight and knowledge about the industry, due to his unique experience growing up in a performing family. He comes from a family that has been performing in the circus and entertainment industry for more than 9 generations. Performing is in his DNA!
This interview is full of history, versatility, and insight on staying relevant in the circus industry. Live performance continues to evolve and the Nock family is evolving too!
Tune into this episode of Tailgate Entertainer with your hosts, Alan Bruess and Eric Haines, to learn more about the impact the fair industry has made and how it has stayed current through generations.
Show Highlights:
- Pursuing the family business
- How the swing pole came about
- Roles being filled in the industry
- Being versatile and incorporating training
- Showing the audience entertainment they’ve never seen before
- Getting involved with other businesses
- Taking care of the grounds
- Being influenced by successful businessmen
- Being a team
- Respecting people’s ideas
- Staying current
- Being creative and working in different fairs
Resources:
nervelessnocks.com
http://pacificanimalproductions.com
The Odd and Offbeat Podcast
Kristen Johnson and Kevin Ridgeway are interviewed on the show today by Elisa Hayes, who knows all too well about life-changing accidents. Talk about people with phenomenal character! Today’s guests are two of the greatest people you will ever meet, and their story is inspiring! Kevin and Kristen are entertainers in a show called Lady Houdini, which is a show featuring escape-type routines. Kristen is known as Lady Houdini, and Kevin emcees the show. They do between 270-300 shows per year, and because their show is so physical, the two train vigorously in order to maintain top physical shape.
In January of 2016, Kristen and Kevin were in a horrible automobile accident. They had been stopped at a red light and proceeded when the light changed to green. A 17-year-old, texting while driving, blew through a red light and hit them on the driver’s side. It was at that moment their lives changed. Kristen says it was like the world stopped turning. Each of them sustained catastrophic injuries.
More in this episode:
- Kevin and Kristen share details about their life-changing accident.
- Emotions run high because the two were taken to different hospitals.
- Tremendous body trauma
- Months of hospitalization and rehabilitation
- Doubts and fear turn to determination
- Kristen and Kevin describe their show and how/when their message shifted.
- Back to work with an empowering message for others
- Dedicating a show segment to speak about the dangers of distracted driving
- Grateful for the generosity of others
- Grateful to be able to continue to share their lives with each other.
Resources:
Pacific Animal Productions, our sponsor/proceeds go to scholarship funding
Lady Houdini website
Lady Houdini’s Facebook page
Ridgeway and Johnson Entertainment
Lady Houdini’s Instagram Page
Elisa’s podcast, Letters To My Daughter
Very rarely are people presented with the opportunity to be born into their career and spend their life learning all aspects of their trade. Fortunately, Courtny Conkle did; she is the youngest female CEO in California and at the Lake County Fair in Northern California and has acquired a plethora of knowledge throughout her years.
Getting to learn different trades in the fair from a very young age has helped Courtny throughout her career and given her the insight to project her career forward. Courtny has been on both sides of the fair as a concessionaire as well as in management, so she really knows the fair from the ground up! Tune in to this episode of Tailgate Entertainer to hear all of the brilliant ideas Courtny has to share with your host and co-host, Alan Bruess and Eric Haines.
Show Highlights:
- Being born into the fair industry
- Long-term goals for the fair industry
- Contributing factors to becoming a fair manager
- Areas that need re-adjustment
- Building relationships in the community
- Showing what you can accomplish
- Eliminating old traditions
- Bringing in entertainment that fits different demographics
- Understanding the ripple effect
- The importance of user-generated contact
- Spending time advertising the right content
- Relationships with younger vs older business people
- Intertwining business with life
- How people respond to the carnival stigma
- Being able to empathize with all sides of the industry
- Having people to mentor you
- Internalizing what you’ve learned from others and how to apply it
- Being a mentor and guide to others
- How to suggest things to people that may help them
- Coming into the fair industry knowing the industry
Resources:
This show is sponsored by Super Science Company!
supersciencecompany.com
SaveSave
Not having a traditional career can make the balance between work and family difficult to juggle. In order to be successful in the Fair industry, you have to learn to balance your life while traveling, creating your audience, and still maintaining your personal life. Paul Isaak is a juggler and performer who has learned to not only juggle fire but learned to expertly juggle his career and his family.
This episode of Tailgate Entertainer reveals angles of the fair industry that have never been seen. Tune in with your hosts Alan Bruess and Eric Haines to see how entertainers manage their families, make connections and still pursue their passions.
Show Highlights:
- How the fair industry differs from other industries
- What performers think about on stage
- Learning how to dissolve the barrier between the performer and the audience
- What drives a performer to create their own act
- Finding a community who understands your passions
- Making connections and maintaining relationships with a traveling career
- Balancing business and family
- Taking your family on the road
- Experiences like no other industry
Resources:
www.funnyjuggler.com/
We’re back with Season 2! It’s an entirely new season, so Alan here to catch you up on everything since Season 1 ended and also the exciting things in store for Season 2. In this first episode of Season 2, you also get introduced to a co-host, who is no stranger to Tailgate Entertainer fans!
The fair industry is an adventurous occupation that few people have insight into, but the Tailgate Entertainer brings you interviews with some of the most reputable performers in the Fair Industry. From acrobats to the youngest manager in the industry, to the inventor of women’s mud wrestling, the hosts Alan Bruess and Eric Haines will take you on a journey to explore every aspect of the fair industry. Tune into this episode of Tailgate Entertainer to see what this season has in store for you.
Show Highlights:
- What Allen has been working on
- Change in work
- Who is coming in the next season
- Shift and adapt
- Couples, youngest manager in the fair industry, and the inventor of women’s mud wrestling
- Sponsors
- Creating Scholarships
Resources:
Eric’s Previous Episode
Suggest ideas on where scholarships go: Tailgateentertainer@gmail.com
Today's episode is an opportunity to have a few questions answered about the show, take a peek behind the scenes a little, and a chance for me to give some final thoughts about the importance of our industry. A huge THANK YOU to all of the guests and listeners that have been a part of the adventure.
- Reasons for producing the show.
- How the show is doing, how has it done?
- Is the show going to continue?
- Did I make any money podcasting?
- Any regrets producing the show?
- Biggest lesson learned producing the show.
- Most frustrating element.
- Biggest mistake I made producing the show.
- Why the fair industry is so important.
In this episode: Mat Wells - son of Kim & Alan Barr
Nathen Smith - son of Robert & Sara Smith
Sarah Hays - daughter of Steve & Elisa Hays
Hayden Newman - daughter of Mike & Ryann Newman
Chase Barton - son of Tammy & Bryan Barton
Brayden Bruess - son of Alan & Renee Bruess
You could operate a fair without a carnival, it might be less fun, but it is achievable. You could probably also run a fair without entertainment, but it isn’t advised. What you couldn’t host a fair without, is food vendors. Food vendors are the anchor of the fair. They are also some of the hardest working people, with a job that doesn’t guarantee a paycheck. For them, the risk is worth the reward. Tune in to today’s fast, food show to hear two of the fair’s best, Kim Barr and Daryl Whicheloe. Order’s up!
Kim & Alan Barr (Pacific Crest Concessions)
- Investing in the food industry
- How has the industry changed in the last 30 years
- The amount of off time food vendors get
- Working and traveling
- Being invited back to the same fairs
- The importance of your presentation and operating
- Connections made with fair family
- Set up time
- Purpose of NICA
- Uniting concessioners and giving them a voice in their industry
- Fair commission
- Potential in the concession industry that people aren’t looking into
- The types of people in this industry
Pain and suffering are always topics pushed under the rug, but what people have failed to inform you is, oblivion is not bliss. Today we are going to sweep it all out from under the rug and hit the topics that are, more often than not, avoided. Feelings of self-worth, effects of tragic accidents, pride, the ICU, all topics that lack a sense of hope, but your guest, Elisa Hays, will hopefully leave you with an appreciation for life and hope in the virtue of humanity. Tune in with your host, Alan Bruess, for a taste of this bitter-sweet message.
- Why people want to talk about their hurt
- Defining your worth
- Dehumanizing yourself in the ICU
- ICU psychosis
- Understanding and experiencing pain
- Acknowledging pain instead of belittling it
- Existing in a fundamental foundational level
- The way pain changes the views of everyone around you
- Finding reasons to laugh when bad things occur
- How accidents change relationships
- Reflecting on memories that impacted Elisa
- How horrific accidents change your motivation
- Living with a handicap
- The disadvantages of living in a wheelchair
- How accidents consume your life
- The ripple effect of doing good for people
Elisahays.com
Facebook: Elisa Hays
Is this generation really evolving? Are we different than other generations due to technology? Or are we simply coming full circle with the advancements previous generations have put in place for us? After years of advancements, we are finally beginning to see the fruits of the internet. But, have these advancements brought us closer together? Or magnified our differences? Tune in while Kady Porterfield answers a few of these questions, and more, with your host, Alan Bruess.
Today, Alan and Kady Porterfield also discuss:
- How Kady became the head of the agriculture department and her history in the industry
- How to get millennials involved, engaged, and keep them there
- How this generation has grown up more diverse and open than any other generation
- The extreme advertisement of everyone being entitled or capable
- The importance of learning and asking questions
- The positive & negative effects of phones and social media
- Tips for older generations to relate and use to help the millennial generation
- The viability of the fair industry
- How to engage through social media
- Showcasing what people want to see but keeping the traditions
- The value and educational resources tied to the fair
- Figuring out how to bring urban kids or schools in general involved
- The importance of the fair
- Showcasing the culture of the community
Time, money, travel, and experiences are all a few things we have in common. In the fair industry, it takes a lot of investment in all of the following. But, a few special things about our guest today is his constant great spirits, his classy behavior, enthusiasm in his work, his amazing story, and the magic he puts into his work.
Welcome balloon artist, Dennis Forel, with your tailgate entertainer, Alan Bruess.
Today, Alan and Dennis Forel also discuss:
- The inspiration that led to his career
- Where his career led with persistence
- Opportunities for balloon artists
- Putting together an original act
- Being rotated between people you work for
- Upholding your act and keeping your enthusiasm
- The importance of being versatile
- People can tell when you’re not being authentic
- You have to be diverse and unpredictable but reliable
- Why you should always go the extra mile
- Being part of the outreach you work for
- The difficulties of having a family while being in the fair
- Being honest about your circumstances with your employers
- Getting the courage to take the next step
- Stumbling into your career
- Mistakes in the business
- The vitality of building relationships
- Showing your commitment
- If you don’t match the theme, you won’t be hired
Gofundme.com and look up Kevin Ridgeway
Balloonacy.com
Dforel@dslextreme.com
Phone number: 310-218-2629
Today's episode is different than our normal episodes. We have so many friends in California that are being affected by the evacuations for the Lake Oroville Dam, and the Fair Industry as a whole is stepping up to the plate to offer help. Today Alan talks with 3 different Fair Managers who have sprung into action to help anyone who has been displaced by this evacuation.
Listen to the episode to find out where to go if you are forced to evacuate!
With everything that’s been going on in today’s media, it’s easy to feel bombarded by the hate and negativity. It’s hard to say whether this is a new conflict, or if we’re simply becoming more in tune to the situation. Join your tailgate entertainer, Alan Bruess, on discussing this new topic that we all deal with on a regular basis and listen for ways you can improve this situation for yourself.
Alan also discusses:
- A remedy for hate
- The importance of expressing yourself
- Art fuels the thirst for knowledge
- The ways art is supposed to make you feel and influence
- Will what you leave behind be remembered?
- How creating love for yourself creates love for others
- Despite what is happening, you have to work for yourself
- Broadcast what you stand for
- If the situation around you is gnawing at your soul, do something about it
Today, we are going to take a look at a new and exciting angle of the fair industry. We’ve ventured through many different aspects of vendors, managers, and various performing artists. Today, we are going to take a walk in the shoes of the person who finds all the talent to fill those slots. Accompany Alan Bruess as he exploring the world of a highly respected talent agent and business owner, Jerry Ross.
Listen as Alan and Jerry discuss:
- The journey of starting a business
- How revenues work for artists with agents
- The job and responsibilities of a talent agent
- The problems of exclusivity when shows contact artists directly
- The importance of having a trustworthy relationship with clients and agents
- Agents are somewhat there to do the dirty work
- What to do when clients contact acts directly and exclude the agent
- The importance of setting ground rules
- The ability to make a living decreases as inflation happens
- What acts are increasing and declining
- The vitality of innovation
- How to nourish and maintain good relationships
- How to approach an agent
- The hard work and tenacity needed to be successful
- Why being yourself is important for an artist
- Introducing yourself to the online industry
Connect with Jerry:
Harmonyartists.com
Just like every other industry, the fair industry is all about connections. But, the special thing about this industry is that everyone is willing to support and help one another. Now, who doesn’t want to participate in that?
Today we are going to listen to and learn from one of the fair industry’s greatest supporters and influencers. This will give you some personal insight and show you the relationships and strong bonds created in this field. Join your Tailgate Entertainer, Alan Bruess, while he interviews his long-time friend and impactful leader, Chris Whatley
Listen as Alan and Chris also discuss:
- His theater career shaped the course of him going into the fair industry
- He built a robot that got him into the fair industry
- He designed a set and used his creativity to get a show booked for fairs
- Everything happens for a reason
- Due to the fluctuation in business, the rug can be pulled right out from under you
- How to keep a group of people loyal and to go along with the journey
- The difficulties of using real guns for the show in different states
- The values and importance of the fair
- The product you produce doesn’t matter if you present it poorly
- The quality of your videos for the fair is vital for success
- Communication skills are lacking in the youth
- You have to be flexible
Links:
Lagniappeproductions.com
Facebook: Lagniappe Productions
When people think of the fair, they think of all the exciting things in the spotlight. Sometimes we fail to notice all the things behind the scenes that make that excitement happen. All the hard work, planning, and orchestrating goes unnoticed. Today, take a look behind the scenes with our special guest Heather Hansen.
Today we are learning more from behind the scenes in the fair industry with lobbyist, Heather Hansen. People like Heather are vital to our industry, because without her, one of America’s favorite entertaining family events would not be possible. She currently lives in Columbia, Washington and over see’s legislation for the Washington State Fair Association.
In this episode Alan and Heather also discuss:
- Her experience with 4H and how she became an agent
- How fair funding works and it’s importance
- Why is funding important if the fair is already bringing in so much money?
- Most of the time, money made by the fair goes to youth organizations
- New Legislatures often don’t have a background in the fair industry
- It is important to invite legislatures to your fairs and keep them involved
- Get to know your legislators because if they don’t know you, they can’t help you
LINKS:
Heather’s email: Heather@wafriends.org
The fair industry is typically stereotyped into a finite variety of things. Ranging from clowns, to corndogs, to cotton candy, to Ferris wheels. Join your Tailgate Entertainer, Allen Bruce, in digger deeper into exploring the entrepreneurship involved in the fair industry, with people like “The Gold Standard”.
“The Gold Standard” or Dianne Linderman, is a renowned business woman involved in fair industry. Dianne Linderman is a creative, innovative, entrepreneur, who has surrounded herself with likeminded people. This group of people team together to form “The Great American Entertainment Company”. Not only has she invested her time in this company, but she many other great accomplishments she has achieved throughout her lifetime. She was a Counselor for troubled teens, owned a restaurant, built a million dollar company, owned a dozen businesses, started a publishing company, helped construct a school, wrote an award winning series of children’s books, married her best friend and raised two kids. She also has a podcast and radio show titled, “Everything that matters in life, parenting, and kitchen table politics”.
- Alexandra, Dianne’s daughter, talks about the animal shows and the events she enjoys
- Talks about the difficulties of moving around and the things she’s learned from it
- Fairs bring the family back together
- Talks about the importance of working hard
- The biggest lesson she learned in 2016 was not to judge people
- Dianne Linderman talks about the problem with telling people they can only be successful with a diploma and treating everyone the same
- People don’t know how to answer what they’re interested in
- Took her love for children and animals to be involved in the fair industry
- She started a roadside zoo and traveling petting zoo and used the animals to help troubled teens
- Talks about the reasons why all of her businesses have succeeded
- The benefits of raising children involved in the fair industry
- The best place to open a business is next to a business of the same trade
- Don’t ever spend your money on other people’s property
- Your biggest lessons come from your failures, you can’t just do everything
- If you do not fulfill your yearning for what you want, you won’t be content
Links:
http://www.everythingthatmattersradio.com/
www.greatamericanpettingzoo.com
Would you like to be more savvy about the best type of structure for your business? Or are you unsure about whether someone doing work for you is an employee or an independent contractor? If so, listen in to today's episode of Tailgate Entertainer with Alan Bruess, as he talks business with his knowledgeable guest, Thomas Rock Lindsay.
Thomas owns a company called Humanly HR. He has more than twenty years of experience working in a PEO (Professional Employer Organization), focusing on all aspects of workers compensation, risk management, loss control, employee benefits, HR and payroll. He also hosts a podcast called SmallBiz Brainiac. Thomas is a valuable resource you can turn to if you're trying to solve problems related to your business.
On today's show, Thomas will share about three topics which come up all the time
in the fair industry:
- Is someone an employee or a private contractor?
- Is your business structured properly for your needs? (i.e. sole proprietorship or incorporated)
- Business Insurance.
Today, Alan and Thomas discuss:
- The huge fines levied by the IRS for treating an employee as a private contractor and how you can avoid this happening to you.
- How insurance and licensing play into the IRS's decision to fine or not.
- What could happen if someone is injured on the job while working as an independent contractor, without licensing or insurance?
- A test you can take to tell the difference between an employee and a private contractor- and where you would go to do that.
- Your exposure to liability due to your choice of business model- whether you should incorporate or not.
- The differences between an LLC, an S Corp and a C Corp.
- Where you can go to learn more about business structures.
- Partnerships in business- a good idea or not?
- How to know where to start with business insurance.
Links:
Thomas's website: www.smallbizbrainiac.com
Thomas's email: tom@smallbizbrainiac.com
Alan's email: tailgateentertainer@gmail.com
Resources:
- Thomas's Podcasts: SmallBiz Brainiac (Note: Episodes 3 & 4 deal with the test relating to employee or private contractor)
- The Khan Academy: www.khanacademy.org
Today we are kicking off our last episode of 2016, it’s going to be a bit of a short one, but a good one. If you haven’t heard our show before, we are all about the fair industry. Also, here is a message to some of the fair boards, we asked on our Facebook what you all want to hear in 2017, so we’ll talk a little about that today and I also asked what your greatest lesson was in 2016. All of that will be captured in today’s show, glad you’re here with us.
Listen to the episode as Alan also discusses:
- Get people who can bring you a fresh perspective and use younger people to get to the demographic you want to reach
- God’s mercies are new every morning and each moment is a new moment to align your mind and will with God’s and the result is perfect peace
- Never Assume
- Don’t let perfection be the enemy of good
- Read the sports page on the front of the newspaper so that you’re not a sports illiterate
- There is always a way with the help of many
- There are at least three sides to every story
- Cherish each moment spent with family and friends
- Try to put yourself in other people's shoes
- Do not judge others
- Being a professional entertainer is a team effort
Resources:
Tailgate Entertainer Facebook Group
Know Grow Prepare Love Facebook Group
Resources:
Welcome to my show everyone! Merry Christmas to you! Now, if you’ve never heard our show before, we are all about the fair industry. We don’t spend a lot of time talking about corn dogs or Ferris Wheels, even though those are two important parts. We spend most of our time talking about the amazing people involved, and that’s why I stay in it.
I decided to make this episode a Christmas episode, but that doesn’t mean I’m leaving out all the people who celebrate in a different way. We have a fantastic guest coming your way, and her name is Teddy Anne Cunningham.
She is originally from Wyoming and lives there now with her husband and two kids. She has been playing at fairs for over 25 years, mostly with her brother Cal. They are both amazing artists. She told me a funny story about them growing up, she said they were “reluctant graduates of the wooden spoon youth movement program, under the supervision of Mama Lark Lindford”. Which kind of reminds me a bit of my mama as well.
I love her story, plus, she is a strong woman of faith, has an angelic voice, loves her family, and loves her career. You might want to put your headphones on for this episode because you’re going to hear some cool songs. I even included one that her brother Cal sings. So sit back ladies and gentlemen, here is Teddy Anne Cunningham.
- She played with her family over 27 years ago for the first time because the band didn’t show up
- Talks about her husband being a fair manager
- Events that have happened in the fair industry that she needed to walk in faith
- Did you feel the stronger your faith was, the stronger the resistance was?
- As an adult, what kind of things are challenging you now?
- Created to have a family and be a performer
- It’s okay that Teddy is not a super established musician because Teddy has also concentrated on all her other dreams (like her family)
- Everything Teddy does is for her kids
- Mothers just spend all their time taking care of their kids, which is Teddy’s biggest challenge in taking care of her own career
- John Dunnigan was her biggest aspiration as a kid
- Teddy and her brother mostly perform locally
- The ultimate dream for performing somewhere: meeting Vince Gill or Ronny Crowell
- For self-improvement, you pray
Resources & Links:
Linfordcunningham.blogspot.com
Tailgateentertainer.com
If you have talent, as yet untapped, or you love watching performers do their thing at fairs, Terry Fator will certainly inspire you. Whether or not you are in the fair industry, you will love Terry. Listen to his down to earth approach to becoming successful as he talks to Alan Bruess about his meteoric rise to fame since 2005, on today's episode of Tailgate Entertainer.
Terry, singer, comedian and ventriloquist/impersonator, a great, funny, regular guy, won America's “Who's got Talent” in 2007. One year later, he signed a five-year deal with The Mirage for $100,000,000! All this, with skills he honed while performing at fairs. Listen in today, as Terry talks to Alan about his incredible experiences and the fascinating people he has met, in the world of the fair industry.
Join Terry and Alan, as they discuss:
- Terry's passion for performing on stage.
- How Terry started performing at age three.
- The touching story of Terry's sensitive handling of an autistic boy at a “meet and greet” session.
- What it takes to win in life.
- How Danny Gans really inspired Terry to become a ventriloquist/impersonator.
- Terry's standing ovation in 2006, at the Rocky Mountain Showcase.
- How Terry got to perform on “America's got Talent”.
- How you can work your way up, as an entertainer, through the fair industry.
- Terry's unprecedented rise to success.
- What you put out, comes back to you.
- What Terry does with the money he earns from selling merchandise at fairs.
Connect with Terry:
www.terryfator.com
Get Tickets for Terry's show in Las Vegas
Join our Facebook Group! We'd love to get to know you better!
This week, we have Karla Majewski to tell us about her animal business. She and her family live on 4 acres in California with almost 200 exotic animals. For nearly 3 decades, her company, Pacific Animal Productions, has been helping to conserve wildlife and endangered species while educating people about the wonders of wildlife. During animal “edu-tainment” exhibits, she lets people see and touch the animals. She comes up with inspired ideas that are mutually beneficial to both humans and animals. She even feeds people with crickets – stir-fried, in tacos, to provide safe animal protein to people.
Show Notes
- How eating insects is becoming more popular around the world
- Her school programs – educational show about animals
- What edutainment accomplishes
- The most renewable protein source for humans - crickets!
- Making cricket tacos in her shows
- She likes grasshoppers too!
- Bugs are pollinators therefore beneficial for men and nature
- Why kids today know more about animals than kids did in the past
- She employs 5 full time zoo keepers to take care of almost 200 animals
- Her purpose for teaching children about animals
- The biggest challenge she had encountered
- The regulation and licenses she has for her animals
- Her plans for the future
Resources
Website: http://pacificanimalproductions.com/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/pacificanimalproductions/
Welcome to a conversation with my friend, Marty Davis. Marty has been in the fair industry longer than anyone I know. This is an honest interview from Marty’s heart with a little bit of crazy thrown in! If you listen all the way to the end, you’ll be treated to a yodeling lesson, a story about streaking, some great advice, and some cowboy songs, too! Don’t miss it!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- How Marty started his lifelong love affair with the guitar
- Working as a DJ and singing with a band
- Stories from The Golden Nugget in Las Vegas
- Why Marty felt like cowboy band costumes were important
- How he met his wife, Kate---and got engaged after just ONE HOUR of conversation! (47 years of marriage followed!)
- Bored and unsatisfied with not being the very best
- Why Marty longed for the “old cowboy sound”
- “God Bless Old Glory”
- Yodeling 101
- Why Marty believes in mentoring kids
- Marty’s beginning in the fair industry—1976
- Why Marty has mentored many in the fair industry, even offering up his home to many as a stable place to live
- Mistakes that young people make today: not learning the basics of a solid foundation
- “Love people enough to tell them the truth.”
- How Marty struggled in the beginning to find someone to help with his career
- What happens when too much ego gets in the way
- Marty’s message to younger people: “Ask for help.”
- Why regrets are a waste of time
- Streaking off the stage---for $100
- A story (and a song) from the old West—by Marty
- Find out more at www.martyldavis.com.
Welcome to a great show with my friend, Pam Shultz. Pam and her husband of 34 years, Rob, run The Imagination Gallery, a business which provides hands-on, interactive science displays for fairgoers. You’ll be inspired by Pam’s passion for what she loves to do and what she’s learned. Join us!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- How Pam and Rob started with sand sculptures and teaching science to science shows
- The evolution of their current fair business
- How things got out of balance initially with their family
- The teamwork now in their business and family
- The agreement about “the final say”
- Rules for employees and why they exist
- Fairs that “took a chance” on them in the beginning
- “How much can I charge?” vs. “How can I provide great value?”
- Loving what you do and having an impact on people
- Barbara Walters: Pam’s inspiration
- Pam’s favorite thing about fair work? Engaging with others
- Why Pam loves reading and learning
- Pam’s book recommendations for young people starting out in the fair industry: How Starbucks Saved My Life by Michael Gates Gill and The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
- Why Pam will still be doing her work at fairs in 20 years
- Who Pam looks up to-- and why
- Email Pam: pam@wildscience.com
How does a couple travel non-stop, perform shows all over the United States, and still manage to love each other at the end of each day? Professional magician Jeff Martin and his wife Pam share the secrets of keeping it all together."
Show Notes
- How the relationship started
- Their show is an organized business with Pam behind Jeff
- Is it tough to be just behind the limelight, not among the show performers
- We are all stronger when we become a community in show business or entertainment industry
- What is Jeff’s biggest struggle?
- What is Pam’s biggest struggle?
- What is Jeff’s favorite food on the road?
- What Jeff would buy if he won the lottery?
- What Jeff likes about Pam
- They’re both on the same wavelength
Resources
jmartinmagic.com
A win-win strategy for both buyers and sellers trying to find common ground at trade shows. In this discussion, Elisa Hays and Alan Bruess talk about how to communicate more effectively between the two sides and the importance of creating dialogue centered on added value.
Show Notes
- What does “negotiating up” mean?
- What buyers and sellers can ask each other to start negotiating
- How can an entertainer provide more value to get higher pay?
- Solving the problem of maximizing value with a limited budget
- Trade shows and conventions matter to both the fair management and fair service providers
- The trade show interaction is transactional and relational, according to Elisa
- When fair managers decide to “negotiate down” they bring in LESS to the fair
- When entertainers try to book their business and they look at big holes in their calendar
- Nobody wants to step up their game when somebody keeps negotiating down
- When entertainers say: “ I guess I’m not a good fit for you”
- Can entertainers emphasize their main skills and prominently display more?
- Service members can negotiate up by being problem-solvers
- When asking more and telling less is highly appropriate
Resources:
http://www.elisahays.org
In this heart warming episode, Tammie Ryan shares her lifelong involvement in the fair industry. She talks about her challenges as an entrepreneur, living on the road, and where she sees the greatest opportunities for others. Tammie is highly respected and loved by many in the industry. As you listen to her open up about her life in this episode, you will quickly understand why.
- Tammy is instrumental in getting Alan Bruess into the entertainment industry
- Tammy invited Alan into the convention
- The biggest takeaway in the job that she remembers
- She knows almost everybody in the industry
- Talking about your products to build relationships?
- Her biggest struggle when she was starting
- She always wanted to be a teacher
- She believes the younger generation needs to get involved in the industry
- Tips in building relationships
- Tips for success in the industry
Let’s talk about the biggest struggles or challenges that artists encounter as performers. My own biggest struggle is: losing my voice. Here are 5 different artists and their challenges:
-
Washboard Willy He was our guest in Episode 4. He travels all the time and often looks forward to a downtime. His hardest struggle is about losing his sense of community with his own hometown, the place where he grew up. Listen and learn what it is he is struggling with and what the 3 things he does to countercheck the situation. You can find him at http:///washboardwilly.com
-
Elisa HaysShe has been performing onstage for a very long time and her biggest challenge, she says, is how to be like the children who have undistracted, sharp focus on everything around them. What does she do to be like these authentically undistracted cute audience? Her website is www.elisahays.com
-
Steve Hamilton (also known as Steve the Pretty Good) Was our guest on episode 5. He said his biggest challenge is how to get booked. One day, he asked a friend for advice. His friend gave him the tools he needed. Find out what it was and how he fixed his little problem.
-
Carrie Cunningham Finding the right support team was her biggest challenge. She was trying to be everything and she reached out to different avenues. Listen to her revelation-- her solutions.
-
Ken McMeans. Ken graced our episode 6. He would be away from home and on the road approximately 150 to 200 days. The hardest thing in his life and career was the balancing stuff. His wife and the children had helped him a lot.
Resources:
Please join our Facebook Group, Tailgate Entertainer where you will find the 5 performers we interviewed here. You can find them at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/201780350198420/
Through hard work and dedication to his craft, Brady has launched into the music scene with a style all his own. He talks about how he developed his own style as a unique blend of many of his music heroes.
He sharpened his musical skills day after day but his parents decided he should get formal training. Brady dreaded the idea of taking real lessons and says he had an “attention deficit disorder” when it came to structured piano lessons. He would play the piano in his own way and with awesome creativity! Brady’s dad loved the style of Jerry Lee Lewis and so did he. The diversity and creativity of Jerry Lee Lewis fed and bred Brady’s innate musical mind – from country music to jazz, and rock n roll – he improvised. Brady was born to play music and sing but he is also a great rancher and a baseball player. He was told he had a keen ear for music. Others think he has a great voice and savvy fingers on the instruments. We think he’s got all of the above.
What you’ll hear from Brady and the Tailgate Entertainer staff:
- How Brady began his musical career
- How his dad helped him become what he is today
- The musicians who influenced his music
- All his mentors and his favorite one
- How his mentor helped him become what he is today
- What he loves about the fair industry
- What else he does besides playing the piano and guitar
- What advice he wants to give to new musicians
- What is the quickest step to success, according to Brady
- He was told he had a “strong ear” for music
- He thinks it’s the way he delivers his music.
Resources
Website
Facebook Page
Facebook Personal:
Twitter: @BradyGoss
Email: bradygoss88(at)gmail(dot)com
Our guest is Louie Foxx, a comedy magician who discovered his knack for playing tricks when he was in kindergarten. It’s the very first time in our show that a guest reads a long introspective entry from his personal journal. Louie read a lengthy entry and I’m thankful for his childish candor. In his journal, he admits to himself that he’s scared of the audience, most likely, his audience’s reaction. He also struggled to keep his speech slower and more coherent. In high school, he got really serious about making people laugh. He built and carried with him a rickety table and rode the bus into downtown to perform magic tricks on the street corner and got paid by “passing the hat”.
In 1996, the Society of American Magician voted Louie as the Best Stage Magician and Best Close-Up Magician in Minnesota. He has also been featured twice in the prestigious Linking Ring magazine which is a magazine for the 13,000 members of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Louie has also written several books about magic tricks for professional magicians.
He keeps a journal about what he did, how the audience reacted and reviews it to figure out what worked and what didn’t work. In addition, he and another performer watch each other’s shows and exchange notes. He’s come a long way since then. Today, his daughter Ella travels with him and lately also performs in his shows. He has appeared on New Day NW, Tru TV’s Guinness World Records Unleashed, Otra Movida TV in Spain, the Nationally syndicated television show How ’bout That or on NBC’s America’s Got Talent. He is also a 2-time Guinness World Record Holder and has been on NBC’s America’s Got Talent, the nationally syndicated television show How ‘Bout That, Evening Magazine, and New Day Northwest.
Louie is indeed living his childhood dream of being a magician.
Show Notes:
- What Louie’s biggest challenge is
- How he keeps up with the competition
- How he keeps himself sane by just inventing magic tricks
- What he thinks is missing from the fair industry
- Why it’s important for the fair entertainment
- We all need a variety of entertainment
- Quote: At the end of the day, we need to connect with people, not with the tricks.
- Advice: Come up with as many original tricks as you can, invent one a day, be creative.
Resources
Website
Facebook:
Download Louie's One Sheet
Wow! It’s the 26th episode of Tailgate Entertainer! I’ve gone this far, more than halfway in meeting my personal commitment to the show. My personal commitment is to deliver a show every Tuesday of every week. It’s not an easy task for a guy like me, 52 years old, who works 12-15 hours a day on my regular job; and I have to add more work hours talking to our guest performers and scheduling their interview, preparing interview questionnaires, setting up the hardware, recording the actual interview, editing the audio to be able to share with you the tips, advice, strategies, and secrets of talented performing artists in the fair & entertainment industry. At this point, it’s not a revenue generator for me and I spend a couple of hundred bucks each month to produce the show so I can present the colorful lives and career of fair people. I learned I have been able to spend quality time and collect wisdom from them and how they succeeded in the fair industry; and I happily shared everything with my audience. This is one way of contributing advice to the people who may want to enter the industry to preserve and perpetuate this form of entertainment for future generations.
In this episode, I share with you:
- The reasons I created this podcast
- My life history – the role played by my stepmother Irene in making me rethink what I wanted to become as a grown up
- Why I chose the fair industry in my podcast
- My role in the fair industry - What I do for a living
- My audience – approximately 30,000 kids attend these shows
- A new product that is coming soon which is actually a by-product of this show
- How much doggone work this podcast is-- I don’t earn any revenue from it yet I spend about two hundred bucks each month to produce it
- Sometimes I go hungry or fall asleep with fatigue while working on the show
- The difference between a podcast and a live show – in a live show, I get instant feedback and see the immediate reaction of my audience. I know what they like and what they don’t like whereas, in a podcast, feedback isn’t immediate and sometimes I don’t even get your feedback. I don’t know if you like my show and what you want to listen to and know. Although the show is downloaded in 9 different countries, unless I get your feedback, I won’t know how you like my show.
- Society has benefited positively from the entertainment provided by the fair industry –it helps build one's sense of self, country, belief system, and culture.
- Fair and circuses today present acrobatic performances and exhibitions of skill, strength, and daring
- Fairs often require immense numbers of performers and even complicated and expensive machinery.
-
The importance of the fair industry - Fairs are unique in our country. They are a reflection of our Communities--a place where people can be entertained, educated, and experience new things
-
Fairs can teach children valuable skills, even life skills
- Fairs can teach children how to raise animals, care for them, and train them tricks
- The fair serves a great purpose-- a positive impact on our society, county, and state fairs
- I’m not quite sure I could continue maintaining this show but I do want to keep it going
- I love the fair industry for a lot of reasons. Do you?
Thank you for listening. Thanks for your time. Please help support this podcast by subscribing to Tailgate Entertainer on Itunes . The show’s life is in your hands. Do pick your favorite episode and share it with your family and friend. Send me your feedback, too. You can contact me directly at Tailgate Entertainer website. Join our Facebook group: Facebook
Thanks again. :)
This week’s guest is Karen Quest, a cowgirl performer born in St. Louis, Missouri, raised in Studio City, California, studied and taught in New York City, and now based in San Francisco, CA. After earning a B.A. in Theatre Arts from California State University at Northridge, she moved to New York City to join the No Elephant Circus and taught with Circus Education Specialists. She continues to blaze a trail with her one-woman act which she calls “Cowgirl Tricks”. Karen trained at the Dell' Arte School of Physical Theater, Ringling Brothers and Barnum. She is an instructor at the San Francisco School of Circus Arts. She has performed to audiences between the size of 5 to 10,000 persons. Did you know that her grandma sent her to a modeling school?
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Where she had trained
- What tricks are included in her show
- What else she does while stilts-walking
- What she calls her 8-foot tall cowgirl (herself, on stilts)
-
Why she is the perfect choice for your events – fair, festival, corporate, private,or special events
-
Her age (yes she says how young she is)
- Countries she had performed in
- Movie stars she had trained
- Historical personality whom she would have wanted to meet
- Circus bands she had joined
- Characters she had portrayed on stage
- The book she recommends for reading
- The shows she recommends for watching
- Her tips to those interested in the same career
- The awards she has won
- Her secret dream
Resources:
Website Cowgirl Tricks
Facebook, Personal: https://www.facebook.com/karenquest
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/CowgirlTricks
Email: kq(at)cowgirltricks(dot)com
Tailgate features Alan’s best friend, John Dunnigan, a most amazing musician who is of the same caliber as the legendary musicians that generations have applauded. He learned to play the guitar as a child because his dad played well and the guitar was always in a corner waiting for him to play it. He writes his own fine music and keeps his albums acoustic and loose-sounding. The highly humorous album “Censored” has 12 songs of which half was written by John. He lives in Montana with his family and spends his leisure time fishing, his favorite pastime. He performs throughout Montana and the Northwest mostly at fairs, and at corporate events, weddings, schools, and other venues.
His voice and his instrument blend in perfect music. Indeed, John Dunnigan can sing a song so beautiful he can make you cry; and he can blurt out a joke in another moment to make you laugh. His music can make you think, laugh, and sing or dance along.
John has 5 music albums and he sang excerpts from about 7 singles in this episode. You’ll love the fine, heart-warming music of John and more:
- His humorous anecdotes
- Listen to him sing his fine songs
- Listen to him sing his humorous songs
- John shares his life with you
- John sings his cover tunes
- His hospitalization changed the way he played his guitar and music…but the quality never changed.
- His advice to fans: 1 ) Play the game a little bit, but be true to your own soul and your music, and 2) Work hard, stay late, but have fun doing it.
Resources:
johndunnigan.com
For the first time, we have a co-host-- it’s John Dunnigan! Our guest is the only one of its kind, Eric Haines, a classic one-man-band entertainer, stand-up stilt walker, artist-illustrator, comedian, juggler, unicyclist, guitarist, and variety artist. Eric has a bass drum slung on his back, a banjo over his shoulder, and plenty of bells and whistles everywhere else! Kids and adults have the chance to play along on maracas, spoons, and a special washboard equipped with a cowbell.
Eric began his career as a corporate entertainer in 1985. Then he went full time as a professional comedian in 1995. He now has over twenty-five years total experience working as an all-around entertainer, both as a comedian and in the professional fields of theater, children’s theater, school assembly programs, fairs and festival entertainment, school workshops and corporate entertainment.
Listen to Eric’s story, music, and comedy.
Show notes
- How Eric became a one-man-band
- When clients regard him as a great value,
- How he markets his shows
- That he becomes a multiple personality “disorder” when he transforms into multiple personalities by means of his various costumes
- He has hurt himself many times during his comedy shows
- His plan when he gets too old and weak to carry his 60-pound musical equipment
- When his body parts wear out for his physically-straining stunts, he plans to evolve into something else.
- Juggling is the most wearying
- What makes him different from the rest of the comedians
- He composes his own music and plays it while he’s walking on his stilts
- He draws pictures of himself
- He has a very strong drive to learn new things, a strong compulsion
- His secret to being multi-skilled and multi-talented
- His advice to young people who want to follow his footsteps
- He has learned to package his art
- His biggest challenge is how to market his shows
Like Eric on Facebook
and browse his Website
More entertaining podcasts on Tailgate Entertainer
Welcome! My guest today has been a friend of mine in the fair industry for over 15 years. I’ve always been intrigued at the way Matt Baker dissects and analyzes his performance after every show. He never lacks the discipline and determination to improve his craft. His comedy stunt show is funny, original, and very impressive. Join me for a great conversation with Matt!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- From Eugene, Oregon to Western Samoa to Europe
- Performing in schools and then on the streets
- Matt’s challenges at being raised as a conservative Mormon in a hippie town
- Rebellion, drugs, and living out of control
- Matt’s terrifying experience at wilderness camp
- Living on the streets at age 15
- How Matt was hunted down by a bounty hunter---for REAL!!
- How Matt became a professional hacky-sack player in Europe—(yes, there is such a thing)
- Why Matt hates his shows and says they are horrible!
- Matt’s struggle in the development of his show
- Matt’s worst gig ever? A track and field meet in Midland, TX, and the death of many doves
- Why it’s OK to say NO
- Why Matt lives with purpose and with NO regrets
- A big fear? “Am I making an impact?”
- How Matt is inspired by old vaudeville comedians, Steve Martin, and the Smothers Brothers
- Matt’s favorite books? Born Standing Up by Steve Martin and Fields for President by W.C. Fields
- Matt’s advice for young people entering the fair industry? “Practice your craft and be a student of your craft. Study others who are successful, but don’t steal their material. Find out why they are successful. Don’t be afraid of practicing. Continually create.”
- Find out more about Matt at comedystuntshow.com.
Listen to more of these shows on
our resource center: http://www.tailgateentertainer.com/
My guest today is a super busy person from the management side of the fair industry---for her entire career! Judy Carrico knows the importance of developing business relationships and developing trust. She is the fair operations manager at the Alameda County Fair in California. Judy is also the author of How to Plan, Pay For and Put on a Wildly Successful Fair Without Losing Your Mind, Your Family or Your Friends. From her 30+ years of fair management, Judy has lots of wisdom and LOTS of great stories. Join us!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- How Judy stepped out of college and into the full-time fair life
- Why Judy followed a friend into the fair industry, leaving her dream of becoming a veterinarian behind
- The best ways to learn the fair industry
- Judy’s job and duties: “I plan a party for 450,000 people and spend other people’s money to put it on!”
- The biggest problem facing fairs? Funding for infrastructure for small and medium-sized fairs
- Why fairs are so important as a gathering place for communities and a way to preserve local history
- Competitive exhibits: they are what sets fairs apart from other entertainment industries
- Judy shares about the commitment to education and youth competitions at most fairs today
- In addition to the normal agricultural exhibits at fairs, engineering and robotics exhibits are skyrocketing in popularity.
- The NEW target audience for fairs
- “Alameda County’s largest classroom”
- Commitment to funding
- The importance of collaborative projects
- Why fair managers need expertise in figuring out WHAT WORKS and what doesn’t
- Why networking is the KEY!
- Judy shares some stories and experiences from her unusual career and with a unique perspective on fair life.
- Find Judy on Facebook!
My guest today is a 22-year old Cale Moon, a Nashville recording artist, singer, and songwriter. In 2013, his parents sold their home and hit the road to promote Cale’s music. Cale’s terrific support team went to over 300 shows last year. He has an inspiring story of perseverance and determination. Join us!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- How Cale is inspired by Roy Rogers
- Cale’s team and the story of his music career
- At age 15, began playing guitar, along with singing and acting
- How guitar made him more of a people-person
- Learning to tell others’ stories
- Hitting the road/lessons learned
- Cale’s biggest surprise? “How much life on the road in a bus costs-just to keep going!”
- Satisfying life
- One of Cale’s most important mentors? Marty Davis
- What Cale truly desires
- Sleepy Little Town—one of Cale’s first songs
- Learning to market yourself at a young age
- Cale’s advice to young performers: “Be humble, be approachable, and always be willing to learn.”
- How young performers undervalue themselves and sell out for too cheap
- Cale’s brand new song about a rare day off (Hear it here!)
- Why time management is Cale’s biggest struggle
- Not allowing himself to get distracted and waste time
- Self-evaluating: Why it’s important
- Find Cale on most social media or at calemoon.com. You can email Cale: cale(at)calemoon(dot)com.
Welcome to an episode I’m calling “Mid-Season Madness,” because we in the fair industry are at the midway point of our season. Most of us have been out on the road, away from home, for a LONG time now. I’m currently in Missoula, Montana, after recent stays in Great Falls, Bozeman----and the list goes on and on. What makes it different for me right now is that I’m traveling with my son, which is terrific for me. Today’s episode is a Tailgate Talk, which means it’s just you and me, talking about some of the behind-the-scenes aspects of the fair life. Let’s talk about some important refreshers---some things for all of us to remember at this point in the season.
Here are Five Tips to help you get through the rest of the season:
- What we’re creating for fairgoers are EXPERIENCES
- They are paying for wonderful, impressive experiences
- Give of YOURSELF
- Magical things happen!
- Do something out of the ordinary for someone else
- Shhh! This is one of life's secrets! (but it shouldn’t be a SECRET!)
- Get a different perspective
- Sit in a “different chair” and look around
- Have a little compassion
- Help those who are a MESS
- Don’t make people feel STUPID
- Let life HAPPEN
- Don’t get frustrated with what you can’t CONTROL
- Your ATTITUDE is all that you CAN control
- Attitude determines ALTITUDE
- My personal story: Why I believe some things happen for a REASON
You can listen to more podcasts here: http://www.tailgateentertainer.com/podcast/
Welcome! I’m excited to introduce you to my friend, Mike Parsons. Mike has an authentic “rags to riches to rags to riches” story to share about his life and his work. I have a hilarious story to share about how Mike and I first became friends; it involves a joke I played on him that made him mad, but I soon gained a friend for life. Mike owns and operates Black Tie Extreme, a full-service professional DJ and Entertainment company. Join us as Mike shares his amazing story!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Mike’s early life:
- “The ONLY child of 11 children”
- Working in construction at age 13, but laid off repeatedly
- The ups and downs of employment
- How Mike became a medical assistant ($1200/month)
- Becoming a DJ: making more in a weekend than in two weeks as a medical assistant.
- Starting a custom closet company
- Becoming a mortgage broker and financial success ($30,000/month!)
- An upgraded lifestyle of unnecessary things
- Losing it all when the banking industry tanked
- A downsized life, washing cars for money
- Back to working as a professional DJ
- Finding the fair industry
- Working street carnivals with a gyroscope
- Working fairs, sleeping in his car
- Working as a fair vendor: What does that mean?
- What has kept Mike going through the ups and downs? “My wife and kids. I know there are many people less fortunate than me. I never wanted to be a burden.”
- Mike’s biggest mistake in the fair industry? “Picking the gyroscope to begin with.”
- Mike’s worst fair gig ever? “When a drunk gyroscope passenger fell out and got hurt!”
- Mike’s biggest surprise? “The closeness of the fair industry”
- Mike’s skill set in making money? “My drive. I want to be THE BEST.”
- What does Mike do for self-improvement? “I go to church.”
- The future for Mike? “Another 5 years or so in the fair industry, then building a house (with NO credit), and serving in missions.”
- Mike’s #1 takeaway from the fair industry? Honesty
- Words of wisdom from Mike: “Be honest, be nice, help others out, and you’ll be taken care of.”
- Find Mike at blacktie.biz.
Welcome! Picture in your mind a little boy in the 1930’s growing up in rural Arkansas. With his horse, Midnight, this boy never aspired to anything other than the cowboy life. At six years old, he would ride the train alone to Wyoming to live and work on a ranch for the summer---year after year after year. Bunky Boger grew up to be a rodeo competitor, bullfighter, and circus performer.
At age 64, his journey took a new path when he entered the fair industry as a promoter of hands-on, interactive agricultural activities for kids of all ages. Along the way, he met his girl, Connie, with whom he built his life, family, and business. It’s a beautiful partnership that has endured the test of time and the ups and downs of life. Today, they travel to fairs with 225 animals housed in 4 tractor trailers. They’ve appeared in several TV shows, commercials, magazines, and newspapers. Listen in as Bunky and Connie share their favorite stories about their unusual life’s work. Join us!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Bunky’s story: The theft of three chickens trained to play tic-tac-toe
- How they secured a 3-year stint at an Atlantic City casino with people paying to “beat the chicken”
- How Bunky started out in the rodeo business and was introduced to bullfighting
- What it was like working on a ranch as a 6-year old boy
- Catching gophers for a penny each!
- How Bunky ended up in the circus—for $3000/week
- Buffaloes, horses, and circus stories
- Transition to the fair industry
- How they handle finances in their unique business
- How he knew in three days that he should marry Connie---43 years ago!
- The multi-talented cowboy, Connie
- Financial hardships, bankruptcy, and losing it all—except ONE buffalo!
- Why their kids rode horses at one day old!
- The story of one bothersome employee
- Connie’s advice for younger people in the fair industry? “Have a passion for what you do.”
- Find out more about Bunky and Connie at fairanimalspecialties.com and www.casinochicken.com.
My guest today is one of the strongest women I’ve ever known. Ryann Boeger Newman grew up in the fair industry since her family ran pony rides at fairs. Growing up in the fair industry, Ryann learned to cultivate her entrepreneurial spirit, always looking for ways to improve the business. Following in her father’s footsteps, Ryann has gone from vendor to fair manager. Her wise, hardworking, and ambitious spirit is evident to all who know her. I hope you’ll understand what it’s like to walk in her shoes.
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What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Her family has done pony rides in fairs since 1961!
- How her dad encouraged her entrepreneurial spirit
- Growing up on the fairgrounds
- Beautiful memories
- The draw of the fair life—it’s home for 5-1/2 months each year
- The family business, being passed down to Ryann’s brother from her father
- Loves the variety, positive interaction, and family time of the fair life
- At age 21, she bought her own pony ride business
- Why Ryann’s pony rides are different from others you’ve seen
- Working with children and animals?
- Ryann became a food vendor (shaved ice) for awhile, but then returned to pony rides
- Develops relationships with people through pony rides
- Husband, Mike, diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2013
- Mike’s attitude: He chose NOT to be sick
- The shift for Ryann: hired as CEO of the Glenn County Fair
- How she continues the family business, too
- Why Ryann now has empathy for fair manager and their jobs
- The difference in working for a board vs. working for self
- The need for grass roots fundraising
- Bureaucracy and paperwork!!
- “Hire good people and get out of their way!”
- Ryann’s advice for new people in the fair industry?
- Goal is to make more money on the vendor and manager side
- “It’s getting harder and less fun, with all the fees and regulations.”
- Criticism hurts when you care so much!
- Will Ryann’s children follow in the family business? She hopes so!
- Hear what Ryann’s daughters, Mason and Hayden, think about the fair life!
- Connect with Ryann: www.happydayponyride.com.
Welcome! Today I want to introduce you to an amazing friend, fishing buddy, and colleague. Brad Tylman’s curiosity has led him to a vast knowledge of reptiles, ecosystems, education, and the fair industry. His commitment to education has prompted his travels to over 38 countries, researching, filming, and educating himself further. His attitude is, “How can I be a teacher if I’m not a student?” He is the owner of Brad’s World of Reptiles, and appears at 25-30 fairs each year. Let’s find out more about Brad!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- How his love of nature and animals was fostered by his grandparents as he grew up in Wheaton, IL
- Turtles! They have always been a favorite!
- How Brad grew up with his constant companions of fish, snakes, turtles, and bugs
- Brad worked as a deckhand on a fishing boat after moving to Oregon.
- Dream job! At age 18, he became the full-time curator at OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry).
- Other unusual jobs included working on a turkey ranch, EMT, and volunteer fireman.
- How every “job” Brad had blessed his growth and fueled his passion for wildlife
- 1991: Brad’s first fair exhibit expanded his passion for animals, nature, and education, while providing hands-on animal interaction for kids.
- Why Brad is a “professional deprogrammer” about the irrational and impractical fear of snakes
- 1993: Brad travels the world to learn more!
- “You can’t understand the place where you live until you look at your village through another village’s eyes.”
- Why humans must respect the world and its resources
- How Brad creates “maximum contact with minimum conflict” in his large-scale exhibits
- His thoughts on the recent alligator attack in Orlando
- How policy is made concerning animals and habitats
- How he restored an ecosystem on his property in Corvallis, OR
- “Saving a species means saving its habitat.”
- Why Brad is committed to teaching conservation and biodiversity
- The criteria for Brad’s animals: captivity-born, lower metabolic rate, and sedentary nature
- “Stereotypic behavior”—What is it?
- His thoughts on the life and impact of his good friend, Steve Irwin
- What can we do for the future?
- Brad’s “Lucky” life: “Luck is simply the combination of preparation and opportunity.”
- Find out more: bradsworldreptiles.com and find him on Facebook!
Welcome! My guest today is FULL of fun and laughter. Danny Kollaja, aka Lanky the Clown, is original, funny, and approachable. He knows his business and knows how to work hard. He’s here to give us a glimpse into the life and work of a professional clown—which may not be all fun and games.
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Coulrophobia: Have you heard of it? The irrational fear of clowns
- Danny’s home base: Corpus Christi, TX
- How a high school production launched Danny’s career as a clown
- Danny’s first “clown alley” of all older women
- “This might be interesting.”
- Danny was in his late 30’s before clowning became his full-time profession.
- Now, 90% of his income is generated from the fair industry.
- Danny sees himself as an “ambassador of goodwill.”
- He brings “attitude adjustment” to people by helping them escape for a moment.
- Have you ever seen a clown driving down the road? Danny drives in full costume!
- Danny shares his worst clown experience, why you should pay attention closely to a child’s eyes, and how it feels to be thrown up on!
- How Danny loves bringing joy to people of ALL ages
- Danny loves the opportunity to perform at children’s hospitals across the world.
- “Stage acts bring people to your fairgrounds, but the ground (strolling) acts are what keeps them there.”
- Danny shares his struggles as a clown
- How he performs as multiple characters all in one day!
- How he performs in other countries, “speaking the international language of laughter”
- Bodily functions: They ARE the universal language!
- The do’s and don’ts of performing in other countries
- What do clowns do when they socialize with other clowns?
- A challenge for Danny is having to be “on” all the time that he’s in makeup and costume
- Want to know more? Visit www.clownone.com or call 361-852-5696.
Welcome! Today’s guest is John Allgaier, the owner of BC Characters, an entertainment company that started as a strolling fair act. If you think “slow and relaxed” defines a strolling act, then you’ve got the wrong idea here. John and his performers use body puppetry in costumes at a frenzied and energetic pace. Let’s find out more from John!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- To get an idea of John’s characters, think Fraggle Rock meets Captain Caveman, in full-size body costumes.
- Each costume is made of foam and metal, weighing 30-50 lbs.
- The fair industry IS John’s source of income.
- A physically demanding test of endurance
- Why your performance must be STRONG
- John’s business started in 1990, with only one costume. (The 12th one is in process now!)
- Why John has NO regrets
- “You will always learn more from your mistakes than from your successes.”
- John looks forward to stepping aside and seeing his “guys” carry on the business.
- What’s important to be successful in the fair industry? Be flexible to change, adaptable, and understand your customer.
- The patrons are your #1 boss!
- There is a power in the costume.
- Why families trust a character in costume
- Be aware of interaction and contact with patrons.
- John’s biggest fear? Keeping his image and his quality of service
- Balancing family life, marriage, and life on the road
- John’s biggest mistake? Trying to push and grow too fast and losing quality in the process
- People have to know about your act and you have to be good enough to be invited back.
- John’s advice: Listen more than you speak, be flexible, and keep your demands low.
- Find out more about John: www.bigmouthe.com.
Welcome! My guest today is Michael Hilby, known as “Hilby, the Skinny German Juggling Boy.” He is a really great performer who was born in Germany and became a social worker. Soon he transitioned to becoming a street performer who traveled the world. He now lives in Ithaca, NY with his wife and kids. His act is in high demand and is one of the best comedy acts to ever perform.
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Hilby learned to juggle at age 23 in India.
- He traveled with his wife to Hong Kong and Japan, but then settled in NY, where her family lived.
- For five years, he flew back to Japan once a year for six weeks to be a street performer.
- This was his full-time income for the entire five years!
- He learned to speak Japanese to help with his performance.
- He soon stayed in the US and worked at Busch Gardens in VA for six months each year and transitioned to performing in English.
- On his one day off from Busch Gardens, he would go work as a street performer and was amazed at the money.
- Soon he left the amusement park and began full-time as a street performer.
- Why a tagline for your name is important
- He learned to connect and engage with people.
- He has no regrets for leaving his social work career. “Why? What’s the point?”
- Hilby shares the uniqueness of this kind of performing and some of his venues.
- The worst gig ever was a college stint that was barely promoted and scarcely attended.
- The unexpected challenges make you a seasoned performer.
- Hilby has performed in 68 countries!
- Hilby loves to see performers who are committed and have a spark for what they do.
- His biggest fear is the age and physical limitations that will inevitably come to him.
- For young performers: practice your act, do all the work you can (NOTHING should be beneath you!), and take workshops.
- Performing can be a GREAT income!
- How learning to speak Japanese helped his performance there
- Hilby speaks Spanish, German, Japanese, and English—and will become a US citizen soon!
- Differences and surprises when he first came to the US
- Hilby still does cruise ship shows for German passengers.
- The hardest part of street performing is convincing them that it’s a job you are CHOOSING to do!
- “When you are training to be a great performer, the first thousand shows don’t really count.”
- Find him at www.hilby.net.
Welcome! Today we’re talking to Alyssa Daire Nelson about maximizing your strengths. The introduction to this episode was in last week’s Episode 10. Please listen if you haven’t! Alyssa is a personal strengths coach and the owner of Daire Success Coaching. She helps businesses and solo entrepreneurs maximize their innate strengths. Her greatest joy is seeing breakthroughs occur when people maximize their strengths instead of fixing their weaknesses. I met Alyssa at a podcast conference, where we were both learning about all aspects of our new journeys into podcasting. I was on her show recently and took her strengths test. She’s here today to talk about her work and to analyze the results of my test.
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Alyssa shares her “Aha” moment in her early 30’s.
- The Strengthsfinder Profile test is the product of 40 years of research.
- The profile test has 180 questions, mostly based on “Would you prefer _____ or ______? It takes about 30 minutes to complete.
- The profile test helps you identify triggers about others that may “drive you crazy.”
- Why people are not meant to be well-rounded!
- We lean into our top 10-15 strengths ALL the time.
- Each strength has a need, and when the needs aren’t honored, we experience frustration.
- Alan’s top strengths are positivity, maximize, learner, individualization, and achiever. Alyssa explains each strength and the danger in its overuse.
- “Two-thirds of our weaknesses are just strengths misapplied.”
- In maximizing our strengths, we take care of many of our weaknesses.
Resources:
www.daire2succeed.com
www.strengthspodcast.com
Maximize Your Strengths podcast
Truth & Daire weekly email newsletter
Welcome to this Tailgate Talk episode! There is no guest today; it’s just you and me, and we’re talking all about YOU! We’ll focus on your relationships with others and maximizing your strengths in this two-part episode. Next week, we’ll be joined by Alyssa Dare Nelson, a strengths coach and host of the Maximize Your Strengths podcast. Visit www.strengthsfinder.com to find out how to take the online assessment test to identify YOUR strengths.
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- The analogy of “the toolbox,” birthed from my own experience working in my little corner of my dad’s workshop, with child-sized tools and scraps of wood
- How each of us is given an individual “toolbox” in life, but many people don’t know what tools they have or how to use them
- The mark of a successful person is someone who KNOWS what’s in their toolbox and how to use it.
- The problem with school environments is that often we are put in places with no tools, with tools we don’t understand, or with tools we don’t know how to use.
- “Knowledge without action is useless.”
- Success means taking your toolbox knowledge of strengths and applying it for maximum result in all areas of life.
- We have to learn to apply strengths without OVERUSING them. (That’s our main focus for next week’s show!)
- The more SELF-AWARE that we are, the better we become at developing relationships with others.
- I’ll explain the self-awareness tool called the Johari Window—developed in 1955, using four “panes” to identify areas of strength and weakness.
On last week’s show, I asked for listener feedback about the future direction of the show and what you’d like to hear. I still want to hear from you, so let me know your thoughts. Thanks for listening!
Welcome, and thanks for joining me! We’ve made it to Episode 9, which is a milestone that most podcasters don’t achieve. Many start with a bang but quit before this point. I’m dedicated to bringing you quality content, but I want to give you what YOU want to hear. To this point, I’ve brought you stories from performers in the fair industry, but you know there are many more people with amazing stories as well. We call these people our “fair family,” and they are a cross-section of grass-roots Americana—wonderfully talented people with stories that need to be told.
So, here’s the question: Do you want the show to continue to highlight only performing artists? Or do I turn the spotlight on the huge variety of people that make up the many other aspects of our industry? I need to hear from you!
Let me know what you think and what you want to hear. Email me: tailgateentertainer@gmail.com or ask to join our private Facebook community. Look for Tailgate Entertainer and ask me to include you so you can comment. Thanks!
I hope you’re ready for a fun time with my guest, Amanda McDaniel! Amanda is the co-owner of Friendly Farmer’s Barnyard Review, a music, magic, and comedy production. Amanda and I performed next to each other for a couple of years, and I’ll always think of her as someone whose stories WILL make you laugh. Join me to hear more of Amanda’s crazy story!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Amanda describes herself as a variety show entertainer who also owns a production company.
- She books variety entertainers for special events, spends four months each year as a fair entertainer, and has spent about ten years in the fair industry.
- She and her performing partner, Zakari Asiago, developed the idea of the farm-themed show.
- She and Zak are married, but NOT to each other! They are good friends who travel and perform together and are co-owners of the show.
- Although Amanda went to school to be a teacher, she has always loved the technical aspects of theater and started performing at a young age.
- While working at a fire department for 14 years, Amanda used her clown act to teach about fire safety, but she never dreamed of using her entertainment talent to generate an income!
- When she started doing paid entertainment at kids’ parties, she felt empowered and fulfilled.
- The thing she enjoys most about entertaining is being on stage, playing a character, and interacting with kids.
- The biggest struggle in the entertainment lifestyle is being away from home, away from her husband, and from her elderly parents.
- Amanda, a relative newcomer to the fair industry, estimates that it provides 75% of her income.
- Amanda likes the fact that there is a clear off-season during spring and summer, when she can work at resorts near her home.
- She shares her worst gig experience about being in the magician’s box when a severe thunderstorm hit in Hickory, NC.
- A big frustration for Amanda is agents who are unfair and charge more than the agreed-upon rate.
- Her advice for young entertainers? Put your show together and perform locally---A LOT! Talk to others in the fair industry, gather information, and ask questions. Be flexible and don’t undersell yourself. Don’t roll out your show until it’s a complete quality product. Be professional and be impressive.
- Common mistakes made by entertainers are being too demanding of fair managers and having a generally “crappy” attitude.
- Remember that everything is about relationships, especially between performers and fair managers.
- For more information, visit www.barnyardreview.wordpress.com and join the Tailgate Entertainer Facebook group!
Today's guest is Shanae'a Moore. At only 23, her resumé eclipses her age. Shanae'a started in early life as a ballet dancer and expected that to be her career path. And injury changed her course, and eventually went on to study theater and drama. Her Mother was a drama teacher, so the process of simply growing up, Shanae'a was able to amass extensive theater credentials. Shanae'a graduated with a BFA from Sam Houston State University. She's mature beyond her years and doesn't fit the mold of how society thinks of millennials. I hope you enjoy this interview as much as I did!
In this episode, Shanae'a also discusses:
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Why she doesn't make plans
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What learning as much as you can, will do for your career
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Why writing a play is something she wants to do.....but not now
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How her "Social Justice, Warrior" personality can sabotage her
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Her secret to success! Let's just say, many people twice her age don't get this one
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The lessons she learned about connection from another actress and how it changed her
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The understated beauty and art that we miss every day
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Why she gets mistaken for a 14-year-old
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Why she coaches people more than twice her age
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Being around people her own age is difficult and why she avoids it as much as possible
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How just working on her is hard enough, so she's not stuck in the "competitive" phase of her career
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Strategies for "shutting off" in order to preserve her heart
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You are not your industry
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How her faith in God sustains her through tough times
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The world is so much bigger than music and art - it's a multi-verse, not a universe
You can connect with her website at:
www.shanaeamoore.com
Welcome! My guest today is Ken McMeans, an entertainer with many great stories to tell. Ken isn’t afraid to open up his life and his heart with total transparency so you can learn from his experiences. He has been in the entertainment industry for his entire life. He now performs and owns an entertainment company. Ken is a living example of someone who never quits, no matter what curve balls life throws at him. Join us!
What you’ll hear in Ken’s amazing life story:
- Ken grew up in a family of thoroughbred horse trainers in Washington, but spent his young adult years trying to get away from that to do something else.
- A creative writing teacher in high school awakened Ken’s interest in journalism and writing.
- He started playing guitar at age 17 and was enthralled by the country music scene.
- The bars and clubs he played, the record industry, and some harmful influences led to Ken’s drug problem.
- Through the 80’s, Ken was wheeling and dealing in the music industry, but became discouraged and left Hollywood in ’91 to enter rehab for his cocaine addiction.
- Interestingly, Ken joined the Screen Actors Guild and became a stunt rider and actor, doing small parts in over 200 movies and numerous TV shows.
- Even though acting provided his living for six years, it was not his passion; he knew there was “something else out there” for him.
- Ken, his brother, and a few friends put together a traveling cowboy comedy act to perform at small fairs.
- The popularity of his act exploded and soon he had multiple performing units traveling the fair circuit across the western US.
- Laugh with us as Ken shares a few of his “nightmare” stories about bad hires over the years!
- As a performer, Ken’s intention is to provide a “surprise” for every fair-goer around every corner.
- He loves interacting with kids and families and touching lives on a daily basis.
- Ken started playing music again a few years ago, and started his entertainment business because he saw the need to bring country and western artists to fairs.
- “My life is surreal in the last few years.”
- With a huge roster of artists, Ken’s company is now the largest country music agency in the western US.
- Later this year, Ken and his wife (The Stereo Chickens) will release a new album, produced by fellow artist/songwriter Travis Meadows.
- Ken’s advice for young performers:
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- No matter who you are, you’ll be playing fairs throughout your career.
- Fairs are a gold mine for entertainment ideas.
- You can reach Ken and learn more at www.kenmcmeanspresents.com.
Welcome! Today’s guest is Steve Hamilton, aka Steve the Pretty Good. Steve is a magician originally from Prince George, BC, but is now a US citizen who lives near Seattle. Steve has performed his magic all over the globe and is very well-known in the fair industry. He is best known for his Flying Carpet! Let’s catch up with Steve!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Steve tells the story of the origin of his Flying Carpet,” necessity being the mother of invention.”
- After high school, Steve was a Marine and later worked as an EMT.
- Steve loves the left-brain/right brain component of magic.
- Steve started street performing with card tricks, which he calls “the best training for fair work.”
- A friend suggested that he go to China to do his show, even though it seemed impossible.
- His boss would not give him the time off to go to China, so after 25 years as a firefighter and paramedic, Steve turned in his resignation.
- Steve didn’t want to look back on his life with any regrets or questions like, “Could I make a living at magic?”
- Steve went to China and performed with over 80 performers from all over the world; it was amazing, inspirational, and scary at the same time.
- Steve shares the funny story of how his wife became involved in his magic show, even though she was at first adamantly against it.
- Steve shares about the loneliness of traveling the fair circuit when his wife isn’t able to travel with him.
- Steve’s worst gig ever? A small fair with a small stage where he and his wife attempted the “substitution trunk” act
- After 30 years, Steve still spends a great portion of his day saying, “How can I make my show better?”
- It takes skill to make the audience feel like a part of the show—to connect with them.
- How did Steve become known as “Steve the Pretty Good”? Listen in to find out!
- Steve’s advice to a younger person starting out in the industry? “Know the history of magic and appreciate your craft.”
- As a performer, you should always dress like you have somewhere better to go after the show. (i.e. dress better than the audience!)Dress like you respect your craft!
- Some younger performers are overconfident, which is a turnoff.
- Reach Steve at www.funnysteve.com or www.prettygoodmagic.com.
Today’s guest is Washboard Willy, also known as Larry Hiskett. He is the person who changed the direction of my life and taught me some valuable lessons. Back in the mid-90’s, when I was learning to be a performer and run my business, I would run into him everywhere I went. He was a “Musical Mountain Man” and a wonderful entertainer. Join us!
Washboard Willy shares the following about his amazing life and work:
- Larry began working as a drummer in bars and clubs all over Kansas at age 15.
- In 1985, he worked as a landscape architect and a park planner in Colorado.
- He played in a band that specialized in German polka music!
- He had a motorcycle crash that paralyzed his girlfriend and sent him into therapy.
- He gave a 90-day notice and quit his job, and then discovered the washboard.
- He became obsessed with the instrument and modified it with all kinds of percussion instruments.
- Larry developed the Whiskett Rhythm Board, created his own musical tracks, and formed a band.
- Soon, he was invited to visit Japan in a Sister City program.
- A couple of years later, he was invited to go back to Japan for a 6-month visit and did a one-man show at a restaurant.
- The biggest challenge was figuring out how to connect with the children when he couldn’t speak their language.
- Find out how a few rhythm toys helped him bridge the gap and connect with children and their parents.
- When he returned to the US, he knew he wanted to give up his work in bars and clubs to become a children’s entertainer.
- He performed in preschools, schools, and ski schools around Colorado while still working as a landscape architect to supplement his income.
- Washboard Willy has been a musician for 50 years! He feels blessed and full of gratitude at what he gets to do.
- 80-90% of his revenue comes from the fair industry, even though younger entertainers have a negative view of the industry.
- Willy’s wife of 13 years has performed with him in the past, but now serves as his manager.
- He has teamed up with Lloyd Mabry to create “Lloyd and Willy,” which plays all kinds of music and musical comedy.
- Willy’s advice: “Stick to it. Don’t ever give up. Always look for opportunities.”
- Willy shares the story of moving his wagon around the Oregon State Fair and how he adapted and evolved his creative, fun, atmosphere at the fairgrounds.
- “Whatever you do, make it YOU. Don’t copy someone else.”
- Find Willy at www.washboardwilly.com or on Facebook at Willy’s Washboard Jamboree and at Lloyd and Willy.
Welcome! This is the first in the series of “Tailgate Talks,” designed to help artists who are working hard to further their careers and build better relationships with clients. Today, there is no guest to be interviewed; it’s just you and me. I’m taking this opportunity to share my 20+ years’ experience in what I’ve learned, even though I don’t consider myself a guru or one who has “arrived.”
Today’s Topic: The Construction Zone
- This came from a recent highway trip that I took, encountering a large construction zone, an obstacle along the way. The Construction Zones in life are where the work happens and where we grow as performers and people. None of us has “arrived” and we all run into bumps in the road along the path to where we are going.
- For example, I used to be scared to death to speak in front of people. My “road” became bumpy and I had to undergo “construction.” What did I do?
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- I tried Toastmasters International, but struggled to speak in front of peers.
- I partnered with Junior Achievement, teaching junior high school students about business. I learned to overcome my fears, gave back to the community, and grew as a confident speaker.
- Remember, growth requires time, acquiring new tools, and accessing new materials. You’ll be able to look back and see why the “bumps” were there. Others are watching you go through your “Construction Zone.” How you handle yourself will define your character; your future and your bank account depend on your character growth.
Cody Beebe has an authentic sound and depth of soul to his music. Originally from the state of Washington, he received a civil engineering degree, but then decided to follow his heart to become a musician. He has since performed in 30 states and 5 foreign countries and is the creator of the band, Cody Beebe and the Crooks, along with a few others. He runs his own video production company and a metal print business. You might call him an artist and you might call him an entrepreneur; you would likely be correct on both counts! Join us!
What you’ll hear in this episode:
- Why Cody said NO to civil engineering and following the inspiration from his uncle
- How the economic crisis pushed him onto the road with his music.
- How Cody got his band
- The best part of traveling on the road
- Cody shares a hilarious story of playing music in the bathroom of a hotel suite! It really happened!
- “Good impressions are critical!”
- Cody’s favorite song that he wrote
- Cody explains how Chinook Fest began and how it’s grown into the huge event that it is today.
- Cody's unique partnership with the Grandview School District
- Cody explains how artists have to create value before people will pay you for what you’re worth.
- The issues facing performers, like drugs and alcohol, can blow huge opportunities---and have done that for many.
- The thing talent buyers look for that will keep you out of the business
- “You don’t need to run through the wall; just keep pushing on it.”
- Find Cody at www.codybeebeandthecrooks.com. Find out more about Chinook Fest at www.chinookfest.com, and find Cody’s music on iTunes!
Welcome to our first guest episode! Roberto the Magnificent is an excellent performer who has been in the entertainment business for a long time. He started as a juggler at age 11, in 1981, and has now performed in fairs in 46 states! Roberto’s show includes interactive comedy with amazing stunts; he has opened for many well-known celebrities and artists and appeared on many TV shows. Let’s catch up with my friend, Roberto!
In this episode, you’ll hear the following:
- How he got his start at age 12!
- His first experience at "passing the hat"
- The best advice he got from his parents, regarding his unconventional career
- The Gentleman Jugglers
- Marriage to an entertainer is NOT easy!
- During difficult times, Rob found therapy in his work
- Hear his story about falling during a New Zealand show and finishing the show despite a broken wrist!
- Rob has developed about 13 unique characters and themes
- “The greatest compliment is when a kid aspires to be just like me.”
- How Rob recommends getting started in the business
- “Part of learning is having things NOT go your way. Learn from mistakes and use them to your benefit.”
- Find Roberto at www.robertothemagnificent.com.
Welcome to our first episode! On this podcast, you will get a glimpse into the lives of some very talented and exciting people. You will meet some unusual artists and hear about the passion that drives them to do what they do.
Here’s what you can expect from this episode:
- How this podcast received its name—from some of my favorite memories tailgating with other entertainers, sharing food, swapping stories, and forming friendships
- Where I come from in this industry—from designing, building, and performing in shows as an owner/operator of an entertainment company
- How you will hear from normal people who lead drastically abnormal lives, as jugglers, musicians, and hypnotists
- How the podcast will feature talent buyers who book corporate events and fairs in this industry
- “Tailgate Talks” will be a special feature of this podcast in which we address questions from you, the listener
- How we will tackle important business and financial issues unique to this industry
- Reach out to me! I would love to hear from you and know what you’d like to hear about on the show!